What has Covid meant for evangelism?
Even as we emerge from lockdown, the Church is having to find new and creative ways of reaching people with the good news of Jesus Christ. People sometimes say to me, how should we doing evangelism now? And I say to them, exactly how we should have been doing it before!  This was the advice that renowned author and evangelist Canon J.John gave on our most recent Church Unlocked livestream, What has Covid meant for evangelism?  We should always be more intentional about praying. My wife and I are currently praying for 42 people that we know personally, that the Lord will open their eyes and their hearts. Its something we can always be doing: we can pray for them.  Yet theres no denying that the pandemic has certainly produced a spark of change in how we reach people with the gospel message. God has been shaking the land  J.John shared with us some verses from Psalm 60, where it talks about the Lord shaking the land and splitting it open. I think something like that has happened in the last year. The land has been trembling.  Evangelist and trained midwife Laura Brett, who now runs various womens ministries and Harrogate Filling Station, agreed: The old has gone, the new has come. God is changing us. We have to join in with what hes doing.  But despite this truth, the gospel is still good news for everyone. Preacher and evangelist Dominic Muir, who runs the ministry Jesus Fields, reminded us: The gospel message hasnt changed. Were not ashamed of the gospel, because its the power of salvation.  The gospel is never locked down, J.John commented. Nothing can lock the gospel down. And thats very important; if we want to share the gospel with confidence, we have to have confidence in the gospel. The gospel offers us forgiveness for the past, new life for today and a hope for the future. Its our reference point, our anchor and the solid rock on which we stand.  Evangelism has changed  But while the gospel remains the same, the way we reach people with it has had to adapt. We asked our followers on Instagram if they agreed: Covid has made people more open to conversations about the big issues, like death and loneliness. 66% agreed. We asked how this had led people to more opportunities to share the gospel. One follower told us: Ultimately, people are afraid of death, so instead of talking about the virus, I share the gospel. Another said: When people are scared or lonely they need community, so I invite them to church to hear the gospel.  Our evangelists also shared how Covid had changed the way they were evangelising. J.John shared how within two days of lockdown, hed had 9 months worth of ministry cancelled. We had 14 carol services, in pretty large venues, all cancelled, so instead, I thought why dont we produce a Christmas evangelistic resource and well just give it away and see who uses it. And 1,398 churches ended up using our Christmas resource. So instead of going to 14 different towns, I ended up preaching the gospel at 1,398 churches! I was also invited on Easter Day last year to preach to 120 prisons simultaneously, by the prison service. They gave me 20 minutes to preach the gospel, and they liked it so much that they asked me to do it again on Christmas Day. Theyre almost certain that 80,000 prisoners tuned in!  Before Covid, these opportunities did not exist  these opportunities only came about because of lockdown.  Meanwhile, Laura Brett shared how her ministry had become more one-to-one: My ministry became a lot more doorstep evangelism. I bought a blackboard and put it at the end of my driveway with a different verse from Scripture on it every day. I had a basket, I put tracts in it, I used books I left them and let people take them. That was a way in. We got used to lots of walks, so there was that opportunity to talk to people one-to-one and have that deep conversation. My ministry online went up a gear as well, and I started to do vlogs, which Id never done before. And I think that really connected people in my network and beyond. Laura encouraged us, I think theres going to be more opportunities on the way, more signs and wonders  that comes with repentance.  Similarly, Dominic Muir encouraged us to keep preaching the message of salvation: Lockdown has led to all sorts of messages of activism going out, when really, what everyone is crying out for is salvation. Lets keep going! The gospel never returns void, so I encourage people to keep doing it!  We want to hear from you! Please share how your church has changed or is changing since the Covid pandemic. We may share your message as part of Church Unlocked. None of the other personal details you provide will be made public. We don't charge anything for this service, and you can unsubscribe at any time. Yes, please send me emails to keep me informed and equip me to pray and take action  You can find out more about how we use your personal information here. WSRF210513    |