How to witness and spread joy

[NINA84]

Hello,
I'm a new Christian, and really want to get closer to the Lord.
I can feel the joy in my heart. But I find it very difficult to spread it to my relatives, as I know the lord wants me to do certain things, for example not to be unequally yoked.

So, I'm rather distant, and maybe a little mean with the ones I love.

For example with my boyfriend who isn't saved yet, I can't help it. He doesn't understand my new way of life and I am being more demanding than I used to be ( no sex, read the Bible...).
He really needs to be saved, if I drop him, he will probably turn his back to Christ, because he has already been rejected by christians during his childhood. I'd like to show him all christians aren't the same, but at the same time I can't give him a choice in our relationship (no sex outside mariage).

Another example : my older sister has a new boyfriend, and she can't wait to sleep with him. I told her, it wasn't God's will, but she thinks I'm mad.

Both of them are upset with me.

How to witness to our relatives showing them God's love and compassion, and not seem bossy or mean at the same time.

 

[Peripatetic]

It can be very hard to relate to people who think differently than we do. Trying to change people doesn't often work, and may drive them further away. The first thing that you can do is to be a good example for them. Even if they don't initially agree, they may eventually come to you with questions about your faith. When talking to non-Christians, I try to avoid "you should" or "you shouldn't". Instead, I talk about how God's presence affects my life and why I made the choices that I did. It doesn't always work, but providing a safe environment where they won't be judged usually does a better job of drawing people to you for discussions about religion and philosophy.

 

[Tigger45]

All you can do is speak truth with love. You can't control how someone else feels about what you said. It's tough but you are headed in the right direction.

 

[Emmy]

Dear Nina84. Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. And: Love your neighbour as yourself. As for spreading Joy, just spread your joy all around you. God will notice your efforts to love and God will bless you. As for your joy, be always joyful and wait and see, sadly not many people have joy to spare. Yet if you love as you want to be loved, many people will try and love you back. I say this with love, Nina. Greetings from Emmy, your sister in Christ.

 

[paul1149]

The more you give your relationships to God, and continue to walk before Him, the more peace you will have. And that will tend to make you a better witness too. Let people make up their own minds. As Tigger said, speak the truth in love. But then let it go and live your life. Allow the Lord to rearrange your relationships. There may be an ebb and flow. There may even be a breaking. Whatever it takes, purpose to follow the Lord as closely as possible and to abide in His peace.

 

[asiyreh]

Read this

The Sinner's Friend

 

[God's Fighter]

You find yourself in a difficult situation. I had a similar experience, with the exception I didn't have a girlfriend at the time. One thing I will say, is people will be offended by you. That is pretty common place, and eventually they'll either listen to you or basically walk away from you. There isn't much of an in between. I ran with a partying crowd, kind of a rough one. After I was saved I didn't want to do those things anymore and basically they stopped asking me to hang out and didn't even bother with me anymore. I was fine with that, as I was chasing after God.

It is good to hear how you are handling aspects of your relationship. All you can do for your boyfriend is be a witness, and he may walk away. So let him walk away if he does, he may be going right where God wants him. Pray for him, ultimately the choice is his.

 

[dcb1101]

cant post links yet. Google "Billy Graham My Hope"
Great program their doing to make people more comfortably sharing the Gospel with others

 

[Spunkn]

It can be very hard to relate to people who think differently than we do. Trying to change people doesn't often work, and may drive them further away. The first thing that you can do is to be a good example for them. Even if they don't initially agree, they may eventually come to you with questions about your faith. When talking to non-Christians, I try to avoid "you should" or "you shouldn't". Instead, I talk about how God's presence affects my life and why I made the choices that I did. It doesn't always work, but providing a safe environment where they won't be judged usually does a better job of drawing people to you for discussions about religion and philosophy.

This is good advice.

Also good on you for standing firm on what you believe (no sex, read the Bible). You are a new creation in Christ, so things are going to be a little different for you. What we need to be careful is going around and automatically think everyone else is going to come to Christ because we can change their minds. That's God's work not ours. That doesn't mean we shoudln't talk about our faith, but as Peripetatic said, if you don't say it in love, people will just be turned off by it.

If you end up seperating from your boyfriend and he decides that he hates Christ, you are not responsible for that. He is responsible for his own choices. Because this is now a core value for you I think he either needs to show an interest in becoming a Christian, or at least listening to you about how it changed your life. If he is not interested in listening, then it's probably not a good idea to continue the relationship.

The world will think you are mad. If you are following Christ, you will stand out. And people will think you are crazy. What? No sex before marriage? You're some silly religious nut who only wants to control things. And stuff like that.

But stand firm. God's truth is greater than man's truth. Sex is not evil, but God wants us to enjoy it fully within the safe boundaries of marriage where it can be truly enjoyed and not corrupted and used for evil.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.

You don't have to share your faith with people who don't believe 24/7. Sometimes just living in a Christ-like way is enough to share your faith. Being honest, being trustworthy, caring about other people's feelings, encouraging one another, and those kinds of things. If they ask you, definately share your faith and thoughts. But try not to pressure them constantly or it will just turn away. Be encouraging (as long as it's not against God, such as the sister wanting to sleep with a guy). Love your family as Christ loved you. Don't preach to your sister, but treat her in love. Some day she'll probably break down in grief because of the choices she makes. Be there for her when she needs it. When you feel as if there's nothing you can really do, prayer is always good.

Stay strong with God's help!

 

[parsley]

It's important to show that you make choices to follow God, but are not putting others under the same system -- these are your own choices. While you know that God would not want people carrying on irresponsibly, they have not chosen at this time to come under that set of guidelines.

If we talk about the laws, then we are preaching salvation by law instead of by grace. Jesus asked us to spread the news of the gospel, which is the good news of redemption through grace. This grace and love is what needs to be shown to others.

When it comes to your bf, I hate to say it but it sounds like your sister will "solve" your dilemma for you. (Cringe.) That was rude of me.

It's nice of you to be concerned about steering him toward God, but keep in mind that it will change your relationship. It can add a competitive edge -- where you are determined that he heads in a certain direction, and he might not be ready to head that way. Sort of like when men start treating their spouses like their mothers -- not liking people telling them what to do. It might become more about dynamics than about God.

If you find yourself in a place where you can't both operate freely with autonomy, then let others take on the task of bringing him closer to God. You can't do it all -- pray that the Holy Spirit will work in him, and bring others to support his spiritual growth and encourage his faith in God. Prayer is so important.

Not by might, not by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord.