Final Reflections...

Can evangelism happen in different ways?  Or is there only one way to evangelize?  This has been something I have been pondering this week. 

My original expectation of evangelism was where you would go out 2-by-2 and specifically share the gospel message with someone.  I thought it should be more direct and specific.  That’s what I would have called evangelism.  So, when I ended up doing puppet shows this week more than one-on-one conversations, I began to question—am I really evangelizing? 

Honestly, I felt discouraged because I felt like what I was doing was not making a difference for the Kingdom.  You should know, the puppet show was giving a gospel message—so can I call that evangelizing?  What do you think?

As the week has gone on, I’ve come to a personal conclusion that this puppet ministry was indeed evangelizing.  Jesus said, let the little children come to me.  God knew this was the plan for me for this week before I did.  I had expectations of ministering one-on-one with Muslim women, but that’s not what happened.

While originally I felt like I didn’t do much this week, other than let the inner child in me come out doing the puppet show, now I’m changing my thoughts on that.  I DID evangelize this week.  I did what was placed in front of me.  I know many seeds were planted this week in all we did--I pray that each child who heard the powerful message during the week will come to know Jesus one day.

As I think about returning home, I still have much to process in regards to Islam and the few conversations I did have with Muslims.  I am challenged.  I am thankful for this time of year when we celebrate the amazing gift of Jesus.  And I return home, knowing I was obedient to Jesus in all I did this week.