Shame and dry spells

DAILY BYTE

Yesterday, we talked about our hesitancies in sharing the Gospel. You may have thought to yourself, ‘I’m not ashamed that I go to church – I don’t hide my face when I’m leaving home to get there in the morning. I’ve been a Christian for years – I’ve stuck with it so long – I’m not ashamed of it!’

But if we’re not ashamed a little bit – or maybe – anxious – just a little bit – of sharing and ‘rightly explaining the word of truth’ without shame – then why aren’t churches full? Because while numbers certainly are not everything – the reality is that if every single person brought just one other person to worship, churches would be busting at the seams!

But that call to rightly explain the word of truth sounds like something you might need to be a professional for – I mean isn’t that why pastors go to seminary – to learn how to explain all of the complicated stuff? Well, pastors go to seminary to grow in knowledge and understanding. But, as Christians, we are a priesthood of all believers – which means that we are all called to that same calling – a calling to grow and deepen our understanding and practice of faith.

A couple of months ago, I sat down and had a chat with a family member about a book she had been reading, called, Little Bee. She talked about how powerful she had found it and the different ways it had made her think, and as I love reading, I eagerly soaked up her revelations. And then she left the book with me for me to read it for myself.

This is how we operate as human beings who care for one another, is it not? When things pique our interest, when they speak to our souls, when they change us and grow us in some way, we want to tell others about it and offer them a piece of that growth, too!

And so when it comes to sharing and “rightly explaining the word of truth,” I think we make that scary concept of evangelism more complicated than it actually is.

We think that we have to have all the answers to peoples’ questions. We think we need to know our Bibles backward and forward and be armed with some sort of spiritual ammo or degree before we dare to try and tell anyone about how we’re learning and growing in God. It’s easy to talk about how any old novel has affected us, but when it comes to talking about how the Bible has affected us, we are not as forthcoming.

And perhaps the reason that we’re not as forthcoming is because we’re stunted a little in our own spiritual growth. Perhaps we actually feel like we have very little to share or are in a dry spot. And if that’s the case, then this is not a time for condemnation but a time for encouragement. That’s the time to speak to a minister. It’s the time to join a small group to study the scriptures and be accountable to others for your growth. It’s not a time to be ashamed, confused, and hidden away.

Are you in a dry spot in your faith? Do you feel like you have little to share with others? Do you ever feel ashamed of what you believe? If so, do you want to keep growing in confidence and passion for your faith? What steps might you need to take to encourage growth?

GUIDING SCRIPTURE

2 Timothy 2:15 (NRSV)

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.