Confidence to Start

As a follower of Jesus, I like being prepared and ready when I have an opportunity to explain the hope I have in Him. Trust me, you don’t have to be a Bible scholar. I’m certainly not. That said, loving to read and study the Word certainly helps you when reaching people. The Bible is full of stories about conversations between people. Showing folks the Bible will introduce and connect them to God’s Word so they can start using it as their guide for life.

Usually, before I start reading stories from the Bible to someone, I want to hear the person’s story. It’s easy to relate to someone’s story because we all have one. I have found that to be the best starting place. Swapping stories is not some weird, religious moment because we already share our stories every day, whenever and wherever people come into contact with one another.

When you become mission-minded with directives from Jesus—the One you live for—you want your story to lead to His story.

What’s your motive for listening to someone? Hopefully, it’s because you care about the person the same way Jesus cares about others. He came to seek and save. Caring is where that journey begins. When we stop caring about people or only care about certain folks, we lose touch with the message of Jesus. On the day our lives finally come to an end, it will be the people we touch and have connections with that means the most. That truth is often revealed when attending someone’s funeral service. What is said, what is not said, and who comes to grieve and pay respects are all telling of the kind of life a person lived.

We all have a story of our journey through this life. Some life stories are great, others not so much. Yours may be wonderful and interesting, or it may be sad with lots of damage or bad decisions. Maybe it’s some of both. Yet you will never get to know other people’s stories until you ask.

For that reason, asking questions is the basic level of where to start in sharing your faith. Simple questions like, “Where are you from?” or “Do you have a family?” or “What do you do for a living?” are some of the most common questions we all ask to start a conversation with someone new. I find that asking questions is very easy. Hopefully, as you begin to seek, truth can be found. Just as 1 Peter 3:15 says this is where our preparation comes to help us “give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” This approach is what separates the mild and mundane conversation from the Gospel-minded mission that Jesus came to bring us.

If we are trying to figure out if someone has a relationship with the Lord, then we need to know how that relationship works. Let’s start by looking at how our relationships with people are formed and how they can become great.

Respond

• Share the reason for your hope.
• Who needs to hear your story?

Prayer

Precious Savior, thank You for saving me and allowing me to share the hope I have in You with others.