Pastor's Desk
July 16, 2006
MANY YEARS AGO I went with a group of bible college students to do some street ministry in downtown Vancouver. We began to engage various people in conversation when a man walked up to me and asked me, “Can I have success?” I was thrilled to be able to try and answer that question for him. I began to tell him that it was a very good question, and followed with a gospel presentation which included the indisputable fact that by putting his trust in Jesus Christ, he would be certain to have ultimate success in life. I even quoted Joshua 1:8 which hammered home the fact that if he would meditate on the Word of God day and night and obey it, then he would have good success. He politely listened to my presentation, and when I was finished he asked, “Now can I have six cents?”
This incident illustrates what happens when we have incomplete communication. We ask questions that are not understood, and give answers to questions that are not being asked. It is possible for two people to talk to each under the illusion that they are having a meaningful conversation, only to find that when it is over both have misunderstood each other. Sometimes it can lead to a good laugh. But many times the results can be unpleasant, and can lead to things like unfulfilled expectations and even broken relationships. For instance, many marriages have been destroyed on the rocks of miscommunication.
Sometimes miscommunication happens between Christians and non-Christians at the workplace because of the different value systems we work under. There is a work culture that is often quite far removed from church culture. These two cultures have different rules, and to some degree, a different language. As Christians we need to understand both cultures so that we can communicate the gospel of the kingdom clearly, so that people in the work culture can truly hear it and understand it. In order to be successful in this we need God’s help. The apostle Paul understood that and asked his Colossian friends: "And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should." (Colossians 4:3-4)
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Let your conversation be always full of grace,
seasoned with salt,
so that you may know how to answer everyone.
This page was last updated on Friday, July 14, 2006