Adventures in Door-to-Door Evangelism

When he first came to the door in a long t-shirt and his underwear, we offered an embarrassed chuckle, but when I realized it was my friend Immanuel from the library, I began to look for a place to hide. I was with two girls from Windhoek who came with a team from their church to do an outreach with our youth group in Arandis. Their primary evangelistic tool, door-to-door evangelism.

If you’ve known me for any length of time you know what a huge fan I am of door-to-door evangelism (said very sarcastically for those who don’t). But all this week in the mornings and afternoons we go out in small groups to visit people’s homes, unashamedly share the gospel, then invite them to the evening program we hold every night.

Aside from feeling like a Jehovah’s Witness, I think it puts people on the defensive and they’re far less interested in talking about deep personal matters with a complete stranger than a friend. That said, I have discovered many benefits thus far. At first I was slightly anxious whenever we came to the house of someone I knew. But then I got to thinking, it gave me the perfect opportunity to introduce Jesus into our ongoing conversations. True, this team from Windhoek doesn’t know this person or where they’re at, but their boldness has forced me to be upfront about my faith. For those I don’t know, it gives me the chance to explain why I’m here and let them know I’m available if they ever have questions. In addition, it’s helped me refine my ability to succinctly, clearly share what I believe and helped me get a better understanding of some questions people face regarding the gospel.

I still don't know exactly where Immanuel is on his spiritual journey, but now when the questions and issues come up, he knows he has a friend with whom he can discuss them. I'm also looking forward to an intriguing follow-up conversation the next time I see him in the library. And I’m still no closer to taking up door-to-door on my free weekends, but it has been an interesting exercise in openness and boldness.