Paul: Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Me: Most people don’t think to call on the Lord in this day and age.
Paul: How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?
Me: If I told them about Jesus I don’t think they would buy it. It’s just too unbelievable for my post-Christian and secular neighbors.
Paul: And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard?
Me: Doesn’t everyone just already know about Jesus—through Christmas and Easter? Can’t they just google it if they want to know more?
Paul: And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
Me: Oh, someone should actually explain the good news?
Paul: And how can anyone preach unless they are sent?
Me: That’s why I pay my pastor and give to missionaries—that’s their job. Besides, I’m just not an evangelist.
Paul: As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Me: I don’t like my feet.
(Romans 10:13–15 in bold)
Most of my life I thought every person had already heard the good news, done a little research, and then said “No.” I spent many years tiptoeing around people because I assumed they had already had a bad experience with a “weird” Christian, and talking about Jesus would be off limits.
The older I get the more testimonies I hear of people who were “waiting” and “ready,” and although they wouldn’t have been able to google “Jesus Christ and the good news,” when someone finally told them the gospel it started them on a journey of discovery!
I’ve heard testimonies of people here in Berlin who explained, “I was a cultural atheist” or “I was waiting for someone to tell me about Jesus, even though I didn’t have words to explain that.”
A neighbor here in the east of Berlin told me recently, “My mom told me there is no God, but I don’t believe that.” An elderly gentleman with a walker said, “I don’t buy all that stuff about God, but if he would heal my knees I would believe in him.”
Read through Romans 10:13–15 one more time. How are you coming to this text today? Be honest with the Lord. Are there assumptions you are making about your friends and neighbors? Is there someone in your life that you have already said “No” for? Is there someone the Lord is bringing to mind that you could ask, “May I share a story with you that has changed my life?” Spend a few quiet minutes listening to God and see if he highlights a name. Jesus is faithful—if they call on him, they will be saved!
I bless your beautiful feet, in Jesus’s name with the freedom, courage, and the Spirit’s anointing to simply share what you know with someone else!
If you have five minutes, watch atheist Penn Jillette give his perspective on evangelism:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fa9JE_ZVL88
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Regina Girard is a USA born missionary kid from Papua New Guinea who has lived in Berlin Germany since 2015 with her husband Fabien and their two kids, Gideon (5) and Noa (3). God started calling Regina to France as a 15 year old and she’s been on a 25 year journey of discerning his voice/calling. The Girards joined Novo as staff in February 2021 and are preparing to launch to Marseille, France in 2023. They long to see the day come in their lifetime where everyone in France has had personal contact with a Christian and the opportunity to hear and respond to the good news of Jesus Christ.