The Spring Festival is a great opportunity for family reunions and catching up with relatives and friends. For Christians, it is also a chance to share the message of the Lord. How can we seize these opportunities to better share the gospel?
Avoid impatience and naturally engage in conversation.
Though Christians have an earnest desire to spread the gospel, they can’t evangelize with an impatient or forceful attitude, but they can pay attention to casual conversations.
For instance, when Jesus spoke with the Samaritan woman, he did not immediately dive into the gospel. Instead, he humbly asked her for water as she drew it from the well. Recognizing her spiritual need for living water, she understood the unique identity of Jesus.
Start by caring about the needs of others.
With strangers, we might passionately talk about various topics, but with our own family members, we can’t evangelize like that. An effective approach is to start with their needs. Just like the Samaritan woman, tax collectors Zacchaeus, and Nathanael, they believed in Jesus because He touched the deep needs within them.
During family visits, after others discuss their past experiences, current situations, joys, and hardships, we can share similar stories from our own lives or those of our families. After the empathic statement, we can then mention the positive impact of faith on our lives.
Rely on God’s mercy and pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
In prayer, we not only ask the Lord to provide good opportunities but also to give us the courage and wisdom to share our salvation. We also pray that our relatives and friends have genuine interests in knowing the truth and being saved through faith.
(The author is a pastor in Zhejiang Province and the article was originally published by the Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Abigail Wu
