Evangelist: 'Willing' Attitude Trumps 'Winning' Attitude in Witnessing
by Allie Martin
October 20, 2004
(AgapePress) - An Georgia-based evangelist who understands the desire to "win at all costs" is encouraging Christians not to worry about results when witnessing for Christ.Mark Cahill says what he loves to do most is share his faith in Jesus Christ. That is why he spends his time witnessing to the lost and encouraging and equipping Christians to do the same. The Auburn University graduate, who now shares his faith at college campuses and youth conferences around the country, was an honorable mention Academic All-American in basketball at the Alabama school and played alongside NFL legend Charles Barkley while there.
Cahill says he once focused on winning at everything -- but Christians, he says, do not need that mindset when it comes to evangelism. "Just being an athlete and playing college basketball, I felt like I always had to win every time -- and winning, to me, was seeing someone saved," he says. "But God doesn't call me to do that. It's His job to save a soul; it's just my job to plant a seed and water [it]."
The evangelist says believers can use current events to engage the lost about their relationship with Christ. In today's world, he says, many are interested in spiritual matters.
"Because of September 11, Iraq wars, Ronald Reagan dying, people are thinking eternal things. They just have tons of questions on what's next," he says. "And hey, the great thing is, we've got tons of answers for them. We just have to get into that conversation, which is really not that difficult to do."
Cahill outlines other biblical methods for evangelism in his book One Thing You Can't Do in Heaven (Genesis Publications, 2004), which the late Dr. Bill Bright said is "filled with fascinating accounts, practical tips, and sobering wisdom on evangelism."
