Holy Spirit and Servant Evangelism Essay

In thinking of what I have learned through this course, I am forced to admit I have always known the importance of being an active witness. I was not raised in church and developed â€Å"unbelief† in God through my teenage years. When I was saved, I was radically saved. The Lord became real to me and I told everyone I knew what the Lord had done for me. So excited was I about my newfound salvation and faith in God, I believe that I may have turned off some of my friends. One friend in particular was under such conviction that his internal struggle was very plain outwardly on his face, and yet he would not take the final step of surrender; possibly because I had been too excited and frightened him off. Early Experiences Today I have certainly not lost my joy, but I have learned a few things on how to be patient and wait on the prodding of the Lord instead of always jumping into a situation with Gospel guns blazing. Of course there is no joy like the joy of leading someone to the Lord. The oldest and probably one of the most exciting encounters I have had with someone was a 67 year old man who had a reputation of drinking too much. He had visited our church on occasion and one Monday night, a deacon from our church and I went to this man’s house and visited with him. We talked about the weather and other unimportant things. When I felt the time was right, I asked him how he felt when he came to church. He admitted he felt that people stared at him and made him very uncomfortable. I felt in my spirit that it was nothing more than conviction he really felt. I asked him if he were to die tonight, would he go to heaven? He answered, â€Å"No†. I asked if I could share just a few verses with him and he agreed. I employed the Share Jesus without Fear method. I have used this method many times because I believe in the power of the Holy Spirit using the actual Word of God read out loud. We went through the verses. He agreed he was a sinner, he agreed he needed a Saviour, and he said he was ready to accept Him into his life. He prayed a heart-felt prayer and stood up born-again at 67 years old. Not all my experiences are exactly positive, however. The first time I tried to share the good news of salvation in Jesus with one of my closest friends, he laughed at me, told me I was crazy, and that it wouldn’t last. Initially it hurt, but I recalled the scripture from Acts 5:41 which says, And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. I left my friend with such an overwhelming feeling of joy that I was counted worthy to suffer a little shame for His name. Challenging My Thinking Obviously I am not a stranger to witnessing but I was blind-sided by one aspect of the evangelism class: Servant Evangelism. I have always been one to go out and go through the scriptures with someone. Almost a â€Å"street-witnessing† type of head-on evangelism. As I began to read and study about servant evangelism, I became convicted about the lack of it in my life. I can see where servant evangelism certainly has its place in a believer’s life. Servant evangelism is built upon love for fellow man and there is no greater calling on a believer than to love people, saved and lost. When asked in Matthew 22:37-39 what the greatest commandment is, the Lord Jesus responded, †¦Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Loving others is the very next commandment after loving God. Servant evangelism is God’s love in action. This is exactly why the word â€Å"charity† is used in many places in the King James Bible. Charity is not merely â€Å"love†, but rather â€Å"love in action†, which is the real meaning behind what God means for us to demonstrate to others. It is the â€Å"incarnational lifestyle† that I am working toward integrating more into my life on a daily basis. As stated by Dr. Wheeler and Dr. Earley in their book Evangelism Is: How to Share Jesus with Passion and Confidence, â€Å"the essence of this lifestyle is wrapping our faith in the flesh of daily living! Specifically, it is authentically living out our faith in every situation.†. (p 214) A Deeper Desire Since beginning this class, personal evangelism and certainly servant evangelism has taken on a whole new meaning in my life. I have a renewed desire to be a witness for the Lord and I have been praying toward that goal. In those prayers I have become aware of my need for a measure of God’s wisdom and an awareness of what people are saying to me and how they are saying it, so that I may know what to say to those I encounter. I want to truly surrender to the Holy Spirit Who, I believe, will give me the necessary wisdom regarding what I need to say, how to say it, and when I need it if I will trust in Him. As far as being aware of what people are saying and how they are saying it, this depends largely on my willingness to listen. Dr. Wheeler spoke in one of his videos about listening in today’s world and how rare it really is. In our fast-paced society today, being distracted, distant, and impersonal is almost the norm. Therefore, having the ability to spend some precious time with a person and really listen to them is a valuable witnessing tool.(p 229). If the Lord Jesus is our ultimate example, we must take into account His listening skills. The story of the woman at the well is a perfect example. The reason the Lord connected with this woman is not because He talked to her, but because He listened to her. If I want to reach that goal of being a more effective servant evangelist and witness, then I realize that to listen like Jesus, is a must-have skill.(p 229) Learning to Listen I have always heard that a good listener is born, not made. I believe this statement is in error. If a person has a desire to learn to listen, particularly out of their love for God and a love for His people, the skill of listening can be acquired. First, one must understand the various levels of listening. These levels are from worst to best, as follows: Ignoring Unfortunately, this seems to be the most common level in our society today. We live in a world of almost constant distraction. Cell phones, internet, television, MP3 players, and more are vying for our attention. Because of this, it is very easy to become unaware of the needs of people, even those directly around us. It is a lie from the devil that tells us we are too busy to get involved or that we have too many of our own problems too worry about someone else’s. Pretend Listening Again, with all the distractions listed above, many people try to multi-task, texting, typing, or reading, and thereby reduce the importance and uniqueness of another person to just another distraction. Selective Listening This type of listening goes hand-in-hand with pretend listening. This type hears only what really interests the hearer, while dispensing the rest. One must remember what is not important to one may be vitally important to the other. Attentive Listening This level of listening involves complete attention, involving both eye contact and body language with a singular focus on the speaker. Real evangelism requires this kind of attention. Empathetic Listening As one might assume, â€Å"empathetic† involves an empathic attitude in listening; to really care about what the speaker is saying and how they feel. This is the highest level of listening and the highest level of connection with the speaker. (P 230) Needed Changes It goes without saying that if one is not growing and moving forward, one is stagnant or moving backward. I have recognized through this course the need to add some things to my faith. According to 2 Peter 1:5-8, it is not enough to just be saved and stop there, we must add certain qualities like temperance, patience, and charity to our faith, that we may grow spiritually. The result of this is given in verse 8, For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is indeed fruitfulness in evangelism that has been at the forefront of my mind throughout this class. I have prayed on occasion for the lost when they happen to be on my mind. A change I realize I must incorporate into my regular prayer life is to have a list of lost people I know from my sphere of influence that I may pray for daily. Not only for the lost, but for myself and how I approach them also, praying for things like the wisdom of God I mentioned before. I also realize I need to pray for God’s compassion for the lost that I may pray for them and approach them with a genuine heart and not just as a Gospel soul-winning project. I want to have a better understanding of the needs people have in their lives and how they feel. I have learned that most men feel trapped in the rat race, they are under challenged in today’s society or have lost touch with their masculinity.(p217-218 art of evan) Women have completely different feelings such as the need to be wanted and for companionship, they need emotional support and support from their parents. (p219 art of personal evan) I have heard many people say that they pray for opportunities to witness. I understand what they are saying and I believe that their hearts are in the right place, however I look around me and I see the opportunities are everywhere. I just need love and boldness to share. In my quest to incorporate daily prayer for the lost into my life, I found a prayer outline by Doctors Wheeler and Earley to be very helpful in giving direction.