That’s why I love going out with Christians from a local church, and meeting people on their doorsteps. There are often people who are alone and desperate for someone to visit them. We are not banging on their door and telling them they need to “turn or burn.” We tell them we are part of their community, we represent their local church and we’d love to get to know them. We ask them if there is anything we can do for them. If we knock on 99 doors and one door opens up and they want to talk about God it’s so worth it. I never go home from a day like that and think what a waste.

Here is one example… I used to work in Vauxhall, and I met a lady one day on her doorstep. She had a face mask on and cucumbers on her eyes. She peeled them off and said, “What do you want?” Because I’m a six-foot-three-inch man and she was a woman, I felt I was somewhat invading her personal space. This caused me to feel very awkward. And yet I pushed through the pain barrier, and on that doorstep, we had a conversation for nearly an hour, talking about heaven and hell and how we get right with God. To my delight, after this discussion, this lady started going to Bible studies and then she started coming to church. Not long after that, she gave her life to Jesus and got baptised. But it didn’t stop there; she then brought all her family to church. So it went from me feeling awkward on this lady’s doorstep to her eventually becoming a Christian and then influencing the rest of her family. I love the way God can use uncomfortable situations like this for his glory.

Others like me

I’ve been a Christian for over ten years now. I was saved from being in the pits. I’d come out of the Army and got involved into drink and drugs and my life had spiralled out of control. In that place of despair, Christ took hold of me and turned my life around. Knowing that there are people going through the same stuff I was going through, but without the hope that I have now, is one of the biggest things that drives me.

People are more receptive to hearing about Jesus than we might think because they’re suppressing something in them. We’re all made in God’s image and live in God’s world, and yet the apostle Paul says, “humans by their unrighteousness suppress the truth” (Romans 1:18). Paradoxically, this gives me hope that whoever I talk to, they have an innate knowledge of the truth which can be compared to a divine ember. As we talk to them about God, this divine ember inside them is blown on and can be fanned into flame.

Ever since I became a Christian, I’ve been involved in mission work, and I’ve always been pleasantly surprised about how open people are to the gospel. There have been moments when people have been hostile. One time an elderly man became very irate and even laid hands on me when I shared the gospel with him. Other times, people have ripped up the gospel tracts which I gave them. However, in general, people have been open and friendly. I think people are asking more and more questions, especially since COVID which reminded people of their mortality. They are asking whether there is anything beyond death.

Revel in the gospel

The motivation for sharing the gospel comes through revelling in the gospel. It is as we get captured by the vision of Jesus leaving the comfort of heaven for us that we start wanting to go beyond our comfort zones to share the gospel with others. 1 John 4:19 says “we love because he first loved us.” The more we see God’s love for us, the more we will naturally want to talk to other people about Jesus.

James' blog is taken from his contribution to LCM's podcast on the same topic. Watch the full episode below and get inspired!