Reason To Live: What If . . .

When I began in ministry, about fifteen years ago, I went to seminars where I learned how to “witness” to people. Many of the tools or methods used to talk with people about their faith had similar methods, though some relied on different visual aids, techniques or gimmicks to attract someone’s attention. There was the famous bridge illustration, the tract that looked like a $100 bill until you opened it, the Christmas gift boxes telling of the birth of Jesus and the Easter eggs telling the story of His death. I am not trying to criticize these creative or clever tools. No doubt many of them, when used appropriately helped a person see faith in a way that they had not before.

The key, according to my “training” was to bring people to one question. This question was the closer. You saved it for last to seal the deal. Though this question never appears in the Bible, evangelists everywhere touted its effectiveness . . .

If you died tonight, do you know you would go to heaven?

Unlike many people, I moved around during my junior high and high school years. I am not very connected to the people who grew up with me. I am friends with a few people on facebook now, but before that, I would only receive an occasional call or letter. Mostly I hear about marriages, children or deaths. I know more people from my school days that have killed themselves than died from heart disease, cancer or automobile accidents combined. The number four cause of death for people in my age (35-44)* group is suicide.

People are hurting. What if we are asking the wrong question?

If live another 30, 40, 50 years on this planet, do you feel that you have a purpose, a reason?

What is the reason?

*Data Source: National Vital Statistics System, National Center for Health Statistics, CDC.