THE HIGH SCHOOL MINISTRY OF CRU

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Why Use a Tool to Share Your Faith

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Students today are more relational than ever, and so it makes your job of sharing Christ in a relevant way that much more important. If you are a student, you’ve got a built in advantage. You speak the language, and understand them like no other creature on the planet. You are God’s best weapon for bringing Him to your campus. If we’re honest though we’d have to say it’s tough presenting Christ as the only way to God in our culture.

Ideas are easily swapped in the cafeteria or during practice, but our message demands a response. We want that person to make an intelligent decision about what we communicated. Sometimes we can dance around the issues talking about spiritual stuff, but never really get to the heart of the matter. We often never actually bring them to the point where they can receive Christ. That’s why using a simple tool to communicate your faith can be so helpful.

Using a tool keeps the message simple and to the point.

How often have you gotten into long conversations with a friend about spiritual things, but couldn’t seem to get down to the main issue of where they stood with God. Most evangelistic tools present a simple and complete outline including Scriptures to help you keep on track.

Usually a tool will begin on a positive note – “God loves you!”

This is important, because God’s Spirit wants to draw your friends to God. Presenting God in a positive sight will let them take that first step towards Him.

A tool will always present how to receive Christ.

It’s built right into the text, and usually all you need to do is read it, and lead your friend in prayer.

A tool will give you confidence because you’ll know what to say.

The Japanese have a saying, “I will master something, then the creativity will come.” When a woodworker masters how to use the tools of his trade, he then naturally creates objects of beauty and worth. When you master a tool, you will then be able to relax and be yourself in the context of a spiritual discussion. Something many adults can’t even do well. Christ wants to express His love and concern through you. If you are always concerned about what to say next, that will be harder to express. A tool will help you become confident in the message you want to bring to your friends.

Some students react to using a tool. One guy said, “I’m the only Bible some of my friends will ever read, so I’m just gonna let my life speak for itself.” But can a person really trust Christ by just observing someone’s life? The simple definition of evangelism is to announce or proclaim good news. God has called us to back up our life with words that will clarify and bring to light the reality of Christ in us.

Remember, an evangelistic tool helps us in our mission to present Christ. However, it is only a tool. God is the one who draws people to Himself. He is the One who will open their eyes to spiritual truths. He will be the one to give assurance in their heart for what He has done. It’s not the words in the booklet that will change anyone. A tool acts as a simple outline to lead them to the truth they need to place their trust in Christ.

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What they’re saying about Cru

Students run in packs like fish run in schools. Ethnic, interests, sports, classes, and friendships naturally group the student world together. Jesus said, “Follow me and I will make you a fisher of men.” Your school is a perfect place to present the love of Christ, because students will listen more readily and be most comfortable when they are within these natural groups. That’s why a good dose of creativity can open up opportunities for many students to hear.

The Right Environment

Remember the parties and sleepovers you used to have in junior high? Great videos! “TP-ing” the heck out of the neighborhood! Food! All night discussions on juicy topics! Kissing pillows and swapping most embarrassing stories. The right friends. A good place. Good video. It might be awhile since you gathered together like that. Did you know the same kinds of great fun and ideas can be turned into opportunities to share Christ? What made those times so memorable? Chances are it was the environment. You were totally relaxed in a setting that jazzed you. Your friends were safe people, well sort of at least until you went to sleep. First one to go to sleep always got the shaving cream and the hand in the warm water trick…remember? Ha! You’re gross! An evangelistic outreach needs to be on a turf that students know, enjoy and can make an escape from if it gets too hot. Remember, you’re sharing about Jesus Christ. Your church wouldn’t be the best place. Too many students have negative feelings about places of worship. Your youth worker’s grandmother’s place wouldn’t work either. I don’t care if she does have a nice living area, to replace the antiques you break would take seven years of allowances.

Great Places for an Outreach

Here are some ideas for places to hold an outreach:

  • Your place
  • Your friend’s place
  • A teacher’s classroom at school
  • A local pizza parlor
  • The gymnasium
  • Parks and recreational areas
  • The beach

It’s Gotta be Relevant

Along with the right place, you need a relevant topic to discuss. What’s that mean? Simply put, it has to hit a nerve in your friends, something they think about, or want to discuss. When they hear about it, they say to themselves, yea I want to take that further … A relevant topic will give credibility to your special gathering. Not only does the topic need to be relevant, but it has to be able to naturally lead into spiritual things. In other words, you could talk about how high the corn is getting, but how will you turn the conversation to spiritual things?

Outreach Topics

Some topics for your outreach might include:

  • Relationships
  • Getting Along with Parents
  • Goofy Stuff We Do
  • How to Have a Great Senior Year
  • Ten Things you Don’t Want to Do During Homecoming
  • What’s the X in X-mass?
  • Spring Fever – How to Cool It!
  • How to Tame Stress
  • How to Get Better Grades and Have More Fun
  • Easter Bunnies or Something Else?
  • Winning Over Worry
  • Your Personal Story

Get the drift? It’s gotta relate! Felt needs lead to real needs and an opportunity to share Jesus Christ in a way that your friends will want to listen. Once you’ve got your idea and location set you need to choose the kind of activity that you’ll invite them too. Most students want to come to an event that has some spark and sizzle. It’s gotta have food, and it should be uproariously fun! Christianity has taken a bad rap. They think we’re all constipated living on prunes and looking with wonder across the road at the world wishing we could play. Rubbish. Let’s show them that we can rock with the best of ‘em!

Activity Ideas

Here is a list of ideas that have actually been tried in real life … proceed at your own risk.

  • Burger Bash: Get a local fast food place to donate burgers, find a good band, and chow down. Your friends will love the party atmosphere.
  • Viking Dinner: This works well with both sexes. Have parents make as much food as possible, and the “guests” can only use their hands as utensils.
  • Thanksgiving Turkey Bowl: What could be more unique than rolling a frozen turkey at bowling pins in honor of the Thanksgiving holiday. Students love it!
  • Super Bowl Party: A great video which is produced each year featuring prominent athletes is easy to show during half-time.
  • Valentine’s Day Outreach: This highly social party type idea could be done in a home or at school. Don’t forget the long stemmed roses.

Helpful Tips on Evangelistic Events

  • Team up with several other Christians.
  • Publicize the event as broad as possible. Use through word of mouth, fliers, Internet and phone calls. Be persistent with some who may need multiple invites to show up.
  • Pray for the event before, during and afterwards.
  • Ask your parents to help you with those things you can’t get donated.
  • Be organized. Here’s a simple method: On a piece of paper have three lines:
    • What do I need to do?
    • When do I need to do it?
    • Who can help me?
  • Use comment cards. Use pre-printed cards or 3″ x 5″ cards to get the students’ response from your message. Include: Name, school, phone, and comments, then have them check one or more of the following:
    • [ ] I received Christ at this meeting.
    • [ ] I would like to grow as a Christian. Call me with details.
    • [ ] I’d like a related article about what you talked about tonight.
    • [ ] Contact me about the next meeting.

Answers to Most Asked Questions

What if I don’t have many non-Christian friends? A: Begin with those you do have. Start with simple outreaches and begin to build a broader base of friends. When they come to Christ you will have a broader base from which to invite others to future events.

How do I prepare a talk for one of these outreaches? A: It’s a lot like doing a research paper. Write up a simple three-point outline on your topic, and then research for the content. Always use your personal testimony as a transition between the content of your felt need topic and the gospel. Use tools to share a simple gospel presentation. You can use some ready made talks; simply adapt them to your audience and use current illustrations.

Review

  • The right place.
  • The right environment.
  • The right topic.
  • The right talk.