Evangelistic Zeal -

"In vain do we seek to awaken our churches to zeal in evangelism as a separate thing. To be genuine it must flow from love to Christ. It is when a sense of personal communion with the Son of God is highest that we shall be most fit for missionary work, either ourselves or to stir up others."

-Archibald Alexander

No Evangelism Team is Complete Without a 'Fran'

One the most important roles in evangelism is prayer. When His Feet is out witnessing we always start out with fervent prayer. We have had many people over the years come along side of us and just pray while we witnessed.

This is huge.

Here to articulate this most important part of an evangelism ministry is an article from Tony Miano over at "On the Box". Please take the time to read it and consider coming out with His Feet sometime and just praying while we take the gospel to the lost.

Fran is not an open-air preacher. She doesn't engage a lot of strangers in conversation. She won't set any records for distributing gospel tracts. In fact, she is so new to biblical evangelism, she is content remaining in the background when she joins her church's evangelism team on the streets.

But make no mistake. Fran is one of, if not the, most important person on her evangelism team. In fact, I will go as far as to say no evangelism team is complete without someone like Fran.

Fran prays.

That's what she's doing in the above picture. Fran is praying for the person atop the box heralding the gospel. She is praying for her team members who are distributing tracts. And she is praying for her team members engaged in one-to-one conversations.

Fran prays.

"You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many" (2 Corinthians 1:11).

"Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak" (Colossians 4:2-4).

"Brothers, pray for us" (1 Thessalonians 5:25).

"Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you, and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil men. For not all have faith. But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one" (2 Thessalonians 3:1-3).

Paul knew very well how important it was to have his Christian brethren praying for him as he engaged in harvest work--the work of evangelism.

Sadly, in today's street evangelism community, praying saints who may not be overt in their personal evangelism efforts are often relegated to a place of secondary importance on evangelism teams (if they are even considered part of the time, in the first place). How very foolish at times we evangelists are!

I thank God for faithful, precious saints like Fran--Christian brethren who not only see the importance of prayer, but also pray. They are the troops assigned to guard the flanks of the charging army. They are the operators of the lines of communication between the front lines and headquarters. They are the M.A.S.H. and U.S.O.--the nurses and comforters--for soldiers far from home. Praying saints are the interceding soul of an evangelism team, whether they join the team on the field of battle or remain in the camp.

No evangelism team is complete without a "Fran." And I am thankful to God and to Fran for showing me this important truth this last weekend, in Syracuse, New York.

Who are the "Frans" of your evangelism team? I'm going to start recruiting mine, today!

Backsliding in 9 Easy Steps

Tim Challies from Challies.com, shares with us today "How to Backslide in 9 Easy Steps" that he has drawn from John Bunyan's great book Pilgrim's Progress.

1. Stop meditating on the gospel. “They draw off their thoughts, all that they may, from the remembrance of God, death, and judgment to come.”
2. Neglect your devotions and stop battling sin. “Then they cast off by degrees private duties, as closet prayer, curbing their lusts, watching, sorrow for sin, and the like.”
3. Isolate yourself from Christian fellowship. “Then they shun the company of lively and warm Christians.”
4. Stop going to church. “After that, they grow cold to public duty, as hearing, reading, godly conference, and the like.”
5. Determine that Christians are hypocrites because they continue to sin. “They then begin to pick holes, as we say, in the coats of some of the godly, and that devilishly, that they may have a seeming color to throw religion (for the sake of some infirmities they have espied in them) behind their backs.”
6. Trade Christian community for distinctly unChristian company. “Then they begin to adhere to, and associate themselves with, carnal, loose, and wanton men.”
7. Pursue rebellious conversation and fellowship. “Then they give way to carnal and wanton discourses in secret; and glad are they if they can see such things in any that are counted honest, that they may the more boldly do it through their example.”
8. Allow yourself to enjoy some small, sinful pleasures. “After this they begin to play with little sins openly.”
9. Admit what you are and prepare yourself for everlasting torment. “And then, being hardened, they show themselves as they are. Thus, being launched again into the gulf of misery, unless a miracle of grace prevent it, they everlastingly perish in their own deceivings.”