Discovering Spiritual Journeys of Family and Friends

Many of us will spend the holidays with family and friends who don't know Christ, and sometimes, it's really challenging to imagine how we might enter into their stories and share the hope of the Gospel. The following is an email we received from Gilbert Kingsley, who helps lead Cru's Coaching Center about just this topic!

Most of us learned to share our faith with strangers. We survey hundreds of students and follow up those most interested in hearing the Gospel. We got practice in sharing Christ with those we did not know.
 
I have been thinking a lot recently about how to share the Good News with those we do know.
 
Many of us intuitively know those in our circle of friends who are warm to spiritual things and those who aren’t. But we don’t know what is going on in hearts. Might God be doing something that we have no idea about?
 
Here are four simple ideas for you and your students to try when you are home over the holidays. They are not original with me.
 
1. Make a Top 10 list of those you would like to have a spiritual conversation with during your break. Put the list in your Bible. Pray everyday for God to open the door to a conversation. Here are some things to pray for the lost.
 
2. Ask “How can I pray for you?” If appropriate, follow up with “Can I pray for you right now?” I was having lunch with a friend one day. We had been talking about ministry. After saying good-by in the parking lot, a complete stranger, who had been sitting near enough to us to hear our conversation, came up to me and told me some struggles he was going through. I asked if I could pray for him right there in that parking lot. He was so appreciative. We have no idea how much others appreciate hearing prayers on their behalf.
 
3. Ask a “Sometime” question. For example,“Sometime, I’d like to hear about your spiritual journey…Would you be up for that?” (From “Sometime—An Overview and Guide")
 
4. When you do have a spiritual conversation, here are some questions. (From "Explorer: Discovering Spiritual Journeys.")

• What would you say is most important to you in life right now?
• How important is the spiritual area of life to you currently?
• What have you tried in your spiritual journey?
• What has your search left you feeling?
• On a scale of 1-10 (1-low and 10-high), how strong is your desire to know God in a personal way?

I hope these open up doors of conversation. I would also like to hear what you find useful in training others in evangelism in a high relational, small audience context. Feel free to write me and let me know what’s helpful.