In the church I often hear testimonies, prayers and comments about the way that following Jesus has brought joy, peace, purpose, and security into people’s lives. This week I heard a new Christian praying, “Lord, I long for my friends to experience you like I have, you are amazing!” The Christian life can sometimes be challenging and costly – but it is also characterised by the joy that comes from being reconciled to a God who is good, and His presence in our lives.
The media get great mileage from publicising bad-news stories about Christianity. Perhaps it is time to start changing our friends and colleagues’ perceptions about the Christian faith, by drip-feeding them a better, more accurate narrative.
Next time you are asked, ‘Good weekend?’, instead of the traditional, ‘Fine’, perhaps there is an opportunity to say something positive about the difference your faith (or even just your church) makes in your life.
Here are some examples of good news stories I have heard Christians drip into conversation:
- ‘Church was very significant for me yesterday.’
- ‘My friend of mine was baptized at the weekend and talked about how her new faith had helped her.’
- ‘I went to a human rights event where a Christian who’d escaped from North Korea spoke about the way that her faith sustained her in the internment camps.’
- ‘Our church has been raising money for a hospital in Africa and we managed to reach our target.’
- ‘The young people at church led the service last night, it was a breath of fresh air!’
- ‘I don’t know how to explain this but I’m really growing in my faith at the moment and it’s making me rethink a few things about life and priorities.’
- ‘The funeral yesterday was hard, but it’s times like these that my faith makes such a difference.’
TV dramas seem to love to picture church leaders putting out and collecting hymn books in empty buildings (just watch!). The thought that churches around the country consist of people with a real, living faith in Jesus which informs everything from how they spend their money, to profound spiritual experiences, to lives changed for the better as they follow Jesus – is a great untold story.
Pray: Lord, help me to be a conduit for good news stories about you and the difference you make to people’s lives!
Previously: Launch Pad #10 Reassure People That You Welcome Faith Conversations
Next: Launch Pad #12 Join a Club or Group Outside the Church
