We also witness by what we say, not in terms of not using profanity or trying to say encouraging things. We witness by sharing the gospel. After all, gospel means “good news.” We bear good news as we point people to God, as we give the Bible’s explanation for the mess the world is in, and as we point to Jesus as God’s remedy for personal sin and for the whole fallen world. We give a reason for the hope within us. Jesus is that reason.

Our Lord Jesus calls us to be witnesses “in our going.” That means there is not a specific time or place to bear testimony to Christ.

How do we go about witnessing? By word and deed. The way we conduct our lives demonstrates that we know Jesus and show that He is Lord of our lives. Our lives are living epistles. We live differently from the world that does not know Him. We show allegiance to Him and dependence upon Him. His name is on our lips, and not as a curse word.

We also witness by what we say, not in terms of not using profanity or trying to say encouraging things. We witness by sharing the gospel. After all, gospel means “good news.” We bear good news as we point people to God, as we give the Bible’s explanation for the mess the world is in, and as we point to Jesus as God’s remedy for personal sin and for the whole fallen world. We give a reason for the hope within us. Jesus is that reason.

Sometimes we try too hard. We try to work up the nerve to talk about Jesus. Often when we try hard, we are not being ourselves. If we talk about Jesus at all, we end up being plastic or pushy. We try to do the work of the Holy Spirit. But we can’t change anybody’s heart.

Try this approach. Start your day by praying that God would use you and give you words to say. They don’t need to be a lot of words, just something true about Jesus.

Then go about your day. Get to know people. Listen to their story. Get a feel for how they think. People are interesting. They have a lot to say. As we listen, we benefit from their take on things and the experiences God has given them. By listening, we also learn things that we can interact with.

Let people get to know you. That’s one way to be a living epistle. As they get to know you, they’ll find out how important Jesus is to you. They’ll learn that the Bible and church are part of your life, maybe in a different way from their understanding of the Bible and church. Perhaps it would be natural for you to share about something God has taught you or something you’re involved in at church. That gives you something to talk about together, maybe, if they are interested. If they’re not interested, that’s okay. Enjoy them. Wait on the Spirit.

You can even pray right in the thick of your talking with them. Not out loud. In your heart, in the moment.

You never know. Your friend might surprise you by saying something like, “I’ve noticed you are different from others at work. What makes you tick?” And there it is! Give them a taste of your testimony, your story of how Jesus met you. Maybe they will interact with you then. Maybe another time. Maybe not at all. It may be that someone else who looks like you as a follower of Jesus will pick up the ball. Those things can be part of your praying.

Maybe, just maybe, they will ask you to explain about Jesus. Your Jesus seems so different from the one they heard about years ago in Sunday School. So with your heart racing you tell them.

It’s hard to quantify days like that. You would have a hard time filling out some scorecard. But then you don’t need to. Jesus doesn’t ask you to. He just asks you to be faithful as His witness.

Stan Gale is a minister in the Presbyterian Church in America, and is the author of the book, Why Must We Forgive? This article appeared on his blog and is used with permission.