Why Lay Evangelists?

In our baptismal covenant we are asked, ‘Will you proclaim by word and example the good news of God in Christ?’ and we respond by promising, ‘I will, with God’s help.’ Evangelism is what we do to keep that promise. Every Christian is called to share the good news of Jesus Christ with others. So why do we recognize a special ministry of evangelism?

Lay evangelists are people who have a special gift and joy in communicating the gospel of Jesus to others, by word and action. They enjoy having conversations about faith with non-Christian friends. They love watching the Holy Spirit drawing people to faith in Christ, and they like helping new Christians get established as followers of Jesus. They don’t pretend to have all the answers, but they live their lives transparently and honestly so that others can see God at work in them.

The beginning of an evangelist’s story is this simple desire to help other people come to faith in Jesus. At the start, you may not have much idea how to do this—in fact, the thought of doing it may well fill your heart with dread! You may look at bubbly extroverts who talk effortlessly about their faith and think to yourself “I could never be like that!” You may not like the stereotypes associated with the word ‘evangelist’ in popular North American culture. And yet, deep down inside, you know that faith in Christ is bringing you life, and you long to find a way of sharing that life with others, a way that fits with your temperament, with the unique person God designed you to be. The good news is, you can find that way! Our formation program is designed to help you find it.