Several years ago it was my privilege to be a part of Billy Graham's Congress on Evangelism in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. After several days packed with these challenging sessions, the 10,000 evangelists there spent one entire afternoon in what was called a Day of Witness. We were given these box lunches and sent across Holland that day to do evangelism in scores of places. And I was asked to be the bus captain for our 40 or so evangelists. Now when I mentioned those lunches to Richard, our bus driver, he was not a happy camper. He didn't seem particularly sympathetic with what we were going out to do - and he sure wasn't going to allow those lunches on his bus. He said, I always end up cleaning up a busful of garbage. The only way we ever got out of the parking lot that day was that I pledged to clean the bus myself.
Well, after we got to our venue and all the other delegates had walked over to the plaza for the outreach, I stayed behind. I filled those trash bags as fast as I could so I could get to where the spiritual action was. It turned out, the action was on the bus. Our driver, Richard, inspected the bus and said in amazement, It's clean. I can't believe it. Then he wanted to know why we were there. Suddenly this young man, who had greeted us with such skepticism, wanted to know what made us tick. As I explained the difference between a religion and a relationship with Jesus, it seemed his heart was opening up to that relationship. While everyone else was presenting the Gospel to crowds of shoppers, that bus became a holy place, as our driver invited Jesus Christ to be his Savior. In a sense, because this guy picked up his garbage!
Well, I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You about "Getting Low To Get Close."
Somewhere in your world, there are some folks who need to hear about your Jesus, and you know that. You've thought about trying to tell them what Jesus did for them on the cross. But they don't seem like they'd be interested, or they're off on another spiritual road that will be hard to get them off of. How can you get them to care about Jesus? What can you do to help open the closed door on their hearts?
Remember the bus driver and the garbage bags. Or, better yet, remember our word for today from the Word of God, 1 Corinthians 9:19. Paul said, Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. What a revolutionary evangelistic strategy - if there's someone you want to win to Jesus, become their servant. I make myself a slave to win them.
As you look at your lost neighbor or coworker or family member or maybe friend - ask yourself, What needs do they have where I could move alongside them and be of service? Maybe they could use your help on a project, taking care of their kids, helping with transportation, lending some equipment, listening to them, being at the hospital, the funeral home, or picking up the garbage. Our Dutch bus driver's heart wasn't opened by some clever witnessing approach, but by love that did something about a need he cared about.
If you want to reach someone, find a way to serve them. You'll be demonstrating your message before you present your message - their heart will be soft to the messenger, and hopefully to the message - you'll get close by getting down to serve them.
Now, whether it's a bus driver with a messy bus or a neighbor with their own kind of mess, the way to their heart is to be the one with the garbage bag - or whatever will serve their particular need. It's life-or-death business that those people hear about Jesus Christ. You need to serve them, as Jesus became the servant, when He gave up His life to meet our need. Before you tell them about Jesus, why don't you show them how Jesus treats people.