(The following is an excerpt from my forthcoming book with Insoo Kim titled Both-And: Living the Christ-Centered Life in an Either-Or World.)

We Christians are witnesses-good witnesses, bad witnesses, ineffective witnesses; but we can't escape being witnesses. How do we improve our ability to bear witness?

First, love matters! In order for us to become good witnesses, we must be compelled by love.

Do you love the people outside of the church or is your love only reserved for friends seated in church next to you? Or to put it more strongly, have you developed an aversion to nonbelievers? Do you go to great lengths to avoid the exact people that Jesus came to save? Have you been so turned off by someone's sin that it became hard to see that person as someone that Jesus came to seek and save?

Maybe it's their sexual orientation. Maybe it's the fact that they are living with someone who is not their spouse. Maybe they have a baby born out of wedlock or you know they had an abortion. Maybe it's their immigration status. Maybe it's how they spend their money. Or maybe it's how much they drink or smoke. God's challenge to us is, "Will you still love them? Will you still reach out to them? Will you still share the good news with them?"

There is no way that we can be the good news of Jesus if we're not compelled by love. We don't have to like the sin. But we must love the sinner! Love matters!

Second, prayer matters! If you want to share your faith with others, the first person you must talk to is not your co-worker or your neighbor or your roommate. The first person to talk to is God. Evangelism begins with prayer. As Christians, we know that prayer is important. But isn't it the case that prayer is often our last resort? We say, "I've tried everything else that I can think of. I've argued. I've nagged. I've manipulated. And since none of that worked, I guess the only thing left to do now is pray!"

If you look back at history, the difference between Christians who made a huge impact for the Kingdom and those who did not can often be traced to the fact that impactful Christians were convinced of the power of prayer. Prayer is where it all begins!

And for many of us who are Christians, the reason that we are Christians is because someone prayed for us. Do you regularly pray for people who are far from God? Prayer matters!

Third, proximity matters! Even the most incredible witness among us will be utterly ineffective in reaching people for Christ unless she gets near the people who are living far from God. We must be mindful of this because the sad fact is that the average Christian will, over time, grow more and more isolated from the very people that we are called to reach. For many of us, the longer that we are Christians, the harder we must work to be near nonbelievers. In this sense, the youngest Christians among us are the ones who are best positioned to reach nonbelievers. And for those of us who have been Christians for a while, to cite Becky Pippert's memorable book title, we must get "out of the salt shaker and into the world!"

If proximity matters, then there are two places where most of us can have the most impact for Christ-where we live and where we work. From Monday through Friday, most of us spend a third of our day at work. We spend a third of the day at home sleeping. And with the other third, we commute, eat, do chores, entertain ourselves and take care of personal business. Evenings and weekends are often spent in our neighborhoods. If where we live and where we work is where we spend most of our time, then this is probably where we can make the most impact for the kingdom.

Fourth, your story matters! One of the greatest evidences for the truth of the gospel is your own story. There is something incredibly powerful about sharing how you came to Jesus and how your life changed because of Jesus. There is a great example of this in John Chapter 9 where Jesus heals a blind man. This man had no theological training, no evangelism training, but he did do one thing right - he testified about what Jesus had done in his life. In response to the Pharisees questions about Jesus the formerly blind man said: "Whether He is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"

"I was a drug addict, but Jesus set me free." "I used to be addicted to porn, but Jesus healed me." "I used to live life for myself, for money, for my satisfaction, but Jesus is using me to love others." "I was the last person in the world who would have volunteered my Saturdays to work in a juvenile detention facility or at a food pantry. The only reason I do this is not because I'm such a great person, but because of what Jesus did in my life." "My marriage used to be in shambles, but Jesus has brought new life into my marriage." There is tremendous power in sharing our stories. Your story matters!

Fifth, your invitation matters! There is a great story in John Chapter 4 about Jesus' interaction with a woman at the well. The woman is so moved by this interaction, that we read, "Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 'Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?' They came out of the town and made their way toward Him."

After encountering Jesus, this woman at the well goes back to her town and invites everyone to meet Jesus saying, "Come and see!" Because of her invitation, we are told that many people in her town were saved. "Come and see!" Those are three powerful words. Invite someone to your church this week. Invite someone to an outreach event or to watch you or a family member get baptized. Invite someone to your small group or to join you in a service project (whether a person is Christian or not, they can pack a bag of groceries, or help clean up a local park, or help paint a playground). Invitation absolutely matters!

Finally, faithfulness matters! As we step out to share our faith with others, we will experience opposition. We will experience rejection. And we may feel like nothing is happening. Maybe you have prayed for a family member or a friend for years, and you feel discouraged because it doesn't seem like anything is happening. Maybe you have reached out at work and in your neighborhood to share your faith with others, and you feel like nothing is happening. Keep going! Don't give up! Never stop sharing! The truth of the matter is just because we can't see something with our eyes does not mean that God is doing nothing in a person's heart. God calls us to sow generously, liberally, and faithfully and promises we will reap! Faithfulness matters!

When Billy Graham was in his 80s, he said:

My mind tells me I ought to get out there and go, but I just can't do it. But I'll preach until there is no breath left in my body. I was called by God, and until God tells me to retire, I cannot. Whatever strength I have, whatever time God lets me have, is going to be dedicated to doing the work of an evangelist, as long as I live.

Love matters. Prayer matters. Proximity matters. Your story matters. Invitation matters. And faithfulness matters! Each of us can improve our evangelistic serve!  

You can purchase Rich & Insoo's new book Both-And: Living the Christ-Centered Life in an Either-Or World here on Amazon & InterVarsity Press.  

‍