To ask any question and remember there is no such thing as a silly question,please email them to  hereiamsendme@xtra.co.nz

 Question

My experience is that generally people DON’T have a burden for the lost. If asked about how they feel for the lost they will respond positively about wanting to see them come to know Christ but thats all there is. A shallow superficial desire with no substance to it.

I must admit that is the way I have lived the majority of my life - in fact before attending Eastside the thought of witnessing to others as an urgent important task really hadn’t even crossed my mind as something up to me.

How do we encourage people to develop a passion for reaching out to the world?

How do we make this a daily priority?

For those who are primarily church focused expecially how do we emphasise the need of balance?

What steps do we need to lead them through so that a ‘burden’ becomes a substantial conviction and awareness of individual calling?

Having a burden may be a start but how do we develop one in the first place???

 Answer

 Hi Cat -Great comments and good questions,ones that need to be asked

I like to describe a burden as “having an intense desire”but the desire is not driven by emotion its more comes from a choice of will and Adopting a mindset that says I am going to share Christ.”
 It’s intending to win others to Him. It’s setting your face and your life toward that activity. It’s making a total commitment to Christ and His kingdom purposes. It’s deciding to become a faithful witness.

I  say this because you may read hundreds of great books, go to classes and programs ,but they only helps you be better educated to share the gospel it does not mean you will
Effective evangelism does not does not begin with a program it begins by going to God in prayer and praying that God will give you his burden, his vision, so that you can love people the way Jesus does and see people how Jesus sees them .

Matthew 9:35-36 “Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

2 Corin 5.14 The love of Christ compelled him to go to tell others

Through my own experience I have learnt that desire always needs something attached to it to make that desire last -this is true with good and bad desires
With that in mind -to keep my desire to reach the last the lost and the least -I need to attach that desire to something that will make it grow .

Prayer is the answer -If you pray and ask God to use you as a signpost to point people towards him ,when those oppurtunitys come ,take them and that desire will grow

Once that desire grows all we have to do is guard against the things that will want to try to attach itself to that desire to weaken it

In evangelisim that is things like busyness,apathy,complancency,fear of people ,indiffence,feelings of inadequacy etc

Hope this helps,its a church wide problem -but we urgently need to sort it out -I am running some teaching on “Sharing Faith Workshops” in a few months

I would love you to be part of this
Jeremy