Sharing Your Faith

By Miriam Rossow, Communications Coordinator

Sharing our faith can be difficult and sometimes scary. We might be afraid of rejection. We might be afraid of saying the wrong the thing. We might not feel like we have the ability to speak eloquently or even if we can speak well, we might feel like we just don't have anything to offer.

The beautiful thing is as the body of Christ, as followers of Jesus we each have been given the Holy Spirit. Jesus through the Holy Spirit has called us to Himself. He has called us to follow Him. He has given us insights and belief. Jesus and the Holy Spirit work a beautiful miracle in our lives every day. This is worth sharing.

At Christ Our Savior, we believe that Jesus speaks in and through His Word to everyone. We believe that when you read the Bible, listen to a hymn or praise song, walk in creation, Jesus can and will speak to you. We believe the Word of the Lord doesn't just come to His people on Sunday for an hour or two. We believe that it daily and richly provides you with all you need. This is worth sharing.

And because we believe this, we also believe that everyone has something to share. We can lift each other up in our faith. We can encourage and support each other. We can point each other to the promises that Jesus is giving us each and every day. This is worth sharing.

When you believe and imagine that everyone has something to share from Jesus it can become a joy to share. You don't have to share the whole salvation story or the whole story of the Bible as you share your faith. Instead you get to share the one little lesson, promise, encouragement that Jesus is giving you right then and there. And that lesson, promise, or encouragement can lift someone else up to share their lesson, promise, encouragement. And as it continues, we now have Jesus being shared daily from the body of Christ in unique ways from and to each person.

The how to share can be a stumbling block for many. As each person is unique and each faith is unique the way we each share our faith is also unique. Some people may be comfortable sharing their faith through a song that is meaningful to them. Some people may want to write what they are hearing from God. For some people talking to and with others is a way they are comfortable sharing their faith.  Each of these ways to share faith and words from Jesus can be beneficial and can be done both in private with friends and in a more public way through our website, Facebook, or Bible studies.

During the Covid-19 pandemic and stay home, stay safe order Christ Our Savior instituted our Family of Faith Devotionals. During the time when everyone was at home it was easy to feel isolated and the ways we had shared our faith were not happening or not as easily accessible anyway. Our in-person Bible classes were suspended, and we were not fellowshipping at worship together. It became evident that the need to 'see' people and 'hear' people share what Jesus was doing in them was very needed.

Now that the stay home, stay safe order is lifted we want to continue this practice of hearing and sharing our faith in new and different ways from the body of Christ. Many people continue to stay at home and our in-person fellowship time continues to be limited. Our Pastors and staff believe it is beneficial to have the Body of Christ sharing truths with the Body of Christ.

So, what is Jesus teaching you? What is He encouraging you to share? What lesson, promise, or encouragement are you holding onto right now? Share that with us and as you do you will be building up the body of Christ.

What you share and how you share it is unique to each person and even unique to the time in their life. Sometimes we can't form our own thoughts and words and using someone else's is the best way to share what Jesus is doing in us. Sometimes our emotions or lessons are best shared through an image.

Lessons in life do not and are most often not huge and earth shattering. Often we are being shaped and molded slowly and in small ways. These are beneficial for the body of Christ also. There is no need to feel like you have to share a new theological truth to share Jesus. The small, everyday truths that Jesus is teaching you and reminding you of are helpful for everyone. To know that I am not alone in feelings of anguish, frustration, confusion, joy, peace is a gift to the body of Christ. To be pointed back to the promise or truth that Jesus has for us is a gift to the body of Christ.  Be willing to start small and as you continue to share your faith experiences you will find Jesus growing and shaping you into something different.

When you decide what kind of word you are sharing then you can ask yourself "what about it wants to be shared"? Ask yourself ...

There are many different ways that you can share your faith. If you enjoy the written word you can share your thoughts on our blog or on Facebook. If you enjoy speaking or reading in front of people, we encourage you to submit a Family of Faith Devotional.

(Please note that our staff will ask for edits on the blog and devotionals where necessary to get your thoughts ready for publication.)