Use News and Current Affairs to Talk about Jesus
Have you ever used a current news story to start a meaningful conversation that points people to Jesus?
News and current affairs can be good tools for turning conversations to Jesus and the gospel in a natural and appropriate way. Any headline that's looking at institutional abuse, failings of religious groups or fallen religious leaders can actually be an opportunity.
When you friend expresses disgust or rage about a corrupt leader, its an opportunity to listen to your friend, hear any underlying pain or betrayal that they may be experiencing and if appropriate, talk about Jesus as being different from corrupt leaders
And from there you can move on to talk more about who Jesus really is. I know all conversations don’t quite go as perfectly as this one, but it’s worth trying.
Principles
Here are some principles of how to turn news and current affairs stories to Jesus and the gospel:
- Try to find a point in the day or week where there’s a bit more time to chat. Maybe go out for coffee or lunch.
- Look for tangents to the gospel—for example, conversations about human nature, the purpose of life, evil, hope for the future, relationships, morality and how to motivate people to do the right thing, forgiveness, or justice.
- The end aim is not to have an intellectual conversation but to somehow understand your friends deeply held beliefs
- Make sure you have listened carefully to the other person’s opinions and you understand their position well before giving your opinions. If they feel like you’ve given them a good hearing, hopefully they will return the courtesy.
- This needs to be done in a natural and appropriate way. Don’t force it.
- But at some point in the conversation you’re going to need courage to bring up Jesus and Christianity if your relationship is genuine. It's part of who you are.
Action: Look at today’s news and pick a story that might lend itself to some interesting conversation and some gospel truth. Try using that story to talk about your friends values or deeply held beliefs
Do you want help using current events to talk about Jesus?
