Paul Eshleman: Caring for People

Here is a powerful reminder of what is important -- that is, people!



Why do I always need to be reminded of this? Too busy? Too into my own world?

What about you?

CoJourner Podcast: Power Play

Are you experiencing the power of the Spirit for witness?  Here is another of the CoJourner radio spots that I have done for MyBridge Radio Network.

Power Play

Evangelism Like Tomato Gardening (Tim Downs)

From our friends with Overflow Today...

What is the Gospel? Another Video Sketch

Here is four-minute video of the gospel, sketched. This version is from Southern Seminary

What is the Gospel? from Southern Seminary on Vimeo.

Thots?

Backstory on iPad: Cool View

My friend and co-worker, RJ, took our work with Life@Large (a seven-chapter, gospel storyline) and created an updated version known as Backstory. We haven't yet pursued creating an "app" for mobile devices. That is coming (we say.) However, I was copied on (another friend and co-workers) DC's e-mail to RJ's on this creative usage:

I shared Christ with a grad student today at Cal using Backstory --- I had him Google search CruPress and download the pdf into his iPad and view on iPad Reader --- looking at it together we flicked the pages back and forth, read out loud scripture, and answered the Q's --- the way it's formatted is beautiful on iPad --- it's 4x it's printed size when you click on a pane and it fills the screen --- 2x the size when "scrolling"--- so easy to read you must try it it you haven't yet --- a quality conversation was had over quality Gospel media --- he's a believer, so I used Backstory to get to know better and to draw out his story --- asked him which of the 7 themes drew him in the most --- he came closer to Christ through the conversation and so did I --- Backstory should get a Grammy for best coffeehouse conversation media for use with an iPad --- I wonder if Backstory could be hosted on campus ministry and personal websites so one could click and drag-the pages and view it similarly to like we did today but with a cursor-- http://crupress.campuscrusadeforchrist.com/files/products/backstory.pdf

Be encouraged. -dc

PS ________, You men have iPads, reply-to-all with your thoughts (viewing it on my MacBook with the Marque Zoom is amazing too) --- let's creatively spread the word about this phenomenon to our students reaching out at Big Break and Spring Breaks everywhere --- and as something new and beautiful to share on campus during Easter Season.

Maybe you should try it too!

Easy Monday Witness

Our friends at the Overflow Today just posted this tip from Kevin Harney (author of Organic Outreach for Ordinary People). These three minutes could help you be more alert to a common opportunity...

Perspective Cards - Website Now Live

A week ago or so, our Perspective Cards website went live. There are still items to be added, included the training videos. But this at least begins the support of the Perspective Cards. Last I checked, there were more Perspective Cards sold than Soularium for the fall. And I am hearing stories of staff and students on campuses across the U.S. who love using these for spiritual conversations. Check them out!

If you have used them, share a story in the comments of what you think.

Chilean Miner T-Shirts

You may have noticed on the news coverage of the trapped miners that many emerged wearing a tan t-shirt over their coveralls. If you didn’t notice, then at least CNN did. Here is an “investigative” article about it:

The Story Behind the Chilean Miners' Jesus T-Shirts

But we already knew the backstory, because the shirts were part of a gift from CCC in Chile. Here is a fuller picture of how it happened:

Chile Ministry Helps Trapped Miners

Isn’t it amazing how God works?

Wouldn't you love to hear even more of the stories of how God worked in individual lives in the mine and beyond?

The Explorer's Invitation

If you are familiar with the CoJourner paradigm, you know the first role in conversational witness is that of the Explorer. Your ability to help someone progress in their spiritual journey will be tied to your understanding of who they are, where they are and what they have experienced.

So what's the key to effective exploring? Asking questions and listening.

The primary questions (phrased in different ways in different settings) are really variations of a simple invitation, "Tell me about yourself."

• Did you have any church or religious background growing up? How was that for you?
• What have you tried in your spiritual life or journey?
• Where are you at now spiritually?
• What do you wish were true for you spiritually?
• Etc.

The key is empathy - listening to genuinely understand. Exploring is taking a genuine interest in the other person and their spiritual experience. Its not just finding a transition to a different subject. You will discover that good exploring will open the door to a deeper relationship and often lead to a conversation about your story and the gospel.

Keep sharpening your skills as a CoJourner with others in spiritual journey.

Diminishing Teen Witness - Barna Study

Interesting new Barna study on "How Teenagers Faith Practices are Changing". The study suggests a significant decline in believing teens attempts to witness.

Believing teenagers were asked if they had attempted to explain their religious beliefs to someone else with different religious beliefs with a hope that they might receive Jesus Christ as Savior. In 1997, 63% of "born-again" youth answered affirmatively. In December 2009, that number had dropped to 45%.

What does this suggest to those involved in campus ministry? Is the culture's aversion to dialogue about matters of faith taking its toll on youth witness?

My experience suggests that Christian students still desire to witness, but not necessarily in the "forms" that have been handed down from previous generations. This was a large part of the motivation behind the development of CoJourners.

Random Evangelism? Stop it!

"Random Evangelism" is a phrase I have heard often in my 30 plus years of ministry. I have heard it again a couple of times lately. But I wish it would go away. Why? Because there is no such thing of "random evangelism", at least for a Christ-centered, Spirit-filled witness.

The phrase "random evangelism" is used to describe the process of approaching strangers for the purpose of witness. But the word "random" means "lacking any definite plan or order or purpose; governed by or depending on chance".

Since "evangelism is first and foremost a work of God" (a phrase I commonly use when teaching our Evangelism Model), it cannot be random unless God is not in it. The phrase "random evangelism" is a very man-centric view of evangelism and leaves one with an entirely wrong impression (or worse, the wrong mindset.)

I doubt this phrase is used broadly in Christian circles. But there is a certain ministry, of whom I am very fond, who has this ingrained in their language. My counsel is, (to quote Bob Newhart) "Stop it!"

I don't mean stop the practice of engaging strangers for the purpose of witness. The Sovereign God, Lord of the Harvest, still delights to work through such conversations when they are guided by his Spirit, motivated by love and practiced with genuine sensitivity and situational appropriateness. My counsel is to stop calling this "random".

Backstory: This Is Why I Sat Here

I sat next to a 33-year-old, Chicago businessman on a flight Thursday. An alumnus of a school with a strong basketball program, he asked who I rooted for. Being an graduate of Nebraska, I said, “We don’t have much to root for in basketball. But football is another story.” I then raised the “spiritual flag” by mentioning that I was in Christian ministry and had led the ministry for 7 seasons with the NE Cornhuskers back in the late 80’s and early 90’s.

“Are you a minister?” he asked. That started one of the most amazing spiritual conversations I have had in a while. I EXPLORED asking questions and listening: his church connections (limited, but he does like Willowcreek), answers to prayer that he and his mother have seen (amazing), his relationships (feels some guilt over them), his own spiritual journey. He said he didn’t understand Jesus, the Trinity, or why he had to die on the cross. He preferred to go “straight to the source” in prayer.

I asked if I could take a shot at explaining why Jesus had to die. “Sure,” he replied.

So I pulled out my Bible and napkin. I showed him Romans 6:23 and drew the “one-verse” diagram. We talked through it very slowly and clearly, making sure he understood each word and all three phrases. “Does this make sense?”

“Yes, but it brings up a hundred more questions,” he said. “Like what?” I asked.

That launched us into another hour of questions and answers: regarding eternal life and living life to the full in the present; re: self-centered marriages vs. Christ-centered marriage; regarding the sin of those who lived before Jesus died; regarding reading the Bible and the difference between the four gospels.

I gave him a copy of Backstory and explained the story behind it, walking him through the 7 themes. As I focused on the response pages, I asked, “Is this true?” “Wow, I don’t know. Maybe I am just afraid of commitment,” he answered.

As we were landing, I gave him my e-mail and said we would be praying for him. I asked if he did make the decision to trust Christ as his Savior and Lord, would he write me and let me know? “Oh, I am sure you will be hearing from me. You will be the second to know” (i.e. after his mother).

“I think this is why I chose to sit here,” he said as he was getting up. Indeed, I am sure it was!

CoJourners: Power of Metaphor

Aristotle wrote:

"The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor."

That may be an overstatement (or miscalculation of greatness). Certainly we can come up with something greater.

But it hints at why CoJourners has been so well received. It utilizes five metaphors in evangelism:

• Journey: As the overarching metaphor for life, witness is joining others in their spiritual journey.
  
• Explorer: Discovering where people are at in their journey.
• Guide: Showing the way to Jesus.
• Builder: Constructing pathways over or around the obstacles keeping others from Christ.
• Mentor: Encouraging others on in their journey with Christ.
  

Master these five metaphors and you will be a "great" witness! Wonder what Aristotle would think of that?

I Am Second - One Year Anniversary

Last February, I wrote a brief post regarding "I Am Second". Keeping my eye on such initiatives, it seems fitting to note its one-year anniversary by linking to Christian Today's article "I am Second Teaches Christians Evangelism without the Script".

The article reports the site has had 1.7 million visitors worldwide, while originally considering it a local (Dallas-Ft. Worth) initiative. Guess that is why it is called the World Wide Web.

"I Am Second" is brought to you by e3 Partners. You have to impressed with the intellectual flexibility of a ministry who can create the low-tech Evangecube and hi-tech, hi-quality "I Am Second" campaign!

"Bait & Switch" - Does the End Justify the Means?

Yesterday I listened with special interest to the Nov 6th edition of This American Life, entitled "Bait and Switch".

During the 2nd Act, "Raw Sex", host Ira Glass (who identifies himself in this segment as an atheist) interviews two personalities regarding "bait and switch" evangelism. Dave Dickerson shares two experiences with Campus Crusade for Christ (I take it as a newly involved student, though the time-frame is never indicated). Jim Henderson discusses "doable evangelism" -- i.e., noticing others, listening to others and ____ (I forget the third element. Ah, my aging memory)--as a alternative to bait and switch approaches.

Three quick observations:

1. I appreciate and respect Ira Glass. He did an excellent job in the interviews, probing and exposing, yet not bashing. He is, of course, an entertaining radio personality and this edition of This American Life is enjoyable and thoughtful.

2. Dickerson's interview is a good challenge to us who witness. How do we engage others openly, capturing their interest and communicating the gospel message with relevance, without slipping into the ditch of "bait and switch"? [Note: The integrity of surveys was one of the reasons we framed QuEST (Questions Exploring Students Thinking) as, not a survey, but an interview that would yield helpful information to be used for a variety of national purposes (which it has.) No bait and switch in this.] But this discussions should also cause us to reflect upon how others are experiencing our outreach efforts--whether young believers involved with us or the audience that we reach out to.

3. Henderson's work at normalizing relationships with those who do not (yet) know Christ and engaging them appropriately has been helpful for many. But I was most intrigued by Glass' probing if it doesn't slide into the other ditch -- all relationship, no message. Given Glass' self-disclosed unbelief, he astutely exposes relationships-only approach as "all bait, no switch." Fascinating.

But taken as a whole, the interview serves as a clear reminder that as witnesses and as those who equip and lead others in witness, we must be sensitive and appropriate with our audience, while being faithful to our Lord and his message and mission.

An excellent expression of the balance is found in Intervarsity Christian Fellowship's "Evangelism Code of Ethics", which includes this:

We believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ, and affirm the role and goal of the Christian evangelist. However, we do not believe that this justifies any means to fulfill that end. Hence, we disavow the use of any coercive techniques or manipulative appeals which bypass a person's critical faculties, play on psychological weaknesses, undermine relationship with family or religious institutions, or mask the true nature of Christian conversion.

While respecting the individual integrity, intellectual honesty, and academic freedom of all other believers and skeptics, we seek to proclaim Christ openly. We reveal our own identity and purpose, our theological positions and sources of information and will not be intentionally misleading. Respect for human integrity means no false advertising, no personal aggrandizement from successfully persuading others to follow Jesus, and no overly emotional appeals which minimize reason and evidence.

Thoughts?

Resources for Exploring

How do you engage in spiritual conversations? How do discover where someone is spiritually?

In the CoJourner paradigm, the four roles we can play in another person's spiritual journey are:

• Explorer: to discover where are person in spiritually
• Guide: to show the way to Jesus
• Builder: to construct ways over or around the obstacles that keep people from Jesus
• Mentor: to encourage the person on in the spiritual journey

The Explorer is one of the two roles (along with the Builder) that people request the most help for. Over the last number of years, we have been developing and sharpening an Explorer toolkit. It currently features four primary "tools".

Short-films are the most media sophisticated explorer tool. Utilizing 7-minute or less films, students use their iPhone, iPods, DVD players or laptops to show films with spiritual themes and discuss their implications.

Soularium continues with the creative. A set of 50 photographic images are the basis for dialogue regarding life, God and spiritual experience. This has quickly become the most popular Exploring tool on US college campuses (and is spreading rapidly internationally, as well.) To explore answers that are commonly given visit mysoularium.com

Perspective is a card based worldview interview we are currently field testing and refining. It explores a person's view of God, humanity, meaning of life, Jesus and source of spiritual knowledge. (Thank you, Barry!) I did two Perspective conversations last week at the University of Chicago - Illinois. Fascinating!

QuEST (Questions Exploring Students Thinking) is the most left-brained tool. It is a simple five-question interview. Translation - it involves only asking five questions & listening. The questions can be used formally or informally. (If used formally, the results should be submitted throught the QuEST website.)

Asking questions and listening is the fundamental skills of a good explorer. Creative media -- whether short-films, photography, cards or questionnaires -- can help make that easier for you and for your audience!

Is Evangelism Worth Doing Badly?

I am perusing Brad J. Kallenberg's Live to Tell: Evangelism for a Postmodern Age (2002). While the insights of the book are many, I was struck in the end with this:

For anything worth doing is worth doing badly--until one can do it better. And one can become a skillful evangelist only be beginning poorly, but beginning nonetheless. Only one who begins, albeit poorly, has the hope of improving. (Page 124)

The insight caught me, transporting me back four decades ago, to when I was doing evangelism poorly. (I trust I have improved some, though there are times I doubt I have as much as might be assumed.) Nevertheless, I remember walking down a resident hall, sticking my head in the door of a class friend to say hi. The Christian worker I happened to be with at the time asked my friend if I had ever shown him "The Four Spiritual Laws". Gulp. I wasn't prepared for that question to be asked. When my friend said no, the staff member suggested I do so--now. Me? Ummm... Did I get that right?

I stumbled and stammered as I read through the booklet, asking the questions that were already printed there, feeling awkward and embarrassed. And then we got to the prayer. My friend said, yes, he wanted to receive Christ. And I led him in prayer.

To be honest, I don't know what really happened. Did he understand? Did he truly believe? Did Jesus Christ enter his life and forgive his sin? Did the Holy Spirit birth him into new life and the body of Christ? I don't know.

What I do know is that "I did evangelism poorly." But I did it as best I could then and I continue to do the best I can now. I am still learning. I am still growing. And I am still having conversations. Maybe still poorly, but not as poorly as I did before.

Communicating Sin to an iGen

A few days ago, I wrote a post quoting Tim Keller on "Communicating Sin to a Postmodern". Keller suggests it is helpful to communicate "sin is primarily idolatry."

Here is another example of communicating need from Scott McKnight. In his article, "The Gospel for iGens", he draws from Alan Mann's book, Atonement for a Sinless Society, and concludes, "For a person to feel guilty, that person must have a sense of morality." That appears lacking in this postmodern culture. So, how do you demonstrate need in a compelling (rather than repelling) way? McKnight suggests:

"...I have found that the self-in-a-castle feels shame about systemic sin, and their sensitivity to things like AIDS, poverty, and racism leads inevitably to recongizing the sin in each person. At some point in this movement to the castle door, the iGen will realize that systemic sin is linked to personal sin. Suddenly he or she feels accountable to God."

The whole article is worth the read. But I am intrigued comparing traditional "sin is falling short" messaging, with the approaches of both Keller ("sin is idolatry") and McKnight ("systemic sin links to personal sin").

Thoughts?

Failure in Communication

Came across this quote about communication:

"Failure in communication generally comes about because of our inability to reverse roles … to put ourselves in the position of those we seek to communicate with."

— John F. Budd Jr.,chairman, The Omega Group (as quoted in Wylie's Writing Tips")

What are the implications for effective witness?

Evangelism in a Postmodern Age

I have been asked to do a two-part seminar at the MidSouth Christmas Conference for Campus Crusde for Christ on "Evangelism in a Postmodern World." My description of the session is:

“The times they are a changing” and so must we. Yet to be effective and authentic witnesses, it is essential we understand what must and must not change. This biblical framework will enable us to explore our cultural landscape and adapt to our audience. Practical help will be given in engaging others conversationally, communicating the gospel and dealing with the beliefs that stand as barriers to faith in Christ.

It is important to note, this is a seminar whose main subject is evangelism, not postmodernism. Postmodernism is the context, not the main subject. With this focus on conversational evangelism, my list of recommended readings include:

• Davy, CoJourners: Joining Others in Spiritual Journey (A Transferable Concept). CruPress, 2007.
• Geisler & Geisler. Conversational Evangelism: How to Listen and Speak so You Can Be Heard. Harvest House Publishers, 2009.
• Moreland & Muehlhoff. The God Conversation: Using Stories and Illustrations to Explain Your Faith. IVP, 2007.
• Newman. Questioning Evangelism: Engaging People’s Hearts the Way Jesus Did. Kregel Publications, 2004.
• Pollard. Evangelism Made Slightly Less Difficult: How to Interest People Who Aren’t Interested. IVP, 1997.
• Pollock, Doug. God Space: Where Spiritual Conversations Happen Naturally. Group, 2009.
• Richardson. ReImagining Evangelism: Inviting Friends on a Spiritual Journey. IVP, 2006.
• Sire. Why Good Arguments Often Fail. IVP, 2006.

Would you add any?