Over the past weeks I have become more aware than ever that the starting point in spiritual conversations has shifted drastically. So many people don’t even have a point of reference as to who God is, yet they are willing to engage in conversation about the things that matter in their lives.  Most people are willing to talk about relationships, the meaning and purpose of their lives, and address the issue of what will happen to them after they die. It is a tremendous skill to learn how to transition into a spiritual conversation with someone.
Relationship questions helps a young woman discover Jesus:

A young woman, Tara*, had been corresponding with one of our mentors about a relationship she was in.  She knew her parents would disapprove and was struggling with how she could tell them.  After quite a few interactions, this is how the mentor transitioned and led this woman to Christ:

Mentor: This is a very hard thing to go through, you must feel very anxious and stressed. …Would you mind if i prayed for you?… Whenever i am under stress i find that it helps to pray about it. God promises to hear us when we pray to Him, He listens and He cares so much to hear what we have to say. He gives us strength, hope, and comfort. I hope to encourage you today by saying that the Lord loves you (mentees name)… He cares for you more than you understand! What do you think of that?

Tara: i think that thats amazing that he loves me.

Mentor: Have you prayed about your situation at all? Would you like to pray to accept Christ into your life or have you before? He wants you to know that He loves you. Before i accepted Christ into my life i was more depressed and lonely. My life has changed since i have and i am living a more peaceful life..

Tara:  I feel ok with it now. I guess that I could tell them. No I havent prayed about it at all. I would like to ask Christ to come into my life. I know that I’m not alone, and that I always have HIM in my life.

Your story – a way that you can share your faith:

It’s incredible how people can make a difference when we learn how to share our faith in a relevant way. A powerful way is through the use of our personal story.  When you start to tell a story people lean in. They want to hear how the story will turn out.

You have a story.  When you engage people in conversation about things that really matter, sooner or later the attention is going to shift to you.  You’ll be asked, “So tell me about your spiritual beliefs,” or,   “Why does Jesus mean so much to you?”  You could answer with a mini-lecture – something along the lines of the Gospel 101, or you could answer with a story.  Your story. You have something powerful, personal, and true to share.  You have a story that people need to hear – a story that points to Jesus.

Watch Nadine’s Story <http://powertochange.com/experience/spiritual-growth/striving-for-satisfaction/> .  Notice how she kept her story short (about two minutes long), and focused it around a single theme. (written by Karen Schenk)

♥ Thank you for all that you do! You are valuable and loved ♥
Terri

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 27th, 2012 at 4:21 pm and is filed under Mentoring, Terri's Tuesday Tip. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.