An Evangelism New Year's Resolution

The New Year offers us the opportunity to consider new approaches and a new start. Why not make a New Year's resolution that will have an impact on your personal life and on the life of your local congregation? Make the decision to embrace the good news of Jesus Christ and to share it with others.

Where Do I Begin?

Start by asking yourself some questions.

1. What is the good news about Jesus Christ that you have personally experienced? How would you share your thoughts with friends, relatives, acquaintances and neighbors.
2. What life stories can you share that clearly demonstrate the activity of God's love, grace and mercy? [For help with crafting a personal story, see Letters from Dad.]
3. What is your local church going to do that can be done only with God's help? Clearly, the ministry of evangelism requires God's guidance and assistance. Pray about getting involved with an evangelistic ministry from the resource list below. Then resolve to read, discuss, and implement an evangelism ministry in the new year.

Read, Discuss, Implement

Resolve to read, discuss, and implement an evangelism ministry from one or more of the following resources:

• Ancient-Future Evangelismby Robert Webber
• Seeing Beyond Church Walls: Action Plans for Touching Your Community, edited by Steve Sjogren
• Conspiracy of Kindness: A Refreshing New Approach to Sharing the Love of Jesus With Othersby Steve Sjogren
• High Expectations: The Remarkable Secret of Keeping People in Your Churchby Thom S. Rainer
• The Faith-Sharing Congregationby Roger K. Swanson and Shirley F. Clement