Is Anyone Listening?

As a preacher, I sometimes think during a sermon, "Is anyone really listening?" - not just hearing my voice. I've seen my share of droopy eyes and the sounds of heavy breathing. But to those who are awake, am I really communicating with them? Since I've been in New York, I've seen quite a few evangelistic efforts by Christians. And you really can find just about every flavor in New York City. Yesterday I saw three.
First, walking down the sidewalk there was a man with the classic sandwich board over his shoulders. I don't remember exactly what it said. Something like "Repent Now." I know it said "repent." He was handing out tracts that were "miniature Bibles," the contents of which basically said: "you're a sinner and need to repent now or you're going to Hell", with a few KJV Bible verses thrown in. The man who handed it to me didn't have much of an expression, and I just kept on walking. Was anyone listening? (I didn't)
Second, I attended a small, old church for their evening Bible study. It seemed like a time/culture warp. The 15 of us sang out of hymn books, sat through a disjointed Bible lesson, and ended with prayer. I could tell pretty quickly that this church had been doing things the same way for a very long time. Was anyone listening? (I hardly listened)
Third, in the subway on the way home, two women stood up and sang a gospel song about victory in Jesus. People often sing or play instruments on trains for money, so that wasn't anything too unusual. But then a third woman stood up and started preaching to the people in the train! She told us that we needed to call on Jesus, and he would answer our prayers. She spoke as if she was in a black church. She was definitely not. My stop came before she was finished. Was anyone listening? (I tried to ignore her)
Now I don't want to say that these evangelistic efforts did not produce any fruit. God is the one who brings the increase. However, I doubt that many responded to these efforts, as they all were presented so poorly. I'm sure that there are a lot of opinions out there, and I encourage you to make a post if you want, but many of our evangelistic efforts completely ignore the people to whom we're speaking.
It makes me think of Jesus. How did he share the good news? I usually don't see him with a condemning attitude (unless he was speaking to the already "religious"). I see him giving sight to the blind, making the lame walk, casting out demons, and bringing good news to the poor. The crowds were drawn to him. Did Jesus speak of sin? Yes! But he also brought a kingdom of freedom from the effects of sin.
When Jesus spoke to people, he used idioms and illustrations that they could easily understand: a field, soils, a woman kneading dough, a vineyard, two sons, a rich man and a poor man. When the apostle Paul preached, he was strategic as well. He first went to the synagogue of a city, and if the Jews would not listen, he would move on to the Godfearers and Gentiles. In Athens he started his sermon by talking about creation, not exegeting scripture that his listeners didn't know or care about. He spoke in a way that people would understand and listen.
Those who I saw yesterday and many others in the city are my brothers and sisters in the Lord. We are all part of Christ's body, and He can use us all for his kingdom. Do some people need to be confronted with Hell? Yes. Do some people need the old church they remember? Yes. Do some people need to be preached at? Yes. But I believe that MOST won't even listen. I pray that we would be relevant in the way we speak. Let us communicate in a way so that people will really listen and understand.
The hardest part about writing this blog is that the three I saw yesterday were actively sharing their faith with boldness. For much of my life, evangelism has been my weakest discipline. Pray for me this summer, that I would grow in the area of evangelism. And pray that both of us would do it in a relevant way so that people will listen and truly understand the good news of Christ.