Overcoming Fear (convos/evangelism)
I Felt the Nudge… and Stayed Silent 🙁
Q: How do you overcome the fear of approaching people to talk about the Lord or pray for them?
Yesterday I had a small encounter at a McDonald’s play place that’s been sitting heavy on my heart. I was there alone with my daughter when a woman came in with her grandson. She was visibly struggling to walk and stand upright, & during our small talk she mentioned that she was bringing him "one last time" before having an extensive spinal surgery.
I could feel the Lord nudging me so clearly to ask if I could pray with her, and I didn’t do it.
The strange thing is, she was incredibly kind and approachable. There was no reason to be afraid, but I froze anyway. Ever since, I’ve been thinking about it and wondering why fear can feel louder than obedience in moments like that.
How did you get to the point of boldness in your faith in public spaces? Have you ever ignored a prompting and regretted it? I’d genuinely love advice and experiences beyond the obvious “just do it,” because I really want to grow in this area.
I did pray for her out loud for several minutes as soon as I got to my car and my 4 year old even asked Jesus to help her. But idk I just hate that I missed an opportunity to possibly be a light to her day.
A: I would say my love for Jesus/God outweighs the fear, since they could enter eternity today. That lady might not survive her surgery, or could go into it with peace having been made right with God.
Theres no other way than to "just do it", but you do need to get equipped first. First you need to be reading Scripture daily, meditating on verses you know, and need to know, understand the Gospel well, and grow in your love towards our triune God. Together it and your love for others will compell you to engage them.
If you do the sbove, you'll gain the confidence because you're equipped. Right now you might have a fear of what if she asks stuff and I dont have answers, which Scripture tells us an approved workman would, and thus wouldn't be ashamed.
It is normal we would have a bit of hesitation, but we need to push past that fear and into faithfulness. Fear is false evidence appearing real, but faithfulness pleases God, and it pushes us out of our comfort zone, to do the right thing; called to proclaim the Gospel and to biblically proclaim allegiance to Christ by what we say, do (and in convos).
These resources will greatly help you towards this goal ✨️😊✝️
In her case you could ask if you could pray with her, and afterwards hand her a tract. Saying "The backside talks about Jesus. I pray you have peace with God and a good surgery," As you depart.
Maybe try role playing scenarios with godly women you know, so you can get some confidence built up. And have ideas of where to take convos. 🙂
A guy I know only had 1 person turn him down from religious convos in 50 yrs sharing Christ daily. Truly the only way IS to step out in faith, trusting... knowing God (by the Holy Spirit) will guide you. And it shows your daughter you trust God and help her have that confidence too (in sharing the Faith & showing her faith).
I've been sharing (somewhat) since I was very young. Later in life my mom said I was always talking to people about Jesus when really young. Got saved at 12 and will be 52 this yr. I never had formal or guidance in evangelism, and as an young adult had a bit of trouble trying to witness [see footnotes]. There was no real training at church on that. It was expected that if you were saved, you were witnessing, and studying Scripture so you could have these convos. It wasnt until my late 20s I got that education, and it went great since then, but I too had to overcome some fear around strangers. I rarely have issues anymore, esp w loafs of helps on the internet now (at reputable apologetics and evangelism ministries) that weren't available back then.
What I've learned over my life is: If God is in it, and youre faithful to try... He will lead you in the encounter. Keep looking for divine opportunities, [even in trials etc too cuz thats when your faith will glorify God as you (despite circumstances)] to point people to Jesus.
It's simplest and best way to start convos is with tracts. As a good icebreaker. And if you can't get it at beginning, leave it with them before you go. Even if you simply say "theres a message on the back, have a blessed day" as you leave.
Even convos on social media can help you grow in experience too. 😊✨️
*Bookmark the link above, and determine to go through it all.
God bless
Footnote
Example of intentions but missed the window even after evangelism training.
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All we can do is dust ourselves off and keep going.
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