One of the largest evangelistic opportunities in America

Today one of the largest evangelistic opportunities in America exists in pregnancy centers.  There are 1.8 million opportunities to share Christ with women facing crisis pregnancies in the coming year through the pregnancy center movement. And men, if you’re tempted to stop reading, many of those women bring their significant other who usually just waits in the waiting room or parking lot. Imagine how willing these people are to talk about spiritual things.

In this month’s Christianity Today, Melinda Delahoyde (President of Care Net, North America’s largest Christian network of pregnancy centers) tells the story of “Rachael” and one of their volunteers sharing the “love and story of Jesus Christ” with her.

In September, Care Net announced at their national conference that EvanTell has been selected as their official evangelism training partner.  The Save the Mother, Save her Child program uses live workshop training and free online training to prepare staff and volunteers in every pregnancy center to share the gospel clearly and simply.

Save the Mother, Save her Child is excited to partner with Care Net in sharing the gospel with women who visit pregnancy centers.

To check out Ms. Delahoyde’s article, click here.  You can also get more info about how to get involved in pregnancy centers in your area.

Paper’s cold, you make it warm

Had you asked me when I graduated from seminary how many will you met who came to Christ through a tract, I would have said none.  Since then, I’ve met so many people who came to Christ through reading a tract I hand them out every opportunity.  I try to never be without one.  Due to approachableness of people in 2009, usually two.  When people are not turned off by tracts, it is not usually the presentation, it’s the presenter.  Shared in a cold and callous fashion, they can do harm.  But shared in the right way, they could be an instrument God uses to bring them to Christ.  After all, God wrote the first tract – the Gospel of John.  John 20:31 tells us “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that you may believing you may have life
in His name.”

Paper is cold, but you make it warm.  As you hand someone a tract, first of all make sure it presents the gospel clearly.  Don’t speaking confusingly where God speaks so clearly, even if it is through the use of literature.  Secondly, say something like, “I’d like to share with you something that has meant a lot to me.  I think you’ll enjoy it.”  If appropriate, you might want to put your name and number on the back so they can call you with any questions.

If you have all night, I could keep you up with stories about people coming to Christ through a tract.  Use them rightly though, not wrongly.

Four Reasons Not to Give an Altar Call on SermonCentral.com

A recent article published in Christiantiy Today caught our attention.  It states, “The mainline American churches up until the middle of the last century held in healthy missional balance social action and evangelism. But slowly the evangelistic mandate got squeezed out. A myopic concern for the social undermined the church’s spiritual mission. This has led to spiritual decline, from shrinking membership to a loss of spiritual vitality to faddish theology.”*

That’s the reason behind Dr. Moyer’s featured article in Sermon Central this week – Four Reasons Not to Give an Altar Call.  While targeted to preachers, this article contains some great truths for anyone about asking someone to trust in Jesus Christ.  He’s written several articles in the last year for Sermon Central and this one has already generated a lot of response.

If you’re interested in this topic and others like it, check out his other articles:

• Wasting Your Time in Preaching
• Preaching that Penetrates a Hard Audience
• Three Things Your People Hate to Tell You about Your Preaching
• Is the “Sinner’s Prayer” Essential to Salvation?

*The Greatest Social Need,” Christianity Today op/ed, January 2009

Transport for Christ Shares Clear and Simple Gospel

EvanTell is proud to announce a worldwide working relationship with Transport for Christ, International (www.transportforchrist.org).  Transport For Christ’s president, Scott Weidner, and his fine team have joined EvanTell’s program for Christian workplace association leaders.  TFC will  provide EvanTell’s online and on-site training for TFC chaplains, and customized pamphlets used to share the gospel and confront spiritual challenges such as loneliness, depression, anger, family relationships, and money.   The first stage of the program has been completed with training conducted at TFC headquarters, and customized May I Ask You a Question tracts made available to all chaplains.  TFC Vice President, Dwayne Johnson will become a Certified You Can Tell It Instructor, capable of delivering on-going evangelism training for TFC staff and volunteers.

When TFC was founded in 1951, the association was primarily a mobile ministry with chapels built on 18-wheelers moving from truck stop to truck stop.  From that day to this, TFC has grown to active ministry in Russia, Zambia, and 33 locations in North America where chapels are in place and open 24/7, each staffed with chaplains to meet the needs of truckers.  They serve 100,000 truckers every year! TFC not only shares Christ with truckers, but also helps them through the crises of life, many of which are very difficult to overcome when on the road so much of the time.  TFC also maintains drivers’ rooms in truck stops where chapels can’t be available, and strives to connect truckers with a network of churches which are trained to minister to a trucker’s needs.

Through a special, trucker-friendly website, www.driverswellness.com, TFC is helping to meet the requirements of their mobile members who need to get information on how to stay healthy in mind, body, and spirit while on the road.  This outstanding site helps truckers reach sources of help, including an hour of free counseling by phone.  Many TFC partners are represented at Driver’s Wellness and EvanTell’s evangelism materials match the issues shown on the Resources section of the site.

Please take a few moments and listen to the outstanding podcasts by Executive VP, Dwayne Johnson, as he describes TFC’s mission and future.  We are delighted to partner with this outstanding group who are so dedicated to Christian service and evangelism.

TFC Vice President Dwayne Johnson joined Workplace Directors Mary Margaret Gibson (Workplace) and AJ Rinaldi at EvanTell’s headquarters to record Transport For Christ’s history and future plans to support truckers all over the US and around the world.

Hear Dwayne speak as he is interviewed by AJ Rinaldi in these podcasts.  Dwayne tells the inspiring story of how TFC has represented Christianity in the Workplace in a very demanding environment.  Consider the life of a person who drives for a living, away from home, needing Christian companionship and pastoral care – TFC provides that in a way no other organization can.  We at EvanTell are proud to call TFC our partner in ministry.  Here is part one of his interview.

Click here to listen to part two of this interview!

Transport for Christ Shares Clear and Simple Gospel (part 2)

TFC Vice President Dwayne Johnson joined Workplace Directors Mary Margaret Gibson (Workplace) and AJ Rinaldi at EvanTell’s headquarters to record Transport For Christ’s history and future plans to support truckers all over the US and around the world.

Hear Dwayne speak as he is interviewed by AJ Rinaldi in these podcast.  Dwayne tells the inspiring story of how TFC has represented Christianity in the Workplace in a very demanding environment.  Consider the life of a person who drives for a living, away from home, needing Christian companionship and pastoral care – TFC provides that in a way no other organization can.  We at EvanTell are proud to call TFC our partner in ministry.

Help! I don’t have the gift of evangelism

“He is so evangelistic. I think he would try and convert a fence post. He obviously has the gift of evangelism, but I don’t. Evangelism scares me, so what do I do?” How many times have you heard a fellow believer say something like that? More importantly, have you said it? Two ideas may transform your thinking and even fear of evangelism.

Recognize you are normal.
Giftedness in evangelism is not what characterizes most believers. Every gift is needed for the building up of the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12). Therefore, the things that frighten you about evangelism frighten most believers. Evangelism is not first and foremost an issue of gift; it’s an issue of discipleship. The first thing Christ ever taught His disciples was “Follow Me and I’ll make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19).

Receive training.
Training is not an answer in evangelism. It is the answer. Evangelism training will help overcome the two biggest problems in evangelism – fear and not knowing how. Fear may take on many forms. Fear of not knowing how to turn a conversation to spiritual things. Fear of not knowing how to answer questions or objections. Fear of rejection. But that is where know how comes in. Training that provides the “howto” will help you know how to turn a conversation, address questions non-Christians have, clearly explain sin, substitution and faith (the three essential parts of the gospel presentation) and even know how to pray for yourself and the lost person to whom you are speaking. You may not realize it, but the most effective evangelists have received training. Giftedness in evangelism alone is not what makes a person effective. It is gift combined with training. That is why EvanTell specializes in evangelism training – training that is biblical, clear and complete. We have found, through more than thirty-five years of experience, that when people are trained properly, it forever changes their attitude about evangelism. Instead of approaching lost people with the attitude, “There they are Lord. Send someone to reach them,” we pray, “There they are Lord. Use me.”

How to be a “doer” of the Word in evangelism

James 1:22 says, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”  How can we be a doer of the Word in evangelism?

Pray for opportunity.
Pray as Paul did in Colossians 4:3 that “God would open to us a door for the word.”  God can take a person who is totally closed one day and cause him to be totally open the next.  So pray for an open door and then walk in faith expecting to find receptive people.  That open door might be a relative, neighbor, friend, co-worker or complete stranger.

Know your message.
The message you have for lost people is not the entire 66 books of the Bible.  It’s the ten words of the gospel as defined in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 – Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead.  Keep your message as simple as God keeps it.  Be equally clear as to what God is asking lost people to do – believe – which means to trust in Christ alone as your only way to heaven.  John 6:47 says, “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.”

Ask God for boldness.
You’ve asked Him for opportunity and mastered your message.  Now ask God for the boldness to share it.  The early disciples did this in the midst of persecution.  We read, “Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word” (Acts 4:29).  Two verses later we are told, “they spoke the word of God with boldness.”  Express your fears to God and boldness will overcome fear instead of fear overcoming boldness.

Now follow up.
Once a person comes to Christ, he needs to learn how to grow in Christ.  Second Peter 3:18 admonishes us, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”  Meet with them once a week for eight weeks or find someone who can.  Teach them basics such as how to evangelize their friends, how to study the Bible and the importance of fellowship in a local church.  Don’t overwhelm them.  Take them one step at a time.

Doers of the Word!  That is what God desires us to be in evangelism.  Honor Him with your obedience and watch Him honor you with results.

Evangelizing in the New Year

“Happens every year! I begin January with a New Year resolution that I am going to reach out to non-Christians. But by February I’m right back where I was the year before. How do you prevent that?”

Sliding back on New Year’s resolutions is easy to do. Intentionality and boldness makes the difference.

• Learn how to evangelize. Fear and lack of knowledge are the two biggest reasons believers don’t keep their New Year’s resolutions in evangelism. Master a method of sharing the gospel that is easy to remember – one you can recall as you nervously approach the gospel in your conversation. Don’t wait until next month to learn a method – this week is the time to begin.
• Be accountable. Ask your spouse or a good friend to help you by asking each month: “How many conversations have you had with a lost person with a hope of presenting the gospel?” New Year’s promises don’t matter. It’s New Year’s performance that counts.
• Keep equipped. Never be without a tract that explains the gospel clearly. Have one handy in your purse, shirt pocket, desk or car. You don’t know when or where your next opportunity will be. It may be the person in front of you at the checkout counter or the one behind you at McDonald’s.
• Make a list. Write down names of 3-5 people you want to see come to Christ. They may be across the block or across the nation. Pray for them daily. Praying for lost people daily keeps them foremost in your mind. As you pray, ask God for opportunity.
• Think. Think. Think. There is only one gospel message.  But there is more than one way to reach the lost. Many avenues exist to build bridges and open doors. Why not picnic with a non-Christian family. Invite a non-Christian to join you for golf (Pray he wins. What a chance to compliment him!). Pick something up at the mall for a neighbor. Lend your hand with a home repair project. Little gestures can open big doors.

New Year’s resolutions don’t impact lost people; it’s keeping them that makes a difference. Be intentional and bold. This could be the year God uses you to change a person’s eternal address or bring them one step closer to the Kingdom.

Don’t end 2009 saying “I wanted to.” End the year saying “I did.”

A First Century Strategy for 21st Century Missions

You have heard me teach things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Now teach these truths to other trustworthy people who will be able to pass them on to others.

2 Timothy 2:2 (New Living Translation)

The apostle Paul knew the value of “networking.” Even though Paul was an exceptionally gifted evangelist and teacher, he saw the value in equipping others to do the work of the ministry. He encouraged those he trained (like Timothy) to follow his example and train others as well. The impact of this strategy caused the church to grow exponentially in the first century.

EvanTell’s international evangelism strategy follows Paul’s model. We identify, train, and equip indigenous believers to reach their countries for Christ and equip others to do likewise. This “train the trainer” model empowers these believers take the gospel into places often forbidden to foreigners. They can apply their training immediately because they are already fluent in the language, familiar with the culture, and have an established network of relationships throughout the region.

EvanTell’s strategy of training and resourcing indigenous believers insures that the gospel will continue to be declared well beyond our direct presence in the country.

For testimonies of how God is using EvanTell’s strategy to activate believers to declare the gospel around the world, click on the “Toolbox” button on the homepage of our website.

Christ as Number One

No one understands better than an evangelist, who has interacted with many non-Christians, the need for a walk that backs up your talk.  When non-Christians see a life that portrays Christ behind lips that present Him, the witness for the Savior becomes most powerful and productive.

As Paul wrote to the Colossians, that consistency is undoubtedly one of the reasons he admonished them to “walk in wisdom.”  He was not merely referring to their procedure in getting to the breakfast table in the morning but to their lifestyle during every hour of the day.  “Redeeming the time” drives the point home.  It means literally “buying up the opportunity.”  Each moment of your life is to be looked upon as an opportunity to live in a way that brings others closer to the cross, not farther away from it.

Our actions should always support what we say and never detract from it.  Whether it be the good deeds we do for a neighbor, the kindness we extend for a friend, the way we return love for anger, or our ability to be gentle when others are harsh, we ought to live in such a way that others have reason to say, “If that’s Christianity.  I want it.”  If we live in this meaningful way, we make every minute count for eternity—for those we speak the Gospel to, as well as for those to whom we show what a difference God has made in our lives.

If the want to see a good example of a Christian, they should not have to look beyond us.  Our lives should make non-Christians want to tune in, not tune out.

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