If you have any experience gardening, one of the first lessons you likely learned was the importance of healthy soil. When Chris and Katie first moved into their current home, Chris tried planting flowers that never grew well because of the poor condition of the soil. Katie suggested treating the soil with weed killer and fertilizer. But as Chris tried to fertilize their lawn, he accidentally dumped the remainder of the fertilizer mix onto one spot of the lawn, permanently killing that little patch of grass. Chris has not made his yard a hospitable place for growing things.
Before we think about having conversations about Jesus with people in our lives, it’s good to assess if our life is a hospitable place for spiritual conversations to grow. Chris shares four things you can do to make the garden of your life more hospitable for spiritual conversations with people who don’t yet know Jesus.
First, do your job well. If you don’t do your job well, that’s a terrible witness, and people likely won’t pay attention to what you say about spiritual things.
Second, make an intentional effort to get to know the people around you. People often view work as a task they need to get done, and if they end up talking with someone during the course of their day, then that’s great, but it’s not a priority. This is not a good way to cultivate a hospitable environment for spiritual conversations! Make an intentional effort to get to know your coworkers. If you work remotely, this can look like asking someone how their weekend was as you’re waiting for a zoom meeting to get started. Ask questions that show that you care about them.
Third, merge your universes. People often have two groups of friends that they keep separate: their Christian friends, and their non-Christian friends. And in many cases, the number one reason our friends aren’t Christians is that they don’t have any other Christian friends. Something we can do to help with this is by introducing them to a community of Christian friends. Invite your non-Christian friends to join you when your Christian friends are hanging out. Slowly over time, your Christian friends and your non-Christian friends will become friends with each other.
Fourth, talk to your non-Christian friends the same way you talk to your Christian friends. If you say ‘Praise the Lord!’ around your Christian friends, say it around your non-Christian friends too. Share what God is doing in your life with your non-Christian friends. While you should use discernment to navigate what topics to share or if certain conversations should be avoided, don’t censor your faith because you’re around non-Christians.
As we commit to these four practices, we will naturally cultivate a hospitable environment for spiritual conversations with those around us.
Sources:
Sam Chan, How to Talk about Jesus (Without Being That Guy) (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2020).
Resources:
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