// Monday blues just turned a shade darker.

I never understood why people label Mondays as really bad days until I started working. I used to think every day was the same; now I'm praying for weekends to come the minute they end.

So sleepy. :(

It's lunchtime now at the office and instead of browsing through the top few PS3 games on gamespot, I'm staring at the enormous stack of theory homework to be handed up tomorrow morning.

I remember saying how hard Grade 8 practical is and how I'm gonna fail, but I ended up getting quite decent marks even though I did fail aural and scales lolol. But this time, my premonition's going to come true. Lucky guesses aren't enough to help me pass and my exam's in 2 weeks' time. God, if you're thinking of blessing me with a miracle of any sort, passing my theory would be really helpful.

---

Anyway, here's something pretty encouraging I learnt from Scott Morton's "Tired of Do-list Christianity? - Debunking the misconceptions that hold back spiritual growth and steal your joy":

Misconception: Sharing your faith will always be an awkward "have-to".

According to pollster George Barna, 1 percent of Christians believe they have the "gift" of evangelism. As part of the 99 percent who believe they don't and cannot imitate those gifted believers who lead strangers to Christ on airplanes and elevators: Have you ever experienced this while evangelising?

1) Too much, too soon... Asking someone you've met only a couple of times to join your church's service without knowing his/her spiritual history. They came once but never returned your calls after that.

2) Too little, too late... To avoid being perceived as pushy, you postpone inviting your loved ones to read the Bible with you. Eventually, you did start to read together, and he/she liked it, but suddenly died a year later.

3) Too artificial, too hurried... Like the many times you've felt guilty if you didn't quickly and artificially steer the conversation to the gospel.

If you find yourself disappointed when you can't convince someone to listen to your sharing of God's word intently, answer their questions cogently, recall Bible verses instantaneously, explain concepts persuasively, and press for a decision with urgency, you're making mistake #1: Viewing evangelism as an event rather than a process.

Remember the first time someone tried to bring you to Christ? Did you convert right after listening to him/her? What about your very first service? Did you say the sinner's prayer within that sixty minutes of hearing the gospel? Examine your own spiritual journey. Usually, the "event" of your trusting Christ is preceded by a long "process" involving people, the Word, setbacks, media, songs, etc.

"When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart"

- Matthew 3:19

The word understand implies a process. Sometimes the lightbulb of truth goes on immediately, but most often it's on a dimmer switch that increases the light slowly and gradually.

What about non-believers that do convert in that sixty minutes? Of course, we'd be delighted with welcoming them to God's kingdom, but some may regret their decision and stop coming altogether. What has happened is that they did not really understand enough about Christ to hold the weight of their decision. So instead of asking your friends for a decision during the altar call for new believers, simply invite them to explore and discuss the Word together first. Who knows what might have happened if you did the latter?

If George Barna's 1 percent figure is correct, then why would Jesus knowingly give the Great Commission to the other 99 percent of us who are not evangelists? Rather than trying to copy the 1 percent, focus on being a faithful link in the chain. Be content to "sow" and be thankful for those few gifted people who "reap" the results of a long process towards salvation.

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place."

-2 Corinthians 2:14

We are a "fragrance of Christ". Believers give off an aroma of God wherever we go. We don't work at giving off this aroma any more than we work at giving off the aroma of perfume of morning aftershave.

However, we tend to make mistake #2: Working too hard at being "odiferous". Thinking it all depends on us. In our heads, we know it depends on God, but our actions show we feel pressure to "make something happen". As a result, we become too pushy, too artifical, and too uptight.

The first step to sharing the gospel isn't always opening our mouths. People tend to observe us through our daily actions, and impressions are formed without us having to utter any religious word and carry a Bible around our necks. Be gentle, honest and compassionate, and soon they'll smell the aroma of Christ!

Of course, these misconceptions do not imply that you don't have to open your mouth. Sooner or later, it will take words to share about God's goodness, and since you've already got them intrigued, smelling convincing will let you sound convincing.

Don't be uptight about evangelism today. Stop trying to get people to pray the sinner's prayer in sixty minutes. Instead, see yourself as an "aromatic" part of the process of deepening people's understanding of Jesus. Even though you may not have the gift of evangelism, you are an important player on God's team.

Urgency? Yes. Pressure? No. We all give off an aroma simply by being in Christ!

// Monday blues just turned a shade darker.

I never understood why people label Mondays as really bad days until I started working. I used to think every day was the same; now I'm praying for weekends to come the minute they end.

So sleepy. :(

It's lunchtime now at the office and instead of browsing through the top few PS3 games on gamespot, I'm staring at the enormous stack of theory homework to be handed up tomorrow morning.

I remember saying how hard Grade 8 practical is and how I'm gonna fail, but I ended up getting quite decent marks even though I did fail aural and scales lolol. But this time, my premonition's going to come true. Lucky guesses aren't enough to help me pass and my exam's in 2 weeks' time. God, if you're thinking of blessing me with a miracle of any sort, passing my theory would be really helpful.

---

Anyway, here's something pretty encouraging I learnt from Scott Morton's "Tired of Do-list Christianity? - Debunking the misconceptions that hold back spiritual growth and steal your joy":

Misconception: Sharing your faith will always be an awkward "have-to".

According to pollster George Barna, 1 percent of Christians believe they have the "gift" of evangelism. As part of the 99 percent who believe they don't and cannot imitate those gifted believers who lead strangers to Christ on airplanes and elevators: Have you ever experienced this while evangelising?

1) Too much, too soon... Asking someone you've met only a couple of times to join your church's service without knowing his/her spiritual history. They came once but never returned your calls after that.

2) Too little, too late... To avoid being perceived as pushy, you postpone inviting your loved ones to read the Bible with you. Eventually, you did start to read together, and he/she liked it, but suddenly died a year later.

3) Too artificial, too hurried... Like the many times you've felt guilty if you didn't quickly and artificially steer the conversation to the gospel.

If you find yourself disappointed when you can't convince someone to listen to your sharing of God's word intently, answer their questions cogently, recall Bible verses instantaneously, explain concepts persuasively, and press for a decision with urgency, you're making mistake #1: Viewing evangelism as an event rather than a process.

Remember the first time someone tried to bring you to Christ? Did you convert right after listening to him/her? What about your very first service? Did you say the sinner's prayer within that sixty minutes of hearing the gospel? Examine your own spiritual journey. Usually, the "event" of your trusting Christ is preceded by a long "process" involving people, the Word, setbacks, media, songs, etc.

"When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart"

- Matthew 3:19

The word understand implies a process. Sometimes the lightbulb of truth goes on immediately, but most often it's on a dimmer switch that increases the light slowly and gradually.

What about non-believers that do convert in that sixty minutes? Of course, we'd be delighted with welcoming them to God's kingdom, but some may regret their decision and stop coming altogether. What has happened is that they did not really understand enough about Christ to hold the weight of their decision. So instead of asking your friends for a decision during the altar call for new believers, simply invite them to explore and discuss the Word together first. Who knows what might have happened if you did the latter?

If George Barna's 1 percent figure is correct, then why would Jesus knowingly give the Great Commission to the other 99 percent of us who are not evangelists? Rather than trying to copy the 1 percent, focus on being a faithful link in the chain. Be content to "sow" and be thankful for those few gifted people who "reap" the results of a long process towards salvation.

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place."

-2 Corinthians 2:14

We are a "fragrance of Christ". Believers give off an aroma of God wherever we go. We don't work at giving off this aroma any more than we work at giving off the aroma of perfume of morning aftershave.

However, we tend to make mistake #2: Working too hard at being "odiferous". Thinking it all depends on us. In our heads, we know it depends on God, but our actions show we feel pressure to "make something happen". As a result, we become too pushy, too artifical, and too uptight.

The first step to sharing the gospel isn't always opening our mouths. People tend to observe us through our daily actions, and impressions are formed without us having to utter any religious word and carry a Bible around our necks. Be gentle, honest and compassionate, and soon they'll smell the aroma of Christ!

Of course, these misconceptions do not imply that you don't have to open your mouth. Sooner or later, it will take words to share about God's goodness, and since you've already got them intrigued, smelling convincing will let you sound convincing.

Don't be uptight about evangelism today. Stop trying to get people to pray the sinner's prayer in sixty minutes. Instead, see yourself as an "aromatic" part of the process of deepening people's understanding of Jesus. Even though you may not have the gift of evangelism, you are an important player on God's team.

Urgency? Yes. Pressure? No. We all give off an aroma simply by being in Christ!