Share boldly

   Do you like starting a conversation with strangers? For some of us, it comes naturally and is not a challenge, while for others, talking to strangers is a real test. Perhaps that’s why spreading the Good News to the ends of the earth is not the most widely practiced spiritual labor. We prefer to pray alone at home, to go to church, to read the Word of God, but when it comes to sharing the Good News with someone, we often seem to hesitate. Why? Naturally, there are several reasons—shame, fear, anxiety, real/imagined danger, lack of internal desire. We’ve all encountered at least one reason that stops us from sharing about Jesus Christ and our faith in Him. However, there is something else on a deeper level, the reason behind all reasons. This is the lack of awareness.

   Now let's imagine the following situation. You’re standing at the bus stop, next to you is a man about 35 years old, well-dressed, with a laptop in hand and wearing black glasses. It’s normal not to speak to him; you might even distance yourself. But what happens if he lifts his glasses, takes out his phone, and opens a city map? Then he asks you: “Excuse me, do you know where exactly the bus stops in district X?”, naming your own district. It's most natural to explain in detail where the stop is, what’s nearby, how long it takes to get there since you've been taking that route for years. You’ll speak from experience, without being tense because the person needs the information you’re giving. You'll be confident in every word because you “experience” the route daily. You won’t ask yourself questions like: “Does he think I'm lying?”, “Is it stupid to say this?”, “What if I'm being annoying?”, “Maybe he wants to find out how to get there on his own, who am I to interfere?”. Do you see? When we talk about something we know, whatever it is, we speak freely. Even more so when we see someone’s need for that information.

   Why don’t we talk like that about Jesus Christ? The question isn’t accusatory; it aims to show us what’s stopping us, and it isn’t shame or fear in themselves. What stops us from talking about salvation is that we either haven’t truly experienced the saving encounter with God, or we’ve allowed other things to become more real in our mind and heart, forgetting the answer to the question “Why?”. In both cases, there can be a positive outcome.

• The Encounter 

   It is essential, vitally necessary, and transformative. We can’t speak passionately about something we haven’t experienced or don’t love. That would be fake and meaningless. God doesn’t want us to feel “just guilty” as motivation for evangelism. We must speak from experience, from personal encounter, to be “eyewitnesses” and witnesses of God’s reality and saving mercy. When Apostle Peter and Apostle John heal a lame man through God’s power, the Jewish leaders and spiritual guides question them about whose power they are doing this. From there, Peter begins to speak to everyone and shares the Good News. The Sacred Scripture then states: “And they marveled, when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, because they realized that they were uneducated and common men. They also knew that they had been with Jesus, but seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.” (Acts 4:13-14, emphasis added)

• The Answer to “Why?”

“I have traveled often; I’ve been in danger from rivers, in danger from robbers, in danger from my own people, in danger from Gentiles, in danger in the city, in danger in the countryside, in danger at sea, in danger from false brothers” (2 Corinthians 11:26)

“One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you, and no one will attack you to harm you, for I have many people in this city. This is why he spent a year and six months there, teaching them the word of God.” (Acts 18:9-11, emphasis added)