Melissa Philpot is part of Windsor Park Baptist Church in North Auckland and is the Primary School Coordinator on their staff team.
Sharing your faith with a friend can feel like a big risk. “How will this conversation impact my relationship with this person?” “What are they going to think of me after this conversation?” “Will I have the right words to properly explain my faith and what Jesus has done for me?” These questions and doubts may come to mind when we think about sharing our faith with those closest to us. But the people around us are hungry for Jesus, hungry to know His love and light. Are we prepared to take a risk and share Jesus and the difference He makes in our lives? To share the hope He gives us despite the risks to our reputation and our doubts?
When we look, listen and step out with faith into the opportunities God is opening up for us to speak into, we can clearly see that God is at work! Sometimes, all it takes is extending a simple invitation for those around us to grasp onto, which gives them a foothold into an opportunity to learn about Christianity and who Jesus is for themselves. Jesus can and does use our invitations to change other’s lives.
The following video shares my story of extending an invitation to my friend, first to prayer and then to an Alpha course, and how Jesus used that to change her life. Yes, it is scary and can be risky, but when we see Jesus changing the lives of those closest to us, it is so worthwhile and rewarding! So, who can you extend an invitation to? Who can you ask to pray for, invite to church or invite to an Alpha course? Who can you take a risk to start a conversation with? Because as we step out in faith, taking risks and extending invitations, we partner with Jesus and get to see His kingdom come.
This video was created by Windsor Park Baptist Church and shared with permission to encourage our union of churches.
Want to hear more about and from the youth and young adults in our movement? Head to the He Rito website. He Rito is a network encompassing all our ministries for 0–25-year-olds.
Photo: Screenshot of Emma and Melissa from video by Windsor Park Baptist Church
