My Best Evangelistic Student Can Kick Your Best Student's Rear End!

Josh was a student who loved Jesus with all of his heart.  He prayed like crazy for his campus, and spent almost all of his time trying to find ways to open conversations with his friends about Jesus.  His freshman year, he prayed every day before school, alone, for his friends and campus.  That year, he personally lead 12 friends to Christ.  His sophomore year, he continued to focus his energy and love on his friends, and saw 25 of them come to faith.  His junior year, 37 more of his friends decided to follow Jesus.  Finally, his senior year saw 53 of his friends accept Jesus, totaling 127 of his friends coming to Jesus through his one on one evangelism in four years! 

When I talk about evangelism, this is not what I'm talking about.  Josh has never existed, as far as I know.  I just made him up.  Often, when we talk about evangelism in our youth ministries, we have some picture of a student like Josh as our goal, and most of the time, we fail at reaching that goal.  But is that the Biblical goal?  Is that what God has for us?

Evangelism is the idea of sharing the good news of Jesus with others in a way that they might meet Jesus and know Him better.  I'm not completely sure how we can measure that in specific numbers.  Think about it.  We all hear stories of people coming to Jesus, because someone in their life showed them love, and years later, God worked that in their hearts and they trusted Him.  If that happens, only measuring what is right in front of us is short sighted.  Remember, it's Paul who says that he planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but that Jesus harvested what grew there. 

For us, when we discuss evangelism, it comes from multiple places, in multiple methods, at multiple times.  We believe students are the best evangelists, and are constantly encouraging them to speak to their friends, and live a life with their friends, that impacts them.  We teach the good news of Jesus life, death, and resurrection almost weekly to our groups.  We do events where students can invited their friends to come and be loved and experience what life with Jesus looks like.  We carry out short, mid, and long range mission trips to cover the great commission.

But it is our job to speak with our lives and words the beautiful, powerful, amazingly good news of Jesus to others in a way that they can hear and experience.  It is clearly, Biblically, His job to change lives.  I am simply not in charge of that. 

I'm not in charge of when, how, or who He changes.

So, I don't measure those things.  I measure how often I am loving to people who need loved.  How often I pray with people and point them to Jesus.  How often I ask God to use me, that day, for His plans.  How often I pray for the lives and hearts of students, parents, and friends who don't yet know Jesus.  I measure the things He has given me to do. 

But I do NOT measure the things He has not given me.

What is your ministry's understanding of evangelism?