Culture of evangelism: training

Converge executive director of Church Planting Lee Stephenson shares eight components needed to create a culture of evangelism in your church in the May 2018 issue of Point magazine.

In this eight-part blog series, Stephenson expounds on each of the things he says church leaders must do to create an evangelistic environment.

Part 5

We know that in the battle of dark versus light, light always wins. However, Satan is smart in that he knows he has a chance as long as the light isn’t shining; otherwise, there is no chance. Pastors, if we want to see our churches push back the darkness in our communities, we have to teach people to “let their light shine.” If we want people to shine the light by sharing the good news of Jesus, then we must train them.

In the previous blogs on evangelism, we have talked about the need to reach the nations and your neighbors. However, we have to do more than just talk about the need. At some point, we have to train our people to do some evangelism. If we don’t take the responsibility of evangelism training seriously, who will? Training people is an essential step in removing some of the fear that paralyzes people from sharing the gospel.

Where do we start? Here are a couple of ideas:

• Just do it! When it comes to training people in evangelism, I promise you something is always better than nothing. I recognize that there are some outdated methodologies in existence. Obsolete or uncool approaches pale in comparison to the need for the gospel to be shared.

• Budget for evangelism. Jesus said that our hearts always follow our money. If evangelism matters, then you will budget for it. Consider setting aside money each year to train people how to share Jesus.

• Be flexible. There is no magic formula for evangelism, and not everyone will be comfortable with every method. Consider finding unique ways to mix it up and be creative in the training provided. Consider bringing someone in to lead the training. Many times, the expert is the person who comes from the outside. Being flexible might mean that you have pieces of training at different times or in different ways. Try inserting evangelism training in small group curriculum or through video. There are many options of how you can do this.

Let there be no excuse to shine the light. What are you doing when it comes to training others to share their faith?