5/3/13 Tom about 45
Taking
the initiative to share the Gospel also means taking the initiative to learn
how. I want to learn to share the good
news of Jesus with many different types of people in all sorts of situations,
so that I can be “…useful to the Master and prepared to do any good work.” (2
Tim 2:21) With that in mind I stopped by
a friendly neighborhood tavern on my way home from work. I don’t make a habit of hanging out in bars,
(and possibly risking my reputation?) but for the sake of the Gospel I am
willing to do so. It took a while to get
used to the low light and loud pulsing music, and I sat there for quite some
time getting a feel for the place, feeling like an anthropologist. For all anyone knew, I could be waiting for
someone, they didn’t know. I was a
people watcher, discretely, trying to figure out why people were there and how
one could begin a Gospel conversation with them. Many were meeting coworkers on a Friday after
work, others were regulars, one man I talked to who seemed like the custodian
turned out to be the owner of the place.
I realized most were there for very different reasons than those hanging
out in the coffee shop across the street, a lot having to do with alcohol.
Those who are comfortable in bars might laugh, but there is a huge difference
between going to a bar for a beer with some friends and going for the purpose
of sharing the Gospel! But I felt like I was in the right place. Recently, a church leader told me that “a lot
of Christians will never share their faith out on the streets”. I know he is right, but I also know it is
equally true that a lot of people on the streets will never come into a church
to hear the Gospel. We need to go out to
them. If the church is a spiritual
hospital where people receive healing, the streets and marketplace and, yes,
the neighborhood bar, are the frontlines of battle. Many pastors wonder why churchgoers are often
reluctant to “put on the armor of God” (Eph. 6) But why
should they? Armor is for those who take
initiative, who charge into battle, but most don’t feel called to the frontlines!
We
need to see a greater reason for all the Bible studies and sermons and
discipleship – that we are in training to carry out the Great Commission, to “go”
into all the world! Instead, we are
often just asked to invite people to church programs and services where the
Gospel is preached. Of course, this is
important and helpful for those who come, but what about those who never will? We need a greater vision than this! Part of my vision is to add taverns to my
list of places where I am able to share the Gospel. Today was more for me to get a feel for the
place, but I did talk with Tom, a Chicago museum tour guide. He is an Episcopalian, which he described as “all
the ritual of Catholicism without all the guilt!” We talked a while about what seems to be a
disconnect between faith and science, but in the end he said he was tired from
work and just wanted to unwind (with his beer). It was a start, but I have much
to learn…
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