Speak Up

Vol. 11, No. 7
Dear Friend, If you want to draw someone from among your family members or among your friends into the Christian faith, what is the most appealing thing you could say? A clue is this chain of events described by the Apostle John: “The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples, and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, ‘Look, here is the Lamb of God!’ The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.” John 1:35-37* “One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his brother Simon and said to him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ (which is translated Anointed).” John 1:40-41 The most appealing draw of the Christian faith centered in the person of Jesus is, wait for it, Jesus! Knowing and being known, loving and being loved by Jesus is the deepest of all human experiences. Consider your own knowledge of Jesus, your own embrace of and experience of Jesus. Your relationship with Jesus probably began when someone spoke up to you about him. When you speak up and name Jesus to those who know and love you then you offer them a believable word, the word they may trust and that opens the door for their own loving and following of Jesus. Let Jesus speak through you of himself to the family and friends in your life that they may know him too! “My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27
With joy- E. Stanley Ott Copyright 2012 E. Stanley Ott *Scripture from the NRSV
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