Anchored in Christ, Yet Afraid of the Waves: Finding Peace in Evangelism

This past Sunday we heard about evangelism which has always been a simple idea to me. Quite simply I have been too scared to evangelize. It feels like my whole Christian life I have tried to avoid any situation, any pretense, any conversation where the subject of Jesus might come up without my knowing both the other person’s religious status and exactly what they believe doctrinally. I have never prayed that God would use me to bring someone to Him for fear that He would answer my prayer. In times of my greatest pride, I questioned how much value God could even bring to someone’s life. As ridiculous as it sounds, I have even hidden the Jesus fish keychain on my car keys.

Evangelism is an area where I have completely failed. My internal arguments have been largely the same over time: I don’t know enough, I’m not a good enough example of a Christian, I have to see this person regularly. These are classic excuses that I have heard rebuked and corrected a thousand times. You don’t know enough? Nobody knows everything. It’s okay to say that you don’t have all the answers. You’re not a good enough example? Our salvation is not about our successes but God’s. Our failures show His grace all the more. You have to see this person regularly? What a great opportunity. I know all these answers, but I’m still scared.

I have a small tattoo on my tricep of an anchor and a couple fish. If I’m wearing a t-shirt, you can see a fish. Most people think it’s Sharpie at first. One of the reasons I got it was to force myself to be more evangelistic. For a few weeks after I got it, people were asking me about it, and I didn’t shy away from its meaning. I told them plainly that I got my tattoo because Jesus needs to be the anchor of my life. I didn’t receive a single bad reaction. Everything was going well. Then I ran into a friend of mine who is very interested in tattoos but not at all interested in Jesus. She asked what it was, and I failed again. I said it was just a couple fish and an anchor. No big meaning. Just love anchors. A real big Finding Nemo fan. At the end of the day, I’m not afraid of not knowing enough or not being good enough. I’m afraid that people won’t like me.

So how do we work through this fear? 1 Peter 3 says “But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. ‘Do not fear their threats; do not be frightened.’ But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord.” Peter gives us a command and then gives us a way to do it. He tells us not to be afraid. That’s great, but if we’re supposed to just white knuckle it and rely on ourselves, things will not go well. Instead Peter tells us that we need to revere Christ. We need to focus on Christ, not ourselves or our fears.

In Matthew 14 Jesus is walking on the water and calls Peter out to Him. Peter does so and does well as long as he keeps his eyes on Jesus, but when he sees the storm and the chaos around him, he falters. In the same way we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and revere Him. When we do this, when we value Him above all things, when we keep our focus on Him, what is the fear of men in comparison to the peace we have in Christ? When Peter began to sink, Jesus caught him and brought him into the boat. We may falter, but Jesus catches us and will bring us to a safe place.

Kyle