God Space Where spiritual conversations happen naturally… Week 6 The Practice of Telling

The Practice of Praying for others & discerning God at work The Practice of Noticing people & what God is The Practice of Serving – Looking for ways to demonstrate God’s love with no strings attached. The Practice of Listening – Focusing on others! Asking to hear their story. Seeking to understand their worldview. Reflecting back what we’ve heard. Listening to God in discerning prayer. The Practice of Wondering – using our sense of curiosity to engage people in conversation through the use of “wondering questions” that tap into what concerns & interest others. The Practice of Telling

A good wondering question possesses four qualities: 1. It’s driven by genuine curiosity or wonder about another. 2. It’s starts with the other person’s agenda, not our own. 3. It’s open-ended, inviting an honest discussion 4. It probes gently and respectfully into someone’s belief systems and encourages other possibilities. Jesus loved asking questions…. as it got people wondering.

The Practice of Telling “Spiritual appetisers are personal stories, no more than two minutes long, which stimulate spiritual interest, keep the discussion going, and show the relevance of Christ in our daily lives.” Provs 25 verse 11: “The right word at the right time is like a custom-made piece of jewellery.” The Practice of Telling Our Story (of what God has done for us and means to us in our lives) and God’s Story (of what God has done for the world and for humanity, of why God created us and what God wants for us.)

Preparing Our Story/Stories Start with writing down some specific areas of your life that God has changed in some tangible way – identity, money, loneliness, life direction & purpose, learning patience, handling anger, significance, bad habits, forgiveness, stress, marriage/relationships. Jot down an outline of your faith journey and the stories you could tell along the way of how you experienced God and how God changed you.

God’s Story Develop an overview of the Bible’s main message Creation, Fall, Redemption, Restoration The Four Chapter Gospel Learn key scripture verses about coming to know Jesus P99 Find a written Gospel presentation of Gospel message Why Jesus? Whats God up to on planet earth? The 3:16 Promise by Max Lucado Ultimate Questions by John Blanchard YouTube for Gospel Illustrations The Bridge Illustration Table Napkin – Do v Done Table Napkin – The Ladder The Rope Illustration – Francis Chan The Gospel in your Hand

When are people ready to hear the gospel? Start initiating faith questions and conversations rather than us doing it. Have a desire to read the Bible on their own; develops a spiritual appetite. Prefer to hang out with Christians. Expresses godly sorrow – an awareness of not making good decisions and choices, of not living life well, of life coming apart….leading to a change of mind and change of heart.  

We need to become Snack Dispensers of the Gospel