What We All Have in Common

If they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin . . . 1 Kings 8:46

At an airport a few years ago, some random guy approached me with a gospel tract, asking if I knew where I’d go if I died suddenly. His was an adversarial approach, claiming that I was going to hell and that he wasn’t.  Annoyed at all the presumptions he was making about me, I indicated that I wasn’t interested, and he moved on to his next target. It’s an interesting tactic, one which I’m quite familiar with, having grown up in an evangelical tradition of Christianity. In such a tradition, we’re encouraged to share our faith, attempting to convert others to Christianity. One of the more frequently proposed methods of doing this is to ask this question – Where would you go if you died tonight? It’s a salesman’s technique, designed to get people thinking about eternity. I’m sure it’s worked for others, but the few times I tried it simply got me into an argument, in which I tried to convince the other person that I was right, and that he or she was wrong.

As you can perhaps tell, I’m not a very good evangelist because I’m not a very good salesman. I do believe that people need Jesus. I’m just not very good at convincing someone of that truth if they don’t already believe it. I’ve known others who are good at it. It’s just not a technique that’s worked for me, I think, because it is a technique and as such, it feels manipulative, insincere, and presumptive.

When I talk to someone, if I feel compelled to have an existential conversation, I don’t tell them they’re going to hell. To me, that implies such superiority on my part, and I don’t feel superior. Rather, I tell my story. I tell them of my struggles, and I tell them what Christ has done for me.

We all struggle with something. Though the language is a little different, this is the message of today’s passage. Not everyone admits it, but everyone has some self-destructive behavior that turns them away from who God made them to be. So, I tell my story and I admit my struggle, thereby giving the other person permission to share their story and their struggle. I’ve found that it’s far more authentic and natural to humbly admit my flaws than to point out someone else’s. Then, I can tell of what Christ has done in my life. If the other person wants that, great. If not, that’s their choice.

Everyone struggles with something. To me, our universal struggle is common ground. Starting there makes us brothers and sisters instead of adversaries and combatants. So, I think I’ll continue to start right there, sharing my struggle before anything else.