As Alabama pastor Derek Staples prepared for a July missions trip to Honduras, he was on the lookout for a visual way to express the gospel in a pre-literate environment. The church missions team would be setting up a medical clinic at a local school and sharing the gospel to those who came for help. He also had nearly 40 opportunities to preach during a three-day period.
“At the (June) Southern Baptist Convention during the North American Mission Board (NAMB) presentation, I watched Pastor Jimmy Scroggins share the 3 Circles,” said Staples, senior pastor of First Baptist Church, Jacksonville.
“Most of the people in Honduras can’t read or write. I thought it was an incredible visual representation of the gospel.”
During his time in Honduras, Staples preached 37 times using the 3 Circles as an outline and saw 593 people trust in Jesus as their Savior. He now plans to train members of his congregation how to use the tool to share their faith back home in Alabama.
“I’m always trying to give my people as many tools as possible to help them effectively share the gospel,” Staples said. “This is a memorable, easy way to explain how anyone can have a personal relationship with Christ.”
Personal evangelism
Staples is among a growing list of Southern Baptists using NAMB’s 3 Circles evangelism tool to share the gospel through personal evangelism and preaching, and to train others in its use. Scroggins, senior pastor of First Baptist Church, West Palm Beach, Fla., developed it to train and mobilize his congregation for personal evangelism in a post-Christian environment.
The tool helps people witness using three circles that represent God’s design, brokenness and the gospel — which can easily be drawn on readily accessible materials, such as a napkin during lunch. NAMB has produced a variety of resources to help support pastors who want to train their churches to use the tool, including free Apple and android apps, a conversation guide, a PowerPoint presentation and online videos. The 3 Circles tool is part of a larger set of resources NAMB is releasing around the “Life On Mission” theme — centered on mobilizing all believers for the mission of God.
(NAMB)
For more information, visit lifeonmissionbook.com.
Share with others: