Spreading the Good News

At the conclusion of Matthew's Gospel (Mt 28:19), Jesus issues the great commission: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations." We are called to go out and spread the Good News.

I have to admit, this is one area I have difficulty with. I have all too often adhered to that old adage "Never discuss religion or politics." While I am happy to write about my faith and share it with anyone who wants to hear about it, I am not likely to bring up the topic with anyone whose religious leanings I do not know both out of fear of offending them and out of fear that my faith will be attacked. I HATE being criticized for my faith. I don't like being criticized in general, but when my faith is attacked, it cuts straight to the core because that is such a big part of who I am. Somehow, I always end up feeling defensive, like I should be apologizing for my faith instead of taking great joy in being a messenger of truth.

Just the other day, the boys were invited to a birthday party at our neighbor's house. As David signed the card to go with the little girl's present, he decided he wanted to put one of his Vacation Bible School stickers on it. So, he did. He stuck a big sticker that said "Fiesta - where kids get fired up about Jesus!" right on the Minnie Mouse card, and my immediate reaction was one of embarassment. These are not church-going people and I worried that they would think I was trying to convert them.
I certainly couldn't tell David, that, however, especially because he was so proud of sharing his sticker, and so the evangelizing message went with the gift.

That same day, a nicely dressed woman just about my age with two young children came to my door. When I asked if I could help them, she encouraged her son, who was maybe 8 or 9 years old, to speak. He asked if I would take some literature he had on his faith - they were Jehovah's Witnesses. When I was young, my family used to shut off the lights and hide if we saw Jehovah's witnesses coming down the street - a particularly un-Christianlike response. In the intervening years, I have come to have great respect for anyone who is willing to go door to door to share his or her faith. I may not agree with all the tenets of their faith, but I do hold their courage and their mission to evangelize in high esteem.

I can learn something from both my young son so eager to share what he was learning about Jesus and the Jehovah's witnesses who were spending their Saturday sharing the Good News. I can work to overcome my sense of embarassment and my fear of criticism. I can work to spread the Good News by both words and deeds.