As we pray for God to open doors and remember that He is already preparing hearts before we arrive, we should feel a deep sense of relief. We don’t make the appointments. God does.

But what do we do when God opens a door? What do we say when the opportunity arises?

It has been my observation that many Christians believe they understand the gospel well enough to believe, but not well enough to explain it to anyone else. Maybe you’ve thought, “I don’t know enough theology. What if they ask a question I can’t answer? What if I say something wrong?” 

Even Paul, when he writes to the believers in Colossae, asks them to pray not that he would become more intelligent or more convincing, but that he would proclaim the gospel clearly.

The gospel is profound, but it is not complicated. Jesus summarized it in a few sentences when he taught Nicodemus about being born again: God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him won’t perish but have eternal life. He didn’t do this to condemn the world, but to save it through Jesus. And anyone who believes in Jesus will be saved (John 3:16-18). Throughout history, believers like you and me have repeatedly proclaimed these same truths. They didn’t all use the same words, but they faithfully told the same story: who Jesus is, what He accomplished through His death and resurrection, and they extended an invitation to respond in faith.

If God opens a door for you today, remember that your job is not to answer every question perfectly or to wow with your grasp of advanced theological concepts. Your part is to point people to Jesus as clearly and faithfully as you can.

Final thought: Take a few minutes today to practice explaining the gospel in your own words. If someone asked, “What has Jesus done for you?”, what would you say?