‘Comfort-able’ Evangelism
Over the years, I have had the honour of equipping many people in evangelism, either through my own teaching or by leading them through a curriculum. The main program I recommend is “The Way of the Master: Basic Training Course.”
I’ve lost count of how many times I have seen these DVDs, and often as I watch with those learning, I find myself silently quoting verbatim the words coming from Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron on the screen. Yet, each time I watch the course, I am struck by just how good The Way of the Master training really is. Looking back on my twenty-plus years of evangelism, I cannot think of any other preacher who has impacted my evangelistic work more than Ray Comfort.
It was in February 2004 when I first heard the name – Ray Comfort. I remember the date and location because it was my 18th birthday. The Bible College where I was studying had allowed me to preach that morning at the chapel, so I spoke on the importance of evangelism. Afterwards, a new student approached me; he was older than me, but since I was a second-year student, I arrogantly ignored him (I was wrong!). He said, “Josh, have you heard of a New Zealand evangelist named Ray Comfort?” I replied that I hadn’t heard of him and wondered if any good thing could come out of New Zealand. The conversation ended abruptly as we made our way to class.
Thankfully, the new student didn’t drop the matter. The next day, he was waiting for me with an MP3 CD containing sixteen messages from Ray Comfort. As he handed it to me, he said, “You need to listen to ‘Hell’s Best Kept Secret’, then ‘True and False Conversion.’ Once you’ve done that, listen to all the other messages.” Honestly, I had no intention of listening, but a few days later, I found myself intrigued, so I began to listen to “Hell’s Best Kept Secret.”
Words cannot describe how I felt after listening to the message – I was blown away! Silently, I listened as Ray explained how to share the gospel in a simple and biblical manner. As the Scriptures were opened, I saw a very clear path for how to effectively share the good news.
Soon, I had listened to all sixteen messages, but I wanted more! These were the days of dial-up internet, so nothing could be done quickly! As I looked online, I found three videos from Ray, so I set my snail-paced internet to work downloading these films. I stayed up through the night waiting for the videos to download, then as the sun was rising, I was finally able to watch them.
My evangelistic direction changed all because the Lord used Ray Comfort. It was about eighteen months after hearing these messages that I met Ray in Los Angeles, where I had been invited to assist with an outreach. Then (and I’m not sure how), I was approached to be a ‘phone fisherman’ for Way of the Master/Wretched Radio, which allowed me to learn more from Ray.
Since then, I have read Ray’s books, listened to his sermons, and watched his films (no longer with dial-up!). Whenever I email Ray, he always responds to my questions with love and gentleness, even though I have disagreed with him at times. I’ll forever be thankful for his gospel example. When I grow up, I want to be an evangelist like Ray Comfort. I still have a long way to go, and I still make mistakes, but I am forever grateful that the Lord put men like Ray across my path.
It is now over 20 years since I first heard the message ‘Hell’s Best Kept Secret’, and I’m still recommending it to people! I have used many evangelistic training materials, but I have yet to find something that beats The Way of the Master.
Let me encourage you to take the time to listen to or watch the following message – ‘Hell’s Best Kept Secret.’ It may change your life, as it did mine.
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