By Jessyka Albert
In my recent reading, I stumbled across the term “decaffeinated definition.” I had never heard anything like it before, and for some reason this term has become a regular part of my vocabulary and thought process. As any avid coffee drinker will tell you—in no uncertain terms—not only does decaf taste different, but a decaffeinated drink doesn’t have the same effect on the body as a caffeinated one does.
You might be wondering “What does coffee have to do with evangelism?” Let me explain. This adjective, “decaffeinated,” whether used to describe the word definition, coffee, or evangelism, indicates a noun that fails to pack a punch! The term decaffeinated means “to extract caffeine from.” If caffeine is a stimulant, then the process of decaffeination is the literal extracting of the stimulant out of something. My question is this: has evangelism become “decaffeinated?” Is the stimulant missing?
Maybe it has been the locations of the churches I’ve attended, but the evangelism that turns hundreds to Jesus seems to be something my generation has not been privileged to see. Don’t get me wrong, I have been to my fair share of Revelation seminars (and even brought friends from the community), but from my point of view, I was sipping from a cup of decaf evangelism. The facts are interesting, and the message we try to help others understand (from behind images of beasts and prophetic mathematics) is fantastic, but something is missing.
In the morning, no one looks to a nice hot cup of decaf for a pick-me-up! The same goes for evangelism. Dictionary.com defines evangelism as “missionary zeal, purpose, or activity; preaching of the gospel.” That sounds like a very caffeinated definition to me. I hope you remember that this is a generalization, and that I am not labeling all evangelism as “decaffeinated,” but I would hate to see our Church fall victim to the decaf trap.
And it’s an easy trap to fall into. Unless you are a keen coffee connoisseur, you might never be able to tell the difference between regular and decaf. The only way to really be sure is by measuring the effect it has. Both cups might look the same, smell the same, and even taste about the same, but their respective outcomes are the difference between night and day. You might ask if the coffee “packed a punch.” Did it change you? Wake you up? We need to start asking the same questions about evangelism.
Naturally, evangelism is important. It isn’t something to be taken lightly or watered down. It is the mission of the church to share the gospel and it must be fully caffeinated. So how do we go from a light, decaffeinated roast to a bold, dark roast? There are many ways, but in my opinion, the most obvious answer is to know your audience. I’ve heard of and seen conferences pass out “evangelistic series starter packs” to all of their pastors. I think that is a great resource and place to start. My question is, does what might work for one church work for the next church?
The diversity among our churches is something to be recognized and celebrated! Could it be that the punch is lost in the packing of cookie-cutter evangelism? To recaffeinate and stimulate our churches and communities, I believe we must invest our time and energy in understanding its language and culture. Let’s not become satisfied sipping on decaf, but actively pursue restoring zeal to our ministry!
–Jessyka Albert is discipleship pastor at Boulder Seventh-day Adventist Church.