How to Bring Men to Christ

Welcome to Man Talk, brought to you by TAWCMN, talking and walking Christian men's ministry, where they are devoted to breaking down the walls of race and denomination, and challenging men to take their God-assigned role. Here's our hosts Will Hardy and Roy Jones Jr., a black guy, and a white guy. Welcome, once again, to Man Talk Radio. And Roy, it's just been a great time in Jesus today.

Amen. You know, and today we got a very, very interesting topic that we want to share with men on today. And that topic is, how do we lead a man to Christ? Because leading a man to Christ, it's really not the same, as we were talking about earlier before the show, as a woman. Because men, according to how society has fashioned certain things, that they want to look at, where do you work, where do you live, what do you drive, how many kids you got, how much money you make, you know, these tangible things that the world has given them as standards to define what a man is. Being a man, right, right.

Yeah. The other piece of that is that men typically don't want to open up about anything other than those types of things. They don't want you to peel the onion back and take a look inside the heart and see what's really going on in their life, or if they even have a relationship that's a very tough conversation for most men to have. Yeah, and opening up, you know, that is probably one of the things that men do the least when it comes to meeting another man for the first time and, you know, it's like, you know, what do I talk about and breaking the ice, you know, do I talk about sports or, you know, do I talk about politics or things like this, but if they don't know Christ, then that might be the icebreaker conversation to lead them in that direction.

It very well could be. Oftentimes, men are just very reserved. New settings, it's difficult for them to talk about much of anything. Most men are very uncomfortable. A lot of folks are afraid to even talk about Christ or the relationship with the Lord. So that really even makes it more challenging, right? So if you're already a little bit skeptical or should I say cautious about having that conversation and then you're trying to open up a new conversation with somebody you don't know very well, it makes it even more challenging.

It does. And so tonight we want to ensure that we give the credit to Patrick Morley, and this is sort of like an outline from an excerpt from his book, a guide, a man's guide to spiritual discipline that he wrote. And of course, if you're interested in some of his other materials, he also wrote The Christian Man. He's also the author of Man in the Mirror and How God Makes Men. So if you're interested in looking up any of his other books, then you can certainly Google him.

But a lot of them are on Amazon. And so when we when we talk about men being soul winners, you know, you have that individual who it might be the first, second or third time. They come and they say, well, how do I start a conversation? And so, Patrick here, he outlines like five steps that a man can take to be disciplined in order to become an effective soul winner.

So what's the what's the first one there, Roy? Yeah, Will, thank you. The Pray for Men. Ask God to put prepared men on your heart. And I think the key word there is prepared because it's like any fertile ground. It has to be prepared properly. So if a man's heart is not ready to receive it, then your words are going to fall. That's right.

Basically fall on rock, if you will. Yeah. And and see, when we pray, we praying with the with the understanding that God is going to put those individuals, you know, in our lives that we may need to minister to or bring some men alongside of us to help us minister.

Right. You know, to that individual who needs to hear Christ for the for the first time. Well, we've all been in those situations where we've shared our hearts with someone and we've had that person that we shared with that was not receptive. And then we've had that person that we shared with that it was the perfect timing. They were either going through a struggle or they had been searching or they had a very large void in their life and they weren't sure how to fill that void. This gave them the opportunity to to listen because their heart was ready and they were prepared.

And then the message went a whole lot different than it went with the person that wasn't ready for it. It's almost like, you know, God just sort of sets them up that this point in your life, he knowing that these are the things that need to come into your life in order for you to accept my son into your heart. Now, do we really think God knows all that? Well, yes, he does. He is the almighty guy. He is a man.

All right. Step two. Pat says here to make an appointment. And this this is this is really, really, really good, because as I was looking at this, it's something as simple as he says here, taking a man to breakfast, taking him to lunch or taking him out to coffee. And so when you when you do this, after you have identified and prayed for that man to you, first of all, praying for you to be prepared to deliver the message that God has on your heart to that individual and then preparing his heart in order to receive it. And so what what better place to to do that is like over breakfast, lunch or coffee? There's a couple of things that come to mind right there. We'll one is the relationship. So you're trying to start to build the relationship. Hopefully it's someone you already have a relationship with to some degree.

If God's put some of these folks on your heart, if not something, this is an easy way to do it just to go out. And maybe you don't even bring up the issue on the first meeting. You know, it depends on what you sense God's doing with you in that meeting.

It may be you're just getting there to know that individual better and him know you a little bit better. It may not be the right time without seeking God's wisdom in that to do it or not. So you really need to pray ahead of time before that meeting and appointments been set. And once it's been set, pray through it.

Hey, God, don't let me stumble into this. If it's not time, then please give me peace about waiting or go ahead and push me and nudge me if it's time to go and share the gospel. And see, that's where that prepared peace, right, I think comes into play being prepared before we go out. Right. All right, Roy, what's step number three?

Step number three. Patrick says, Listen, ask a man, where are you on your spiritual pilgrimage? Wow. And he says he's only had one man out of thousands over 30 years to say what interested in talking about that. And see men because of how the world defines what a man should be or the success of a man.

And they have it all wrong, obviously. So he's he's saying, if a individual may have had perhaps this is just an example, he may have had an experience in his life to where he called on God. Maybe something tragic happened, maybe the loss of a loved one or he was he was supposed to get on a plane, which we've heard so many testimonials about individuals who at the last minute, they they received a phone call, they were supposed to get on this flight, they didn't get on the flight, they went to the phone call, and then all of a sudden, the plane crash, or things, things with the 911, people who were saying, I was sick today, is the reason why, you know, yeah, so God has a reason why he left those individuals here. So I'm sure there's something within that man's life that he experienced that he can share about his language.

Very good, Will. It's funny, as you were talking to that just this morning, my wife and I were talking about things that we're thankful for. And, you know, as we give praise to God each day for all that he's done, two very distinct times in my life came up just this morning. And I guess it was in preparation for the show tonight that you just touched on that was one that I got caught in a rip current in 2003, and was really literally on my last breath and my last bit of strength. And I just said, God, I've got three kids at that time to finish getting raised, please don't take me now.

And I need to get this journey finished. And then another time, which I shared with you, that time I lost the broke traction in my truck and about went out on the Interstate 40 there at the 68. Physically, by physical and gravity, there's no reason that I shouldn't have went out into the highway. And I literally was pushed back off the highway, squared up, never touched anything. And it just makes no sense physically, other than the fact that God hand or guardian angels or some some spirit was taken care of.

He had his eyes on me and said, it's not time and literally pushed me out of the highway back off the highway. See, these are unexplainable things, you know, in the minds of those who don't know God, but in the minds and hearts of those who walk with him on a daily basis, who put their faith and trust in him. This this is just one day in the many days that God has saved us from things.

So many things we don't even know we don't even know about. You know, that's going to be a great day when he shows us the full video. Absolutely. Absolutely. And see what you just did went go right into point number four, which is share your testimony.

That's a that's a living example. And and I think, Roy, sometimes men again, we don't know how to line up, you know, in in some type of categorical fashion. Those scriptures, perhaps, that we need to share with the individuals to show them what that plane is. But we're going to do that, you know, in in this broadcast or our next broadcast to share with them those scriptures, because they need to be able to see for themselves in the word of God, right where these things lie. So and we're going to go into more detail on sharing your testimony. And we actually we're going to spend a lot more time on that. Right. So as you were leading into the this and we'll get ready to take a break in just a few moments. But one of the things I want to ask you is you're listening to us today is do you believe the word of God? Mm hmm. Do you believe the word of God recently?

I've had an opportunity to ask a friend that question and I never got a straight answer. He is. You and I talked about will. But that's the key, right? Is the word of God. If you believe the word of God, then you should be seeking the word of God and that allow him to speak through the word on what you're supposed to be doing and how we supposed to walk this thing out. And, you know, it's beyond the miracles that he works in our life. It's about that personal love relationship and talking with him daily, walking with him daily and doing those things and just having those quiet moments. And as I share with some men this past weekend, it's about listening. Mm hmm. Sometimes you just sit and listen. You don't need to read. You don't have to pray. But just sit and listen and give God an opportunity to just come visit with you. Mm hmm. Come hang out. That's right.

Because this is a man talk radio. So we will return after the break. And we appreciate you joining us so very much. God bless.

And we'll be back here with him just a few moments. Tawcmm would love to have you join their community of men for breakfast every first and third Friday of every month. They have Bible discussions and fellowship after the best breakfast in town. The meeting location is at their gracious Host Church, First Christian Church in Kernersville 1130 North Main Street in Kernersville.

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Call 336-885-1987. Welcome back to Man Talk Radio. This is Roy Jones.

I'm sitting here with Will Hardy. We appreciate you joining us this afternoon for our show. Before break, we were talking about the need to get to end the Word of God. First, do you believe in the Word of God?

Second, if you do, then that's where you need to be residing, looking for answers and looking for guidance. But if they're not saved and you're listening to us today, we're walking through how to lead a man to Christ. So we always end our shows by inviting people to ask the Lord into their heart. But please listen as we walk through this journey. Men, if you've not been sharing your testimony, it's very important that you have fruit as a result of your relationship and your walk with God.

And it's okay not to beat you up or anything like that. We just want you to know that it is possible to bear fruit no matter how introverted you are, no matter how uncomfortable you are. If you'll step like I share with men that I work with regularly, if you'll take the step in the natural, if you'll take the first step in the natural, God will come alongside in the supernatural and do things you never thought possible.

Exactly, Roy. You know, because the most important thing I think is when when you are leading a man to Christ, a man wants to know from you what was your life like? Perhaps, you know, what situations were you in? And see, when you start talking about these situations that perhaps you were in, then that man maybe able to identify with some of the same things that you went through. And then he could put some of the things that we're going to share in reference to giving your life to Christ. He can he can go ahead and and just do those things, because now he has an understanding of number one, that I don't I may not know this brother, but he's telling me what his life was before he came to Christ. And now I'm listening to him now. And it doesn't sound like anything about what he was before he became a child of God. You mean there was actual change, actual change.

And so so men, step one, according to to Patrick, he says, before you give your your your testimony, he says, tell the man what your life was like. Was it empty? Were you confused? Were you lonely?

Were you disillusioned? You know, just just did you lack any type of significance at all? You know, did you did you see yourself the way society sees you as an unsuccessful man?

Because by their standards, you didn't meet certain goals that society has set for you. Jesus says, Give me your heart. Give me your life. And whatever it is, the direction that I set you in, you will be successful because you're walking and talking with me on a daily basis. Well, that's the other piece of that wheel that Patrick says is make sure as much as possible, you're trying to relate your story to his story.

So I'm sure, obviously, if you're friends, maybe you're friends with this man, but there's probably a common interest there. So there's some way to link some journey that you've been through as part of this getting to know God and accepting Christ that you could relate to the potential individual you're speaking with about this and trying to share the gospel with. Because we all know so much easier when you can relate to what somebody's saying. And it's like we've always said on the show, a man with the experience doesn't have an argument with a man with an opinion. You know, it's just because he can speak from a different, different plateau, different form than a person with an opinion. And all of what I think encompasses what a man should be doing is to ensure that he when he does give his testimony, that it's not in an antagonizing or forceful kind of way.

Right. It really needs to be in a loving manner. Because it's just let me just tell you how God has worked with my life, how he has changed my life. And, you know, as you're reading some of the characteristics that it talked about, you know, loneliness, disillusionment, confusion, feeling empty, futile, lacking significance. Will, those are things that I still today here and even the brothers that are walking with us.

And so what we want to caution you here and just tell you that, hey, becoming a Christian doesn't solve and take all this away because Satan's still going to be pounding on you, still going to be coming after you trying to create confusion, make you feel lonely, he's going to make you question yourself. And that goes back to renewing your mind like it tells us in Romans 12, 12, one and two. It is renewing of the mind. Right.

Which is an everyday thing. That's right. And see, when you renew the mind, it doesn't allow the enemy room for him to place things in there that God says, I want to place in there so that you could have that victorious life.

Right. You know, and you can be an overcomer of the world. You know, First John four, four, you can be the overcomer and and and because of our faith, we have overcome First John five, four. So overcoming is it's it says that you have within you once you get the word of God in you, that sort of the spirit that you will be able to use against the enemy. Well, that's excellent point.

We'll we've got our men's summit coming up in January. And one of the topics is part of restoring biblical manhood is the power of the spoken word. And that's so important. So we get the word of God. We have to provide the met the mechanism that is we need to be reading the word of God so it can speak into us. Then we hold it and we hold it close to our hearts. And that becomes our opportunity to share back out.

But also, even equally as important is that power of the positive word with the guy that you're talking with, as an encouragement back to your comment earlier, we don't want to beat them up or make them feel uncomfortable about where they're at in their life because you know, they're living without the Lord is the leader of their life. So they're going to be on a different path. And even once they get on the path, it's going to take some time for God to make that change. Some people, it happens overnight, others.

It's a work in progress. Exactly. So then Patrick says that that's the before. And then he talks about the how. So how did you come to profess faith in Jesus?

Where was that? Who showed you the way? Why did you respond? See, that's that's the meat and crux of it right there. Why did you respond to what a person said in reference to Jesus? And then he says, Be sure to mention conviction of your sins, hunger for the truth, understanding who Christ is, repentance and faith in Jesus. And of course, we hope to hit all of these when we talk about the scriptures and go to the scriptures in reference to who Jesus is and that type of thing.

But this this is important because I like that. Why did you respond and see why we are given our testimony for for most of the time? And I know it happened with myself when that individual came and started telling me about the plan of salvation and what I need to do as a child of God.

I begin to in my mind, Roy, begin to inventory my life. You know, this happened to me. That happened to me. This happened to me when I did this. And it was almost like at every point I came to a dead end. So so it was like, OK, this happened. And all of a sudden I'm here on the dead end road.

And then I thought I was going over here and the dead end road here. And there was no satisfaction and there was no joy. And the reason was because Jesus wasn't in your heart. Exactly.

You weren't living for him. Exactly. Which, you know, how old were you when you realized that? If you don't want me asking. Oh, I was in my 20s.

Yeah. Mm hmm. And see, I was 13 when I first came to the Lord. And what's what what brought me to make that decision was the separation for my parents and thinking that, you know, we weren't going to be in heaven together. And so but after I got saved and I realized that their their salvation became my number one priority. Mm hmm.

I don't know, because of the way I grew up, where they were at. We never had those kind of conversations much. But I made it clear that in my heart and prayed to God, open that door.

So talk about a challenging discussion. You know, it took quite a few years to get that done. But luckily, their salvation was affirmed years later. You know, it's one of those things.

To your point, all these are dead in streets when you're not following Christ. And it's a temporal satisfaction and fulfillment, even if you were successful. That's right. You know, once it's there's like the key to share it in our last show. You know, there was a void there. It hit the pinnacle of his career, but there was a void.

Well, you know, it's the old ad that he even brought that up. You know, they asked Rockefeller, I think, back years ago, how much money is enough and one dollar more, which you never get one dollar more because you always need the next dollar. So without Christ in your life, you've got a pretty big void.

And we're still looking for that one dollar that even though it may come, it's still not going to give you complete satisfaction. And why were we created to begin with? For fellowship, right?

Exactly. God created us for fellowship in the garden. And Adam dropped the apple, so to speak, and fruit.

Yeah. And so therefore we broke the fellowship. So then Christ had to come back to create that fellowship with us again. So, and allow us an opportunity to make it to heaven. And then, and then he goes into after.

And what does that say, Roy? What has Christ done in your life since? And I think the sense part is since you made a decision to accept him in your life, start leading the life of a Christ follower. And that's important. Will and I identify as being Christ followers.

The society has, has dampened down being a Christian so much that it's gotten a bad term. And truly it's about being a Christ follower. And it says pick areas that have changed which relate to his struggles. So there goes back to testimony.

A man with experience has no argument with a man with an opinion. So if you're sharing from an experience set to this individual, it's going to mean a whole, whole, whole lot more than someone who's just coming up and reading off of a text. Cause if, if I've struggled with the pornography addiction and I've been relieved of it and God's healed me from it, then I can come talk to you about pornography addiction.

If I've had alcoholism, my family can come talk to you about those things. Not that God can't use someone who's not been through it, but it just carries so much more weight. If you're talking from a position of experience and it's important. How has God changed you? How have things changed in your life? What areas are different than they were prior to following Christ? And see, and you have to be able to see that.

You have to be able to see change and then you have to be able to recognize that this has changed. Christ has now come in and he has removed all of these stains of sin and washed me clean and made me white as snow. Join us next week for part two of this discussion. Thank you so much for joining us. I'm Roy Jones, the white guy.

And I'm Will Hardy, the black guy. And we appreciate all of the listeners out there. We thank God for you and keep listening because we're here for you. As we wrap up today's show, be assured that TAWCMM, talking and walking Christian men's ministry is building a community of men that are Christ followers with the desire to be servant leaders in their homes, communities, churches, and work environments. Check out our website for upcoming events and regularly scheduled meetings. Drop us a note for topics that you would like to have us visit in the future. Thank you for joining us on Man Talk today. Visit us at www.tawcmm.com. Men walking the talk.