Dear Praying Friends,
I spent Saturday doing an apologetics follow up seminar at a church in a Nairobi suburb where I had an initial seminar in January. One session was spent reviewing and explaining how to have a polite, gracious, respectful conversation about their views or questions regarding Christianity. The second was the hot topic of LGBTQ. But maybe the highlight was the response of my local contact and planner, Pastor Patrick Njau.
ENGAGING SKEPTICS, DOUBTERS, AND SEEKERS
In the first session I covered topics like “how to listen,” “how to enhance a conversation,” and “how to sabotage a conversation.” Following the talk, Pastor Patrick asked some excellent questions: “Is evangelism and apologetics the same thing?” And, “When we are witnessing should we always use apologetics?” And, based on a story I told to the group about someone asking a friend of mine, “Where was God before He created everything?” Patrick asked it for himself since I didn’t answer it earlier. And, “If someone doesn’t want to have a conversation with us about Christianity or the gospel, what do we do then?” And, finally, “What if the person is angry argumentative?”
ANSWERS
Answers: Apologetics is a part of evangelism. It is the act of answering questions that come up when you are doing evangelism. Next, you only use apologetics when necessary if a person is ready to receive Christ and has no questions then there is no need for apologetics. Third, before He created everything (time, space, the universe) He was outside of time and space. The same place He is presently. Hard to imagine but true. Next, don’t force a conversation and leave the door open for a discussion later. And, if a person is hostile towards Christianity, back off from a verbal presentation and show them the love of Christ in how you live. I finished by encouraging them from the parable of the sewer in Mark 4. I told them that whether you are an experienced farmer or a rookie, when you throw seed, if it lands on good soil, it will grow and bear fruit. So “just throw seed.”
PREPARING FOR A POTENTIAL LGBTQ ADVANCE
The second session was on the LGBTQ revolution in our country. I defined it and explained how postmodernism paved the way and how activists push their agenda. Then I took time to define gender, marriage, and family from the Bible, emphasizing that marriage, sex, and having babies are a “package deal.” And that was and is God’s formula for filling the earth with worshippers.
I told stories and went over survey results from our country and exhorted them to be diligent. The LGBTQ groups here have been given permission to establish an NGO here in Kenya where such things are against the law, to date. I warned them that this might be just the beginning.
THE REAL STORY OF THE DAY
But the highlight of the day may have been my conversations with Patrick. He let me know that he is ready to study the notes from the lectures I’ve been giving (apologetics) and start doing them himself. And next time I am here, I want to give the talks and let me listen and evaluate. We also had an excellent conversation about the demands on a pastor that are more cultural than biblical.
Patrick is proving himself to be a fat man. Yes, I said fat! F: Faithful (He is always early when picking me up. Always!) A: Available. He wants to be trained and involved. T: Teachable. He is definitely teachable. And along with being F.A.T., he is a “thinker,” and that is a very valuable trait of someone wanting to be an apologist.
By the end of the day, I was very tired, but it was a good tired because of what had been accomplished.
That’s all for now. Sunday will be a repeat of today with an added sermon on “Why Do Christians Suffer?” Same content as today, just in another location where I had an initial seminar in January.
CLICK HERE to see the picture album with new pictures from today.
By His grace,
Steve