The Top 3 Excuses Why We Don’t Share Jesus & How to Overcome Them

When was the last time you shared your faith with someone? 

I know that can be a loaded question for some, but let’s take a moment to be real. Research shows that only 10% of believers share their faith at least once a month, 77% of Christians find it difficult to talk about the Gospel with others, and two-thirds don’t know how to share the Gospel. According to this article, these are some of the most common reasons that people don’t tell other people about Jesus:

• Fear
• Lack of opportunities
• Feeling unequipped

I’ve definitely used all of these reasons as an excuse to stay quiet about my faith at one time or another. But friend, I don’t want you to feel stuck there or have a feeling of dread come over you when this topic comes up. In fact, here at I Am Second, we want to help you overcome these challenges and be prepared to talk about Jesus whenever the Spirit prompts you.

Let’s look at how we can overcome these obstacles and be ready to confidently share about Jesus.

Fear

I feel like fear is one of the most common things that keeps us from telling people about Jesus. I’m an extroverted introvert; I love talking to strangers. In line at the grocery store, waiting for a table at a restaurant, even on the beach during vacation – I’ve been known to talk to someone I don’t know for hours. I don’t usually have a fear of talking about Jesus to people I don’t know because it feels like there’s less to lose. When I’m afraid to share the Gospel is when I’m talking with friends and coworkers. And it’s a mixture of reasons. I’m afraid I’ll do it wrong and turn that person away from God forever, and I’m afraid that if they reject the Gospel, I’ll lose that friendship.

Those are very real and valid fears, but let’s commit to challenging them instead of giving into them. Chances are, people that are friends with you already know you’re a Christian and that your faith is important to you. Just like you know what’s important to them. If God is prompting you to share about him, trust that he is going to see you through. The outcome is not up to you, so don’t put that pressure on yourself. Whether or not they accept Jesus or walk away from your friendship depends on them – don’t let that fear keep you quiet. (I’m so thankful that my mom and family didn’t let fear stop them from sharing Jesus with me.)

Lack of Opportunities

I’ve heard this reason from a lot of friends from church. Many of them work in churches or Christian schools and organizations and therefore don’t encounter a lot of unbelievers. Some people also think they’re too busy or don’t go to places where they can share. Can I tell you something? Wherever God has you is where he wants you to share.

If you’re familiar with my story, you know that my family and I have been living in isolation since 2020. It started with the pandemic and then in 2021, when things started opening up again, my sister was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of cancer. Her treatment took away her immune system and we have been told by doctors that even something like a common cold can be fatal to her. So we’ve stayed in our house, away from people and public places. In these years, the only places we’ve been outside our home have been hospitals and doctors offices.

But you know what God has done during this time? He’s given us the opportunity to be a light in a very dark place. Now I’m not saying that we walk in and make everyone feel better by our presence, but we try to be sensitive to the spirit of God and follow his prompting to talk to people. From patients to caregivers, nurses, doctors and administrative staff, we are given the opportunity to encourage people, tell them the reason for our hope and how we are able to wake up each day and face the reality of our situation without being overwhelmed with fear. Some people we meet are already believers and we have a good conversation encouraging each other, and some don’t know God, but we are able to speak life over them and point them to the source of our strength and faith. Friend, wherever you are right now, ask God to open your eyes to the people he wants you to share your faith with and he will make it clear.

Feeling Unequipped

It’s hard to do anything with confidence if you don’t feel like you know what you’re doing. Cooking, driving a car, trying a new hobby – if you feel like a fish out of water, you’re not going to enjoy what you’re doing and do it well.

That’s why we’ve created resources to help you feel more equipped to share what Jesus has done in your life (even doing it in 30 seconds!). We want to come alongside you and help you confidently share your faith whenever the opportunity arises.

As you may have heard, April 10-12, we’re asking everyone to share their faith with as many people as possible. Start praying now for God to show you the friends, family members and neighbors he wants you to share with, and watch this video to learn how you can use our 3 Circles method of sharing the hope of Jesus. You may be wondering, why is this important? Because Jesus has called every believer to go out and tell the world the good news about his saving grace.

Now that we’ve conquered the most common things that keep us from telling people about Jesus, who will you share the good news with first?