A few years ago God convicted me that I was not living as a witness in my daily life. I was not trying to help people find Jesus as part of my everyday encounters with them.

As I thought about starting to live as a witness for Jesus I realised I had a big problem. I worked for a Christian organisation, my family were all believers in Jesus, my friends all knew the Lord, my ministry was to church leaders, and all my activities were organised around church or these Christian relationships. Was I supposed to give up my Christian activities? Who would I be a witness to?

Does that sound familiar to you? Maybe you work in a secular environment, but you don’t feel it’s appropriate to talk to people about God there. And all that you do outside of work is among Christians. You love your time with the Christians around you, but you wonder if it is even possible for you to be a witness the way your life is organised.

Probably the answer is no—it’s not possible. Your life will have to change if you are going to get out of the Christian Bubble and start having gospel conversations with people who are totally secular and out of reach of the organised church. You really can’t bring personal evangelism into the Christian Bubble.

Here’s what needs to happen:

• You will have to make the conscious choice to step out of the bubble.

Here’s the truth—nobody drifts towards evangelism. The Bubble is what’s comfortable; it’s what you are used to; it is the known. We fear the unknown and avoid it by nature. That means that stepping outside of the Christian Bubble is stepping outside of your comfort zone. It won’t happen just because you know it should, or just because you want it to.

You have to decide, “This is God’s purpose for me on earth. The Great Commission isn’t just for missionaries—it’s for every Christian and that means me. Jesus modelled getting out of the bubble even when the religious people thought he should only be spending time with them. He said, ‘It is not the well who need a doctor, but the sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.’ I’m going to start building relationships with people who need God.”

That decision is the start of the journey.

• You will need to think of secular environments that are relational and put yourself regularly into at least one of them.

Don’t choose something you won’t enjoy—choose something that interests you! A sports team, a hobby group, a four wheel drive club, a charity, a book club, or simply relationships with neighbours. Maybe something you have always wanted to do but never got around to. Just make sure it has lots of people involved who need to encounter Jesus Christ.

How can you fit it in? Not willing to give up any of your existing relationships with Christians to make time for it? Why not invite one of them to join the group with you? Go together with the purpose of building redemptive relationships. Pray together for the people you get to know.

• Have fun with secular people (without compromising) and also go past the surface with them.

Build real relationships. Don’t just spend time with people to preach to them. Enjoy your time together. At the same time, ask questions that go past the surface so that you really get to know them. This is when you will see their brokenness and can talk openly about aspects of the Christian life that bind up the wounds of that brokenness. You can start talking about Jesus.

• Enjoy life outside the Bubble and invite more and more Christians to come outside with you!

The more you spend time outside the Bubble, the more you will see Jesus empowering your Christlike lifestyle with those outside. You will sense his pleasure and know that this is his purpose for you. He is sending you outside the Bubble, just as his Father sent him!

Last thoughts

You miss the best part of the Christian life when you live in the Christian Bubble. Jesus lived outside the Bubble and he wants to keep doing that…through you!