Out of Season

9/30/17             Juan  click here to see video        early 20's

Imagine you are waiting at a bus stop and a stranger walks up to ask what you believe happens after this life.  How would you respond?  Peter wrote “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”  Paul wrote to young Timothy to “be prepared in season and out of season” to preach the Word.

I am often that stranger who walks up to ask people about their beliefs.  It’s a great way to begin a conversation that helps non-Christians to examine their own beliefs and consider Christianity by comparison.  But it is also a great way to help fellow believers to be ready “out of season” to share their faith too.

Many of us are quick to share our faith in Jesus fresh after hearing a sermon, or in the context of a Bible study, or while writing and reflecting upon it on social media or in a letter to a friend.  But what about when we are caught off guard, when asked a question about it out of the blue or when we have an opportune moment to share the Gospel – when we need to preach the word “out of season”?

What happens after this life?  Too often the initial answer I get from fellow believers is that we go to heaven based on our actions or good deeds in life, or maybe by our general belief in God, but not often enough do I hear about complete faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection.  Often only after many clarifying questions do I discover that solid foundation in a fellow believer.

In this video of a conversation on the street yesterday, Juan initially has that same confusion about the foundation of his faith.  It’s not that he hasn’t clearly heard the Gospel in church – I found out after the recording that he attends a different location of the same church I attend and I am confident that he is clearly hearing the Gospel, both on Sunday mornings and in small group Bible studies.  I believe that the ability to share our faith “out of season” comes only with practice – from actively and intentionally reaching out with the Gospel.

When I asked him about sharing his faith, Juan honestly expressed the fear he has of doing so.  I belief that fear and intimidation doesn’t have to be the huge stumbling block that it is to so many Christians if our leaders will make personally sharing the Gospel more of a priority in their own lives by example, telling more about their experiences in their sermons, and coaching their congregations to do so as well.  Sharing our faith needs to be seen as what Christians normally do, like it was for the early church so many years ago.

Juan is young in his faith, and I can tell he is on the right road to maturity.  He was positive and willing to talk about it with a stranger.  He may have been a little frustrated at not having a ready answer, but he was not ashamed of the Gospel.  That’s more than many people who have been believers for a lot longer than Juan can say.