Evangelism for "Normal" People: Good News for Those Looking for a Fresh Approach

by Dr John Bowen

Noted author and teacher John Bowen takes a unique look at what it means to witness to one's faith. Evangelism is something that all Christians can do as a normal part of being a follower of Jesus. Witty, wise, and biblically grounded, the book challenges in a gentle way. Includes study questions for congregational use.

Genres: Christian, Christianity

226 pages, Paperback

First published June 30, 2002

Reviews

[David Westerveld · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing style wasn't always my cup of tea, but there was a lot of good helpful things to think about in here. Evangelism has a bad rap in a lot of places, and let's be honest, understandably so. If evangelism means talking about your faith with random strangers, we are talking about something that is probably not relationally appropriate. What we believe about God and religion is near the core of who we are for many of us. Is it really a good idea to try and manipulate conversations to bring them to that place? A productive discussion about faith is much more likely to happen if you know each other and if this is a topic you are both interested in thinking through and learning about. How do you find yourself in those kinds of conversations? Lots of good thoughts in the book on that.

I did a lot of highlighting in this book. A few quotes:

"Worship that does not lead to evangelism is as deficient as evangelism that does not lead to worship"

"She didn't give a damn about me: all she cared about was her little project." - my note: If we aren't genuinely caring about the person we are doing it wrong

"Evangelism is a slow process. This means we need a place where faith can grow, an incubator, if you like. Church should be a place where faith is not allowed to stagnate but also isn't forced to premature expression."

"Churches serious about helping people find faith need as a priority to provide safe places where that can happen."

"one of the church's tasks now is to create access to church for the spiritually challenged. Like the physically challenged, they find it difficult simply to walk in, the way that others can do. They need the equivalent of ramps and elevators to enable them to access church in a way that is manageable for them."

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Helpful for our year of inviting.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

His emphasis on Evangelism as a process in which the whole community of faith has varying roles is helpful in showing how even those without a gift for sharing the Good News can have a role in this work.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The word 'evangelism' in the title is enough to lose people's interest in the book, but despite that it is a very interesting and readable book--not a frustrating 'how-to' manual but a more global picture of the whys and misconceptions behind evangelism.