Note:  I actually wrote most of this out in early March.  I've discovered recently that I had some really good posts that I started, but only saved as drafts, so I'm going to work on getting them out.

I have struggled with evangelism most of my adult life.  In fact, I kind of struggle with even the idea of evangelism.  I've read books and studied different "methods."  I've taken EE.  I know that I know what to share, I just can't often figure out how to bridge the gap between knowing what people need, and knowing how to get them to Him. 

Tonight my church began it's annual missions conference.  Our speaker works in a middle eastern country, and also heads up the church planting movement there.  What he shared was very helpful to me.  He taught from Genesis 3: 1-10.  As he showed us again the fall in the garden of Eden, he pointed out that Adam had three reactions to his sin.  First he tried to cover his guilt, then he tried to hide his shame, finally he hid in fear from God.  R explained that in sharing the Gospel in a Muslim country, it is not enough to just walk them through sin, Jesus, and salvation.  All of them are practicing their faith from a perspective of guilt, shame, or fear.  If they are struggling with guilt they try to work to relieve it.  They say prayers, give alms, keep the rules in the hope of doing enough to not be found as guilty as they are.  When they live in shame, they hide away from the eyes of others.  Sometimes they are harsh and demanding of their families to avoid shame.  He told the story of one man who actually left his home town rather than face shame, even though going to the capital city left this uneducated farmer with no way to provide for his family.  As for fear, the other two contribute to this.  It is a common reason for women to zealously practice their faith, since women and children are little more than property in many Muslim countries.

R shared with us how the impact he and his wife have had in sharing the Gospel and leading these precious people to the Lord who can meet their needs has come by entering into their guilt, shame, and fear.  When these people see men and women who genuinely care for the least of the least--the poor, the women, the infants, the hungry--and care for them well, with genuine interest in them as people, not as the means of relieving their own guilt, those watching are intrigued.  When believers in these countries live free from shame in their marriages and family relationships, and when they are fearless against superstitious beleifs, these people are curious.  It is only as they are shown that Jesus is the one who removes their guilt, covers their shame, and protects them from the things they fear, that they fall in love with Him and learn to trust Him instead of their own works and traditions.

As I pondered the lesson R was teaching tonight about leading Muslims in Middle Eastern countries to Jesus, I realized that these three consequences of sin are really no different in our own culture.  The only difference is the way guilt, shame, and fear are manifested, and the remedies we try to use to fix them.  I have watched people hide their guilt in careeers, in activities, even in family.  I have seen people who live through their kids.  Their kid must be smart, play football well, be beautiful, be popular (having all the "cool" gadgets), etc. They relieve their guilt by trying to give their kids everything, and their shame by driving them to be the best.  I know many people who live in fear.  Because of it we have insurance, investments, liability disclaimers, the FDA, and government regulations on everything from childcare to seatbelt use.  We medicate ourselves into apathy, and just in case we're still feeling a little guilt, shame, or fear, there's always "American Idol." 

I realized as I thought about this tonight that evangelizing America is the same as evangelizing Saudi Arabia or Sudan or Iraq.  First I have to expect people to be covering their guilt (It's not my fault! or running at breakneck pace to be best at everything), hiding thier shame (lots of shallow conversation with difficulty letting people see who they really are), and living in fear (accumulating enough possessions, power, or control to protect themselves or suffering from illnesses, depression/anxiety, and "low self-esteem.")  Next I have to be willing to enter into their lives for the long haul.  I have to be transparent with my own struggles, but confident in the power of Christ to meet my own needs.  I need to be available to meet their needs, whether it is an ear to listen to them, financial assistance, serving them and their families, and helping out in inconvenient crises. In all things, when they are agreeable or irritating, I must love them.  I need to pray for God to reveal those places where they are covering guilt, hiding shame, and running in fear, and I after God has used time to build a relationship of respect and relationship, I need to be bold enough and prayerful enough to gently, lovingly tell them that Jesus IS the answer to my problems, and He is the answer to theirs also.

 As I ponder this even more, I realize that my kids need this message.  They need to know that Jesus is the answer to their guilt, shame, and fears.  As I am home with them each day, I need to remember that they are my number one mission field.