By Larry Rosenbaum
Whether you live in a large city or a small town, there are many people around you who need to know Jesus Christ. To reach them, you need to go where they are. In large cities, there is no lack of places to witness. In small towns, it may be harder to find groups of people in one place. Here are some places you can go:
1. Downtown streets.
2. Athletic events. In small towns, sporting events often draw hundreds of people.
3. Parks and beaches.
4. Fairs and parades.
5. Movie theaters. Find out when the show starts or ends.
6. “Cruise strips” where young people drive up and down the street on weekends, while others stand around and watch.
7. High schools. Witness before or after school. If the students leave campus for lunch, witness to them then.
8. Colleges.
9. Video game arcades.
10. Rock concerts.
11. Shopping centers. We`ll discuss the laws relating to this in a later chapter.
When Jesus sent his disciples out to witness, he sent them in groups of two or more. You’ll want to find one or more Christians to witness with you. The best place to start looking is your church. Do you know someone who might be interested in witnessing with you? Talk to your pastor or youth pastor about the idea. Perhaps your youth group will want to get involved. Call the secretary of your church (or other churches in town) and ask her to put an announcement in their church bulletin or on a bulletin board: “Anyone interested in joining a street witnessing team that is forming, call __________”
You may get a good response and find quite a few people who want to help start a witnessing team. But don’t get discouraged if you don’t get any immediate response. The idea of witnessing on the streets is still very strange and scary for most Christians. This situation can change, however, with prayer and persistence.
Meeting for Worship and Prayer before Witnessing
Once you have found some Christians who are interested in witnessing (whether l or 5 or 20) and once you have gained some experience in witnessing, you need to set aside a regular place and time for your street witnessing team to meet. The time will depend on the schedules of the people involved, and when the people you are trying to reach are on the street. The place can be anywhere‑‑a living room, a room in a church, etc. The important thing is to make sure that the witnessing team goes out every week, whether l or 20 people show up. If you can’t be there one week, make sure that someone else will be there to lead the team.
Start the meetings on time. Otherwise people will arrive later and later. Spend some time in worship and prayer before going out on the streets. We need to go out in the power of the Holy Spirit, not our own strength. We need to focus our minds on the Lord and seek His guidance and blessing on the time of witnessing. If possible, have someone who can play an instrument lead worship. You can print up songsheets if everyone doesn’t know the songs. Worship is not just singing songs. It is a way for us to express our love for God, to acknowledge His greatness, and to thank Him for what He has done for us.
When the children of Israel went to battle, the tribe of Judah (praise) went first. Many times the children of Israel found deliverance as they praised the Lord. “We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Eph. 6:12). “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4). “The god of this world has blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Cor. 4:4).
Satan and his cohorts do not like to hear us praising God. Praise and worship are very effective in scattering demonic forces so that the eyes of unbelievers will be opened to God`s Word. As we worship God, we stop thinking about ourselves and our own weaknesses. Instead, we focus our attention on Christ, His power to save, and His love for the lost. This releases our faith to believe that God will work mightily to save people on the streets.
After we have spent some time in God’s presence, praising and worshiping Him, the Holy Spirit will lead us into a time of prayer and intercession. The leader can help make this transition by announcing, “Now we are going to have a time of prayer for today’s witnessing. I encourage each of you, as the Lord directs, to lead out in a short prayer for the people we will be witnessing to, and that God will guide us and use us today to bring people to Himself. Keep the prayers focused on today’s witnessing, not on other things.”
After the prayer time, the leader should give some instructions to the group. Explain where you are going, arrange for transportation, and pair people up, having an experienced person go with each inexperienced person, a man with each woman. You may also need to give some basic instructions, answer questions, etc. Arrange a place to meet on the streets before you start witnessing and meet there again at a prearranged time after the witnessing is over. Make sure everyone has tracts, follow‑up cards, church invitations, etc. before they leave.
On the Streets
Where should you go? You may want to go to different areas each week or keep going to the same place. Keep your eyes open for special events‑‑sporting events, rock concerts, county fairs, parades. Find out the schedule for a popular movie. There may be a long line outside the theater. Search out new places to witness. Where do people seem to be most responsive to God`s Word? Where are people not in a hurry, and most open to talking with someone?
What kind of approach should you use? Usually, our emphasis on the streets is to share with people one‑to‑one about Christ. Everyone needs to find an approach that he or she is comfortable with. I personally like to begin by offering a person a gospel tract. “Hi. I’ve got something for you to read today. It’s about Jesus Christ . . . What do you think about Jesus?” This immediately lets the person know what I am doing, centers the conversation on Christ, gets the other person involved in the conversation, and lets me find out where they stand with God. Also, the tract stays with the person after we have talked as a reminder of the conversation and a further explanation of the gospel. The tract should be stamped with a local phone number and address where they can learn more about Christ if they want. One caution: women should not give out their home address or phone number to men.
Other Christians prefer not to use any literature, but to start a conversation, get to know the person a little, and bring the conversation to Christ. This is more difficult, but can be very effective when you have enough time or will be seeing the person again. One problem, especially in large cities, is that the person may be wondering, “What is this person up to?” In small towns, people are less suspicious of strangers who talk with them.
It is generally best to witness in pairs, with one person doing most of the talking while the partner is praying. The “silent” partner should be ready to share when needed, but should not interrupt. If you go up to two people, each of you can speak with one. If one of the persons is not interested in the gospel, try to keep him busy so he will not distract his friend. Sometimes, you can approach a group of people and start talking with them about Christ. Usually, at least one person will be really interested. You may want to take him aside and talk with him individually.
Occasionally, the group leader and his partner should check out how the other Christians are doing and help with any problems. When the witnessing time is almost over, he may need to remind people that it is time to end their conversations and gather at the prearranged location. If an unsaved person is very receptive to God`s Word, the worker can get his name and phone number, and arrange to continue the conversation later. It is a good idea for all the Christians to gather together in one place at the end of the witnessing time to share testimonies, pray for the people they talked with, and thank God for what He has done.
