Conference trains believers to find their evangelism style

Craig Macartney
Spur Ottawa Writer

Evangelism: noun. To boldly proclaim the gospel. As in, most Christians firmly believe in evangelism, but find it quite scary.

While that definition may be true, Tony Hedrick believes evangelism does not need to be scary or difficult. The professor and church planter has been invited back to Chapel Ridge Free Methodist Church, a church he founded, to speak on the subject at their upcoming Equipped for Evangelism conference.

“Most people don’t come to church the first time, they come to a small group, a barbeque, or they go on a fishing trip,” says Hedrick. “Almost everything we do, we say, ‘Come to our building.’ We’ve got to find ways to go to them.”

One of the themes of the Equipped for Evangelism conference is how effective evangelism methods have changed with society—but anyone can do it.

“Some people think that to do evangelism you have to be very extroverted and a certain type of personality,” says Bev Frankish, one of the conference organizers. “The goal is for people to recognize who they are and to be encouraged to actively share their faith in a way that works for them.”

“I think for us to be effective, we need to be hospitable and we need to be intentional.”

The free conference, scheduled Saturday, February 23, includes sessions exploring evangelism styles, sharing your faith with Muslim friends, apologetics, and Kingdom hospitality. Frankish says they packed the conference into one afternoon to make it easier to fit around busy schedules.

Hedrick says his focus will not be “about information, it will be primarily about inspiration. I want to inspire people to realize that they can love people and win them to Jesus. We can learn about evangelism until we are blue in the face, but it is practice-driven. There are a million ways to do outreach. All of us can do it.”

As North American culture has become more anti-theistic, Hedrick says people developed ideas about what Christians are like. He believes a key first step in evangelism is to welcome non-Christians into social settings where they get to know Christians.

“Today, more than ever, the Gospel is caught, not taught. We have to rethink what we do around evangelism. Canadian Christians rarely have people who are non-Christians into their homes. I think for us to be effective, we need to be hospitable and we need to be intentional.”

“You have to be interested in them, not just as projects.”

One of Hedrick’s favourite methods is simply to throw a casual dinner party with his Christian friends, and invite non-believers. As they develop friendships, it gives believers credibility to share their faith.

“Each person has personal needs. You have to meet them where they are and love them. You have to be interested in them, not just as projects.”

Another major barrier Hedrick sees holding Canadian believers back is the fear of rejection. However, he says believers in many other countries see it as an honour to be rejected for the gospel. Ultimately, he says, you cannot gain confidence or learn evangelism through study. He hopes the conference will inspire people to reach out in whatever way fits best with their personality.

“It is never learned in a classroom. You learn it by doing it. You learn by loving people. You don’t have to do anything fancy. Just love them in the name of Jesus.”

The conference is free, but organizers are asking people to register by February 20, to help the planning process.

Tony Hedrick founded Chapel Ridge Free Methodist Church. He has also worked as a professor and started a mission organization called Adventive Cross Cultural Initiatives. Photo courtesy of Chapel Ridge.