The family of churches to which I belong, the Evangelical Covenant Church, has developed a new resource that addresses this question and I think you'll find it helpful, too.
BLESS is a new approach to prayer and evangelism. It’s less about downloading information or memorizing scripts, and more about loving our neighbors well. It helps us get “unstuck” and practice evangelism more effortlessly. Using five simple missional practices—Begin with prayer, Listen with care, Eat together, Serve in love, and Share the story—BLESS is a suite of resources designed as an intentional pathway to equip every Christian to make more disciples who follow Jesus, become like Jesus, and engage in the mission of Jesus every day.
1. Begin with Prayer
Pray for people in your life who are far from God. Ask God, “How do you want to use me to bless the people in my life?”
Write a short list of people whom you long to see commit to faith in Christ. Place the list inside your Bible, on your dashboard, or on a note in your cell phone. Commit to start every day with prayer asking God to use you to bless someone in your world who does not know him. Not sure what to pray? Here are some ideas:
- Pray that ___________ will become thirsty for God (John 7:37-39)
- Pray that the Father will draw ________ to Jesus (John 6:44-45)
- Pray that ___________ will become open to God’s truth (2 Corinthians 4:4-6).
- Pray that _____ will become receptive to God’s grace (Romans 3:23-24; Titus 3:4-7).
- Prayer for _____’s heartfelt conviction of sin and their need for God (John 16:8-11; 1 Thessalonians 1:4-5)
- Pray for ______ to take genuine steps of repentance (2 Corinthians 7:10).
- Pray that _____will clearly experience God’s love (1 John 4:7-10, 19-21).
- Pray that _______ will develop a heartfelt and willful belief and acceptance of Jesus as King and Lord (John 10: 27-30)
- Pray for ______to develop deep spiritual rootedness in Christ (John 15:5; Colossians 2:6-7).
- Pray for _______ to reproduce God’s mission to others who are far from God (Matthew 28:18-20).
2. Listen with Care
Pay attention to people’s dreams and pain. Listen for evidence of God’s work in their lives. If you want to be a good listener, think of yourself as someone who comes alongside another person – not to give advice, but to learn the other person's real story.
3. Eat Together
Share meals and life with people in your life who do not know God. Sharing meals together on a regular basis is one of the most sacred practices we can engage in as believers. Through the simple act of eating together, we practice hospitality, build community, and deepen relationships.
Here are some ways you can eat with people who do not know God:
- Have dinner together in your home or at a restaurant.
- Share a pizza.
- Enjoy a cup of coffee together.
- Host a holiday party.
- Organize a block party or backyard neighborhood BBQ.
- Include others in your family celebrations.
- Try new restaurants together.
- Add one person to one meal per week.
- Throw a small dinner party.
- Join with another couple to connect friends to friends.
- Create an affinity group
- Teach someone how to cook.
- Share a holiday meal.
- Attend their party or event.
4. Serve in Love
Be attentive to the opportunities God provides you to care for people and attend to their needs.
"I think young people are tired of not living out their faith, and so they are trying to find real ways to care for the poor because they see that as being essential to Jesus' teaching."
— Brad Edwards, Lost and Found: The Younger Unchurched and the Churches that Reach Them
Make a list of the opportunities you have to serve the 3-5 people in your life you are praying for. Which act of service will you do this week? How can you fit that act into your schedule? What do you need to eliminate from your life in order to serve others in love?
Some ways to serve the people in your life who do not know God
- Serve through small acts of kindness.
- Volunteer to take care of a tangible need (cook a meal, babysit, shovel snow, etc.)
- Make their birthday special.
- Send a greeting card.
- Join a community service project with someone who is journeying toward God.
- Offer to pray.
- Keep them company.
- Give or lend something.
- Don’t miss the big needs – Births, deaths, trials, sickness, and more.
- When you Listen to people and Eat with them, they will tell you how to love them.
- Ways to allow others to reciprocate and in turn serve you
- Accept invitations (dinner, parties, etc.) and offers of help.
- Share your needs with your neighbors openly.
- Be generous with your gratitude.
5. Share the Story
Once you build a relationship and earn trust, look for ways you can share the story of how Jesus is transforming your life and the world.
Some suggestions:
- Ask for permission and don’t be pushy. “Would you mind if I tell you a little about a way God has changed my life?”
- Be clear and use common language. Try to avoid “church” language. Words like, “born again,” “Savior,” “redemption,” “grace,” “accepting Jesus,” etc., are beautiful and meaningful to Christians but have little or no meaning to people outside the church.
- Keep it short. Share more as it becomes appropriate. Keep it to two minutes or less. If you want to write it out, 100 words is a good length.
- Be humble and focus on what God did. “Look at what God did in my life!”
- Use a before-and-after pattern. How did God change you?
- Focus on Jesus as the source of change.
- Tell your story with joy and passion.
- Tell a story from your life that connects with their life.
Watch the video of Jason Lee's testimony.
For this assignment, I'd like you to respond to all three of these writing prompts.
- How is this approach different from evangelism as it has been presented in other places?
- Which of these five missional practices do you already do and how do you do them?
- What would you need to do to adapt this approach for use in your own local church?
Send your responses to me in an email at bboydston@piu.edu. This assignment is worth 25 points.
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