Telling the Story, Part 9: Till the Soil

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I came to Christian faith in my fifties and felt my rebirth made me very special.  But when I brought faith up with other people my age I found many had similar experiences and become Christians, too.  It turns out the Holy Spirit works on lots of people and my story wasn’t unusual after all.  Its commonality makes it even more amazing.

My interest in Christianity was aroused by my physician. Whenever I went for a checkup we’d end up discussing stress.  I was president of a company in a difficult industry, a position that involved long-term, incessant stress.  I never received medication or therapy for it, but simply understood that mentally slugging it out was just part of the territory.

He invited me to a Sunday School class he taught on handling stress through Christian faith.  I didn’t give Jesus any credibility but I was curious, so I went.  Over 10 weeks I found the things he taught about Christian faith made sense.  I could see how my own life could improve by taking on a mindset of  love instead of wallowing in the “don’t get mad, get even” attitude.

The good doctor discussed the Parable of the Four Soils.  A sower’s seed can’t survive in hard, rocky or thorny ground but can only thrive in good soil.  My soil was hard and thorny but he tilled it until I opened my heart and gave Christ a fair chance.  This was a no-brainer after being exposed to Christianity’s advice, hope, and strength, not to mention the incredible promise of eternal life. Secularism offers none of this.

Tilling soil is work:  moving rocks, pulling thorns and hoeing hard ground. Fertile soil doesn’t happen without effort.  But we can ignite curiosity if we engage in  dialog, answer questions, and establish the Bible’s credibility. Once we’ve done this we can transition into deeper aspects of our faith.

A traditional evangelism technique is the Romans Road, where a series of verses systematically explains the message of salvation.  The result can be fast, but the audience receptive to it is much smaller than the gospel-resistant population.

Here’s the problem:  in order for the Romans Road to work people need to believe the Bible is credible. Secularists have done a great job of convincing people it’s nothing but fairy tales and myths with outdated morals that don’t apply today.  Years ago, public schoolchildren said prayers, even parents who didn’t attend church sent their kids to Sunday School, everyone knew people who were open about their faith, and Christianity was our society’s bedrock.

No longer.  Millions make up their own rules and dismiss the Bible on the basis of shallow misconceptions.  Presenting the Romans Road to this crowd with no preparation may cause eyes to glaze over and conversations to die.  “Tilling the soil” isn’t a recipe for instant gratification, but it’s a way to keep communication open, create respect for our faith, generate interest, and open minds.

Next ChristianStandpoint article:  Bring it Home