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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Q: How do you convert someone if they dislike going to church?

Firstly, we have to remember that is it not US that does the conversion. We are simply the vessel in which God uses to bring people closer to Him. If you think that what you say, what you do, how you act, is the SOLE way in which your friend will come to know Christ, than you are sadly mistaken.

My advice would be this:

1. Model your life after Christ (1 Cor 5:2) - If you want people to know who God us, make sure you're life resembles the life of Christ. What good is it to tell people about God and how He has changed your life for the better, if you act no differently than the rest of the world? Christians have often been criticized as being hypocrites, so don't let that be the way your friend sees you. You want your friends to become Christians, you gotta give them a good example of what that is.

2. Pray for your friend (Luke 10:2)- As I said, it is not US that converts people, but the Holy Spirit. Pray that God would reveal Himself to them, and ask God to open their hearts. Also ask God to opportunities to talk to your friend about Christianity.

3. Talk to them - Please don't just expect to bring your friend to church and then let the pastors do the converting. Talk to your friend about their experience. You said that they dislike going to church - why is that? Perhaps they simply do not understand why we do certain things - this could be an opportunity for you to explain it to them. If there is something they are unclear of and you can't answer the question, come talk to one of the Pastors and we can help to clarify.

Hope that helps you out a bit. Check out this website from Christianity Today to learn a little more about evangelizing in the postmodern world.


[answered by KJT]