Why Everyday Evangelism?

Why Everyday Evangelism? 12/22/09

Why set an everyday evangelism goal? For me, evangelism is like jumping into cold water. When I am dry and comfortable, it can be the last thing I want to do. I stall and find excuses because I don't want to get out of my comfort zone. But once I jump in my heart starts pumping and I become alive in a way that makes me ready and willing to swim and splash and jump in again and again. In the same way, evangelism is relatively easy once one gets started. After the first leap into the "cold water" of a spiritual conversation with someone new, the next few contacts become exponentially easier to make. Anyone who has gone out witnessing as a group project for a set amount of time has experienced this. But the problem with this is that our goal as Christians should be to "do the work of an evangelist, in season and out of season". We want to be tools in the hands of the Holy Spirit, ready at a moments notice to do the work that He wants us to do. We have to be ready to make that leap out of our comfort zone and into the cold waters of evangelism whenever an unexpected situation or opportunity comes up. It needs to naturally be a part of who we are as followers of Jesus. And just as we have to set unnatural goals of prayer and Bible reading to make them become a natural part of our everyday life, we need to set unnatural goals in evangelism as well, goals that will take us out of our comfort zone on a regular basis and help evangelism also become a natural part of our life in Christ.

I would also add here that to me there is a big difference between a "goal" and a "commitment". A commitment to me is more like a promise I make to God, and it becomes too easy to try to keep this commitment without God's help which leads to either unneeded feelings of failure and guilt or pride and legalism. A goal to me is something I decide I want to do with God's help, and it draws me nearer to the Lord as I constantly ask for help in reaching my goal. It takes the guilt out of failure and the pride out of success, and replaces them with joy in the Lord.