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Jesus Begins with Ordinary Conversation 

"Will you give me something to drink?"

When I was in college, I had several zealous friends who liked spending their free time evangelizing people in downtown Chicago. This was done either through public sidewalk presentations or by approaching people with gospel tracts, hoping for more conversations. I at times begrudgingly went along and got over the social anxiety of talking to complete strangers about Jesus. Though I love the heart and intentions behind this type of “open air evangelism,” I began to question its merits when there seemed to be very little fruit and trash cans full of the gospel tracts we passed out. I don’t want to say that this form of evangelism doesn’t have its place, but those experiences led me to think differently about evangelism.

In John 4:1-42 we see the well-known story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman. It’s a wonderful passage about Jesus crossing the boundaries of Israel and creating true worshipers. As encouraging as this story is, I find it surprising that Jesus begins this conversation by saying, “Will you give me something to drink?” As we think about evangelism, I think there is something we can take out of Jesus’ toolbox here. That many times, evangelism is born out of ordinary, normal conversations. Some tend to think that when we are practicing evangelism, we must immediately start the conversation with sharing the gospel. But even Jesus didn’t start with a sermon. Jesus begins with a question and real human need.

Sometimes the best way to find evangelistic opportunities is simply by having normal, ordinary conversations with others. Jesus didn’t care that he was talking to a Samaritan woman, and when he saw her, he started talking to her. We would do well to see every conversation we have with neighbors, co-workers, and family members as providential encounters where we can use our normal conversations to gradually move the conversation towards Jesus. I want to challenge you this week to start one meaningful conversation with someone who doesn’t know Jesus. It’s okay if the conversation doesn’t end with a gospel invitation, but don’t be surprised if, through ordinary conversations, God gives you an opportunity to share the hope you have in Christ with them.