One the big fears that keeps us from starting ‘God-conversations’ with people is the belief that secular people aren’t interested in God at all. But nothing could be further from the truth.
Non-Christians are curious about Christianity
One of the most surprising discoveries I have made as I have learned to live as a witness for Jesus is that people want to talk about God, that non-Christians are curious about Christianity, and that secular people have lots of spiritual thoughts.
It’s true that nobody wants the gospel shoved down their throat. The solution? Don’t do that. Never force someone into a gospel conversation. A person should never feel that the gospel is bad tasting food they are forced to eat. Rather, it should be the delicious dessert they have been waiting for!
Don’t start with the gospel. Start with a question that will lead into a God-conversation. People love to interact with questions because they love to tell you what they think. And you can be sure of this: everyone has an opinion about God and spiritual truth. As they share their often misguided opinions about what Christians believe or about God, don’t shift into argument mode and try to win an argument about who is right. Remember, your goal is to open this person’s heart to God and that rarely happens through an argument (even if you win).
When you have a good God-conversation going, simply ask, “Has anyone ever clearly explained to you the Christian message about how we can have a good relationship with God?” or something similar. This leads the conversation straight to the beautiful gospel, the delicious dessert they have been waiting for all their lives.
Last thoughts
As I think back over the countless conversations I have had with totally secular people, almost never have I encountered someone who didn’t want to talk about spiritual things. If you are pushy, it’s true that they will resent it. But if you approach the topic with a question, people will be eager to take the conversation further. Ask a question of someone today and trust God to take it further!
One response
Thanks John. A little added blessing. Isaiah 45 its sort of like ((focus)). God had taken me to Micah 7:18-20 at the beginning of June in a one week trip to SA. I connected with Him speaking of His Steadfast love and what He is seeking from us. Then somewhere in the journey Isaiah 45 sharpened this focus. There was something amazing happened here as I was brought back to “focus line by line” just this last week. You have to put your sunglasses on to read it. Revival! Praying for you.