Bop it! - How to answer really tricky questions
Imagine the scene…you’re hanging out in the refectory with your mates, chomping on a Kit-Kat, when all of a sudden someone launches a hugely difficult-to-answer-question about Christianity in your direction! What do you do? Apart from gag on your Kit-Kat, here are some ideas inspired by the game Bop-it. You might not go with all these ideas in one conversation, but they’re definitely worth reading, thinking about and praying through!
1. Grace It – we are beggars telling other beggars where to get bread so be gracious. We are no better than anyone else. Jesus was filled with compassion for the sheep without a shepherd (Mt 9:36).
2. Dig It – what are they really asking? It can be easy to mishear or misunderstand what someone’s saying. A great question to ask is: “Why do you ask that?” That way you get to hear what the real issue is behind the question.
3. Scooby It – quite often we don’t have a clue (Scooby-do) how to answer a question, so it’s fine to say, “I’m sorry I don’t know the answer, but I’ll look into it and let you know”.
4. Mirror It – so often we think that it’s only Christians who should have answers to the questions we’re being asked. Everyone has a way of viewing things, so sometimes it can be helpful to ask people “what’s your answer to that question?”
5. Bulletproof Vest It – during a chat, it can be easy to be bombarded with 101 different questions and the conversation goes nowhere. Politely say: “Can we deal with this one first please, and then we can come back to some of the others?”
6. Nail It – try to give as short an answer as possible. It’s a conversation, so you can always say more later. It’s crucial to listen as well as speak.
7. English It – try to speak in a way in which people will understand. When you use the word “sin” – explain it in a way in which people can get it i.e. “sin is not believing God”.
8. Flaw It – watch out for crazy statements (including from yourself!) that aren’t true. If someone says: “Everyone believes it” don’t just swallow that. You can ask “Do they? And just because it’s popular, does it make it right?”
9. Jesus It – it’s so easy to talk about anything or anyone other than Jesus. However, there is no good news apart from Him, so let’s try to talk about Him!
10. Pray It – our Father in heaven longs for people to enter into relationship with Him through Jesus and by His Spirit. So ask Him for grace in how you answer and truth in what you say.
Do you want to go deeper in these areas? Look out for future blog posts expanding on each of the “ITs”!
Martin Povey
Martin is an evangelist who travels across the UK sharing the good news about Jesus in colleges, universities and churches.