"Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything." (1 John 3:18-20)

"Preach the gospel everywhere you go, and, if necessary, use words." - St. Francis of Assisi

Evangelism. The world has made this a scary idea, hasn't it? Experience conjures images of loudmouthed preachers on corners proclaiming our imminent doom, or relentless bombardments of personal beliefs during awkward conversations.
I am learning, though, that the concept of evangelism is much broader than I thought. Yes, culturally speaking, it has been narrowed to only its scariest and most intimidating forms, but there is more to it than that.
The dictionary defines "evangelism" as the "zealous preaching and advocacy of the gospel." Preaching AND advocacy. Spreading the gospel, then, can be simply living out the gospel. ADVOCATING for the gospel - showing that it is something more than words on a page or material for an awkward conversation.
I admit that I feel a constant conviction that I am not doing my part. I don't feel like I reach out enough, minister enough, invite enough people to join us at Quest. I don't feel like I'm doing enough to spread the love of Christ through our world. I squirm in my seat when we talk about reaching out because simply put, I feel like I am failing miserably at this most basic of jobs. My time at Quest is teaching me two things, though.

First, yes, I am responsible for reaching out to people. I am responsible for showing Christ to them in all that I do and say.

Second, though, I am learning that the Christian life is more than words, and people value my actions more than any shallow words I can propel at them. Compassion, kindness, love, and understanding speak volumes even in silence. Even I can do that.

Father,
Help me to have Your heart. Help me to have a heart for the kind of evangelism You would have me do. Help me to reach out to people in ways that touch them where they are, and in ways that shows them the essence of who You are. Teach me how to do this. Give me a desire for people like You have.
Amen.

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I was working on a particularly busy Saturday when a customer, who was obviously a preacher, asked me very loudly if I knew how to get to heaven. I immediately experienced several emotions: I was embarrassed because he had drawn the attention and curiosity of the people standing near us; I was annoyed because I was clearly busy and not in the position to engage in a religious, philosophical question; and I was angry that a "holy roller" was using me for possible sermon material. For these reasons, I answered, "No, but I can tell you how to get to Hephzibah." I then walked away. I am sure many of you have had similar, unpleasant experiences. So, how do we reach out by inviting people to be a part of the Kingdom or the Quest community without scaring people away? My answer is that we don't have to use "in your face" tactics. We can follow the golden rule of "Treat others the way you want to be treated." I have given people copies of the devotionals, given out CDs of the sermons, discussed the sermon with others, and invited people to church or church activities. I tried to do these things without being condescending. I encourage all of you to step out of your comfort zone and open up to someone. Be genuine. You never know, you may be the catalyst that motivates someone to want a relationship with God.

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When I hear of the accord to go out into the world into the world and love the world and to reach out to others, I sometimes get an uneasy feeling. The reason is this: before I became a Christ follower, I used to get turned off by those Christians that would get in your face and preach to you. I did not, and still don't, like the so called street preachers.

There are a lot of Bible passages that speak about loving others. The one that really speaks to me is John 34-35 "A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." Verse 35 is a powerful statement, because Jesus himself says that others will know us if we love each other.

What I have learned in my journey as a follower of Christ is that you can go into the world and reach out to others without offending anyone or turning anyone off and still show the love of Christ. I don't think that anyone appreciates being cornered and forced to answer questions about the Bible or God. I realize that we, as a Church, can love the world by example. We can be ambassadors of Christ by example. By participating in community events without attaching strings, we can exemplify the example of Christ loving all people.

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When I came to the point in my life that I was ready for church, instead of being judged and being chastised, I was told that God loved me and that the church was where I needed to be. A Christian does not need to be forceful in reaching out to others; oftentimes all it takes is leading by example and by willing to be opened minded. There have been times where I have noticed a simple smile or kind word can open up discussions that can lead to incredible testimonies.

I feel that the Quest Church has gained a reputation as a church of loving and caring people. I know that we, as a church family, care about each other; among other things, I see it when our church family looks out for others who are suffering, missing loved ones who are in Iraq and helping their families, and by praying for others and by nurturing others. I have seen the love that the people of the church show by reaching out to the community by holding events that encourage anyone to attend. 1 John 4:12 says, "No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us." God is alive and well at the Quest church, and I see it every Sunday and every time that I am associated with a Quest event or just being with my Quest family.

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Reaching out--

I have often heard expression that church is designed for those who are not there. We are not only to go in to worship God, but to go out to spread the "good news." Reaching out to other people can be a life changing event. We just never know how our efforts will make a difference in the lives of others. One of the core principles of Quest is to GO.

I was in another state working a temporary job as a bridge between my old job and my new one in Augusta. All my household good were in storage. I had only what was in back of my truck.

It was a long drive to Oklahoma. I expected hot, flat, windy plains and lots of cows. I also took along several books I needed to read. Instead, I got beautiful mountains and a new friend.

I checked into work and nothing happened the first week, which happened to be Holy Week. After a very surreal experience (subject for another devo) on Easter Sunday, the next week, I made fast friends with a co worker and he introduced me to road biking. I had never ridden a bicycle more than 5 miles in my life. At first, I declined his invitation. Then God spoke to me and basically said, "C'mon.". The first day, I rode 10 miles, then 14, then 21, then 45. Four weeks later, I rode a 62 mile (100 km) ride in Ardmore Oklahoma. I enjoy cycling to this day.

Needless to say, those books remain unread.

God reached out to me through another person, and transformed my life. You can do so many things, if you just listen and GO. Invite someone to Quest, or to the Gathering. Several have asked me about Quest and have come into our fellowship. As in the Book of Acts, we must go out and bring people to Christ and transform their lives, or better yet, allow them to be transformed.

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