Few Christians ever try to share their faith. That's why several billion people don't know Jesus even after almost two-thousand years. Even those Christians who do share their faith may be at the wrong place, at the wrong time, talking to the wrong people. Jesus tells us to focus our evangelistic efforts on the "beggars and the crippled, the lame and the blind" (Lk 14:13). We are to invite these people into our homes to feed, heal, and love them. We should be good news for them as we speak the good news of Jesus.

Sometimes Christians not only don't eat with beggars, we don't eat with anyone, thereby wasting untold opportunities to share the gospel. Instead of eating with the poor, we may eat almost exclusively with committed Christians. We must intentionally put ourselves in situations where we can have serious conversations with unbelievers about salvation in Christ. Christians should always be meeting new people and starting off conversations. You have to get near the water if you want to catch fish. Then you must throw out the net as often as possible. Those who want to catch fish go where there's plenty of fish and do a lot of fishing.

Rescript:  †Most Reverend Daniel E. Pilarczyk, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, April 21, 2005

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.