My sister has made a career out of raising money for colleges and organizations. Currently, the university she works for expects her to raise three million dollars each year. To do that, she must attend social, musical, and athletic events with prospective clients or take them out to dinner. She loves it because she enjoys talking. She’s very engaging and makes people feel as if they have always been a part of her life.
For many years, raising money had not been a problem, but then COVID hit. No traveling, no classes, no games, and no social events. She stayed home and made a few phone calls to those benefactors she had relied on over the years.
I wondered how, if we couldn’t make contact in our usual ways, we would spread God’s Word? We can’t keep witnessing to those who are already Christians. That’s like witnessing to ourselves. Many people use the internet to spread the word in various ways. I’m not too good at that, so I send or hand out devotions.
I’m in the process of publishing a book of devotions for our church. The goal is to have people stay in the Word and feel as if we’re in this together. I hope members will cooperate. I think sometimes that people don’t want to put their thoughts down, and that’s too bad. Sharing is therapeutic and makes us think about digging deeper.
Now, suppose my sister can’t or doesn’t contact anyone. Won’t the university suffer? And eventually, the students will suffer through fewer scholarships and programs. And what about us? If we choose not to communicate or contact those who are lost, won’t those who have never heard suffer?
People need to hear the Good News from evangelists, missionaries, Sunday school teachers, Christian organizations, personal interactions, devotions, and us. Our efforts do make a difference. If they didn’t, Jesus wouldn’t have said, “Go and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19). Instead, He would have said, “Stay home.”
Think of ways you can share God’s Word with others.
Carl Schleede is a writer.