Lifestyle Evangelism and the Rural Church
Recently, I attended the Christian Management Association meeting in Texas. While there, I participated in an all-day training session for directors and C.E.O’s. We began the meeting by introducing ourselves and telling a little about our organization. I introduced myself, a few more directors introduced themselves, and then a young man named Mark, introduced himself, and told about the youth outreach organization he heads, Youth Dynamics.Mark, however, went further than the bare-bones introduction. He said, “I would be remiss if I did not share that I am here because of Village Missions. Years ago, my dad was selling life insurance door-to-door. He stopped at the door of a Village Missionary and asked him for ten minutes of his time. The Village Missionary agreed if my dad would give him ten minutes of his time. My dad had never heard the Gospel and that day trusted Christ as Savior. The next day the Village Missionary, Harold McGinnis, stopped by the house to begin discipling my dad and my mom trusted Christ! My entire family came to Christ and lived for Him through the ministry of a Village Missionary.”
That’s lifestyle evangelism! Lifestyle evangelism is a sharing of the Gospel message that flows naturally out of the warp and woof of relationships and even “chance” encounters. It begins with recognizing that “eternal life insurance” among other things, is the best “insurance” you can have. Led by the Holy Spirit, we look for ways to point our friends and acquaintances to Jesus Christ. We make sure that they can see Him in our life and we make sure (as much as lies within us) that they can see Him through a verbal witness.
No better place exists to be a “lifestyle evangelist” than in a rural community. The opportunities for meaningful interactions with people are actually more plentiful in a rural community than in a suburban or urban setting. You share membership in the same clubs and volunteer organizations, you know where each other lives, your children attend the same school, you attend the same school activities, you shop at the same stores, and you eat at the same restaurant—that is if your community has one.
The pastor especially has the opportunity for interaction. If he is a Village Missionary, he visits people regularly, especially when they are in the hospital or when they encounter difficult situations. He intentionally involves himself in community activities, seeking to build bridges with the lost. People in the community who never attend church still look to him as their pastor. People expect him to talk about Jesus Christ!
God has mightily used Village Missions to send couples like Harold and Joan McGinnis and other couples to practice “lifestyle evangelism” in places that would be otherwise forgotten. Think of the family that was reached, the ministry that was started, and the teens that have been reached because a Village Missionary shared Christ with a life-insurance salesman! It was part of Harold’s “lifestyle” to share. We are so thankful that it is part of your “lifestyle” to pray and to give so that other Village Missionaries can be “life-style evangelists” in rural communities.
