A.K.A. Lost: What If Sharing Your Faith Meant Just Being Yourself?

Some types of evangelism techniques have gotten a bad rap because they use a blend of aggressiveness and fear tactics to try to convert someone to their own beliefs. As a result, some Christians are weary of evangelism all together. But Jim Henderson breathes life and hope into the idea of fulfilling the Great Commission for even the most timid believer in his new book, a.k.a. "LOST", which argues that evangelism can be as normal as asking questions, listening to people and being responsive to their needs. Henderson's approach to evangelism is as simple as a-b-c and 1-2-3. He doesn't believe in looking at people who aren't Christians as "lost" but prefers the term "missing persons." This may seem like semantics, but it represents a larger paradigm shift in the way people are approached. No longer is it our duty to "save" people, but rather to recognize them as individuals God is passionately pursuing. This helps erase any sense of superiority and invites Christians to partner with God to nudge others toward a real relationship with Jesus. He writes, "When it comes to evangelism, we can be our ordinary selves, and it turns out to be good enough. It turns out that all Jesus needs are the five loaves and two fish of our lives --- something we already have. Rather than trying to escape the ordinary, we should exploit it and attempt something small for God, something ordinary." The style of evangelism that Henderson encourages is refreshingly simple and literally anyone can do it. He encourages readers to develop "the art of noticing" by simply reflecting on the people in their lives and celebrating moments with them. He suggests asking questions about faith and spirituality and listening to people's answers --- without trying to share your own beliefs right off the bat. He encourages small talk, avoiding Christian clichés and saying "Wow" when you don't know what else to say. For some, that may seem like common sense 101, but Henderson is somehow able to communicate these basic truths with a contagious sense of compassion and love. The book itself is dotted with stories of everyday people who are impacting their world one conversation and one day at a time. Most of these stories don't end with the dramatic convert falling on their knees and becoming a Christian. Rather they demonstrate people coming one click closer to a relationship with their redeemer. For those weary of traditional evangelism approaches, the message is both freeing and compelling. With chapters including "Boldness Is Overrated," "Do What's Doable" and "Out of Religion and Into Reality," readers get the sense that even the biggest scaredy cat can be brave when it comes to sharing their faith. Each chapter ends with a section on "Attempting the Ordinary," which provides very practical ideas on how to live out the message of the book. Overall, a.k.a "LOST" is a refreshing read. The book moves forward at a comfortable, conversational pace. If the idea of evangelism leaves you sh

Way to go Jim Henderson for finally affirming that it all counts! Evangelism isn't the sealing the deal, its being part of the process God has an individual on. Thanks for challenging my thoughts and making me laugh with your stories. This is THE BOOK I'm encouraging leaders in ministry to read.

One thing that religious folks and non-religious folks have in common is that they both hate evangelism. Jim Henderson will make you forget every smarmy, forced, and bad idea you've ever encountered that went under the label "evangelism". Then he'll replace it with something warm, genuine, humane, respectful. This book will start a lot of conversations. It already has for me. --Kevin Miller Vice President Christianity Today

Smart, Real, Useful. This book is filled with inspiring stories and common sense wisdom that transform conventional paradigms of evangelism. What if the great commission was actually fun? What if we could share Jesus and be normal at the same time? Henderson shares "how to" from his own tried and true experience. Down to earth genius with a heart for living & sharing faith in a winsome way "Lost" is an engaging fast read, chock full of inviting morsels that are truly do-able. Well worth buying, reading, trying and sharing! A real find.

I've read a lot of books and heard a lot of people speak on various "new" approaches to evangelism ... friendship evangelism, sports evangelism, seeker sensitive church, etc. Common to all of these approaches, however novel, is that the ultimate objective is to steer the conversation towards telling the person about Jesus and to get them converted. It always seemed that the process was really a means to an end and didn't matter as getting people "saved" (the great transaction) so that they could get into heaven was what really counted. Henderson is not anti-conversion. Rather he challenges us to "switch majors" from conversion-centric to connection-centric. He suggests that the heart of Jesus' call to his disciples was to intentionally connect with those who were not following Jesus (whom Henderson calls "the people Jesus misses most".) He also advocates for a "doable" set of practices which everyone can practice vs. the generally undoable and unsustainable programmatic, personality & pitch-oriented approach to evangelism promoted widely in churches today. The book is an easy read and at first his suggestions of practices as basic as noticing the people around you and choosing to listen more carefully to what others seemed very unexciting. What I've learned though is that when I (an ordinary person for most of my existence) choose to intentionally connect with people around me, it's amazing how much better I feel and how God surprises me with what conversations I do have.