Evangelism is the telling of the Good News. As of the late the church has rediscovered the idea of evangelism and has produced numerous programs to train people in “doing evangelism.” Yet evangelism is the telling of what we have experienced and for that one does not need special training. What you need are special experiences. It is like walking in the woods and suddenly coming around the corner and seeing an absolutely gorgeous waterfall. Once you have seen it, you do not need training on how to share what you have experienced. You just need to find someone who you care about and bring them so that they can experience it too.
Three factors seem important. First, you need to experience the Good News yourself. Telling a person about a beautiful waterfall that you have read about can be an interesting exchange of ideas but it lacks the vitality of a first hand experience. Secondhand Good News keeps you at a safe distance from the experience you are describing. When you are telling about Good News that you have experienced firsthand, you are risking revealing something about yourself. You are telling someone about something that has moved you personally.
Second, you need to genuinely care about the other people with whom you wish to share. If you are working for a tour agency that is promoting a tour of a particular waterfall, many will sense that you are more interested in the sale than you are in them as people. It may be personally frustrating to learn that though you are personally enthralled by the power of water cascading down a mountain your listener is deathly afraid of water or heights. Yet showing respect for them and their concerns is a genuine first step in sharing Good News.
Third, you need to be able to bring them to where they can experience the Good News for themselves. Forcing your story of Good News on someone can be similar to imposing the slides of your latest trip on your dinner guests. They may, out of respect and care for you, be interested in knowing about this experience that has so touched you. If, however, it is possible for them to travel to those same woods and they have the potential of viewing a similar waterfall, your story takes on a new dimension for them.
