20 Years Sharing My Faith!

Evangelism, ,

On January 4, 2004, I made a commitment to share my faith everyday after hearing a New Year’s message from my Pastor, Zac Nazarian.

It’s now been 20 years!!!

I don’t even know why I chose to make that commitment on that particular weekend, but I do remember that there were 6 or 7 points to the message. One stuck with me: “In the New Year we should evangelize more.”

How many times have you heard that as a Christian? Easily, a million times. And what did you do about it? Same thing I did: you listened, nodded your head (probably pursed your lips), then you made a half-hearted commitment to start sharing your faith, somehow, somewhere, but ultimately let it pass by the wayside, along with your other vows, like reading through the Bible in a year, or losing twenty pounds. That morning, however, I chose to do something about it. I sat in my chair at church and said to myself, “I’m going to share my faith everyday.”

Mind you, I had no idea how I was going to do it. Like most Christians I only shared my faith when God “opened a door.” Evangelism, of course, was only for those who had the gift. Still, the next day I started my commitment. And wouldn’t you know it? The very first person I talked to—made a profession for Christ!

(There’s a lot more to the story. Click here.)

Flash forward to July 31, 2005. Ray Comfort was invited to speak at our church. I sat in the back of our sanctuary and listened intently to “Hell’s Best Kept Secret”—for about ten minutes.

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The Starfish

2 CommentsEvangelism, Pastor's P.O.V., ,

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied, “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”

The young man replied, “The sun is up, and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

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Why I Kissed Evangelism Goodbye (Kind of….)

2 CommentsE-vangie VIDEO!, Evangelism, Open Air, Pastor's P.O.V.

I KISSED EVANGELISM GOODBYE on this day a year ago. Well kind of….

For those who know me, this is an odd confession. On January 1, 2004, I made a commitment to share my every day. Then on July 31st of 2005, I heard “Hell’s Best Kept Secret” after Ray Comfort taught at our church. My eyes were then opened to the most effective way to share my faith.

Soon after, I taught The Way of the Master for seven years at my former church Hope Chapel—and everywhere, even in China! I also led evangelism teams to almost every large event in the L.A. area, including Michael Jackson’s memorial service, (we were outside in the streets), the Academy Awards, The Emmy Awards, the Lakers Championships, the L.A. Kings, and thirteen parades a year. I was quite the zealous Gospel proclaimer over the years, handing out perhaps, hundreds of thousands of tracts, preaching in the open air, and, of course, having hundreds of one-to-one conversations, reminding people how they have broken God’s Law and how they needed a Savior to be forgiven.

https://youtu.be/JJl5xzreM6M

Not only that, our teams preached with Ray Comfort regularly in Huntington Beach and I served as a leader for three years with the Ambassadors’ Academy, the training arm of Living Waters Ministries.

https://youtu.be/YQxlMpVwyNQ

I say all this so you will know that I was totally committed to the cause of preaching the Gospel, because, after all, “Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved. But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent?” (Romans 10:14-15)

Then something changed as I was praying in my bed during my devotional time on that October 22nd Monday, 2018.

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Doing the Gospel Different

Evangelism, ,

How do feel about Christians who present the message of Jesus a little creatively? What is your first reaction to someone proclaiming the Gospel in what you perceive to be an unseemly or undignified manner? Are you happy and excited or embarrassed and ashamed that they are a brother or sister?

There are many different ways to reach people for the Kingdom of God, ways that we may think are kooky, ineffective or weird, but, can advance the cause of Christ further than we ever expected. You may not do it that way, I may not do it that way, but if the Good News is proclaimed accurately, then, it doesn’t matter what we think. We serve a creative God who uses creative people to get his saving agenda done.

What do you think about the cross-walkers? Our fellowship hosted Steve Epp a year ago who’s walking the cross throughout America. Why does he do it that way?

“I’m reaching out to the younger generation who’ve experienced drug abuse and home abuse,” he says. “I took to the street because they are sure not coming to our churches. I tell them that God loves them and I love them. I want to show that living for Jesus is a life of surrender, and I’m trying to show them that by example.” 

In 2015 Mitchell Manning carried a 12-foot cross from Florida to California as a way to represent his faith because “the cross is the whole point.” In 2014 Arthur Hollands did it because “I just want to share that people are loved, and you can have peace in your heart.” But the most famous living cross carrier of all is Arthur Blessit, who began his cross-walk in 1969 and still continues to this day. He has been in 324 countries and is in the Guinness Book of World Records for the “Longest Around-the-World Ongoing Pilgrimage/Walk.”

I met a man named Skipper a few weeks ago in Johnson City as he was biking around the country for Jesus. He was just leaving to pedal back to Sacramento, California, his home. 

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Sharing Your Faith with One Question. Only.

2 CommentsEvangelism, Steve's Sermons, TRACTS

It is possible to share your faith using Gospel tracts by asking one question and one question only. Seriously. All you have to do is make this query using a six-word question, then run away. When you ask it, the person will receive all the information they need to go to Heaven if they choose. That’s right. Contained in that 6-word question is the possibility that a person will hear about how they have sinned, how they will face God on Judgment Day, the possibility of Hell and the redemption God offers through his son, Jesus. Too good to be true? Read on….

Sharing Your Faith w/One Question. Only. (A short, fun teaching) 

                                          
(Note: These are sermon notes from teachings I have given over the years. Adapt them however you like.)

Mark 16:15: Go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation.

Bill Bright: 2% of Christians share their faith.

Think about it: How many of you have had a born again Christian share with you about Jesus over two times in the past five years?

Paul wrote this in Philemon 6 (NIV ’84): “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.”

The Living Bible: And I pray that as you share your faith with others it will grip their lives too, as they see the wealth of good things in you that come from Christ Jesus. (Explain)

I have found, after being an evangelism pastor for over 10 years at my other church, that people have many reasons for not sharing their faith.

Take a look at this video and see if you can relate to any of these?

While I’m sure that some of these eight reasons might be yours, I think we could narrow them down to just two: fear and not knowing what to say.

But what if I showed you a way in which you could share your faith by asking only one question and one question only? Do you think you might be able to do it?

I’m not joking. All you have to do is ask one simple question…then run away.

But after you have asked this question, people will then understand God’s standard for getting to Heaven, the consequences if they fall short of His standard, and the solution through Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection on their behalf. They may even thank you after you ask this question, too!

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