Successful witnessing is sharing Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit.
My first witnessing experience occurred when I was in the 6th grade. I had recently made a public commitment to follow Jesus and had been baptized at our little church, so I knew that I wanted to share Jesus with my classmates at school.
Jan was a girl in my class whose mom was a teacher at our school, and she seemed to enjoy the bit of popularity that came with that. I don’t know why I decided to talk to her about Jesus, but it didn’t go so well. In my enthusiasm about my Christian faith, I managed to alienate her somehow to the point that she turned most of the other girls in the class against me. It was a lonely time for me, but God and I spent a lot of time together bonding after that discouraging experience.
On the other hand, in university, God brought Kathy, who was one of my roommates, and her sister, Mary, who were both searching into his kingdom as new believers through my witness! My first year was a challenging one adjusting to university life. One morning Kathy saw me reading my Bible before class, and she wanted to know more about my relationship with God as a result. We eventually became great friends as I discipled her, and we explored the scriptures together!
Sharing my faith has not always proven to be a great friend-maker for me, but in this verse, Paul explains that our boldness in sharing Christ might not please people. (He was treated badly in Philippi, but did not let that stop him!) As we experience God’s love on a daily basis and remember how he saved us, our focus has to be on examining our motives first, then seeing evangelism as a trust from God.
In university, I’ve learned that successful witnessing is sharing Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit, and leaving the results to God. As Paul mentions in this passage, boldness comes from God. It’s a great partnership!
Father God, please give me both pure motives and boldness in sharing Christ with someone today! May I fully rely on your Holy Spirit and trust you to work, even if I do not see any results, or lose a friend. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Throughout This Day: This passage says that “God tests our hearts.” When I think of medical tests that I’ve had done on my heart to measure the strength of this vital organ, I wonder what God finds when he tests my heart? Ask God to “test your heart” today to see if you are trying to please man rather than God, and confess your need for him to purify your motives.
Photo Credit: Windows