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As a missionary child in Africa I was bombarded with many different views about what evangelism really meant. I struggled with the ideas of words versus action and began to realize in my own life that in order to evangelize there must be some element of relationship. We all come to our beliefs by the power of someone else and their influence in and through our lives. I grappled with the concepts of effective relationship for many years and determined the ultimate attempt to display Christ as the most effective mode of evangelism.

It seems to me that too much focus is put on the definition of evangelism and many portray this blanket format of how to 'win others to Christ'. I am a firm believer that the ineffective, and sometimes overpowering and haughty, means by which some church members have chosen to evangelize has actually put off many to what our goal as Christians really should be. Jesus set the example of love and relationship even before his mention of evangelism, or the 'going out to make disciples'. He showed us that we need to love unconditionally. I can not see Jesus walking into a town shouting 'Here I am! I am the Messiah, believe in me!'. He loved people, he taught them gently and with patience so that they would learn to love him first. He displayed a difference that made people wonder what he was about so that the one who needed his saving grace would ask for it, not be demanded to take it.

I love that Christ had patience with people. He understood that trust in him needed to come before the demands of belief. Of course, the evangelism I know and love takes time. Sometimes the time needed to build a relationship is not something one in a busy world wants to take on, but in order to be effective there are two routes: scare someone to turn to Christ by mentioning the hell and anguish they will suffer if they don't, or love others so selflessly that they can't help but want to know where that love comes from. We are Christ's body in this world, we need to have the capacity to reach out, love and wait like he did.

Learn more about this author, Hannah Cates.
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