Living to tell the story: Rethinking Evangelism

In general, mainline church people shun evangelism. The reason is multi-faceted and complex. For some, it's because of the negative connotations that come with evangelism (think street preachers and tele-evangelists). For others, it's uncomfortable to share something so personal as one's faith. And then even for others, there's vulnerability and risk involved when we share our faith story. We might even add that some of us do not share because we are not even sure what we believe.

Certainly, there are obstacles to sharing our faith. It's increasingly difficult to share in the postmodern world that doesn't buy into any one truth. Yet, we sometimes forget that the Christian faith is about transformation. If our lives are being transformed, then often that is enough to tell the story. We can share about what we DO know. One parishioner recently sent me a note about why she tells people about her church (which she is clear to identify as the Metropolitan Memorial Cooperative Parish). It was a heartfelt, meaningful, and excellent description of evangelism. It was a combination of action and words. In that note, she said, "Talking about my church is something I can do. I talk about what I do for the church, and other things going on in the church. I talk about my pastors and other leaders who are willing to advocate for the marginalized at their own risk. I talk about leading students on a gleaning trip for Bread for the City. I talk about a hope that I have of hosting residents of the Methodist home for Thanksgiving dinner. I talk about my cool, fun pastors. So, maybe it isn't evangelism per se, but hopefully it will improve some people's views of "church" enough to get one of those "I have faith, but I don't like church" people back to church."

How do we tell our story? How do we rethink church and this thing called evangelism? I invite you into a dialogue rich with dramatic storytelling that weaves together our story of faith with the local church in hopes of changing the world.

The gospel story can and should shape our lives. In his book, Live to Tell, Brad Kallenberg writes, "I cannot judge or confess that a story that involves me is true unless the story shapes my life." Really, sharing our faith story is sharing how it has shaped our lives. That shouldn't be too difficult, right?

Below is a video created from the Rethink Church campaign from the United Methodist Church. It is a great way to get us thinking about rethinking evangelism. What if we could share what we are doing with others?

Jimmy