Some of you know that I am moonlighting at a side business/hobby. I bake cinnamon rolls for local coffee shops and diners. As well, I sell them directly to the public. For more information on that side of things, you can visit here. (I am persuaded that I put the ‘moon’ in moonlighting. To do this I get up at 3:30 AM!)
I don’t mention that for the sake of self promotion. Rather, it struck me this morning one of the reasons I like doing this so much. It is not hard to be an evangelist for a cinnamon roll.
Classic example happened yesterday.
I had delivered some rolls, and was visiting with my printer and his father at their printshop. (I pay for occasional light print jobs with cinnamon rolls!) As we were talking, the father said, “You know where you ought to take some rolls — Dianne’s Cafe.” Dianne’s is a diner near my house.
Now, I had some rolls in the car, but I was thinking of taking them elsewhere. I decided to act on his instinct and so I headed for Dianne’s. I met the owner, exchanged about three sentences, showed him the rolls, and he immediately ordered two trays for today.
When I took the rolls to Dianne’s this morning, the waitress held them up, and showed them off to the whole restaurant. I left with a great sense of satisfaction.
How did this happen? The owner was looking for something like this. He saw the need, and immediately knew that these rolls met his need. He was ready to buy.
I suspect that there are those for whom sharing Christ pretty much follows the same pattern, but I am not one of those.
I know there are huge differences between the call of the gospel and the appeal of a cinnamon roll. For one thing, the gospel demands the commitment of one’s whole life. Dianne’s Cafe has only committed $18 and could back out of the deal tomorrow. I know that.
But this reveals a stark problem in me. When I unwrap a pack of cinnamon rolls, I expect people to love them. I expect people to respond positively. I am shocked when they are not wowed. In contrast, I expect people to have no interest at all in the gospel.
The problem is that I have lost confidence in the attractive power of the gospel. I rarely ‘unwrap’ it to people, because I expect them to have no interest. I am shamed to confess that.
The reality is that there must be many people out there hungry for the acceptance and freedom and security and stability that comes through Christ who simply need a faithful Christian man or woman to unwrap him for them. Pray that we would come into contact with such people and have the confidence to show Christ to them.
Geoffsnook
Randy,You are exactly correct. I don’t think that God has finished saving people in this area! There are still ‘sheep not yet of this fold’ in Bradenton. So there are those out there for whom Christ will be welcomed more preciously than a cinnamon roll. At the same time, they may not welcome Him as quickly. People may not see their need for Christ right away, but they might see the need for justice in the world, security, purpose, meaning, community-all of which Christ is the answer. I think these are like the aroma of the cinamon roll. And people usually smell before buying. Once they see that the smell is really coming from the roll (gospel), those whom God has called WILL go all in.
Tami@ourhouse
Randy,Thank you for your transparency. I too, often forget just how attractive the gospel is. The Bible tells us in the book of Romans(1.18-20)”…what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them.” This text encourages me in evangelism because I can trust that people already have some sense of God’s existence. Whether they are suppressing the truth or seeking after God both people know to some degree God exist. This means we can share Christ with confidence knowing that God has made himself known to them already in “general revelation.”With all of that said please pray for me becuase I am a absolute failure at sharing the gospel. I work very hard at it but see little fruit. I will pray for us both to not loose heart but to press forward in the work of the gospel. Take care my friend, Scott Ellison