My mum is my evangelistic hero

My mum, Jean, is my evangelistic hero.  She never learnt the lessons we normally learn about inviting people to stuff.  It’s not that she finds it easy, or loves doing it for some buzz – but she hasn’t learnt the lessons we have learnt about evangelism.  And in the wake of the essence talks, the Safari Supper this week, church and Hub every week and other events on their way, I wondered what my mum never learnt that makes her my evangelistic hero.  Here are 5 lessons about evangelism my Mum never learnt:

1/ Make the conversation awkward and rare. My mum never does this, she talks about Jesus and church events naturally and frequently.  It makes it seem normal to be a Christian and that attend the event might actually be okay.  It also shows that Jesus is a part of every day life, not just Sundays.

2/ Be embarrassed about the event.  My mum never learnt that you should apologise for the event and tell them beforehand that it will not be that good, they probably won’t like it and that they probably shouldn’t come.  My mum actually trusts the talk to be good, the event to be well run and the people to be friendly.

3/ Talking to your family is hard.  Jean just doesn’t seem to understand that it should be hard talking to your family about Jesus.  She has no qualms about telling her parents, parents in law, children or more distant relatives about church, what’s happening at church or if the conversation turns that way, Jesus.

4/ You cannot set up your own event.  My mum hasn’t learnt that you have to wait for the church staff team to plan and organise an event, because after all, the staff team will always now what is best for you and your friends.  Instead my crazy mum starts her own event.  She loves sewing and needlework tools, so she started a group at church that makes these pillow/quilt things called quillows (they’re great, a cushion one minute, a blanket the next). Women not normally involved in anything to do with church come and the conversation often turns to Jesus.  Madness – she will never learn.  The last lesson my mum has never learnt is this:

5/ Loving people and inviting them to events are different things.  Surely loving someone means that you do things for them, if you have to, use words.  My mum never fell for this lie.  She loves them enough to actually tell them, often whilst doing something for them.  My mum actually loves her neighbours as herself, she tells them about Jesus, the greatest news ever.

My mum is my evangelistic hero because she has not learnt the lessons we normally learn about evangelism, which means she actually does it.  I suspect she’ll never learn these lessons, because you can’t teach an old dog a new trick.  Not that she’s old…or a dog.  Anyway, my mum is my hero.  Happy Australian Mother’s day mum.