Why do we hesitate to share our faith?

By Pastor Jason Paul

As my daughters and I were preparing to go to swimming lessons for the day, one of my daughters said to me confidently, “Today, I will jump off the diving board just for you, Dad”. I responded, “Excellent, and even if you don’t, it will be okay.”

When the end of her swim lesson came, she had the opportunity to jump off the diving board. The instructor asked who would be interested in jumping off the board, and both of my daughters raised their hands.

My first daughter confidently walked out onto the board, plugged her nose with her fingers, and without thinking jumped right in. Now it was my other daughter’s turn. She stepped one foot on the board and proceeded to the edge of the board. She looked at me, and I gave her a thumbs-up. She then looked down and thought about this moment. Should she jump off or not? The water seemed distant, and the instructor was waiting for her to jump into the water and swim to her arms. If she jumped, would it hurt? Can she trust that her instructor could help her in the water once she made contact? She thought, ‘I have never done this before; I am scared.’

Perhaps if she sat on the board, she would have the courage to leap. But alas, her courage was not found. She stood back up on the board and then proceeded to return to the side of the pool.

Okay, she thought, I can do this, and she tried again with the same result. Five different times did she try, and each time, she thought differently about taking the risk. She ultimately decided to go to the edge and lower herself into the pool.

After the lesson was over, she left the pool and came to my location, looking sad and tearful, because she had not done what she had confidently said she was going to do. I encouraged her and said that I was proud of her, and that she shouldn’t be sad. There will always be a next time.

As I watched my daughter on the diving board, I was reminded of the first time I shared my faith about Jesus Christ with a non-believer. I was around the same age as my daughter, but instead of being hesitant, I jumped right in. My belief that Jesus was the Son of God and the only means of Salvation was so strong that when the opportunity came, I did not hesitate; I shared my faith.

Just as my daughter was hesitant to jump into the water, I know of many people who are reluctant to share their faith in Jesus. When the time arrives and they have the opportunity to share their faith, they choose not to do so.

What if thoughts begin to come into their minds? You know, “What if I jump in, will the result go well, or not? What if I am not good at sharing my faith? What if I am questioned and I don’t know how to respond? What if I am rejected? What if, what if, what if. Then, after a bit of pondering about what to do, the decision is made to leave the opportunity instead of jumping right in.

We may be hesitant to share our faith due to the fear of rejection or the possibility of offending others. We may be hesitant to share our faith due to a lack of knowledge and confidence. We can even be reluctant not to share the gospel with someone because we believe that everyone has already heard about it.

Why do you hesitate to share your faith?

I am not suggesting that sharing your faith is not scary. When I shared my faith as a young man with someone who did not believe in Jesus, I did not have all the answers, but I felt that it was the right thing to do. I showed him an enormous cavern, and on one side was a cliff; then, on the other side of the cavern, stood Jesus on the opposite cliff. Jesus’s arms are wide open, waiting for us to get to him. Then, in the middle of the cavern, I drew the cross that formed a bridge from one edge to the other. I explained that it was because of the cross that we have access to heaven and eternity with God, thanks to Jesus’ work on the cross. Where are you?

I probably didn’t make a whole lot of sense, but in the end, I asked my friend where he found himself, and he placed himself in the middle. I took the risk, and at least that day, my friend made his way to the middle. To this day, I am not sure if this young man entirely made a commitment to Jesus as his Lord and Savior, but I can honestly say that I planted a seed that day.

With my friend, I had built a bridge with him, and when it came time to share my faith, I could. We need to be bridge builders, not bridge burners, if we want to reach more people with the gospel. We all have built relationships with many people in our close circle who need to hear about Jesus.

Yet, statistics say that 59% of Christians won’t share their faith with someone, which is a staggering number. As believers in Jesus, we know the cure to sin and death, yet we are hesitant to jump in when we get to the edge of the diving board.

Statistics also indicate that approximately 51% of all American adults are somewhat open to discussing faith or the gospel with a stranger. Having a conversation about our faith with a stranger can be intimidating. However, nine times out of ten, we should be sharing our faith with someone we know, rather than just approaching someone at random.

The question is, do we really care about lost souls? Is that why we are hesitant?

Are we hesitant to share the gospel with others when we know they believe in a different religion? Those who have placed their trust in a religion and do not believe that Jesus is the only way to heaven. Those individuals and families are living their best life here on earth. In comparison, those who believe in Jesus will have an abundant life here on earth but will enjoy their best life in heaven for eternity.

The longer I follow Jesus, the more I care about those who do not know Him and even those who claim to know Him yet reject Him. Yet, I still find myself with missed opportunities to share what Jesus has done in my life because I hesitate.

This reminds me of a time when I went waterskiing with family. I would go water skiing all the time when I was younger. I enjoyed it. But then, many years later, I had the opportunity to water ski again, and hesitation kicked in. I am older now, what if his knees can’t hold up? What if I can’t water ski anymore? What if I forgot how to waterski? I talked myself off the ledge and decided that I would rather drive the boat than take a risk. But my brother-in-law encouraged me to try, and I did. I enjoyed the experience and was able to water ski again. I didn’t last as long as I did when I was younger, but I remembered the joy I had in water skiing.

There is great joy to be found in sharing your faith with others. Even when he can be hesitant to try again, once we jump in, we remember the pleasure of sharing our faith with someone who needs to hear the gospel.

Perhaps today, you feel encouraged to share your faith with someone you know. Those who have leaped know that there is joy to be found in the act. Especially when you do a maneuver that gets a spectator wet. Perhaps there are those reading this today who don’t know how to swim, but you still take joy in watching someone complete an out-of-this-world dive from the diving board. Either way, my encouragement today is not to hesitate when the opportunity comes.

When the opportunity comes, don’t hesitate, jump right at it. God will be with you every step of the way. You can trust him to be your lifeguard.

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Thank You for taking the time to read this blog from Abiding in the Faith Ministries!

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About the Author

Jason began his ministry with a podcast called Abiding in the Faith, which grew into Abiding in the Faith Ministries (www.abidinginthefaith.org). A ministry to make God known by focusing on spiritual growth and evangelism through discipleship by helping to strengthen a person’s walk with Christ.

To know more about our ministries, go to Abidinginthefaith.org.

You can support Abiding in the Faith ministries by purchasing our new book. “Strengthen Your Walk: Lessons from Paul’s walk with the Lord”