24 May 2011
I don’t feel like I have a ton to share.
Last week we did door to door evangelism which turned out a lot better than we had expected. The first day all seven of us would go to each house along with 4 or 5 local church members and the pastor of the church we were representing, Pastor Sammy. Pastor Moses, who we are staying with, is the bishop of the churches we have been visiting which are New Life churches.
The first day was a little uncomfortable because there were so many so many of us and the people we were with seemed uncomfortable because the pastor was with us. Plus, every house we went to were church members already so we asked a slew of questions, as we were prompted to, prayed and then went on. The second day Pastor Sammy realized that others were more quiet since he often does all of the talking so he left us on our own with our four local church members. The second day was less uncomfortable. We also didn’t just go to church members’ houses, but every house we went to happened to be a home of believers.
The next day was my favorite. We broke into three groups and went to smaller fellowship groups within the church. Angela and I went with two contacts, Ben and Isaiah, and had a small group meeting. Isaiah speaks very good English so we were able to have great conversations about the differences between the United States and Kenya. That is one thing I have enjoyed about Kenyans, they seem very interested in hearing about what we know and what we have experienced and contrasting it with what they know and have experienced. This seems like it would be normal conversation everywhere we go but it hasn’t been and I appreciate these types of conversations.
We were asked to give a testimony and a message right when we got to the house. I am proud of how Angela and I handled it. She took the testimony, shared a snipet of her life, and was able to tie in a message. Then through the grace of God I was able to come up with a message using the illustration of the rich young ruler, Matthew 19, and focus on how God wants us, the totality of us, and how my life has changed since I finally started living that out.
It’s a nice place to be where I can come up with a message on a whim. Christina mentioned this morning that she is excited to engage in ministry in the states when we return because she feels like she will have a lot more courage and will be a lot less hesitant to talk about Jesus. It has been a gradual process so I didn’t realize it, but I am much more concerned about eternal implications and feel that it is much more natural to talk about the Lord and what He’s doing in my life. I’m excited about this.
Prior to last week, our week of door to door evangelism, we asked Pastor Moses to talk to us about his view of evangelism. I loved what he said: it is not a one time thing or something you have to schedule but rather it is a lifestyle. I needed to hear this. Prior to the race I had never done door to door. I have told people about Jesus and it is disheartening when they don’t seem interested and turn you away. However, the only other time I did door to door on the race was in Panama and I was disheartened for another reason: every house we went to people “prayed the prayer” to accept Jesus because the local church member told them they would go to Hell if they didn’t.
The Great Commission in Matthew 28:19 commands us to make disciples and not converts. I am very concerned for the souls of “Christians” who simply pray the prayer and then think how they live doesn’t matter. I believe guilt through conviction that is experienced from the Holy Spirit is one of the most merciful things God can give to us. My goal is not to make converts on this race but rather be blessed to have the privilege of doing the Lord’s work and hopefully in the process get to be involved in deepening someone’s walk with Christ. I also loved that Pastor Moses pointed out that it is not our job to make converts but rather we are called to share the hope we have and the love we have experienced and leave it up to the Holy Spirit.
So what you do with what I have just written is between you and the Holy Spirit.
