On any given day, on a main road in the town next to mine, there is a young man who pulls his car onto the shoulder of the road, unloads a sound system, and then preaches to the rush hour traffic as loud as he possibly can. He's been doing this for close to 20 years that I know of. I've never heard an entire sermon because I'm usually enroute somewhere and just passing by, but the jist of it is, "Repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand!" Lots of people think he's crazy. Many would say that he does not have the most effective witnessing technique. Possibly....but what he does have...is boldness.
One tends to think in our oh so proper culture that screaming the message of God from the side of the road is just not how it's done. I bet he is in good company, though. Jonah, for instance, or Jeremiah or even John the Baptist...Men called of God who went through the countryside proclaiming His message with boldness. Men who didn't fit the proper religious picture of the day. Men who weren't politically correct. Men who weren't liked very much and some who were killed for their effort. Men who were BOLD.
Over the past three days, I have been sitting under some of the most phenomenal preachers and speakers the country has to offer. I have listened to them lament about the decline of Christian belief and values in our country. I have heard them talk of how Christians need to be more proactive with sharing their faith. I have come away convicted because I know that I have lacked that kind of boldness. It's easy to sit here and type out a rosy little devotional. It's hard to engage someone I never laid eyes on before in the checkout line at the grocery store. But if God will help me (and He will), I want to change that. I want to be the bold one reaching out to the lost wherever I encounter them. I want to learn to Speak Up!
So my message is to me today - I need to speak out with boldness for Jesus and spread His good news. Anyone with me?
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