I love to give talks in Church.  It’s fun, it’s exhilarating, and it invites me to focus on the things God wants me to work on.  After I read about Clayton Christensen’s experiment of inviting his friends of other faiths to join him in speaking at church, I was inspired to ask my own friends to help me with my talks.  Love of speaking just went up a notch or two.

People, I have learned, love to share their views on Christ, faith, repentance, and other gospel-related topics.  They just need an excuse to share.  You can give them that excuse by asking them to help you give your talk or lesson.

Ask for help

“Tim, could I get your help?” I privately messaged on Facebook to a local business owner. ” We are studying the New Testament this year for Sunday school and I’m teaching. Question: what accounts or teachings in the New Testament have particularly inspired or helped you and why?  With your approval, I will then share your comments with the class.”

Tim responded, “God allows us to make choices in this life, BUT still forgives us (if we ask) when we make mistakes. I think that prophecies in this book force us to take a stand and believe what is really going to happen sometime in the future.”

 

The question that produced the most responses was one I found in The Power of Everyday Missionaries:

In an attempt to discover common questions of the soul,  I am conducting a one-question survey with the intent of sharing my results in a talk I am giving in church next Sunday. Can I get your help? Your name will be kept private: What questions about religious issues have you been wondering about or haven’t been able to get good answers to?

I had over 30 responses in less than an hour!

How to invite someone to help you give a talk or lesson:

• Turn your assigned lesson or talk topic into a question
• Privately message (I get better results than a public post) your “friends” with something akin to this: “Could I get your help? I’m giving a sermon this Sunday on Amos 3:7 and wondered if you could respond to two questions: Why do you feel God chose prophets like Noah, Abraham, and Moses to speak on His behalf? Do you believe God speaks to His children through prophets? Thanks in advance!”
• Ask them for permission to share what they say and if can you use their name
• Consider inviting them to Church to hear your sermon

Concluding Part 3

Are you catching on to the principle of asking  for help when the winds of prosperity blow?  By asking others to help you with your Church assignments, you are inviting them to serve Christ.  When they are serving Him, the Spirit will confirm what they are doing is good and right.  Asking others to help you is about helping others come unto Christ.  And that’s what this work is all about.

Next up: Involve the youth in missionary with social media

Four part series of inviting others to Christ through your digital device

Part 1: Invite others to host the missionaries for dinner and a discussion

Part 2: How to bump opinion leaders into the gospel through chapel tours

Part 3: Will you help me with my talk?

Part 4: Involve the youth in missionary with social media