Your Most Valuable Tool

The following is an excerpt from Dan Owens book, Sharing Christ When You Feel You Can't

The Institute of American Church Growth polled more than 14,000 Christians and asked them, "What or who was responsible for you coming to Christ?" Ninety percent of the responders stated that a friend or relative who cared for them and invested time in them was the primary factor in their decision to accept Christ as their Savior.

Ironically, most of us lose our non-Christian friends within two years of coming to Christ. How are we going to lead someone to Christ if we don't have even one non-Christian friend with whom we are spending time and developing a relationship?

Jesus spent more time with people in their homes and in the marketplace than in the religious settings of the temple or the synagogues. A classic example of this is Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4. His conversation with her, eventually leading to her trust in Him as the Messiah, began at a common place (a well) around a common interest (a drink of water).

A while back I began to realize that many times the right tool for building bridges to people is an activity you enjoy - a hobby or a sport, for example. We always think about taking someone to church so they can hear the Gospel, but sometimes God wants to use the things we do in life to reach others, especially if they share our interest.

When Deb and I got married, I quickly discovered something about her. She was into this things called "crafts." You glue things. You sew things. You create things. Within the first year of our marriage, our second bedroom was taken over by crafts. Honestly, I couldn't have forced my way into that room if I had wanted to.

Deb used her hobby to build bridges into the lives of women who were just as interested in crafts as she was. She does this very, very well, and she also has fun doing it.

Deb and I were at our sons' gymnastics class one time when all of a sudden I couldn't find her anywhere. Then I noticed she was talking to another woman nearby. Later in the car I asked her, "Did you know that woman you were talking to?"

"Oh no," she said, "but we discovered that we will be taking this doll painting class together." When it comes to crafts, Deb knows no strangers.

. . .

When we were still just visiting what became our home church, the director of women's ministries came up to us after a service and told us about the craft classes they were creating so women could bring their friends and build relationships. My wife literally began to cry. I thought. Praise the Lord. Somebody finally figured out that you can use a variety of ways to get people to church and still have fun.

. . .

A few years ago Deb had to be hospitalized while she underwent an operation. I took time off to be Mr. Mom and take care of our boys for five days. Things began arriving at our doorstep during the day. Food. Presents. Cards. Flowers. I'd go to the hospital and say to Deb, "We had a nice meal tonight. It was provided by So-and-So. I don't know who that is. Do you?"

"Oh yea, that's the person I'm making a quilt with," she responded.
"I don't know this person either. Who is that?"
"Oh, we're in a craft class together."

As I listed all the names, I realized it wasn't the people from church who were taking care of our family. It was all the people with whom Deb had developed relationships - people who didn't know the Lord.

. . .

Every Tuesday night was men's doubles night at the tennis club, and I was paired with several different men in the first few weeks. Nothing seemed to click between me and any of my partners until I met Ken. After we played on the same team one Tuesday evening, he said, "I think we are pretty much evenly matched. Why don't we get together sometime and knock the ball around between us?"

Ken and I began to meet regularly after that, sometimes three and four times a week, and since then we have developed a wonderful friendship. We pound each other on the court, and in that process we've gotten to know each other off the court too. Ken is a doctor, works about three days a week, then takes off the rest of the week do do what he wants. I've shared with him that I am involved in Christian communications and broadcasting, and he's been intrigued with that.

One day Ken asked me how I got involved with my work as a minister, and I shared my testimony with him. He is also intrigued with all the traveling I do, and often I will bring back a present for him from the country where I have been ministering. Ken hasn't come to Christ yet, but the bridge definitely is in place.

Do you drink coffee? Did you realize you can use a common interest in coffee to get to know other people? Deb uses a coffee house in our area as a meeting place with her non-Christian friends.

. . .

God could use impressive displays of His power to get the attention of your non-Christian friends. He is completely capable of writing out John 3:16 in the clouds of the sky, for instance. But more often He seems to choose quieter, gentler methods, using people like you and me, tucked away in this community and that neighborhood. Regular people. People who haven't bowed their knee to the gods of their culture.

Sometimes He reminds us about that in a gentle whisper and in the same way points to people who need Him. But we have to listen to Him to hear what He's saying. We can pray for people, design a plan for bridging the chasm between us and them, and understand all the right and wrong tools to using in reaching them, but we also have to hear God.

And when He speaks, it's time to listen and obey.

Blessing to you,

Dan

For more information about Eternity Minded Ministries with Dan Owens, Dan's books, podcasts and devotionals visit http://www.eternityminded.org/.

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