Help for Struggling Evangelists (Part 1)

(This is part 1 of a 3-part series on Tools for Evangelism.)

Evangelism is probably scary for most us. Just the thought of starting a conversation with a complete stranger about Jesus makes some of us break out in a cold sweat!

Yet our Lord calls us to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mk. 16:15). So what are we to do? (By the way, “all the world” includes your school, neighborhood, and workplace, not just the foreign mission field!)

Somewhere between street preaching with a bullhorn and being too afraid to share our faith with anyone, there must be a way that faithful Christians can walk out Jesus’ command to spread the good news.

These three truths can help the meek and struggling—which is most of us—grow in sharing the gospel.

1. Evangelism is for our good.

Like all things in the kingdom, God uses evangelism to draw us closer to Him. It’s not something we do for God, but rather with God, so that we’ll know and love Him more—which is the greatest desire of our souls!

Sharing the good news helps us to walk out the first and second commandments— loving the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and loving our neighbor as ourselves (Mk. 12:30–21; Lk. 10:27).

True biblical evangelism takes the focus off of us and puts it on God and those He wants to reach. It means laying down our life, comfort, and temporal desires, which makes us more like Christ (Phil. 2:3–8). Spreading the gospel is actually one of the best ways to live it out!

“By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives.” (1 Jn. 3:16)

Sharing our faith will require us to leave the boat and step onto the water with Jesus (Mt. 14:29). The good news is our faith pleases God, and He rewards those who seek Him (Heb. 11:6). This brings us to our second point.

2. God will help us.

God gives grace and strength to those who obey Jesus and share Him with others. The Lord is “not willing that any should perish” (2 Pet. 3:9). He wants to save people, and He will use us to do it. God has given each one of us relationships, resources, and specific circumstances so that we can reach people for Christ.

The Lord has conquered sin and death by taking on flesh, coming to earth, dying for our sins, and rising from the grave. We get to partner with His redemptive plan by telling others about Him.

And it’s not our power or amazing words that convince them, either. As Jesus Himself tells us, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (Jn. 6:44). As we do our part, speaking the truth in love, God will draw their souls.

3. We’re not in this alone.

The Lord designed us to partner with Him, and with other believers, in evangelism. There’s a reason Jesus sent the first disciples out two by two, and it still works today!

Whether the partnership looks like prayer, training, or going with you on an outreach, involve others in your ministry. Ask them to pray for you, for impartation of their gift (if they are evangelists), and for strength to keep at it.

Attend a seminar or class to learn from more experienced evangelists. Participate in regular outreaches in your community.

Working with others reminds us that we’re not the first (or the last) believer to struggle with evangelism. There’s strength in numbers, and God loves to use people to sharpen and equip the body (Eph. 4:11–13). We need each other, for “the harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few” (Lk. 10:2).

Here’s the bottom line: pray, pray, pray! Evangelism starts with, is sustained by, and advances through prayer.

First, we ask God for a heart to connect with the lost. Then we pray for grace, help, and openness in our conversations. And we continually pray to avoid discouragement and the temptation to quit when things are hard.

The apostle Paul even writes, “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart” (Gal. 6:9).