Copyright holder: Tyndale University, 3377 Bayview Ave., Toronto, Ontario, Canada M2M 3S4 Att.: Library Director, J. William Horsey Library Copyright: This Work has been made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws of Canada without the written authority from the copyright owner. Copyright license: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License Citation: Watt, Graham Christopher. “An Action-Research Project Investigating what Helps and Hinders Students Connected to Power to Change to Share the Gospel with Others.” D. Min., Tyndale University College & Seminary, 2017. ***** Begin Content ****** TYNDALE UNIVERSITY 3377 Bayview Avenue Toronto, ON M2M 3S4 TEL: 416.226.6620 www.tyndale.ca Note: This Work has been made available by the authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research and may not be copied or reproduced except as permitted by the copyright laws of Canada without the written authority from the copyright owner. Watt, Graham Christopher. “An Action-Research Project Investigating what Helps and Hinders Students Connected to Power to Change to Share the Gospel with Others.” D. Min., Tyndale University College & Seminary, 2017. [ Citation Page ] Tyndale University College & Seminary An Action-Research Project Investigating what Helps and Hinders Students Connected to Power to Change to Share the Gospel with Others A Thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Ministry Tyndale Seminary by Graham Christopher Watt Toronto, Canada September 2017 [ Title Page ] Copyright © 2017 by Graham Watt. All rights reserved [ Page ] iii ABSTRACT The purpose of this action-research was to identify factors that helped and hindered sharing the gospel by post-secondary Christian students in contact with Power to Change. Barrier and facilitating factors were identified by combining themes from literature review and interviews of a convenience sample of 20 people from the population. From these factors, a survey was designed and disseminated. Data from the 89 respondents was analyzed by the researcher and Power to Change staff. A group study resource was developed focusing on one facilitating factor, “take the initiative,” and it was pilot tested with a small group. The impact of this small project was assessed by interviewing the participants of a small group. This research project helped identify an inventory of what helps or hinders students connected to Power to Change to share the gospel with others. This action-research approach can serve as a template for ministry development. [ Page ] vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am thankful for the DMin program at Tyndale that gave me skills and increased awareness of myself, research methods and developed in me a desire to apply more research process within my field of vocation. I am thankful for the opportunity to have been able to participate in this excellent program. I am thankful for the gracious guidance of Dr. Brian Craig as my advisor through this project. I am thankful for Dr. Paul Bramer for his help in editing this document and his role as program director when I began the project. I am thankful for Mark Chapman and his wisdom in research methodologies and Dr. Michael Krause for being the third reader and offering wise insight to me. I am glad for the colleagues I met through the class who helped sharpen my thinking. Within Power to Change, I am thankful for the willingness of many colleagues to help enable me to complete this research project. I am thankful for my supervisor, Sean Cullen encouraging me to conduct research and affording me time to present my findings to the National Leadership Team. I am thankful for my family and their grace to me as I read books and completed assignments at obscure times. I am thankful for my wife, Jen, whose friendship in this journey has been of most importance. I am thankful for the kindness and mercy of God in my own life that would grant to me the privilege of digging into research about student evangelism. [ Page ] vii CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES .... XI LIST OF TABLES .... XII CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .... 1 Ministry Context for This Action Research Project .... 2 The Researcher’s Background Interest in the Research Topic .... 4 The Purpose and Plan of the Research Project .... 5 Definition of Key Terms .... 5 Summary of Research Method .... 6 CHAPTER II: THEOLOGICAL RATIONALE .... 9 What is the Gospel? .... 10 Is the Power to Change Formulation of the Gospel Truncated? .... 12 A Theological Framework for Helping a Person Share the Gospel with Others .... 14 Sharing the Gospel Is Commanded in Scripture .... 14 Sharing the Gospel Because God is Worthy .... 15 Sharing the Gospel Because People Need Salvation .... 16 Sharing the Gospel as Imitating Jesus .... 17 Sharing the Gospel: Reasons and Helps found in 2 Corinthians 5:10-21 .... 18 Sharing the Gospel Rooted in Sharing What One Most Values .... 19 Sharing the Gospel with an Eternal Perspective .... 22 Shame as a Help and Hindrance in Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 23 Personal Experience of the Gospel as a Help and Prompt to Share the Gospel with Others .... 26 A Framework for Taking the Initiative for Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 26 The Holy Spirit as Helper in Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 27 Respect for People in Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 28 CHAPTER III: PRECEDENT LITERATURE .... 30 The Context of Power to Change Related to Students Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 30 The Influence of Bill Bright on Power to Change in Relation to Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 33 The Influence of Apologetics within Power to Change and the Influence This Has with Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 34 North American Society’s Perception of Christianity as a Hindrance to Sharing the Gospel .... 35 The Faith of Young Adults in the North American Context and the Implications to Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 36 [ Page ] viii The Peculiarity of the Christian Faith and Its Relationship to Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 39 Research Connected to Effective Ministries to Young Adults in Relation to Social Fear .... 42 Gospel-Centered Thinking and Missional Ministry for Propelling Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 43 CHAPTER IV: METHODOLOGY AND PROJECT .... 47 The Action Research Methodology Applied to This Project .... 48 Overview of the Project .... 50 The Population .... 51 Data Types .... 52 A Review of the Project by Phase .... 52 Phase One .... 52 Phase Two .... 54 Phase Three .... 56 Ethical Considerations .... 59 CHAPTER V: ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS .... 61 Phase 1: Coding Terminology and Analysis .... 61 Phase 2: Survey Results and Analysis .... 70 Phase Three: Review of Findings and Development of Small Group Resource .... 92 A Small Group Resource Focused on Initiative vs Social Fear .... 94 Results from Small Group Experience .... 94 CHAPTER VI: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS .... 97 Major Trends That Emerged in Research Related to Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 97 Social Fear as a Barrier to Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 98 The Ministry of the Holy Spirit as a Help in Sharing the Gospel with Others .... 106 A Blueprint for Further Research .... 107 The Value of Phase 3 to the Research Project and Future Cycles of Action Research within Power to Change .... 109 Concluding Thoughts on the Future of Sharing the Gospel in the Canadian University Context .... 110 Next Steps .... 111 APPENDIXES .... 113 Appendix 1: Interview Release, Phase 1 .... 114 Appendix 2: Interview Protocol, Phase 1 .... 115 Appendix 3: Survey Release, Phase 2 .... 116 Appendix 4: Survey Items, Phase 2 .... 117 Appendix 5: Interview Release, Phase 3 .... 119 [ Page ] ix Appendix 6: Small Group Lesson on Taking the Initiative to Share the Gospel .... 120 Appendix 7: Small Group Participants Interview Protocol, Phase 3 .... 122 Appendix 8: Interview Helps Coding, Phase 1 .... 123 Appendix 9: Interview Hindrances Coding, Phase 1 .... 126 REFERENCE LIST .... 130 [ Page ] x LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Interview Results: What helps you share the Gospel with others? .... 64 Figure 2. Interview Results: What hinders you from sharing the Gospel with others? .... 67 Figure 4. Survey Results: I am growing in my personal understanding of the Gospel in my own life .... 71 Figure 5. Survey Results: I have a growing personal relationship with Jesus .... 72 Figure 6. Survey Results: I believe the Bible teaches that Jesus is the only way to God .... 73 Figure 7. Survey Results: I am concerned that sharing the Gospel will negatively affect my relationships .... 74 Figure 8. Survey Results: I fear rejection if I share the Gospel with others .... 75 Figure 9. I am concerned that sharing the Gospel will jeopardize friendships .... 76 Figure 10. Survey Results: I think that my personality helps me share the Gospel with others .... 78 Figure 11. Survey Results: I think that my social skills hinder my ability to share the Gospel with others .... 79 Figure 12. Survey Results: I feel pressure to share the Gospel with others .... 80 Figure 13. Survey Results: I believe that the Bible commands followers of Christ to lovingly share the Gospel with others .... 81 Figure 14. Survey Results: I can think of reasons to not share the Gospel with others and these reasons prevent me from sharing the Gospel with others .... 83 Figure 15. Survey Results: What I know about the Bible makes me want to share the Gospel with others .... 84 Figure 16. Survey Results: I have an understanding of how I could share the Gospel with others .... 85 Figure 17. Survey Results: I have close friends who set a positive example for me in sharing the Gospel with others .... 86 Figure 18. Survey Results: I have people in my life who tell me that it is wrong for a follower of Christ to share the Gospel with others .... 87 Figure 19. Survey Results: I have sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit in my life to encourage me to share the Gospel with others .... 89 Figure 20. Survey Results: Age .... 90 Figure 22. Survey Results: Gender .... 89 Figure 23. Force field analysis: Social fear vs. initiative .... 0 [ Page ] xi LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Timeline of the Research Project .... 7 Table 2. Data Types in this Research Project .... 52 Table 3: Phase 1 Coded Themes from Interviews .... 62 Table 4. Summary of Generalities from the Survey that are Positive Factors in Helping a Student Share the Gospel with Others .... 94 [ Page ] xii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION This thesis began with a question: What helps or hinders a Christian student share the gospel with others? As a campus minister and national ministry director, I have spent close to twenty years seeking to equip, help and resource students personally minister the gospel to others. Prior to beginning this project, I had travelled extensively within Canada as part of a “look, listen and learn” research tour the national leadership of Power to Change (P2C) conducted to seek to understand what is happening within P2C ministries across Canada. In this tour of campuses, I began to investigate perceptions about evangelism from students involved in P2C. This led to a more refined research question for the purposes of this research project: namely, what helps or hinders students connected to P2C share the gospel with others. This research project used an action research heuristic and an action research process of look, think act. This research project first looked into the population of Christian students connected to P2C to mine themes of helps and hindrances to sharing the gospel with other people. This step revealed a major theme of social fear that hinders students sharing the gospel and a number of other helps and hindrances. The second step combined literature [ Page ] 1 review and the themes that emerged to develop a survey to seek to understand the helps and hindrances more clearly. The survey was distributed to the population and then analyzed. Combining with the needs of the ministry, a small group resource was developed focused on taking the initiative in sharing the gospel. This resource was field tested in one group within the population and then the participants in the field test were interviewed to investigate if the resource helped or hindered them in sharing the gospel with others. Ministry Context for This Action Research Project This action-research project was done within the scope of Power to Change - Students. P2C exists to change the world by helping students discover Jesus. The vision of P2C is described this way: “We long for the day when no student graduates without engaging in the life transforming message of Jesus” (p2c.com/students, “What is our dream”). P2C is active on over sixty-five universities and colleges across Canada. The ministry is divided into three streams across Canada: 1. The International Students Division: helping International Students discover Jesus, which is active on nine campuses across Canada; 2. Agape Impact, the Korean language based ministry, which is active on ten campuses across Canada; and 3. The main stream, P2C-Students, is active on over sixty-five campuses. Many campuses have three different iterations of Power to Change (International Students, Agape Impact and Power to Change-Students) operating on the same campus. P2C-Students has roughly two hundred staff and interns spread across Canada in different contexts ministering to students in 2016. [ Page ] 2 There are approximately 2500 students involved in P2C in small group Bible Studies, generally called discipleship groups. These discipleship groups all are seeking to facilitate students sharing the gospel with others. Additionally, approximately 200 students go on summer mission trips around the world with P2C each summer. These mission trips focus on sharing the gospel in other university contexts around the world. The ethos of P2C-Students is sharing the gospel and helping believers to share the gospel. This project fits well with the overall aims of P2C. I work with P2C-Students in a national role overseeing our Creative Communications department. Creative Communications serves, builds, resources, and communicates to help P2C achieve its mission. Currently, Creative Communications has over 35 staff and many volunteers all working to help P2C in overseeing the web and social media presence, publications, conference strategy, research and development and marketing functions. Creative Communications also gives operational oversight to strategic planning and financial management within P2C. I have no direct authority over campus ministry leadership. I serve on the National Leadership Team of P2C and one of my colleagues on this team oversees the management of all campus ministries across Canada. However, in serving in communication, trends are crucial. An awareness of the helps and hindrances for students sharing the gospel contributes positively to future resource development within P2C. Creative Communications is developing small group materials that are then used by campus ministries [ Page ] 3 across Canada; an awareness of the inventory will be helpful to contextualize knowledge in the development of these resources. The Researcher’s Background Interest in the Research Topic I became a Christian through the ministry of P2C-Students in 1994 while in second year university as a student at the University of Alberta. Since that time, I have been involved in university and college ministry in a variety of forms and locations. Most recently prior to this research project, as a member of the National Leadership team, I interviewed dozens of students involved in P2C-Students related to their sentiments towards and involvement with evangelism in their context. This was part of a tour the National Leadership team did (just prior to this Research Project) called the Look, Listen and Learn tour where we sought to understand what was happening within P2C ministries across Canada. Within this, I interviewed students on eight different campuses in Canada in person with a colleague and then summarized results to the National Leadership on the question of the effectiveness of P2C in the realm of personal evangelism. This process helped spawn a greater desire within me to understand what helps or hinders students sharing the gospel with others. Most specifically, the experience of filling notebooks full of interview comments from students involved in P2C related to their thoughts towards evangelism sparked a curiosity within me about what currently will help a student share the gospel with others. Although sharing the gospel with others is a core concept within P2C, I personally desired to explore this topic more to hopefully contribute positively to the research question. [ Page ] 4 Additionally, this research project has given me an understanding of action research that I can apply in future research within P2C. The Purpose and Plan of the Research Project This action-research project aimed to inventory the facilitators and obstacles to the sharing the gospel as identified by Christian students in postsecondary education associated with P2C and a literature review, and then to design, implement, and assess a project to address one or more of those factors. Definition of Key Terms Barriers: obstacles, things that discourage, scarcities, hindrances to evangelism. Most commonly used as “hindrances.” Christian: someone who has placed his or her faith in Jesus through believing the gospel. Connected to Power to Change: A person who has an affiliation with Power to Change that they have opted into either in person or online, such that they self-identify themselves as ‘involved’ with Power to Change. Facilitators: supports, resources, incentives, compelling beliefs, spiritual urges, helps for evangelism. Most commonly used as “helps.” Gospel: For the purposes of this study and in the context of Power to Change, when the word gospel is used it will refer to the invitation to believe and embrace the following four main tenets: a. God loves you and offers you a personal relationship with Him. [ Page ] 5 b. We lack relationship with God because of our sin, which separates us from God. c. The only solution for our sin that would enable us to have a relationship with God is Jesus who died in our place for our sins. d. In order to have a personal relationship with God, one must personally accept that Jesus died for your sins and by faith invite Christ into your lives. Note: the theological framework will explain this definition and interact with alternative viewpoints. Power to Change Ministries (P2C): With its roots in Campus Crusade for Christ, P2C has ten major ministry arms, including Power to Change - Students, a university and college campus-based evangelism and discipleship ministry. Share the gospel: is to by some manner communicate to another person the gospel. Students: Students who are at least 19 years old and are studying at a post- secondary institution. Summary of Research Method This project did one major cycle of action research using Ernest Stringer’s “look, think, act” model” model (Stringer 1999, 18) and several smaller iterations of look (interview and survey), think (design of a small group resource) and act (field test the small group resource and interview participants). [ Page ] 6 The project was broken into three phases (see Table 1). In Phase 1, the researcher interviewed and surveyed the population to understand themes in answer to the question what helps (facilitates) or hinders (barriers) students in sharing the gospel with others. A survey of relevant literature enriched the information on this subject. In Phase 2, the themes were identified, analyzed and grouped, followed by the creation and distribution of a survey (“acting”) to look further into the population. This refined and enriched the themes that emerged in Phase 1. In Phase 3, reflections on the results of Phase 1 and 2 led the researcher to design an intervention to respond to one of the factors that had been surfaced. Following the project with a small group, the researcher assessed the effects of the action. Table 1. Timeline of the Research Project [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Table 1 details ] The overall action research project looked into the population by interviewing and surveying and reviewing the literature, then thought about the [ Page ] 7 themes that emerged, and acted by developing and deploying an intervention that built on the themes that emerged. [ Page ] 8 CHAPTER II: THEOLOGICAL RATIONALE Christianity has spread from a small group of disciples that gathered around Jesus as he ascended into heaven to people all around the world today. This has happened in many ways; one way this has occurred is through one person sharing the gospel with another person. Theologically, this necessitates clarity on what is the gospel and frameworks that help a person to share the gospel with others, while seeking to address hindrances to a person sharing the gospel with others. This mission of helping share the gospel with others requires a theological framework - as one writer asserts that, “no mission is possible without theology” (Bosch 1980, 24). This chapter will explore what is the gospel as understood by the population within this project. It will then explore frameworks for why a Christian would want to share the gospel with another person. This chapter will also explore the role of shame in both helping and hindering a person sharing the gospel with others. This chapter will also delve into the importance of a personal experience of the gospel. This personal experience may be related to a leading or prompt in personal evangelism by the Holy Spirit. The chapter closes bringing out a theology of respect for people in sharing the gospel. [ Page ] 9 What is the Gospel? The word gospel literally means “Good news” (Douglas et al 1996, 435). What specifically is the Good News? The event of Christ’s life, death and resurrection “is the gospel” (Douglas et al. 1996, 436) and it was “anticipated in God’s promise of blessing to Abraham (Galatians 3:8) and promised prophetic Scripture (Romans 1:2)” (Douglas et al.1996, 436). This Good News “is the power of God (Romans 1:16). It reveals the righteousness of God and leads to salvation all who believe (Romans 1:16-17). Paul regards the gospel as a sacred trust (1 Timothy 1:11)” (Douglas et al. 1996, 436). The gospel is a multi-faceted concept in Scripture. One facet of the gospel is that it has historical realities: Paul...asserts that the gospel promises were ‘through [God’s] prophets in the holy scriptures’ (Romans 1:1-2). This expression stresses not only that the Old Testament writings are the place where these promises are to be found; it also anchors the gospel in salvation history. The Old Testament Scriptures contain the divine promises of the gospel; moreover, they reveal the unfolding purposes of God in significant events of that gospel which announced. (Kostenberger and O’Brien 2001, 175) In the New Testament, the gospel relates to entirety of the life of Jesus, while it is also true that the gospel is anchored in the life, death and resurrection of Christ. There are many passages that depict this truth; however, 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 portrays in one passage the historical realities of the gospel: Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you - unless you have come to believe in vain. For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day [ Page ] 10 in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. (1 Corinthians 15:1-6, NRSV) The word gospel is integral to the passage; Thomas Saunders elucidates the content of “gospel”: Paul begins this passage with a sentence that uses both the noun and verb forms of euangelion, ‘Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you.’ The word for ‘gospel’ is the noun form euangelion, and ‘preached’ is the verb form eueggelisamen. Paul is saying in essence, ‘I want to remind you of the good news that I 'good newsed' to you’ (the good news I shared with you as good news). (Sanders 2009, 29) The historical, factual central elements of the gospel are laid out propositionally in the passage. First, “Christ died” (1 Corinthians 15:3). Second, “Christ died for our sins” (1 Corinthians 15:3) - as a substitute for our sins. Thirdly, this is rooted in the historical narrative of previous scripture as it was “in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). Fourth, he was “buried” (1 Corinthians 15:4). Fifth, he rose from the dead “raised on the third day” (1 Corinthians 15:4). Sixth, he appeared to more than five hundred people after he rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:6). In short, the gospel has an historical dimension to it. Another facet of the gospel is that it is in and of itself a message of Good news that frees us from sin. Carson and Keller write extensively on this facet: “The Good news is that God provides his pardon by grace alone (Romans 3:23- 24). He gives his love to us rather than requiring us to gain it” (Carson and Keller 2012, 119). The gospel is rooted in history and frees people from sin. It also has many, many effects in a person’s life. What is the gospel (Gilbert 2010) helps to [ Page ] 11 unpack the major themes of the gospel, namely that God is righteous, people are sinful and Jesus is the Saviour and that people must respond with faith and repentance. One effect of the gospel is to have right standing with God. Another effect the gospel has is that it brings true meaning into one’s life: The gospel is God’s good news about Jesus Christ. He is the central message of the gospel, and it is by hearing about what he has done (the gospel) and turning from our sinful rebellion (repentance) to trust in his work on our behalf (faith) that we are saved and can finally begin to understand the purpose of our lives. Because the gospel fundamentally changes our self-understanding and our perspective on life. (Thomas and Wood 2012, 50-51) Scripture is full of connections between the gospel and the effect on a believer’s life. The gospel is the power of God (Romans 1:16) and thus has incredible effect to change a person’s life who believes. Is the Power to Change Formulation of the Gospel Truncated? The popularity of the Four Spiritual Laws and the undergirding presentation as used by Power to Change (P2C) begs a question for this project, namely, is that gospel presentation truncated? For the purposes of this project, within the small-scale research project, I have chosen to define the gospel with the four main points that are taken from the Four Spiritual Laws, or the Canadian edition, called Knowing God Personally (Power to Change 2011). Students within P2C are familiar with this model of gospel presentation as it has been at the core interpersonal verbal communication of the gospel for the entire history of P2C, and previously Campus Crusade for Christ. This gospel presentation then is [ Page ] 12 familiar and it what would be commonly assumed when one mentions the term gospel within a P2C environment. There have been many critiques of aspects of the Four Spiritual Laws. For example, there are critiques of summarizing the gospel into a short document. Secondly, there are theological critiques, such as the inclusion of Revelation 3:20 as an aspect of how one invites Christ into one’s life. For the purposes of this project, I was not seeking to affirm or defend the entirety of the Four Spiritual Laws; however, there are three significant concerns with the way that it is summarized. First, it is highly individualistic. It seems to echo an aspect of secular culture in reducing matters to an individualistic approach. There is not a sense of an entire household believing. Second, it reads like four beliefs that one must give intellectual assent to. Within the Four Spiritual Laws, faith is defined as mind, intellect and emotion; however, in reducing the gospel for the purposes of this project to the four major tenants of belief, one can see the gospel through simply an intellectual lens. Third, this gospel presentation does focus on the content of the message of the gospel and omits the aspects of the gospel that Jesus embodied in his life, namely, showing mercy and demonstrating compassion. In summary, there is a sense in which the gospel presentation I assumed in this project is both the minimum tenets one must believe to begin a relationship with God and it is truncated. In summarizing, there are some aspects of gospel ministry that are lost; however, for the purposes of this project, this is the way in [ Page ] 13 which the term gospel was chosen. Within the project, I did not define the gospel, I simply used the term, but by the project being within the population connected to P2C, this is what I employed. A Theological Framework for Helping a Person Share the Gospel with Others The good news, rooted in history that changes a person’s life and frees them from sin. How does this gospel that frees people propel a person to share this message with others? There are major thematic paradigms and concepts for sharing the gospel that have traditionally been espoused within P2C. Sharing the gospel first requires a personal experience of the gospel, namely, having a personal relationship with God. For a person who has experienced the gospel, there are many thematic helps given for sharing the gospel with others. In fact, helps “for mission usually do not occur in isolation” (Ott, Strauss and Tennett 2010, 165) and intermingle with each other. The following is an unpacking of major ideas that theologically have traditionally been used within P2C to propel a person to share the gospel with others. Sharing the Gospel Is Commanded in Scripture One major help is that sharing the gospel is commanded in Scripture. This is usually connected to the Great Commission, recorded in Matthew 28:18-20, in which Jesus charges his disciples: All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I [ Page ] 14 have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. (Matthew 28:18-20, ESV) The assumption is that making disciples assumes one must share the gospel. Robert Coleman summarizes this view, stating: It is the vision of reaching the world with God’s saving revelation that drives evangelism and evangelical theology. The Commission comes from him who has all authority, and therefore with the assurance that, however long it takes, God will accomplish his purpose. (Coleman 2011, 11) Sharing the Gospel Because God is Worthy Another major help to share the gospel with others, relates to God’s worth - that through evangelism more people will worship God. Many authors write regarding what is most worthy and land in a line of thought that ascribes God’s glory as that which is most valuable and worthy and connects sharing the gospel to spreading God’s glory. For example, one theological primer on missions and evangelism write that, “The highest purpose of mission is God’s glory: the gospel is to be brought to the nations so that from every people there will be those who become glad worshippers of the King” (Ott, Strauss and Tennett 2010, 184). John Piper builds a logical argument about what is ultimate: Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. (Piper 2010, 15) Evangelism therefore as a subset of missions leads to worship of God which is the most virtuous or worthwhile act one may participate in. Evangelism [ Page ] 15 and sharing the gospel is secondary but necessary to that which is primary; namely, glorifying and worshipping God. Robert Coleman writes: Evangelism is all about God. He is the evangelist. Making known the gospel of salvation unveils the character of him who sits on the throne, the Lord God Almighty, Sovereign of the universe, who displays his glory in the redemption of a people made in his image to praise him forever. Getting to know this God and glorifying him is the purpose of evangelism. (Coleman 2011, 13) It is important to note in this line of thinking that “Evangelism is a narrower concept than mission” (McDermott 2010, 350) but that evangelism is part of mission. To spread God’s fame and lead people to worship Him necessitates sharing the gospel to free people from worshipping that which is not God. Sharing the Gospel Because People Need Salvation Another theme of help for evangelism relates to identifying that the greatest need a person has is salvation. Without Christ, a person is unrighteous (Romans 3) and thus to share the gospel is compassionate. This compassion mimics the nature of God because “compassion is a character mark of our missionary God, who ‘so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son’ (John 3:16)” (Ott, Strauss and Tennett 2010, 177). This theme of compassion for others because of their need of salvation is contained in Scripture - but has emotional dissonance to discuss. That theme is hell. One theologian writes: Pluralism affirms that differing viewpoints must be allowed to exist side by side. Its aim is to unite people who differ. The doctrine of hell, on the [ Page ] 16 other hand, proclaims an irreversible division of humanity into two groups, the saved and the lost. (Fernando 1991, 22) Hell is a theme of scripture that is challenging to read about: The fire of hell is unquenchable (Mark 9:43), eternal (Matthew 18:8) and its punishment is the converse of eternal life (Matthew 25:46). There is no suggestion that those who enter hell ever emerge from it. (Douglas et al, 473) This biblical doctrine exists and it is often used as a motivational lever to mobilize people to share the gospel. This help or prompt may at first seem connected to a logical argument that one should share the gospel out of fear of people going to hell; although that may be true, it is often connected to compassion: One of the workings of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer is love (Romans 5:5; Galatians 5:22). It is thus to be expected that Christians will be motivated to mission by the same compassion that motivated Christ and the apostles. This compassion has both a temporal and an eternal dimension: compassion for the physical, social, or emotional plight of people, and compassion for the spiritual lostness of people who apart from Christ face God’s eternal judgment. (Ott, Strauss and Tennett 2010, 177) Evangelist Ajith Fernando summarizes this well: While universalism can act as a deterrent to biblical evangelism, a biblically informed understanding of lostness and anticipation of judgment can be a significant source of motivation to it [evangelism]. (Fernando 1991, 143) Sharing the Gospel as Imitating Jesus Another help for sharing the gospel relates to imitating the life of Jesus. In this line of thinking Jesus trained his disciples in evangelism. To follow Christ is to follow his example in this regard. Steve Shadrach writes: Study Luke 10 and Mark 1-3 to understand...[the] emphasis upon doing discipleship in the context of evangelism. Jesus called His disciples to be with him as he traveled from town and town, crowd to crowd, teaching and ministering; occasionally he drew them away for some debriefing, prayer, or rest together, but for the most part he was always on the go, [ Page ] 17 preaching and reaching the masses...he was influencing many, and in the process, training a few, thus providing dynamic discipleship to his men in the context of...ongoing evangelism. (Shadrach 2003, 196) This model builds off the Great Commission which instructs to teach and observe all that Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:20). Jesus taught a philosophy of sharing the gospel that many have sought to translate to contemporary culture. One author writes: But Jesus didn’t just proclaim the good news. He lived a good-news life, showing what God’s rule and reign looks like when God breaks into the normal stuff of everyday life. (Vanderstelt 2005, 35) While models from Vanderstelt and others provide a lifelong framework for gospel ministry, for the purposes of this project, the emphasis will be on the verbal proclamation of a Christian student sharing with another person because of the historic emphasis of P2C in this regard. Sharing the Gospel: Reasons and Helps found in 2 Corinthians 5:10-21 The Apostle Paul interplays multiple reasons, prompts and helps for sharing the gospel with others in one stream of prose. In 2 Corinthians 5, the Apostle Paul anchors the desire to persuade others to believe in Christ as related to fearing God (2 Corinthians 5:11). He hinges heartfelt internal prompting to share the gospel with others as rooted in Christ’s love (2 Corinthians 5:14). He hinges an understanding of the atonement as a theological grounding for mission - specifically seeing people as needing to hear the gospel (2 Corinthians 5:15, 16). He hinges spiritual new birth (2 Corinthians 5:17), the internal change that comes through faith in Christ, as both message to share with others and a reason for [ Page ] 18 sharing with others. Paul argues that God has given the ministry of reconciliation to people who are new creations (2 Corinthians 5:18, 19). This flows into an argument that people who are new creations are ambassadors representing God to people in sharing the gospel with others (2 Corinthians 5:20). Second Corinthians chapter five ends with a brief depiction of the substitutionary death of Christ and the relevance of this truth to life (2 Corinthians 5:21). One way to see the whole section is that it describes the effect of the gospel in a person’s life in Christ, namely new life that leads to telling others about Jesus. In the language of identity, Paul’s argues from the essential identity of a believer to reason that identity leads to sharing the gospel with others. Love is a focal point of motivation. As the Apostle Paul writes, “the love of Christ constrains us” (2 Corinthian’s 5:14). This passage demonstrates that helps for sharing the gospel are interwoven and interconnected together. This short passage of scripture in sum mentions fearing God, Christ’s love, the atonement, the new birth, reconciliation, the role of ambassador and love for others. This passage which interweaves these many ideas and together they provide an integrated concept of helps for why a follow of Christ shares the gospel with other. Sharing the gospel Rooted in Sharing What One Most Values There is a line of logical inference in sharing the gospel with others that assumes that one shares what one most enjoys. The logic is that if one enjoys sports then one shares with others about sports. John Piper writes: [ Page ] 19 The pleasure you take in God is the measure of the treasure you find in him. You make much of him and show him to be great when you find your joy in him, especially when the taste and the lure of this joy enables you to leave comforts and risk your life in the cause of missions. (Piper 2010, 237) God’s missional character then is a prompt for sharing the gospel with others, There is a line of argumentation to prompt a believer to focus on the character of God; namely God’s mission to call out a people for Himself. The idea that God is missional....is the biblical story from Genesis to Revelation. Christopher Wright has demonstrated not only that mission must be seen as God’s mission but that mission, as the mission of God, is a “fruitful hermeneutic framework within which to read the whole bible.” (Hastings 2012, 246) Furthermore, there is comfort in knowing that there will be people one day, “from every tribe and nation” (Revelation 5:9) worshipping God. God has a mission that runs through all of Scripture and the end of the story - in the book of Revelation, in the future - reveals that His mission is completed. This type of argument may assume that one would become passive in the resignation that God will accomplish his purpose. However, this line of reasoning can also inspire hope and confidence, that even when others are not interested in the gospel or there is a general pushback to the gospel - that God will accomplish his mission in his way. In short, believers have a privilege to participate in God’s mission. It is not primarily the believer’s mission; rather sharing with others is joining God in His mission. Diving deeper into the character of God grounds the believer in reason upon reason to share the gospel with others. God is the “blessed God” (1 Timothy [ Page ] 20 1:11) meaning that God is happy and content being God (Piper 2010). That within the Trinity there is inter-relationship that reveals God being happy and self- sufficient. The Apostle Paul stated in an evangelistic message that God “doesn’t need anything” (Acts 17:25). God in and of Himself is happy and loving. D.A. Carson and Timothy Keller comment on this by writing: We hunger to live out the love on display among the persons of the Godhead because it was out of love that the Father determined that all should honor the Son even as they honor the Father, and because it was out of love for his Father that the Son went to the cross to do His Father’s will (John 5:20,23; 14:30-31). (Carson and Keller 2012, 21) This has the possibility of inducing passivity in a believer - with the believer feeling a lack of need to minister as a result of God not needing anything. Conversely not believing that God is self-sufficient and loving in and of Himself may lead a believer to think that God needs them to share with others - that it is up to them to get the message out. This line of thinking can lead a person to assume that God is desperate and needy and totally dependent upon the sharing performance of believers. If this view that God is self-sufficient lands on a believer, it can provide a quiet confidence in God that permeates their desire to share the gospel with others. God’s self-sufficiency does not need to lead to apathy. Brad House, who has modeled sharing the gospel in environments that strongly emphasize God’s self-sufficiency states, ““To move from passivity to activity for the gospel, we need to repent of our apathy, commit to the missional work of the gospel, and learn how to engage.” (House 2011, 128). In short, the theological vision of God’s self-sufficiency can land on people in different ways, but in and of itself, it can lead to a healthy view of sharing the gospel with others. [ Page ] 21 Sharing the Gospel with an Eternal Perspective Eternal perspective is a framework that evaluates life in ultimate matters. Life is short (James 4:14; Psalm 39:4-7). Eternity is very long. What lasts for eternity? Only three things last forever: God (Psalm 90:2; 93:2), his word (Psalm 119:89) and the souls of people (Matthew 25:46). Everything else will not last for eternity in the way it is now. In the present age, where wealth abounds, this line of logic lends one to ponder life more broadly and choose to invest in that which won’t rust or be stolen (Matthew 6:19-20). It beckons to invest one’s life with eternity in mind (2 Corinthians 4:16-18). Eternal perspective is a way of seeing life for what is truly valuable in this life; namely, investing in what will last for eternity. Sharing the gospel invites people to experience “eternal life” (John 17:3). Life in this world pushes one to assume that all that there is this naturalistic world; however, eternal perspective reframes life to see that life in this world is temporary - and that what matters most is what lasts for eternity. Eternal perspective adds urgency to sharing the gospel. One author describes the connection between eternal perspective and evangelism in this manner: I can guarantee you there is one thing you cannot do in heaven that you can do on earth. You can worship God in heaven. You can praise God in heaven. You can sing songs to God in heaven. You can learn God’s Word in heaven. But one thing you cannot do in heaven is share your faith with a nonbeliever. Why? Because everyone in heaven is a believer...Since that is true, shouldn’t it be a priority of your life to reach out to all the lost people on earth while you can? (Cahill 2002, 17) To this point, the helps for sharing the gospel are grounds and rationale for sharing the gospel that are framed as deductive reasoning that lead to the outcome [ Page ] 22 that one should share the gospel with others. To look at the eternal perspective is to view a deductive argument that states: • Premise one: life is short. • Premise two: eternity is very long • Premise three: only God, his word and souls last for eternity • Premise four: Through the gospel one can invite souls to last for eternity (in heaven) • Conclusion: one should share the gospel with an eternal perspective. Eternal perspective is a help to encourage a person to share the gospel. As a gospel presentation, if one were to use eternal perspective as a gospel presentation, one would likely need to shed light on why one would want to live forever with God. However, as a help, it informs a person on the significance of sharing the gospel with others - that people’s souls matter for eternity. Shame as a Help and Hindrance in Sharing the Gospel with Others While logical reasoning helps some people, it is unlikely to help all believers. There is something that affects all believers, whether they are aware of it or not: shame. In some ways to tell a person that God commands sharing the gospel may lead them to experience guilt for not obeying and shame (wanting to hide) that they didn’t obey and did something else instead. Werner Mischke calls this a theological blind spot: Why is it so easy to miss the pivotal cultural value of honor and shame in the Scriptures? The first reason is that, compared to innocence / guilt, the matter of honor / shame has been largely ignored as a matter of theological [ Page ] 23 inquiry... [Additionally], blind spots are common - they’re part of the human condition. Christians in every society and every culture, no matter how mature, have theological blind spots. (Mischke 2015, 45) How does shame relate to sharing the gospel? In two ways, at least: first, the gospel applies to shame. Second, shame hinders people from sharing the gospel with others. The gospel applies to shame in that Jesus lived in an honor and shame culture. The story of the prodigal son is not only about the guilt of the son not wanting to return to his father, but of the shame of the son eating with pigs rather than return to his father. In short, Jesus told parables that related the good news to shame. Jesus assumed his hearers had shame and could understand stories that had shame as a major theme within them. Often the gospel message that is related to the world in North American culture is that of guilt; namely, you have sinned and broken God’s laws - the only way to repair that is through Jesus’ death on the cross. This is true; however, what of the shame one feels for those sins? How does the gospel apply? The gospel applies in that God heals us of shame by himself being shamed (Hebrews 12:2). Jesus’ death on the cross was the most excruciating and shameful way to die - and yet he died, the righteous for the unrighteous. It is possible to believe oneself a sinner; yet not get personal about one’s sins and the shame that one has over them. The gospel relates to both guilt and shame. The gospel relates to freedom from sin and the deep pain within those sins. Second, sharing the gospel relates to shame in that logical arguments from scripture remind believers of what they ought to do - share the gospel. Yet, in those moments of fear, of turning away from opportunity to share, the believer [ Page ] 24 will relate to shame in some respect. Shame - feeling feelings of unworthiness for not sharing the gospel. Shame leads to hiding and projecting a better self to the world. All believers still have their sin nature within them - there is brokenness within believers such that perfect obedience is not the likely lifestyle of any believer. This is a transformational perspective because the assumption is that all believers will have some shame of not living up to God’s standards and thus not being able to share the gospel with others in a respectable manner. When Paul called himself as a believer the “chief of sinners” (1 Timothy 1:16) it is hard to fathom because it seems as if Paul must be so good as a believer that his godly life made it possible to share the gospel with others. To see Paul as both sinful and godly is helpful because it models that the Christian life is not one of perfection in behaviour, but perfection in Christ - and His work. This has large implications for sharing the gospel. At the point of shame, one will hide; yet, the gospel frees us from one’s need to hide and allows through Christ’s perfection, a believer to find freedom not in themselves, but in Him. To share the gospel with others for many, is to share through shame and find freedom from shame. While this experience may not be universal experience for all believers in regard to sharing the gospel, if a person knows they ought to share the gospel and don’t, shame is often a by-product in their lives. Shame can come from at least three realms in the context of this research project. First, shame can come from the realm of the general body of Christ. A Christian may feel unworthy for not measuring up and feel shame projected by the broad body of Christ. Second, shame can come from the general P2C [ Page ] 25 community. A student connected to P2C may feel unworthy and not measuring up and shame for not measuring up to an ideal, particularly in the space of sharing the gospel with others. In a close P2C community where results are measured, it is possible for a person to feel shame for not measuring up. Third, the person may have personal feelings of shame related to their own background and experience and feel shame. These three realms interplay, but could influence a student sharing the gospel with others. Personal Experience of the Gospel as a Help and Prompt to Share the Gospel with Others Reflecting on helps for sharing the gospel relates to personal experience of the gospel. In short, the personal experience of reconciliation with God through Christ is paramount. The Apostle Paul emphasized the core the belief that the gospel is to be reconciled to God (Rosner and Burke 2010, 169-180). To experience the gospel is to find life instead of death. This is good news. To the degree a person feels and believes this could be considered their experience. A personal experience of the Good News can “compel” (2 Corinthians 5:14) one to share with others because of the experience. A Framework for Taking the Initiative for Sharing the Gospel with Others The Bible describes that believers are to take the initiative to share the gospel with others (Acts 1:8; Romans 10:14-17; 2 Corinthians 5:2; 2 Timothy 4:1- 5). When taking the initiative in telling others about Christ, there are many styles and approaches a person can use. Bill Hybels and Mark Mittelburg have an [ Page ] 26 approach to identifying your personal evangelism style that is rooted in examples from scripture. They identify Peter’s confrontational approach (Acts 2), Paul’s intellectual approach (Acts 17), the blind man’s testimonial approach (John 9), Matthew’s interpersonal approach (Luke 5:29), the Samaritan woman’s invitational approach (John 4) and Dorcas’ service approach (Acts 9:36) (Hybels and Mittelberg 1994, 119-132). God has made each person unique (Psalm 139) and as such people will gravitate to different styles of personal evangelism. This framework concept will be later applied in the project in phase 3 as part of the Bible Study on ways one can take the initiative to share the gospel with others. The Holy Spirit as Helper in Sharing the Gospel with Others Jesus said that: He will ask the Father and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you forever - the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. (John 14:16-18) He went on to say this intriguing statement, “But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” (John 16:7). In short, Jesus left and sent the Holy Spirit. One of the ministries of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer relates to sharing the gospel with others. Jesus said as his final words on earth, “you will receive power [to be his witness] when the Holy Spirit comes upon you” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit - the helper, the counsellor will enable personal evangelism. In P2C, the ministry of the Holy Spirit has traditionally been [ Page ] 27 taught in the context of empowering for personal evangelism. The Holy Spirit enables and prompts a person to share the gospel with the strength that he provides. In short, in a research project on sharing the gospel one would expect mention of the Holy Spirit within interviews and survey as the one who empowers personal evangelism. Respect for People in Sharing the Gospel with Others There is a paradox in sharing the gospel with others. On one hand, one is sharing universal, absolute truth that the Creator God loves you and that there is only one way to find salvation, namely through Jesus Christ. On the other hand, one must be humble in sharing this absolute truth. This is a paradox - sharing absolute truth with confidence, yet with humility. Bradley Baurain argues that it is possible to seek to persuade others of the absolute truth of the Christian faith while also being humble in posture (Baurain 2007, 201 - 219). John Stackhouse similarly argues that apologetics - defending the Christian faith - requires humility (Stackhouse 2002). Apologists Norman and David Geisler have published on the importance of “asking questions in a non-threatening way” (Geisler and Geisler 2009, 35). In short, there is a growing awareness that in proclamation of the truth, one can be humble, gentle and respectful and non- threatening. The message may invoke frustration - that all are sinners, but the transmission of this message can be with gentleness. This is in line with the command of 1 Peter 3:15 which commands defense of the gospel with gentleness and respect. There is a danger in proclaiming the gospel that one can become [ Page ] 28 transactional and focused on delivering the content of the gospel. In sharing the gospel with others, it is possible and in fact commanded in Scripture to respect the other person. It is possible to proclaim exclusive, ultimate truth in a manner that is invited and is respectful to the other person. This chapter has looked at a wide spectrum of major theological foundations that serve as helps and hindrances to sharing the gospel with others. These foundations have historically underpinned gospel ministry within P2C. These foundations have influenced the researcher. They influenced indirectly some of the formulation of theologically oriented survey questions and in phase 3, these foundations influenced the content of the Bible Study material. [ Page ] 29 CHAPTER III: PRECEDENT LITERATURE Spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ has almost two thousand years of historical precedent. The gospel has spread widely and into many languages and cultures. This research project is focused on the population of Canadian post- secondary students connected to Power to Change (P2C). Thus, the precedent literature focuses on the background of P2C and its founder and different types of evangelistic influences within its context. Additionally, the population of the research project - Christian students in post-secondary education find themselves within a larger context of perceptions of the Christian faith. Thus, this chapter will look at the broader trends about perceptions of Christianity amongst young people today in North America. The research project revealed the significance of social fear - so this chapter also looked at literature associated with social fear - as it pertains to sharing the gospel with others. Finally, current literature that focuses on sharing the gospel is summarized. The Context of Power to Change Related to Students Sharing the Gospel with Others This research project is focused on sharing the gospel with others. This necessitates an explanation of what is meant by gospel. Campus Crusade for [ Page ] 30 Christ, the former name of Power to Change, has traditionally framed the gospel as four points, often referred to as the Four Spiritual Laws: 1. God loves you and created you to know Him personally. 2. People are sinful and separated from God so we cannot know Him personally or experience His love 3. Jesus Christ is God's only provision for people’s sin. Through Him alone we can know God personally and experience God's love. 4. We must individually receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord; then we can know God personally and experience His love. The founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, Bill Bright, wrote the Four Spiritual Laws in 1959 (Turner 2008, 99). Certainly, there are incredible amounts of literature related to expanding the gospel broader than these four points (for example, Wright 2010). There have been significant influences on P2C that have broadened the understanding of the gospel beyond simply four points. Tim Keller’s Reason for God (Keller 2009) has helped in how people involved in P2C-Students share the gospel with skeptics. For the past decade, Erwin McManus’ model of communicating related to universal cravings common to all people (McManus 2008) has also spread widely through P2C-Students as thousands of special editions of this book were circulated widely throughout P2C. Erwin McManus’ general concept of communicating is to find common ground with people by graciously pointing out that there are universal cravings for meaning, destiny and intimacy and those cravings point us to God. This model of discussing one’s cravings and how God interplays within those deep cravings was expanded into multiple different events and different training materials. However, within P2C, the Four Spiritual Laws still has tremendous influence, and it is a foundational gospel presentation. [ Page ] 31 Additionally, over time, the leadership of P2C sought to shift the ethos of gospel presenting from primarily transactional with students verbally reading the Knowing God Personally booklet to others to a longer term relational construct. Five years ago, P2C-Students adopted a model to help a Christian student understand sharing the gospel from a process framework. The book, I Once Was Lost (Everts and Schaupp 2011) has been influential within P2C-Students and provides a framework for evangelism that P2C has incorporated within trainings. In the book, Everts and Schaupp looked back at over 1800 students who had come to know Christ in a region of the United States, involved with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship and reverse engineered the journey these students described that they went on before trusting Christ. The model that they presented from that study is simple - there are 5 major thresholds on a person’s journey to Christ: first a person must know and trust a Christian; second a person will become open to change; third, a person becomes curious; fourth, a person actively seeks God and fifth, they decide to follow Christ. The precise manner people go through these thresholds is not the entire point of the model. The vantage point of the model is from the person on the journey towards following Christ. This model influences teaching and posture in sharing the gospel with others because it means that it is important to build trust with people, help them become open to change, help spark curiosity and help them actively seek God. Sharing the gospel is not only about helping someone decide to follow Christ; nor is it about only sharing the information of the gospel; it is about helping someone along their journey toward Christ. This model has been important to P2C-Students because it has helped [ Page ] 32 encourage relational evangelism, therefore, contributing to broadening the ministry’s evangelistic methodology. P2C has also sought to move into listening one’s way into spiritual conversations, in some juxtaposition to proclaiming the gospel. Doug Pollock has been an influence in this regard through his book, God Space: Where Spiritual Conversations Happen Naturally (Pollock 2009). The roots of P2C in Canada began with Josh McDowell communicating evidence that demands a verdict (McDowell 1972) at the University of British Columbia in the 1960’s and this was coupled with a simple rendition of the gospel. However, as society has changed, P2C has sought to adapt to these changes with different tactics. However, the tactics culminate in verbal proclamation of the gospel. The Influence of Bill Bright on Power to Change in Relation to Sharing the Gospel with Others In reflecting on the theology and practice of P2C related to personal evangelism, one must consider Bill Bright, the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ. He wrote a book called, Witnessing Without Fear (Bright 1991), that has influenced P2C historically and been a seminal book for training staff and volunteers connected to P2C. The book lays out a foundational argument for sharing one’s faith from a logical argument. This argument is rooted in the idea that it is not “natural” (Bright 1991, 18) to share one’s faith, but flows “out of love and obedience” (Bright 1991, 21) to Jesus Christ. Bill Bright argues from the priority of the gospel in one’s life as well as the power of Good News with statements like this: [ Page ] 33 If our faith in Christ really means as much to us as it should, then it only follows that our faith should be the number one message on our lips. People want to hear good news. And when you present it properly and with love, you will usually see a positive response. (Bright 1991, 46) The priority of the gospel and the idea that people are spiritually interested have remained in the forefront of thinking within P2C and those concepts trace to the roots of P2C - to the founder. The Influence of Apologetics within Power to Change and the Influence This Has with Sharing the Gospel with Others Josh McDowell officially founded P2C Canada in 1967 (p2c.com, “Know Our History”) and developed much of the material that later became well known in books that he published with a focus on the evidence for Christianity. These roots in apologetics ministry on campus have progressed since that time. Until roughly 2012, P2C would distribute thousands of books and booklets to students during orientation weeks. The most prominent of these books, Case for Christ (Strobel 1998) was given out extensively over many years. This strategy was called the Real-Life Kit Strategy and sought to aid students who were suspect of the truth claims of Jesus. For students involved in P2C, this book and related works, formed part of the fabric of their involvement. Additionally, one of the more common events hosted across Canada by P2C, has been debates on God’s existence where a Christian speaker explained reasons to believe in God and follow Jesus and prominent atheist speaker had similar time allotments to explain reasons for not believing in God. These events were well attended. Within the context of P2C, the apologetics emphasis has been to share the gospel by [ Page ] 34 demonstrating the objective truthfulness of Christianity broadly and the gospel specifically. In recent years, P2C has partnered with Ravi Zacharias Ministries to host events on campuses across Canada. Ravi Zacharias writes in relation to the importance of communicating truth: Truth by definition is exclusive. If truth were all-inclusive, nothing would be false. And if nothing were false, what would be the meaning of true? Furthermore, if nothing were false, what would be the meaning of true? It quickly becomes evident that nonsense would follow. (Zacharias 2007, 314) The history of P2C stands on a desire to lovingly declare that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). Apologetics within P2C then has communicated truth and the necessity of truth - telling. This emphasis on truth- telling is present within P2C; however, this raises a question of how this fits with the larger population of students in post-secondary educational environments viewpoints concerning Christianity and Christians sharing the gospel with others. North American Society’s Perception of Christianity as a Hindrance to Sharing the Gospel In 2007, the Barna group conducted research into what North American society and particularly young adults thought of the Christian faith. In that research, they summarized research about how people not within Christianity perceive Christians: ““Outsiders perceptions of Christianity include the unfavorable image [of being] anti-homosexual, judgmental, hypocritical, too involved in politics, out of touch with reality, old-fashioned, insensitive to others, boring, not accepting of other faiths, confusing (Kinnaman and Lyons 2007, 28). [ Page ] 35 More recently, the Barna group conducted further research, focused on the American context and released their findings in a book called Good Faith: Being a Christian when Society thinks you’re Irrelevant and Extreme (Kinnaman and Lyons 2016). Although, this research is focused on the US context, Canadian students are deeply influenced by American media. In their research, they reported that “60 percent of all adults in America and 83 percent of atheists and agnostics believe evangelism - one of the central actions of Christian conviction - is extremist” (Kinnaman and Lyons 2016, 41). Most poignantly, their research indicates that there is an “increasing percentage of younger adults who are skeptical of the Bible” (Kinnaman and Lyons 2016, 52) with the implication that a young person who reads the Bible and seeks to share the gospel with others is “irrelevant and extreme” (Kinnaman and Lyons 2016, 49-64). The Faith of Young Adults in the North American Context and the Implications to Sharing the Gospel with Others There is much social science research into the realm of religious belief amongst university students in North America. This indirectly relates to helps and hindrances in sharing the gospel by Christian students in that it indicates the issues that swirl around following Jesus as a university student in today’s culture. There have been several studies of belief and faith practice amongst student aged population in Canada and America. This research project is focused on the Canadian context; however, the American experience of university students and faith does provide some background and ways to understand students in the [ Page ] 36 Canadian context, because there have been much larger and comprehensive studies done in the American context, and Canadian students are influenced by the American context. Furthermore, the studies in America give language and framework to understanding university Christian experience. In Canada, Hemorrhaging Faith (Penner et al. 2012) looked at the Canadian context of young people who profess a relationship with God. In Canada, a book called Goodbye Generation (Sawler 2009) was released that pulled from a variety of sources within Canadian Christianity, but did not have a comprehensive research accompanying it but stated that youth were leaving the Canadian church. In the United States, the book, Souls in Transition: The Religious and Spiritual Lives of Emerging Adults (Smith and Snell 2009) was an extensive study of the influence and belief of high school and college aged students in the U.S. A precursor to this book, Soul Searching (Smith and Denton 2005) argued that professing teens and young adults lacked an awareness of the message of Christianity and believed something the authors coined, “Therapeutic, Moralistic Deism.” In short, the study concluded that professing Christian young people had a view of God as a therapist who was moralistic and deistic (rather than theistic). The extent of the study is limited to young people in America; however, the research demonstrated that theologically, professing Christians lacked an awareness of the Christian gospel and message. Steve Henderson has conducted significant research projects on the religiosity of college students. He wrote a dissertation, called, The Impact of Student Religion and College Affiliation on Student Religiosity (Henderson 2003). In this dissertation, [ Page ] 37 Henderson conducts a survey of students at both secular and religious post- secondary institutions and the affect that their time at the university or college had on their faith. This research has been used to correlate the negative effect university has on the “religiosity” on Christian university students. Research from Barna, Smith and Snell, Steve Henderson and the Hemorrhaging Faith team, taken together, have influenced my project in the types of issues that have been studied to look at young people’s engagement in their faith. This previous research is primarily focused on the influence of religion on a person or the retention of their faith. These large-scale studies of young people in both Canada and America do not directly connect to helps and hindrances to share the gospel; however, these studies exemplify that there are challenges to believer’s faith that surface in university. There are no known large-scale studies that track factors that help or hinder a Christian student sharing the gospel with others. This project is looking at factors helping or hindering a student sharing the gospel with others - and assumes that those want to share their faith are likely those that engage with their faith. Conversely, it would be assumed that those who disengage from their faith would be less likely to desire to share the gospel with others. This research project will seek to offer more insight into the connections that positively influence and help a Christian student to share the gospel with others. [ Page ] 38 The Peculiarity of the Christian Faith and Its Relationship to Sharing the Gospel with Others As Christians engage in the university and by extension, places of leadership within Canada, there can be great suspicion by the secular media. A Canadian sociologist argues that secularization in Canada has led to “privatization” of religious viewpoints (Bowen 2004, 20). Sociologist, George Yancey has coined the term “Christianophobia” (Yancey 2015) to describe not persecution, but the general distrust towards Christians that is derived from American media - that Canadians watch. Christian students have challenges to their faith, and live in a society that privatizes religious faith. It is within this culture that this study is looking to understand what helps a student to want to share the gospel with others. Amid the increasing negative perception of Christianity, theologian D.A. Carson writes: As soon as we see that the category of ‘truth’ is a non-negotiable element of any religion that is taken seriously, what Christians think of as evangelism and what many in our culture condemn as proselytism take on a rather different flavor. Proselytism is largely despised, partly because one of the residues of postmodernism is a reluctance to tell others they are mistaken (at least in some domains), and partly because religion itself is seen to be a matter of private and highly subjective opinion, and therefore not the sort of thing one should be trying to foist on others. (Carson, D.A. 2012, 122) Within religious pluralism, the Christian truth claims can be perceived to be “arrogant” (Newbigin 1989, 25). This is often connected to a growing reality that Christianity is no longer the “dominant religion” and therefore the message of Christianity is increasingly “implausible” (Newbigin 1989, 25). Timothy Keller [ Page ] 39 addresses the perception that “it is arrogant to insist your religion is right and to covert others to it” (Keller 2008, 11-14). While there are wise responses to this challenge, there is no doubt that this is a broad assumption within society that relates to Christian students sharing the gospel with others. Timothy Keller highlights principles of communicating “faith in an age of skepticism” (Keller 2015). Keller assumes that the cultural norm is skepticism. He writes, “three generations ago, most people inherited rather than chose their religious faith.” (Keller 2015, xv). Today, people individually choose their faith or skepticism, and in Keller’s words, “all doubts, however skeptical and cynical they may seem, are really a set of alternate beliefs” (Keller 2015, xvii). This relates to Christian students sharing the gospel with others because it brings in the element of doubt. How confident does a student have to be of the Christian faith, within a pluralistic environment in order to share the gospel with others? Or put differently, how much confidence in the gospel is required to overcome hindrances to sharing the gospel, within a pluralistic environment? This research project is focused on students in Canada sharing the gospel with others. This assumes a cultural aspect to ministry. Culture is more than simply where a person is from; it involves frameworks for understanding oneself. Sin affects all people, in all culture. In the Western world, sin has typically been discussed in the framework of guilt and innocence; while in non-western culture the paradigm of honour and shame is most dominant. The gospel speaks to honor and shame based cultures and guilt and innocence cultures (Mischke 2015). In P2C, in Canada, our model of ministry is framed in a largely western model and [ Page ] 40 the roots of P2C are found within Christians from the United States The traditional explanation of the gospel within P2C has primarily spoken to the guilt paradigm of the gospel; namely, that people are sinful and separated and only through God’s provision of His Son can a person begin a relationship with God. This is true; but it misses the explanation of the gospel from the vantage point of honor and shame. The prodigal son left his Father and asked for his inheritance while his Father was still alive (Luke 15:12); but stayed away in shame and ate with the pigs (Luke 15:15-16). He had dishonored his Father by leaving and in grace his Father welcomed him back and honored him even in his shame (Luke 15:21-24). This is a gospel presentation that relates to honor and shame; not primarily guilt and innocence. Traditionally, missionaries are sent across cultures and asked to decode a culture and contextualize the gospel to another culture. However, in today’s culture in Canada, Christianity is not part of the majority culture and “the church in the West is not well positioned to assume this posture of a missionary encounter. First, the church does not have a critical distance on its own culture. The church is a fish that takes its cultural water for granted.” (Goheen, 299). Lesslie Newbigin has written extensively about the missionary encounter necessary in modern western culture. He writes about evangelism in the Book of Acts and parallels that to modern day evangelism in secular society where given secular assumptions the Bible is only a “very minor strand in the human story” (Chilcote and Laceye 2008, 49). James K.A. Smith in following the writings of philosopher Charles Taylor, writes that in our secular world, there is a “doubting [ Page ] 41 of transcendence” (Smith 2014, 10). The prescription for evangelism in this context by both Smith and Newbigin is to see sharing the gospel connected to listening (Smith 2014, 120) and dialogue (Chilcote and Laceye 2008, 49). These books articulate that the effects of secularization affect the contextualization of the gospel. Newbigin writes: The ‘secular’ society is not a neutral area into which we can project the Christian message. It is an area already occupied by other gods. (Chilcote and Laceye 2008, 48). As such, sharing the gospel in a secularized environment has challenges. Research Connected to Effective Ministries to Young Adults in Relation to Social Fear The Fuller Youth Institute recently released a large-scale study of young people and church health that summarized a large-scale literature review of ministry to young adults, interviews with leaders within ministry to young adults and then interviewed and reviewed over 10,000 hours of interviews of 474 young people and 799 adults (Powell, Mulder and Griffin 2016, 31 - 32). Their findings about commonalities among ministries that are growing among young people anchored their research (Powell, Mulder and Griffin 2016, 42-43). One of their core discoveries was the need for “empathy,” specifically related to what does it mean to be “human” (Powell, Mulder and Griffin 2016, 95). The three questions young adults ask that they saw rise out of their research were, “Who am I? Where do I fit? And What difference do I make?” (Powell, Mulder and Griffin 2016, 95). Zeroing in on the question of “Where do I fit” speaks to a sense of belonging. Sharing the gospel involves inviting another person to belong to the Christian [ Page ] 42 community but also involves a sense of jeopardizing a sense of belonging with another person if there is social push-back. In 2016 Lifeway conducted a research project amongst US young people where they published results that indicated that 71% of unchurched young people don’t mind talking about faith with a friend who valued their faith (Lifeway.com “Research: Unchurched will talk about faith, not interested in going to church” 2017). Again, this is American research, but it is positive and portrays that while non-committal to attending church, unchurched North American young people are willing to talk about faith with friends that care about their faith. This is hopeful and presents a positive picture that unchurched young people are open to faith conversations. There is no known Canadian study at present that considers the same type of question of willingness of unchurched people to engage in spiritual conversation with their friends. However, coupling this with the Fuller research suggests that young adults are willing to discuss spiritual matters, but if one is attempting to persuade another change their community of belonging it will be more challenging. Gospel-Centered Thinking and Missional Ministry for Propelling Sharing the Gospel with Others There has been an abundance of literature related to gospel centered- living that has been published. These often root sharing the gospel with others from a community to another community, in contrast to a more individualized approach. This genre of literature has helped to draw the attention of believers to [ Page ] 43 share the gospel in contemporary society. For example, Brad House writes, “To move from passivity to activity for the gospel, we need to repent of our apathy, commit to the missional work of the gospel, and learn how to engage” (House 2011, 128). He teaches one to “identify barriers to the gospel [in others] and build bridges to overcome these barriers” (House 2011, 28). This is a minor variation on classical proclaimational evangelism which focuses primarly on declaring the truthfulness of the gospel. Other authors focus on helping people internalize the gospel personally first and then apply that to all forms of ministry, including sharing the gospel with others: The gospel is God’s good news about Jesus Christ. He is the central message of the gospel, and it is by hearing about what he has done (the gospel) and turning from our sinful rebellion (repentance) to trust in his work on our behalf (faith) that we are saved and can finally begin to understand the purpose of our lives. Because the gospel fundamentally changes our self-understanding and our perspective on life”, it is the appropriate place to start when coaching others. (Thomas and Wood 2012, 50-51) Thom Rainier and Eric Greiger emphasize moving from a program oriented evangelism approach to simple models of evangelism in Simple Church (Rainier and Greiger 2011). Jeff Vanderstelt shares the story of evangelism that flows out of missional communities that are deepening in their own understanding of the gospel in Saturate (Vanderstelt 2015). These concepts are influential and help create networks of followers of Jesus influenced to approach sharing the gospel from a perspective of a community on mission. [ Page ] 44 Theologically, Christopher Wright has shown God’s mission from the whole of Scripture (Wright 2010). Well regarded author in relation to evangelism, Robert Coleman grounds evangelism in the Mission of God: It is the vision of reaching the world with God’s saving revelation that drives evangelism and evangelical theology. The Commission comes from him who has all authority, and therefore with the assurance that, however long it takes, God will accomplish his purpose. (Coleman 2011, 11) These authors help a believer understand that evangelism is joining God in His mission rather than doing a mission for God. Traditionally, P2C has not used the language of “missional;” however, the concepts contained within the literature of missional ministry overlaps conceptually with the traditional model of ministry espoused in trainings about evangelism in P2C. At the same time, not all of P2C training is missional - as the primary thrust of training in P2C is not about incarnational teamwork ministry, but has focused on personal verbal communication of the gospel evangelism. Missional living often stresses community; this can be present in P2C, but has not been the driving force in methodology of evangelism. At the core, P2C seeks to equip individuals in the ability to personally share the gospel with others. P2C may borrow concepts from the missional community, but at the core traditionally what is measured within P2C is individual activity in gospel proclamation. There is overlap as students involved in P2C may attend a church that has missional as a value in their framework for ministry. While P2C may partner with churches and other organizations in activities that serve the community, the core of P2C [ Page ] 45 remains gospel verbal proclamation. As such, for the purposes of this project, while aspects of serving and caring for the poor and marginalized are important aspects of gospel ministry, in this project, the focus will be on the verbal proclamation of the gospel. In literally hundreds of thousands of surveys conducted over the last 6 years, P2C surveys university students about their beliefs and then states, “Power to Change specializes in helping students discover Jesus. How interested are you in meeting to chat about having a personal relationship with Jesus?” P2C has found that roughly 25% of students answer that question positively. This is the ethos and primary calling of P2C and it influences this project. While P2C partners extensively from coast to coast with a variety of churches and organizations, the focus of P2C - the specialty that P2C brings forward is verbal proclamation of the gospel. [ Page ] 46 CHAPTER IV: METHODOLOGY AND PROJECT The research question, “What helps or hinders students sharing the gospel with others?” was approached with an action research heuristic and process. The project focused on students over 19 years of age who were connected to Power to Change (P2C). The project had three distinct phases. Phase 1 went to the population to discover themes related to helps and hindrances. Phase 2 combined literature review with the themes in phase 1 and created and distributed a survey to the population in order to better understand what helps and hinders students in the population sharing the gospel with others. Phase 3 studied the results of Phases 1 and 2 and combined with the needs of the ministry, developed a small group resource that sought to meaningfully help students share the gospel with others. This group application was done in a small-scale setting and then the participants were interviewed two weeks later to seek to understand how the small group resource helped or hindered them sharing the gospel with others. [ Page ] 47 The Action Research Methodology Applied to This Project Action Research was chosen as the research methodology, to understand more clearly what helps and what hinders Christian students sharing the gospel with others. The desire to understand this question was so that the researcher could positively influence one of the factors that would be drawn out of the research. Specifically, the “’look, think, act’ routine” (Stringer 1999, 18) method of action research was employed through the Research Project. Additionally, the project used an overall action research heuristic of looking within the population, then thinking, followed by acting based on the information from the previous two steps. An action research heuristic, has been described as “constructing, planning action, taking action and then evaluating action” (Coughlan and Brannick 2014, 9). It is an approach of “research in action” (Coughlan and Brannick 2014, 6) where there is an approach to “problem solving” (Coughlan and Brannick 2014, 6) practical issues. The research question of what helps or hinders students sharing the gospel was approached to understand and then act upon learnings in order to positively contribute to helping students sharing the gospel. In addition to the actual data drawn that came out of the research, the process of learning by using action research was part of the learning outcome. This action research project took place within the organization, P2C - Students, in which I serve in a national leadership capacity. This research was done from a first-person point of view, from the context of my role in the organization, with the overall approval of my supervisor. However, my role in the [ Page ] 48 organization does not include managerial oversight into the part of the population that I researched. This did not make me as a researcher a “detached observer” (Coughlan and Brannick 2014, 8), but it limited the scope of the project because I had no formal authority over those participating in the research project. This cycle of look, think, act was completed overall once, while the overall heuristic was embedded throughout the phases. This method starts with look. Rather than assuming the population’s insights the researcher went to the population to interview and look at what helped or hindered a small portion of the population. This was followed by thinking about the themes derived from those in interviews to then look further into the population by surveying the population. The results of the interviews and the surveys then provided information to allow the researcher to choose how they would apply this to meaningfully help students students discover Jesus. In this case, the researcher thought and consulted with colleagues and considered the needs of the ministry before choosing a step of action and intervention to meaningfully influence one of the factors. The action research process involved significant reflection throughout the entire process. This “reflection that incorporates the learning process of the action research cycle, and enables action research to be more than everyday problem- solving. It is learning about learning” (Coughlan and Brannick 2014, 13). There was reflection about the content - the themes and data collected. There was reflection about the process - the strategies and implementation methods for gathering and coding data. There was premise reflection probing into assumptions that the research related to. This process of reflection (Coughlan and Brannick [ Page ] 49 2014, 13) was interwoven throughout the process as the entire project from beginning to end took over nine months to complete. Overview of the Project The three phases built upon each other and employed action research throughout the process. In phase one, the researcher went to a sample of the population, at one university, and interviewed twenty individuals, connected to P2C with two questions: First, “What helps you share the gospel with others? Second, “What hinders you sharing the gospel with others?” The results were recorded and then coded (see chapter 5) by theme mentioned by the interviewee. (See Interview Protocol, Phase 1, Appendix 2.) In the second phase, the researcher designed a survey (see Survey Items, Appendix 4) to take to the population to better understand the research question. The total population of involved students is roughly 2500 students. However, many of these students are under 19. As a result, there are likely somewhere between 1000-1800 students within the population. The researcher did literature review in the realm of university ministry, retention of faith, but most particularly in sharing the gospel with others. The researcher thought through the themes that emerged from the interviews. With the backdrop of literature review, each theme that emerged in the interview coding was turned into a question to better understand the theme. In short, the themes from phase 1 drove the content of the question while literature review supported the process and influenced the way questions were asked. The questions came directly from each theme that emerged. [ Page ] 50 The most prominent themes were turned into multiple questions. Once this survey was designed it was taken to the population. The survey was left open online until the response rate dropped to zero per day. The survey was answered by 89 students within the population. The third phase focused on the act step of Action research. Specifically, the action was based on thinking about the results from phase one and two and was aimed at meaningfully helping one or more factors that had emerged from the research into what helps or hinders a senior student share the gospel with others. In this phase, the researcher evaluated options that also met the current needs of the ministry of P2C within their leadership responsibilities and made an action based on the learnings from phase one and two. The researcher determined to infuse a small group lesson development with some of the learnings from phase one and two (See Appendix 6, Small Group Lesson on Taking the Initiative to Share the gospel). The researcher then led a small group with nine students within it on a lesson that incorporated learnings from phase one and two. Two weeks after leading this, the researcher met back with individuals within that study willing to be interviewed and interviewed them evaluating if the study helped or hindered them in sharing the gospel with others (see Appendix 7, Small Group Participants Interview Protocol, Phase 3). The Population The population in this research project was post-secondary Christian students connected to P2C who are over the age of 19. In the survey portion of the [ Page ] 51 project, there was reference taken to year in school and gender. Beyond that aspect of the project, there was no additional exploration of demographic research done. Data Types Table 2 details the types of data obtained from the research participants during the course of this project and which are presented and analyzed in chapter 5. Appendixes 8 (Phase 1, Interview Helps Coding) and 9 (Phase 1, Interview Hindrances Coding) include the raw data and the coding categories. Table 2. Data Types in this Research Project [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Table 2 details ] A Review of the Project by Phase After this brief overview, details of the action steps and methods used in each phase will be outlined. Phase One The researcher went to the population by convenience sample. The research did this by consulting with a P2C staff that works on universities in [ Page ] 52 South Western Ontario. This led to the researcher attending a prayer meeting at 7:00 am at University of Guelph on March 10, 2016. After the prayer meeting, the staff member introduced the researcher to the group and explained the general idea of the interview. The researcher formed a schedule and asked the students if they knew others that could be interviewed. Thus, the researcher set up to interview in a private area near the office that P2C students occupied. The researcher also went to the Christian club’s office and explained the research project and invited people in the population to be interviewed. Through the day of appointments and others that stopped by the researcher formally interviewed 20 students within the population of Christian students connected to P2C. The interviewees then were largely out of a group within the population that attended the morning prayer meeting or were sitting at the Christian club’s office during the day. Each student interviewed had to sign an interview release and had to be over 19 years of age. The interview was audio recorded and there was no time limit to the interview. However, there were only two questions asked, so the interviewed varied in length from two minutes to almost fifteen minutes depending on how much each student interviewed shared. For the most part, the interviewees had no trouble talking at length about the two questions asked. Following the completion of interviews, the researcher then began to listen to each one from the audio recording. The researcher started with no categories or codes. As the researcher listened, whenever a help or hindrance was stated by the interviewee the researcher coded that as a new category. If it was a repeated [ Page ] 53 category, then the researcher coded with the code that represented the statement (see appendix for full list of codes). In chapter 5 the overall breakdown of the coding will be presented. Although the interviews followed the format of first asking about helps and then hindrances, during the coding phase, there were hindrances mentioned in answer to the helps question and helps mentioned in answer to the hindrances question. These were not the rule, but these did occur and the researcher simply recorded helps and hindrances as the interviews were coded. Phase Two The survey was designed after significant reading in literature review helped inform the researcher of issues that are possibly related to the research question; however, the survey was primarily drawn from the interview themes that emerged from going to a convenience sample of the population. The survey was designed using a Likert’s scale for all questions with a five-item scale. This survey was designed to represent the respondent’s views of themes that influenced them (Harris 2014). As a result, a middle option that is neutral was presented in every question allowing an option for a person to say that they are neutral or they neither agree nor disagree with the statement. A neutral response was taken to mean that the factor presented in the question had neither a positive (help) or negative (hindrance) effect in their life. Each question had a space for comments if the respondent wanted to add to their response if they chose. [ Page ] 54 The survey also collected some demographic information, but overall this was not a major intended research realm of the survey. The intention was to study the population more generally on major themes related to helps and hindrances in sharing the gospel with other. Future research could pick up the themes and relate them to geographic themes or whether the student has moved away for post- secondary education and so on. For the purposes of this survey, the acknowledgement was that respondents were 19 years old. The two demographic data questions that were asked were: “My year in post-secondary education is” with options from first to fifth year and beyond. Additionally, there was an option of “other” that a respondent could answer. This provided a place for people to answer who did not feel represented by the previous options. As post-secondary education has many ways of explaining program times across Canada, this term other was intended to provide a place for people who did not perceive the more classic boxes applied to their year in post-secondary school. The second demographic data point that was related to gender. There were three options presented: Male, Female and Other. The intention of this question was to be inclusive and provide people an opportunity to write in the other option with their answer. The survey had 17 questions related to the interview themes and the two demographic questions. All the questions were optional, allowing the option for a respondent to not answer the question (see appendix 1 for the full list of questions). [ Page ] 55 The survey was put in front of the population to be answered voluntarily. This took places through several avenues. First, it was put on the National Power to Change-Students Facebook page. Secondly, the Power to Change-Students national Facebook coordinator put the survey into several local P2C student’s groups across Canada and invited students over the age of 19 to participate. The researcher personally emailed students that he knew over the age of 19 involved in P2C and invited them to participate. The researcher also private messaged many different leaders across Canada connected to P2C, over the age of 19 and invited them to participate. The survey went live on May 18, 2016 and closed July 20, 2016. It was open for just over 2 months and there were 89 responses. From June 27, 2016 until July 20, 2016 there were only 4 responses. P2C has tracked and reported roughly 2500 involved students across Canada. It is likely that there are between 500-1000 students involved in P2C that are under 19. This assumes a reference point that 800-900 students involved in P2C are first years, who would likely all be 19 or under. If one were to assume the lower number of 500, the survey was answered by 89 out of 2000 students in the population (4.45%). If one were to assume the higher number of 1000, the survey was answered by 89 out of 1500 students in the population (5.93%). Phase Three After reviewing the survey results combined with the literature review and first round of interviews there were many choices on the way forward. In short, there were a lot of options that could yield help towards a student sharing the [ Page ] 56 gospel by either building on a concept that helped or aiding in minimizing a hindrance. However, the decision that the researcher arrived at for phase 3 was not arbitrary. The researcher reviewed the findings with a small team of staff that create materials for P2C Students. The researcher presented the research data in raw form to this team and this team interacted and clarified and discussed. This group then reviewed the current needs of the ministry and work on small group resources that related to the research findings. At the time, the small group team was creating a small group workbook designed to help a student begin to share the gospel with others. The small group team agreed to incorporate the theme of social fear in the construction of a small group lesson called “Initiative.” The lesson on Initiative was a learning outcome that predated the research, but did not have handles on it other than the outcome of the lesson is to help a student begin to take the initiative in sharing the gospel with others. Following the discussion of the research findings, the lesson was designed with the original aims, but added space for discussion about fears and hindrances, providing openness to discuss social fear. Additionally, the lesson focused on positively focusing on ways that help one to take the initiative in sharing the gospel with others. This lesson was already in the planning stage and the review of findings to this point led the small group resource team to want to include interaction about social fear within the lesson. The lesson had had the aim of simply teaching the value of initiative as it relates to sharing the gospel. This review led to the inclusion of material related to social fear in the lesson. This lesson was modified to have the main takeaway designed as “The Christian life is most fully realized when faith and action meet.” [ Page ] 57 A beta version of a small group lesson was put into a form that could be used in a small group environment for field testing and the researcher decided to use this as the act phase of the overall Action Research Project, seeking to understand if this type of lesson with learnings incorporated would meaningfully help a student share the gospel with others. The researcher contacted a local staff member with P2C and asked to lead a small group that had people that were at this point were beginning to learn about sharing the gospel, but not currently involved in sharing the gospel with others. The staff member offered the researcher to lead this study and communicate the lesson on “initiative” to them with the aim that it would help them to share the gospel with others. This group were all at least in second year of university and had been involved in P2C for most of the semester, but the assessment of the staff member indicated that they had not shared the gospel with others. Nine students were present for the study on November 3, 2016, although two had to leave early due to academic requirements that needed their attention. The researcher walked through the lesson on initiative. A week later, the researcher contacted them all to find out who would be able to be interviewed regarding the lesson. Five students agreed to be interviewed and they were interviewed on November 17, 2016. The other four either indicated they were too busy to do an interview or did not respond to the researcher contacting them each three times. These interviews were recorded. After the interviews, the researcher coded the responses for thematic answers to the questions related to the effect the study had on the participants, specifically in helping or hindering them sharing the gospel with others. The [ Page ] 58 coding in this case was much more small scale, given the small number of interviews and general short length of the interviews. In this case, the researcher listened to the interviews and pulled out statements of the interviewees. No two answers were understood by the researcher to have the same code, so the results were simply arranged with the single codes generated by the interviews. Ethical Considerations This research project had minimal anticipated risks. The interviews were done by convenience sampling with students who were at least 19 years old. The age nineteen was chosen because this age of students minimizes the risk of the project because they are adults. These students signed a consent form to participate (see Release Forms, Appendixes 1, 3, and 5). The interviews are recorded and will be stored until the completion of the project after the graduation of the researcher from the Doctor of Ministry program at Tyndale University College and Seminary. The researcher conducted all interviews. These interviews are confidential and the usage of the data from the interviews was anonymous. The interviews had no more risk than regular life. The survey was an online, anonymous survey completed at the convenience of the participant. It was clear that the survey is part of a research project and that any responses are voluntary, confidential and anonymous. My relationship as researcher to the participants in the interviews and surveys and in the small group intervention is that I work with P2C. I had a dual role as researcher, while having employment with P2C. My role within P2C gives [ Page ] 59 me no direct oversight over campus ministries. In both the interview and the survey, participation was voluntary and there was no incentive to participate. This research project had minimal risk in terms of conflict of interest. This research project has minimal risk and minimal interaction with people in person beyond the interviews. This project was approved by the Tyndale research ethics board in February 2016. [ Page ] 60 CHAPTER V: ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS This research project sought to understand what helps and hinders students connected to Power to Change (P2C) share the gospel with others. From an understanding of themes of helps or hindrances from the population, this research project sought to meaningfully address a theme to meaningfully help students share the gospel with others. Phase 1: Coding Terminology and Analysis In phase one, the researcher asked students what helped them share the gospel with others and what hindered them in sharing the gospel with others. The coded answers to these two questions were grouped into two categories: helps and hindrances (see Table 3). In total, there were 54 instances of a help coded into 7 thematic codes from the conversations and 72 hindrances coded into 6 thematic codes. “Atmosphere attributions” was coded for the broad realm of atmosphere attributions that contributed to their perception of positive interactions in sharing the gospel with others. These were a broad range of factors attributed to the atmosphere that helped positively towards sharing the gospel with others. World events tie-in, general environment of the university, and ideas related to the [ Page ] 61 Table 3. Phase 1 Coded Themes from Interviews [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Table 3 details ] spiritual openness of their context. This was a broad category and related to things external to the person and had examples such as their perception of the openness of the campus (not focused on just an individual) to the gospel and things that might trigger a spiritual conversation. In short, the atmosphere attributions are things in the spiritual environment that the person, from their perspective, believes helps them to share the gospel with others. “Experience of the gospel” was applied to the range of answers that indicated that what helps share the gospel with others is a personal experience of the gospel. This code was applied when statements or flow of thought related to the personal knowing of God such that the respondent wants to share the gospel and knowledge of God with others. It also was applied to the statements where the respondent identified that their experience of the gospel was relatable to others. In [ Page ] 62 short, their own struggle and experience of the gospel not only propelled them to want to share but was what they shared. “Mentor” was used to code discussion related to a positive example and person who modeled and encouraged them to share the gospel with others. This was the direct term that an interviewee used to describe a help to sharing the gospel with others. “Biblical knowledge” was coded for the broad array of answers that pulled out a biblical truth and applied it to the question, “What helps you share the gospel with others?” Responses given attributed a direct biblical truth inspiring them to share the gospel with others. Sometimes the specific Biblical truth was elaborated on, but the code was applied generally. “Spirit Led” was coded for the answers that included the term “Holy Spirit.” The respondents who stated this all explained that the Holy Spirit is the help and encouragement to share the gospel with others. In other words, the Holy Spirit helps them to share the gospel with others. This was coded when respondents stated that they were prompted by the Spirit to share the gospel with a specific person. “Training” was coded for attribution towards being trained for sharing the gospel with others in some manner of organized fashion. “Prayer” was coded for statements identifying prayer as a catalyst for encouraging sharing the gospel with others. Figure 1 demonstrates that a student most attributed a help to their perception of the atmosphere that they find themselves in. In other words, the help [ Page ] 63 with the greatest number of mentions was external to the student. Secondly, the students attributed help in their own experience of the gospel and their own Biblical knowledge, specifically related to reasons to share the gospel. Following that training was mentioned by just over one quarter of interviewees. Prayer, mentor and Spirit led were mentioned as themes, but not in a manner widely common to most interviews. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 1 details ] Figure 1. Interview Results: What helps you share the gospel with others? The second question in the interview, “What hinders you sharing the gospel with others?” generally had longer answers than the first, “What helps you share the gospel with others?” Two researchers in the field of feedback have [ Page ] 64 explained that, in general, there is a tendency of people to “wrongspot” more readily than to give positive feedback (Stone and Heen 2014, 46). Whether that was at play in these interviews, interviewees discussed hindrances with more elaboration, examples and sheer volume of time than they could discuss helps to sharing the gospel with others. It may be easier to discern hindrances because of the difficulty related to sharing the gospel with others rather than helps. The following codes were the thematic codes that came out of the answer to the question, “What hinders you sharing the gospel with others?” “Social fear” was coded for statements identifying fears tied to the social realm. These include “not being accepted” or conversely “being rejected” as well as “fear of the loss of relationship” or “feeling judged.” For many respondents, there was a blend of not being accepted and fear of rejection in one statement. This category code could be further broken down, specifically into the positive and negative aspects of the category. However, the general idea in all responses in this area is one of fear in the social arena of life - whether fear of social exclusion or an absence of social inclusion, so as a result the code was kept simply as social fear. “Personality” was coded for statements identifying the respondent’s personality as a hindrance. In short, their understanding of their personality was self-identified as a hindrance to sharing the gospel with others. Specifically, this was identified as “not being extroverted.” “Internal belief” was coded for statements from the respondents that explained that there were internal narratives that the respondent told themselves [ Page ] 65 that hindered their sharing the gospel with others. Some respondents used language of “internal” ideas or beliefs that hold them back from sharing the gospel with others. “Expectations” was coded for the concept that expectations to share the gospel were a hindrance. In short, a range of sentences by respondents stated that the expectation to share was a hindrance to sharing the gospel with others. These statements were also grouped by phrases that attributed that expectation with a feeling of pressure to share the gospel with others. In the interviews, when respondents discussed expectations to share the gospel, they discussed this primarily as a hindrance, not a help. As such, it seems fair to investigate the feeling of pressure to share the gospel within the survey. “Atmosphere Attributions” was coded for statements that related the hindrance to share the gospel with the general spiritual atmosphere. Phrases that related to this were “apathy of others” and “disinterest” of other people. Simply put, the hindrance to sharing the gospel in this code was that the respondent stated the other people were disinterested in discussing spiritual matters or the gospel. “Lack of Biblical knowledge” was coded for statements that relate to a perceived inability to answer questions or an inability to know the Biblical answer to questions. In Figure 2, the data from the interviews with twenty students indicates that “social fear” is a prominent theme that emerged and was coded 48 times. The coded interview results provided many themes to more fully understand and a survey was devised from these themes. In phase two, additional questions in the [ Page ] 66 survey were asked to attempt to understand more about the strength of this theme of social fear. The interviews indicated that social fear has two sides: fear of rejection and fear of lack of approval. The survey applied this understanding by using the Likert scale and asking 3 questions related to this theme to seek to understand further the fear of rejection and the fear of lack of approval. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 2 details ] Figure 2. Interview Results: What hinders you from sharing the gospel with others? Personality was not highlighted significantly in the interviews, although it was present in a few interviews. However, there has often been discussion within [ Page ] 67 P2C about the role and value of different types of personality in sharing the gospel, so I decided as the researcher to formulate one question related to their own self perception of their social skills related to sharing the gospel with others, which picked up on the theme from the interviews. The role of experience of the gospel was the help mentioned most frequently after atmosphere attributions. Therefore, its inclusion in the survey is an obvious choice. The emphasis of the questions focus on personal experience of the gospel in one’s life. Biblical Knowledge was both a help and hindrance. Two questions were used to gather the influence of a respondent's perception of their biblical knowledge related to sharing the gospel with others. “Expectations” was highlighted in the interviews once as a help and in a significant manner as a hindrance. Two questions sought to gather more information about this theme. The first question in this realm sought to ascertain whether people believe all followers of Christ are commanded to share the gospel with others. In other words, this question was designed to understand if respondents believe they are expected to share the gospel. The second question followed the line of responses from the interviews and was designed to understand the role of “pressure” and “expectation” to share the gospel. “Internal beliefs” was a literal term used by people in the interviews to explain their own hindrance to share the gospel. In some instances, within the interviews, interviewees were self-aware of those reasons but other times they simply said that they could just think of reasons why they shouldn’t share the [ Page ] 68 gospel with others and thus they were hindered. As such, the survey asked one question to seek to understand how much internal thinking affects people in their view of sharing the gospel with others. In one sense, this sounds like a catch all category, but the concept that is being explored relates to the internal dialogue a person has with themselves about sharing the gospel with others. Training is a big part of P2C and was mentioned in the interviews. As such, one question will be asked to seek to gauge if a person believes they are adequately able to share the gospel with others. People environment groups the interviews that included ideas about a mentor with the different interviews where people discussed the role of others to encourage or discourage their level of interest in sharing the gospel with others. In short, people environment referred to the people around them either helping or hindering them in sharing the gospel with others. Two questions were asked to seek to understand the influence of this factor in respondents lives. First a question about positive people examples of sharing the gospel and secondly the prevalence of negative people influences towards sharing the gospel with others. Finally, the role of the Holy Spirit was mentioned in a variety of interviews and teaching on the Holy Spirit is a significant historic aspect to P2C. Thus, one question was asked related to a respondent's personal sense of the Holy Spirit’s leading in sharing the gospel with others. Likert’s scale was used for all questions with a 5-item scale. This survey is seeking to represent the respondent’s views of the factors that influence them. Thus, a middle option that is neutral was presented in every question allowing an [ Page ] 69 option for a person to say that they are neutral or they neither agree or disagree with the statement. Thus, a neutral response indicated that the factor in the question is neither positive or negative in their life. The survey is then able to be seen with the third choice of neutral representing zero and strongly disagree and disagree as negative and agree and strongly agree as positive. In each question, there was space for comments that is optional so that a respondent can add to their response if they choose. Phase 2: Survey Results and Analysis In phase 2 the survey was distributed to the population and 89 students filled in the survey. Each question was not mandatory, so there are some questions that only had 85 responses. Each question provision for a comment. In general, there were few comments and in this analysis, comments that seemed pertinent or shed further light on the question are included. All the survey questions used the same scale: 1 = strongly disagree, 2 = disagree, 3 = neither agree nor disagree, 4 = agree, 5 = strongly agree. Figure 3 for the item, “I desire to share the gospel with others,” indicates that 69/86 (80%) of respondents (to this question) agreed or strongly agreed that they desired to share the gospel with others. Only 3/86 (3%) strongly disagreed or disagreed with this statement, and the remaining 16/86 (16%) were neutral to the statement. [ Page ] 70 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 3 details ] Figure 3. Survey Results: I desire to share the gospel with others The results of the item, “I am growing in my personal understanding of the gospel in my own life,” as shown in Figure 4, indicates that 67/85 (91%) self- [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 4 details ] Figure 4. Survey Results: I am growing in my personal understanding of the gospel in my own life. [ Page ] 71 identify that they agree or strongly agree with the statement that they are growing in their personal understanding of the gospel. Only 1/85 (1%) disagree with the statement with the remaining respondents 7/85 (8%) neither agreeing or disagreeing. Put positively, with some inference, all but 1/85 people perceive themselves to be either holding steady or growing in their personal understanding of the gospel. The survey item, “I have a growing personal relationship with Jesus,” in picks up on the same theme that emerged as a help in the interviews, that of growing in one’s relationship with Jesus. Respondents self-identified that they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement 67/85 (79%) with only 1/85 (1%) disagreeing and the remaining neither agreeing or disagreeing 17/85 (20%) (see Figure 5). [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 5 details ] Figure 5. Survey Results: I have a growing personal relationship with Jesus. [ Page ] 72 The item, “I believe the Bible teaches that Jesus is the only way to God.” picked up on themes that emerged in both interviews and literature reviews. It relates to Biblical knowledge and the exclusivity of the Christian message. This question was answered by 85 people. 77/85 (91%) strongly agreed with the [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 6 details ] Figure 6. Survey Results: I believe the Bible teaches that Jesus is the only way to God. The next three questions attempted to mine more understanding of the strength of social fear as that theme emerged in the interviews. The item in Figure 7, “I am concerned that sharing the gospel will negatively affect my relationships,” hinged on the words “concern” and “negatively affect” which is the most mild of the three questions focused on social fear by design of the survey. Respondents chose that they neither agreed or [ Page ] 73 disagreed with this question most frequently 25/86 responses (29%) while 26/86 (30%) either agreed or strongly agreed and 35/86 (41%) either disagreed or strongly disagreed with this statement. In short it was relatively split, but slightly more respondents disagreed with this statement than agreed that sharing the gospel with others will negatively affect their relationships. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 7 details ] Figure 7. Survey Results: I am concerned that sharing the gospel will negatively affect my relationships. The next question about social fear hinged on the word “rejection” as it relates to sharing the gospel with others. By design this was intended to be a stronger hinge than “concern” and “negatively affect.” Respondents to this question answered that they agreed or strongly agreed 35/87 (40%) with this statement of fear of rejection more than they answered that they disagreed or strongly disagreed 25/87 (29%) with this statement (see Figure 8). [ Page ] 74 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 8 details ] Figure 8. Survey Results: I fear rejection if I share the gospel with others. While a different question, it is virtually a flip of the previous question on social fear. A possible interpretation is that overall, looking at the bigger picture of results, respondents fear rejection if they share the gospel slightly more than they are concerned that sharing the gospel will negatively affect their relationships. One of the implications of this fear can be seen in a comment to this question, “It's something rooted inside of me, as much as I despise it.” Feeling fear of rejection while wanting to share the gospel can potentially seem shameful. These survey results indicate that people who feel fearful are not alone: there are many people who want to share the gospel but do feel fearful of rejection. One student commented, “Maybe not total rejection, but they will treat me differently and exclude me from things because I'm 'too good'. They can't be open and honest because they fear judgement.” Another wrote, “I have a bigger fear of bothering [ Page ] 75 people and the non-verbal language coming from them.” Another student wrote, “Rejection wouldn't be my primary barrier but it plays a small factor.” Fear of rejection exists amongst students who desire to share the gospel with others. It is east to say “it is not that big of a deal” or “if you fear God, you won’t fear rejection.” However, as I look at these results, I am struck by the simple reality that there is present in the population I researched, a fear of rejection in their desire to share the gospel with others. These results, have led me towards empathizing with Christian students who desire to share the gospel others. There are many root reasons for that fear, but before diagnosing solutions this reality of the fear of rejection had to hit the heart of this researcher. The final item on social fear (see Figure 9) focused more on the concept of friendship and the possible loss of friendship that sharing the gospel could potentially cause. This question was drawn out of interview themes where interviewees shared about their fear of rejection or lack of approval related to [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 9 details ] Figure 9. I am concerned that sharing the gospel will jeopardize friendships. [ Page ] 76 their friends if they shared the gospel. In this question, respondents disagreed or strongly disagreed 35/89 (39%) slightly more than they agreed or strongly agreed 28/89 (31%) that sharing the gospel will jeopardize friendships. In all three social fear questions, roughly 30% of respondents indicated that they neither agreed or disagreed. In short, roughly one third of respondents agreed with the statements related to social fear, one third neither agreed or disagreed and roughly one third disagreed. There is a small range of plus or minus, but roughly one third were in each category, with the strongest agreement being for the statement related to fearing rejection and the strongest disagreement relating to the statement, “I am concerned that sharing the gospel will jeopardize friendships.” In the context of P2C historic strategies for sharing the gospel, there is a manner where one can share the gospel without a basis of established friendship within P2C - where people approach other students to share the gospel. One survey commenter called this sharing with “random people.” Overall, the survey results related to social fear indicates to me that about 1/3 of people self-identify a strong of fear rejection and fear a lack of acceptance in sharing the gospel with others. This may draw them to share with people that they don’t know or not to share the gospel. One survey comment stated, “With some of my more opinionated friends, I fear sharing the gospel will make them feel like a "project." Another commented, “Strong friendships, they will understand, but still scared.” On the other hand, some comments indicated that the fear is universal beyond the level of friendship. For example, one comment on the survey stated, “I don’t fear rejection so much as being attacked or immediately shut down by the other person.” [ Page ] 77 The next item, “I think that my personality helps me share the gospel with others,” picked up on the theme about personality traits and sharing the gospel. The design of this question did not drill into detail enough to be helpful, beyond a general insight. The interviews picked up a theme about outgoing natures facilitating sharing the gospel. This question didn’t suggest what aspects of personality; it was just general. If this survey was to be conducted again, it would be wise to modify this question. The respondents indicate that 39/88 (44%) agree or strongly agree that their personality helps them share the gospel, while 32/88 (36%) disagree or strongly disagree that their personality helps them share the gospel with others. The remaining 17/88 (19%) neither agreed or disagreed. (See Figure 10.) [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 10 details ] Figure 10. Survey Results: I think that my personality helps me share the gospel with others. [ Page ] 78 Slightly more people responding to this survey believed that their personality helped than hindered in sharing the gospel with others. One student commented, “I enjoy socializing, I would like to think that I am able to speak confidently and connect and empathize with people. It's only in initiating the conversation that I have trouble.” The item, “I think that my social skills hinder my ability to share the gospel with others,” is anchored to the theme of social skills. This question was worded in the negative, meaning an agreeing or strongly agreeing answer indicates that the respondent thinks their social skills hinder their ability to share the gospel. As displayed in Figure 11, 28/88 (36%) of respondents indicated that their perception of their social skills are a hindrance in sharing the gospel with [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 11 details ] Figure 11. Survey Results: I think that my social skills hinder my ability to share the gospel with others. [ Page ] 79 others. 44/88 (50%) disagree or strongly disagree that their social skills hinder them and the remaining 16/88 (18%) indicating that they neither agree or disagree. The interviews indicated that the pressure to share the gospel was both a help and a hindrance. The survey item, “I feel pressure to share the gospel with others,” didn’t delve into the effects of the pressure but just sought to understand if people feel pressure. Pressure is a stronger word than expectation and has some negative connotation, but in and of itself this question wasn’t about whether this pressure was a help or a hindrance. As displayed in Figure 12, 50/86 (58%) indicated that they agree or strongly agree that they feel pressure to share the gospel with others, while only 8/86 (9%) indicate that they disagree or strongly [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 12 details ] Figure 12. Survey Results: I feel pressure to share the gospel with others. disagree that they feel pressure. One comment sheds some light into the way that the concept of pressure is nuanced within P2C as they wrote, “P2C Mentality. Most students are sharing the gospel, why not me.” In that comment, one could [ Page ] 80 read that they feel shame for not sharing as others do, or it could be read positively, as ‘why not me?” In any respect, the pressure implied from the group of P2C creates an ethos. The interviews drew this out primarily as a hindrance, not a help; whereas the survey just indicates that pressure is there. One student commented, “I am selecting neutral because sometimes I feel pressure, but at the same time I have a desire. So, not only do I have an obligation, but I want to be doing what I am obligated to do.” Another wrote, “But I think it's good pressure, because we should!” Another wrote, “Definitely, but I take this pressure as encouragement!” Dovetailed with pressure is a question that mines for an understanding of the importance of sharing the gospel with others. This item in Figure 13 is worded positively and states that the Bible commands of followers of Chris to [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 13 details ] Figure 13. Survey Results: I believe that the Bible commands followers of Christ to lovingly share the gospel with others. [ Page ] 81 lovingly share the gospel with others. Not one respondent disagreed or strongly disagreed with this statement and only 4/85 (5%) neither agreed or disagreed. The remaining 81/85 (95%) agreed or strongly agreed with the statement. 69/85 (81%) strongly agreed with this statement. Combining this question with the previous one about pressure, it could be reported that 95% of the survey respondents in the population agree that the Bible commands followers of Christ to lovingly share the gospel with others, while 50% of respondents feel pressure to share the gospel. This seems to demonstrate a disconnect, namely, that people have a sense of what they ought to do, but that “ought” to share the gospel because it is commanded, lands on 50% of the survey respondents as pressure. Pressure has a negative connotation with it, and sounds different than sharing the gospel out of a growing personal relationship with God. There is some symmetry to the interviews and the survey results on this topic. In the interviews, the code expectations were given as a hindrance ten times from the twenty students interviewed (see Figure 2). It is not exactly a one-to-one match on 50%, but it does indicate that pressure to share the gospel is prevalent. It is important to understand the evangelistic ethos of P2C: there is a strong culture of intentional evangelism where proclamation is expected of student leaders. This expectation jives with a sense that the Bible commands sharing the gospel in the minds of students in the population, but for roughly half of respondents this expectation feels like a hindrance. In the interviews, there were some interesting discussions of internal beliefs that hindered people from sharing the gospel. These were distinct from social fear, but were thought pattern explanations that an interviewee explained [ Page ] 82 why they were hindered in sharing the gospel. The item, “I can think of reasons to not share the gospel with others and these reasons prevent me from sharing the gospel with others,” sought to understand this theme. The question is worded in the negative and the reasons are sufficient to prevent the person from sharing the gospel. Figure 14 displays the results: 31/85 (36%) agree or strongly agreed that they have reasons that prevent them from sharing the gospel with others. 29/85 (34%) of respondents disagree or strongly disagreed with the statement with the remaining 25/85 (29%) neither agreeing or disagreeing. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 14 details ] Figure 14. Survey Results: I can think of reasons to not share the gospel with others and these reasons prevent me from sharing the gospel with others. The survey results related the item, What I know about the Bible makes me want to share the gospel with others,” in Figure 15 indicate the Bible is a catalyst for sharing the gospel. 71/85 (84%) indicated that they agreed or strongly agreed that what they knew of the Bible made them want to share the gospel with [ Page ] 83 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 15 details ] Figure 15. Survey Results: What I know about the Bible makes me want to share the gospel with others. others. Only 2/85 (2%) disagreed with this statement. However, the comments on this question show some of the nuance to the results. One student commented, “I come across passages in the bible that disincline me to share it, because it seems like bad news to those I’m sharing with.” Another student commented, “When reading through parts of the old testament [sic], it doesn't create the gospel sharing desire. When reading about parts of the new testament [sic], it's there.” Picking up on the social fear theme, another student commented, “I'm scared for the ones I love who don't believe. But I also hesitate because I think it's hard to share without seeming to be pushing it down their throats. I don't want to lose those relationships.” Another student commented related to their confidence level, “I wish I knew more...taking time to read the Bible has always been a struggle for [ Page ] 84 me, so sometimes I'm scared to share because I don't feel "qualified" enough to reference scripture effectively.” During the interviews, training on clarity on how to share the gospel was considered a facilitator. “I have an understanding of how I could share the gospel with others,” focused on the key idea of having an “understanding” of “how” to share the gospel with others. The respondents answered this statement positively (Figure 16) with only 12/86 (14%) disagreeing and no students strongly disagreeing. In contrast, 58/86 (67%) agreed or strongly agreed. This is [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 16 details ] Figure 16. Survey Results: I have an understanding of how I could share the gospel with others. particularly encouraging as P2C puts an emphasis on training and equipping students to share the gospel with others. In would seem that roughly 2/3 of people connected to P2C self-identify that they would know how to share the gospel with other. One student commented, “thank you KGP and Perspective cards!” These [ Page ] 85 are two tools that P2C uses to train students to verbally communicate the gospel with others. “I have close friends who set a positive example for me in sharing the gospel with others,” picks up on two themes in the interviews - mentoring and environment. This item was worded in the positive and modified friends with the word “close.” In short, the design of this question was intended to discover more about whether people who responded have friends that are more than acquaintances setting a positive example for them in sharing the gospel with others. Figure 17 shows that 53/86 (62%) agreed or strongly agreed with this [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 17 details ] Figure 17. Survey Results: I have close friends who set a positive example for me in sharing the gospel with others. statement while only 18/86 (21%) disagreed or strongly disagreed that they have close friends setting a positive example for them. Roughly three times as many respondents answered that they have close friends setting a positive example than [ Page ] 86 those who disagreed. 15/86 (17%) neither agree or disagreed with the statement. One student commented, “still could use more friends and more role models.” Thinking through the results related to pressure and this question about examples, my inference is that there is a lot about sharing the gospel tied to the overall P2C community. The environment can reinforce a positive example for sharing the gospel or conversely in promoting sharing the gospel may cross a line into a pressuring environment. During the interviews, long after one interviewee had been interviewed they came back to look for me and said, “I know what hinders me: all my life I was told by people close to me that it is wrong for Christians to share the gospel with others.” This was important enough for the person to have sought me out that I decided to add it to the survey. The response (Figure 18) indicates that although [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 18 details ] Figure 18. Survey Results: I have people in my life who tell me that it is wrong for a follower of Christ to share the gospel with others. [ Page ] 87 it was a significant issue for the person interviewed, the survey respondents generally didn’t express the same sentiment. As displayed in the figure, 70/87 (80%) disagreed or strongly disagreed that there were people in their life telling them it is wrong for a follower of Christ to share the gospel with others. Combining this statement with the fear of rejection found earlier provides an intriguing picture. Respondents disagree that people are telling them it is wrong to share the gospel while also fearing rejection. Combining results, the environment within the Christian community and specifically within P2C is generally positive, bordering on pressuring towards sharing the gospel; however, there is still tremendous fear in sharing the gospel with others. In other words, the hindrance is generally external to the Christian environment primarily. Only 8/87 (9%) of respondents agreed that they had people who were telling them it is wrong to share the gospel with others and no one strongly agreed that there was someone in their life with that attribute. In the interviews, a helping theme emerged related to the work of the Holy Spirit in leading a person in personally sharing the gospel with others. The item, “I have sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit in my life to encourage me to share the gospel with others,” was designed to seek to understand the significance of this theme. The results of this question as shown in Figure 19 indicated that the respondents agreed or strongly agreed 59/86 (69%) that they had sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit to encourage them to share the gospel with others more than they disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement 10/86 (12%). The [ Page ] 88 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 19 details ] Figure 19. Survey Results: I have sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit in my life to encourage me to share the gospel with others. remaining group of 17/86 (20%) of respondents neither agreed or disagreed with the statement. P2C has an emphasis on the work of the Holy Spirit in personal evangelism and this result was encouraging as nearly 70% of respondents had sensed the work of the Spirit in their lives in sharing the gospel with others. This is tremendously encouraging to observe in the results. The age demographic distribution shown in Figure 20 indicated that there was just under 30% who were 19 years old, roughly 1/3 who were either 20 or 21 years old and then 1/3 who were 22 or 23 years old. The remaining few were 24 years of age or older. These results are in line with the population that was surveyed as they were primarily undergrads, but over the age of 19, so one would expect them to be distributed between the ages of 19-23. The equal distribution in [ Page ] 89 the different age is positive in that the entire spectrum of undergrad experience with P2C is represented. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 20 details ] Figure 20. Survey Results: I am _______years old. Due to the minimum requirement for participation in this project of being 19 years of age, the first-year group was smaller (see Figure 21); beyond that the distribution spread out amongst the years in in college, from second through four or fifth years. As shown in Figure 22, results of a query on gender indicated that they were 35/87 (40%) male and 52/87 (60%) female which is closely approximates the national gender split who attend post-secondary education more broadly (Statcan.gc.ca “Why are the majority of university students women?”). [ Page ] 90 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 21 details ] Figure 21. Survey Results: My year in post-secondary education is __ [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 22 details ] Figure 22. Survey Results: Gender. [ Page ] 91 Phase Three: Review of Findings and Development of Small Group Resource After reflecting on these results, and combining the needs of the ministry, the researcher isolated social fear as a hindrance to seek to influence positively by addressing it indirectly through a small group experience on taking the initiative, specifically in sharing the gospel with others. Although initiative does not seem directly correlated to social fear, the concept taken by the researcher was that of force field analysis. The force field analysis as portrayed in Figure 23 is simplified, but the concept is to help a student take a student past the equilibrium point to be able to [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Figure 23 details ] Figure 23. Force field analysis: Social fear vs. initiative take the initiative in sharing the gospel with others (Lewin and Cartwright ed.1951). The small group experience incorporated that there are many possible hindrances and gives space for a student to self-identify those barriers to initiative while seeking to ground initiative in several biblical themes. There are many positives factors that the interviews and surveys indicated are generally present, [ Page ] 92 but an invitation to take the initiative is the necessary step of action. Some positive generalities could be summarized this way: Students within the population sense the leading of the Holy Spirit (Figure 20) understand how they can share the gospel (Figure 17) and what they know of the Bible makes them want to share the gospel (Figure 16). Furthermore, in general, students within the population believe Jesus is the only way to God (Figure 7) and are growing in their personal relationship with God (figure 6) and their own understanding of the gospel in their lives (figure 5) while also desiring to share the gospel (Figure 4). This is a positive picture and one that taking the initiative to share the gospel seems like a good next step. The force of these general ideas is a strong pre- condition to be invited to personally share the gospel with others. In fact, looking at it as a list demonstrates the strength of these factors: Below are some generalities, which weren’t universally true, but were affirmed (“yes”) by much of the population (see Table 4). This list begs a question: Is there other knowledge or experience required to begin to share the gospel with others? These factors indicate that in general students have a strong sense of Biblical mandate and personal growth in the gospel coupled with a desire. [ Page ] 93 Table 4. Summary of Generalities from the Survey that are Positive Factors in Helping a Student Share the gospel with Others [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Table 4 details ] A Small Group Resource Focused on Initiative vs Social Fear A lesson on initiative flows from building blocks. Within the strategy of the ministry of P2C, there are materials designed to teach the above generally held truths and a lesson on then taking the initiative fits the needs of the ministry and rationally fits to help students share the gospel with others. A particular small group study was designed (see Appendix 6). Results from Small Group Experience This small group experience was with a group of 9 students and two weeks later those students were interviewed and the interviews were then coded for themes. [ Page ] 94 The first interview question to the group that participated was “What impact has the study had on your spiritual life?” There were five respondents. Their themed responses were: • “anchor point spiritually” • “help towards evangelism” • “it helped me share the gospel last week” • “reaffirming” • “initiative and being active in my faith is a theme now” The second question asked in the interview was: “What are the takeaways from the study?’ Most respondents struggled to answer this question, while one student said, “It provided a base, a foundation in sharing the gospel.” The third question was answered by each respondent as follows: • “gave me a framework” • “good peer pressure” • “evangelism is necessary” • “be more active everyday with the people I see” • “interact with people more” • “encouraged” Looking at the results of this question, I can see that the question is flawed in that it is leading; however, the results demonstrated a broad positivity to the lesson.” The final question, "Did this small group address anything that hinders you in sharing the gospel with others?" was also answered by all respondents. [ Page ] 95 • “driving home that people are lost (not just atheists)” • “people are seeking” • “gospel is good news” • “Being able to overcome the fear of people judging me” • “more obligation....to share with my friends” • “actively searching out to get to know people is a new concept and it shows God’s love” Overall, the small group experience was positive and demonstrated that the topic of initiative indirectly addresses both helps and hindrances to sharing the gospel with others. Overall, the topic of initiative grapples with the question of what moves a person to action in sharing the gospel with others. There are many beliefs that form a framework for sharing the gospel, but at the point of reflecting on initiative, a student focuses on what helps propel them to share the gospel with others. The research project helped generate a list of factors in relation to helps and hindrances in sharing the gospel. These factors emerged from the population. The three phases built on each other. The original research question about what helps or hinders a student to share the gospel with others now has research data to peruse. [ Page ] 96 CHAPTER VI: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS The research project did a major cycle of action research following the Stringer’s model of Look, Think and Act (Stringer 1999, 18). In Phase 1, the researcher looked into the population for themes that emerged from interviews about what helps and hinders them in sharing the gospel with others. In Phase 2, a survey was developed and distributed to the population that focused on understanding the themes from phase 1. Phase 3 did a small-scale intervention to practically build on learnings from phase 1 and 2 and help students share the gospel with others. In all three phases, broad trends emerged. This chapter will focus on the major trends that emerged and look to the future of sharing the gospel within the Canadian university context. Major Trends That Emerged in Research Related to Sharing the Gospel with Others The population that was looked into in the survey, as a general statement, had orthodox beliefs and were growing in their relationship with God. They trusted the Bible, believed Jesus was the only way to God and perceived themselves to be growing in their relationship with God. The population that was looked into in the interview stage were meeting for morning prayer at 7:00 or [ Page ] 97 investing free time at a Christian club’s office. In short, the segment of the population interacted with, in general wanted to share the gospel with others. However, two trends emerged from the interviews that are significant hindrances to sharing the gospel with others. Social Fear as a Barrier to Sharing the Gospel with Others Across the interviews were lengthy descriptions of social fear - the fear of rejection and the fear of lack of acceptance if one shared the gospel with others - specifically those that they had personal friendship or connection to. The surveys indicated that social fear is a factor to be considered. However, the interviews were dominated with social fear discussion. The surveys did not show that social fear was as dominant as the interviews revealed; however, social fear can still be seen within the survey results. In the interviews, social fear was the dominant theme. In the surveys, roughly 1/3 of respondents responded that they agreed that social fear in some form deeply influenced them, while 1/3 responded that social fear did not deeply influence them. In an interview format, people could share their hindrances verbally and I observed people sharing passionately about how hard it is to share with people they are friends with. The hindrance of social fear often had an emotional element in the interviews as the person shared personally about a particular instance of feeling afraid of rejection. The survey format allowed a person to respond to direct questions, but didn’t draw out their feelings about the topic, although there was a comment feature available. In the future, further interview research should be conducted to understand the power of social [ Page ] 98 fear. The survey results shed light on some of the nuance of social fear. The survey results indicate that social fear is not present in people in all the same proportions - there is some nuance to how students feel and understand social fear in their own life. The survey indicates that social fear exists when respondents understand how they could share the gospel (Figure 15), why they should share the gospel (Figure 6 and Figure 13), with friends that encourage them to share the gospel (Figure 16). In general, the survey indicated that social fear exists with all those factors and even if respondents wanted to share the gospel (Figure 3) and sense that they are being led by the Spirit to share the gospel with others (Figure 19). Social Fear may exist in different ways and different strength, but it is a factor to contend with in the future of university ministry. In my experience with Power to Change (P2C), there has not been a formal strategy to help people work through social fear. However, many activities of P2C directly equip students to share the gospel with others and press through fear “barriers,” including social fear. As the researcher pondered how social fear has been addressed within P2C, it would seem to the researcher that the unspoken strategy of P2C has been in four main realms to help alleviate social fear. These four realms are not in themselves strategies, but four historic concepts within P2C that relate to helping a student press through social fear. First, historically, strategy in sharing the gospel has been employed through different forms of evangelistic tracts and discussion starters. P2C equips students with conversation starters and transitions that allow a person to transition to sharing a gospel summary with others. Second, an emphasis on the ministry of the Holy Spirit has [ Page ] 99 sought to empower personal evangelism. This has traditionally been the primary way that P2C equips a student to press through fear, namely encouraging a student to be empowered by the Spirit for witness (Acts 1:8) Third, an overall emphasis on apologetics and special events by leading thinkers within Christianity indirectly contributes to helping build the confidence of a believer in the validity of the Christian faith. In this P2C equips by building a students’ confidence in the gospel and hopes that this helps a student press through social fear. Fourth, the use of events as a catalyst to encourage students in evangelism by encouraging people to together, during a focused time, take the initiative in sharing the gospel with others. This is often done in encouraging students to partner up and go and begin spiritual conversations with others at a university. In this, the student typically is not talking with friends that they have current relationship with. In this manner, the strategy typically assumes that if a student learns to share the gospel with another person that they are more likely to be able to press into sharing the gospel with people close to them. This is an assumption and one that this research project didn’t directly study. Looking at these four realms of teaching personal verbal communication of the gospel through a tool, in the power of the Holy Spirit, equipped and emboldened by apologetics in catalytic events has been effective to this point, there still is social fear present. In fact, social fear is the largest factor of hindrance to sharing the gospel. Thus, I posit that there will be need for a fifth major realm in helping students share the gospel effectively. That major realm is the realm of dialogue, that isn’t focused on proclamation as its success criteria. The kind of dialogue I have in mind is learning to talk about [ Page ] 100 gospel themes in a winsome manner. As a ministry, P2C has actively attempted to focus on this with different initiatives over the years, but in my opinion, the other four realms overpower a focus on this, because of the speed at which university ministry takes place and people transition out of the university context. Timothy Tennent writes: We must not view dialogue and witness as mutually exclusive. Evangelicals have sometimes been guilty of reducing Christian witness to a monologue of proclamation. Since dialogue necessarily involves a mutual give-and-take of ideas, it is often regarded as an unsuitable arena for genuine Christian witness. (Tennent 2002, 240) In my reflection from the research on social fear, some of the fear is a fear of possible reactions to proclamation and that encouraging people to dialogue well may mitigate much of the social fear. As a ministry, P2C has adopted a model of valuing the process in relationally communicating the gospel over time. However, there is still a significant system built up that values proclamation heroically and may be more dismissive to celebrating helping students on a journey, for example, become open to hearing more about Christ. In the history of P2C, proclamation has been celebrated through reinforcing it through highlighted testimonials and with what is measured in the ministry. To value the process and give more time and God Space (Pollock 2006) is notably more challenging to measure and doesn’t feel as iconic to highlight. P2C’s history of measuring the mission focuses on proclamation primarily even while adopting a model of valuing process in evangelism. Furthermore, student ministry often gravitates towards the radical edge - valuing a conversation where trust is earned seems less radical and less like the Apostle Paul in Acts 17 proclaiming the gospel to the [ Page ] 101 leading thinkers in Athens. In short, there is dissonance to adopting a model of conversational evangelism when paired with evangelism focused on proclamation. Social fear is not a new concept to P2C. Bill Bright wrote sections within Witnessing Without Fear (Bright 2009) about fear. In reading the book alongside this research, his approach tackled the question primarily from a logical approach that leads one to the conclusion that one should press through fear to share. Bill Bright writes: If someone you know were dying of cancer and you knew the cure for cancer, would you avoid telling him about the cure because you might offend him? Of course not. You would gladly share the good news that his cancer can be cured. Why should we be any less enthusiastic about sharing the Ultimate Cure over the Ultimate Disease. (Bright 1991, 60) As I reflect on this argument and reflect on the research data, I think that this style of logical argument is both helpful and produces the pressure that is being drawn out in the research. In the argument, above, the logic of the counter argument to fear is emotionally strong (cancer) and deals with ultimate matters. The research reflects that those within the population that I interviewed and surveyed would agree with this argument but feel pressure to share the gospel and would feel a fear of rejection. Although this style of argument has a logical syllogism to it: Premise 1, all People have cancer; Premise 2, you have the cure for cancer; therefore, you should do whatever it takes to share the cure. The implication is that it is the most loving thing to do. This analogy is simplistic but has often been used within P2C. One of the dangers of the analogy is that it assumes that if there is a cure for cancer, people will want to take advantage of it. [ Page ] 102 It could be, that in the manner a possible cure is demonstrated people may not want it. In short, if the gospel is used as a “cure” and insisted upon it may seem transactional and uncaring to the patient. It demonstrates the power of the gospel - to save from death - but it also can subtly turn the gospel into a utilitarian message. Although more research is required in this realm, when I reflect on this it leads me to thinking on the topic of shame. Underneath this type of logic of gospel as perfect cure for ultimate tragedy, if one feels unable, or unwilling to share the gospel with others, what is one to feel? I presume among the feelings that could be felt, one is shame, which is why I developed this theme in chapter 2. In Chapter 2, I developed the theme that shame is often a theological blindspot for North American Christians. Theologically, the logic of the necessity of sharing the gospel with others is inescapable. But for today’s Christian student that leads to pressure and a hindrance related to what others think. One interpretation of this is that in a proclamation oriented ministry, performance shame is induced. Heather Davis Nelson, an author on shame writes: I often feel plagued by personal demons of perfectionism in the pressure to produce. It can at times be crippling.... In the constellation that I will name “performance shame,” you will find perfectionism, fear of failure, pressure to perform, self-righteousness, procrastination, criticism of self and others, and/or lack of creativity.. Why do we feel the pressure to perform? We are afraid of failure, defined as not measuring up to our personal standards and those of others. (Nelson 2016, 86-87) In the orbit of clear gospel presentations, motivational messages to share the gospel and celebration of those that have effectively shared the gospel, one can surmise that shame is a risk for those involved in P2C. Furthermore, because [ Page ] 103 P2C measures the mission and the number of gospel presentations, one can feel shame if they are not performing. There are many different types of shame that could be going on. First, there can be general shame from the broad body of Christ, the church, that one is not sharing the gospel. Second, there can be shame from the P2C community indirectly if one does not keep pace in an evangelistic organization. Third, there can be areas of personal shame related to areas one feels unworthy in. Underneath shame are questions of identity and our need to be rooted in Jesus in our identity as followers of Christ. Heather Davis Nelson continues: Rescue comes only through Jesus. Jesus took our shame of our shame- filled (and shame fueled) performances and misplaced blame, and bore it in his body and shed blood for us on the cross. He covered not only the guilt of our sin, but also the shame of trying to cover up our sin. God looked into our people-pleasing, perfectionist hearts that crave ever- elusive approval, and he traded all of that for Jesus’ blameless performance on our behalf. (Nelson 2016, 93) Shame flows when in a performance oriented realm, one falls short. This research project demonstrates that students know they ought to share the gospel. In failing to do what one feels they ought to do, shame can be a by-product. In the Small Group Material developed that is associated with this Research Project, called Intersection (p2c.com/students “Intersection Study”) the small group writing team I supervise created a video to discuss different patterns that people fall into in sharing the gospel (p2c.com/students, “p2c.sh/sharethegospel”) wherein the connection between shame and sharing the gospel is developed. This video incorporated learnings from this research project. In my view, this is a theme that P2C should continue to lean into. The gospel that [ Page ] 104 is capable and supposed to free us from shame can, in how one understands sharing the gospel, become the very thing that promotes shame. The history of P2C has laser like focus on the value of personal evangelism. These thoughts about shame connected to sharing the gospel raise the spiritual formation question of, if someone has poor motives or is gripped by shame and feels pressure to share the gospel is it better to “prod” them to share the gospel or encourage them to wait until their motives become better? Prior to conducting this research project, my working hunch was that the issue of tolerance would be the primary hindrance for Christian students sharing the gospel with others. One book about tolerance writes, “Many people think uncritically about tolerance, particularly - ironically - at universities” (Stetson and Conti 2005, 142). I expected to discover that students felt that as well - that as Christians they felt unable to share meaningfully within the unity in diversity that is university. However, this was not a theme that emerged. Rather, social fear emerged significantly. My reflection on this dissonance is to ponder if in fact, tolerance is being discussed through the proxy of social fear. In other words, is social fear felt because of a view of tolerance that is expressed through a feeling of fear? Put differently, is social fear the byproduct of a view of tolerance that precludes a Christian representing their beliefs? This is an area that more research can be done. The interviews didn’t give language to students - it simply asked, what hinders them sharing the gospel? The answer back came back with a dominant social fear. I wonder as a researcher what the results of interviews where the word “tolerance” was present would be. For example, how would a [ Page ] 105 student respond in an interview to a question like, “Do you feel that people around you are intolerant towards your Christian faith?” This question has a leading element to it, but I wonder if giving the word tolerance to a student in the interview would mine more into what the feeling is that they feel from their friends that make them feel afraid of rejection or feel afraid of not being accepted. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit as a Help in Sharing the Gospel with Others Through the history of Campus Crusade and P2C, the ministry of the Holy Spirit has been an emphasis. The theme of the ministry of the Holy Spirit being a help for sharing the gospel with others affirmed this long-held emphasis. This research project demonstrates that people within the population have claimed that they sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit to share the gospel with others. This does not state that this leading led them to share the gospel. However, this is still encouraging and coincides with the teaching of Scripture that the Holy Spirit will lead believers in sharing the gospel with others (Acts 1:8; John 14:26). P2C National Leadership has begun a process to cultivate a greater understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. I have passed these research findings onto the working group leader that is responsible for this initiative. In my opinion, as a ministry, P2C, should focus on helping students recognize the leading of the Holy Spirit and respond to that leading. Although more research is needed, this research seems to indicate that students sense the leading of the Spirit (figure 19). However, there is still a sense of fear. This [ Page ] 106 disconnect is honest, but something that as a ministry P2C can lean into in the future. A Blueprint for Further Research The research method, of going to the population with a question, then coding for the themes, then surveying based on the themes amongst the population provided ample information upon which to base an intervention to seek to meaningfully help one or more of the themes that emerged. This process is repeatable and can provide aid to other research questions within a ministry context. This research question has sparked several questions for the researcher. These questions could be put into two groups. The first group consists of questions related to themes emerging from the interviews that the design of the survey did not address well. The researcher would like to further study three themes in this category. The first relates to pressure (figure 12). In the interviews, there were ten instances of pressure to share the gospel being a hindrance and one instance of pressure to share the gospel being a help. The survey used the word “pressure” which does have somewhat negative connotations. However, the survey did not effectively mine the concept of whether the “pressure” was positive or negative in its effect on the person within the population. There are several ways to theorize the rationale for this. First, shame may make someone dismissive of pressure as a negative force. In short, a person, burdened by shame might not see pressure as a negative matter. Second, on the flip side of the first [ Page ] 107 idea, shame may be creating a feeling of pressure. Third, the intention of people may not be to pressure people, but the impact of the activities and environment of P2C may be one of pressure. As such, further research would be helpful to seek to understand this theme. The second theme the researcher would like to dig deeper into understanding relates to personality (figure 10). The interviews revealed a theme related to whether a person’s personality helped or hindered sharing the gospel with others. The interviews indicated that people shared that their personality was a hindrance to sharing the gospel with others. The survey did not adequately drill into this theme in that the researcher would like to explore this theme more fully to understand the nuance of this theme. The third theme to be further developed is the help of “atmosphere attributions.” This theme was not effectively developed within the survey has many possible realms of research that could be further developed. The second type of research questions that emerge are questions that follow from the research results where there is a general trend that has emerged. In that space, the researcher would like to continue to research the influence of social fear in relation to sharing the gospel with others. The researcher would like to build on the research found in this project and continue to understand the aspect of social fear in sharing the gospel with others within the population. More broadly, the researcher has reflected that social fear is not an isolated idea. The researcher would like to continue to explore this research with a lens of shame on the idea of social fear. [ Page ] 108 In sum, this research project had unanticipated results to the research being conducted. Action research has demonstrated the value of looking to the population first, before taking further steps in research. Prior to conducting this research, the researcher would not have surmised that social fear is such a dominant theme in sharing the gospel with others. This theme has now become an area to further research. The Value of Phase 3 to the Research Project and Future Cycles of Action Research within Power to Change Phase 3 sought to meaningfully contribute to one or more of the factors that emerged in Phase 1 and 2. The intervention was received positively by the small group team and combined with their own reflections on producing small group resources has contributed to a much more fuller strategy for feedback, focus groups and interaction. Our small group resource has now developed a Rubric (p2c.com “Small Group Resource Rubric”) and have established a broad method of focusing feedback. This endeavour extends beyond this research project, but this research project contributed to this overarching initiative to more reflectively create and develop materials. In short, there is some research methodology being used and an action research heuristic of look, think, act being employed. This this being currently done by formally asking participants for feedback, interviewing users of the material in draft form and formally engaging a broad feedback loop that leads to an abundance of data from which to base design and writing decisions before print runs. In the summer of 2017 the small group [ Page ] 109 resource writing team has developed 3 new sets of materials and had one translated into French. These materials have been reviewed more widely than previous iterations of materials as the action research heuristic shapes the process. Moving into the future, there will be upwards of sixteen sets of material and 64 lessons. Each of these has learning that could be gleaned from applying both formal action research and an overall action research heuristic. The value of the process has been especially helpful to me as a researcher. I have learned that I enjoy research. I have read more widely on the topics related to sharing the gospel. I have learned research skills. These are frameworks I now bring with me into future communications projects with P2C. Concluding Thoughts on the Future of Sharing the Gospel in the Canadian University Context Richard Mouw wrote a book called Uncommon Decency: Christian Civility in an Uncivil World (Mouw 2010). In this book, he writes: God wants a world filled with shalom. This word is usually translated ‘peace,’ but it points to something much richer than a mere absence of conflict. When shalom happens, everything is functioning in the way the Creator intended. (Mouw 2010, 34) When I consider the high degree of social fear felt by Christian students in representing their beliefs to others, I infer that there is needed teaching and development of students in simply having civil discourse while disagreeing. Perhaps the social media associated with political discourse in today’s age has made people have a heightened awareness and fear socially, but as followers of Jesus, I believe helping people have conversations where the aim is shalom - [ Page ] 110 peaceful, respectful, conversations in the way that the creator intended - full of peace. Certainly, the Christian message has some sides to it that are not easy to hear (for example: sin, the need for a Saviour, the consequences of not following Jesus). However, as followers of Jesus, we can aim to converse about the gospel with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15). I believe a vision of shalom-like conversations filled with gentleness and respect about the gospel is the future of conversations about the gospel on Canadian university campuses. Next Steps This research project has contributed to changing my thinking in regard to sharing the gospel with others. Prior to this project, I had a spark of thought that process approach in evangelism is increasingly required. This project ignited that spark and has emboldened my thinking that P2C must pivot from a prioritization of proclamation gospel ministry. This is not to diminish the rich heritage of P2C and proclamation ministry. However, the way forward in my opinion is to lead cultural change within P2C and beyond, on Canadian university campuses that are filled with gospel themes and have a shalom like quality. gospel summaries have been helpful in the past; moving forward I believe that the future is in helping students understand the gospel such that they can relate it to life in their social realm. P2C has long advocated that teaching a student to proclaim the gospel translates to other areas of their life and aids them sharing with their friends. This research project indicates something different and in fact that claim did not come out of the interviews. As a result, I think we must move the primary ministry [ Page ] 111 realm from proclamation to anyone, to sharing with people we know. This will require pressing through social fear in new ways, but I believe that in this, students will experience gospel ministry in new and powerful ways. [ Page ] 112 APPENDIXES [ Page ] 113 Appendix 1: Interview Release, Phase 1 In this interview, Graham Watt, will be taking notes to gather key themes related to what facilitates (helps, encourages, resources) and what are barriers (that prevents or challenges) people from sharing the gospel with others. These interviews are part of a Doctor of Ministry Project at Tyndale University College and Seminary. The interviews will be recorded and stored by Graham Watt. Graham Watt will be taking notes and the research team will listen to the recording. The recording will be stored until the completion of the entire research project, after which they will be deleted. The interviews will be reviewed in order to understand the factors that facilitate and the factors that are barriers to sharing the gospel. The notes will then be used to inform the design of a survey that Graham Watt is developing as part of a Doctor of Ministry project. By participating in this interview, I agree to the following: My participation in this project is voluntary. I understand that I will not be paid for my participation. I may withdraw and discontinue participation at any time without penalty. If I decline to participate or withdraw from the study, no one on my campus will be told. I understand that the researcher will not identify me by name in any reports using information obtained from this interview, and that my confidentiality as a participant in this study will remain secure. I understand that Power to Change will use the data from this research project. I understand that the researcher is asking me questions. I understand that I won’t be asked to do anything as a result of this interview that is outside of my normal activities in relationship to Power to Change. I understand that by consenting, I have not waived any legal recourse related to research related harm. This research has no anticipated risks. This interview may benefit the participant in helping them share the gospel with others. I understand that there are no more risks to this interview than my regular life. If I have questions about this research project, after the interview, I understand I can contact Graham Watt I ___________________________________________________ release Graham Watt to interview me as part of a Doctor of Ministry project at Tyndale University College and Seminary and to contribute to the work of Power to Change. I ___________________________________________________ release Graham Watt to record this interview and allow his research team to listen to it. I am aware that my name will not be used, but the content of the interview will be used to help identify factors that facilitate or are obstacles related to sharing the gospel. Print name:______________________________________________ Signed:____________________________________________________ Date:________________________________________ [ Page ] 114 Appendix 2: Interview Protocol, Phase 1 1. What helps you share the gospel with others? • prompt: motivation and resources • probe: tell me more about that... 2. What hinders you sharing the gospel with others? • prompt: makes it challenging for you? • prevents? • probe: tell me more about that... [ Page ] 115 Appendix 3: Survey Release, Phase 2 In this survey, Graham Watt will be gathering data from post-secondary students over the age of 19. The data will be related to what facilitates sharing the gospel with others and what the barriers are to sharing the gospel with others. This survey is part of a Doctor of Ministry Project at Tyndale University College and Seminary and will be used to further the campus ministry of Power to Change. The surveys will be recorded and stored by Graham Watt until the completion of his Doctor of Ministry Program. By participating in this survey, I agree to the following: My participation in this survey is voluntary. I understand that I will not be paid for my participation. I may withdraw and discontinue participation at any time without penalty. I understand that the researcher will keep any and all personal information from this survey in confidence. I understand that Power to Change will use the data from this research project. I understand that the researcher is inviting me to fill in a survey. I understand that I won’t be asked to do anything as a result of this survey that is outside of my normal activities in relationship to Power to Change. I understand that by consenting, I have not waived any legal recourse related to research related harm. This research has no anticipated risks. You must be 19 years old or older to complete this survey Comments are optional on the questions. If I have questions about this research project, after the survey, I understand I can contact Graham Watt Additionally, if you have any questions you can contact Dr. Mark Chapman, mchapman@tyndale.ca. [ Page ] 116 Appendix 4: Survey Items, Phase 2 1. I desire to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 2. I fear rejection if I share the gospel with others. Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 3. I am concerned that sharing the gospel will negatively affect my relationships Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 4. I am concerned that sharing the gospel will jeopardize friendships Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 5. I think that my personality helps me share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 6. I think that my social skills hinder my ability to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 7. I have a growing personal relationship with Jesus. Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 8. I am growing in my personal understanding of the gospel in my own life Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 9. I believe the Bible teaches that Jesus is the only way to God Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 10. What I know about the Bible makes me want to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 11. I believe that the Bible commands followers of Christ to lovingly share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: [ Page ] 117 12. I feel pressure to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 13. I can think of reasons not to share the gospel with others and these reasons prevent me from sharing the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 14. I have an understanding of how I could share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 15. I have close friends who set a positive example for me in sharing the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree 16. I have people in my life who tell me that it is wrong for a follower of Christ to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: 17. I have sensed the leading of the Holy Spirit in my life to encourage me to share the gospel with others Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly Agree Comments: Age 19 20 21 - 22 23 - 25 25 and older (or year of university) Gender M F Other Year in postsecondary institution First Year Second Year Third Year Fourth Year Fifth Year or Beyond [ Page ] 118 Appendix 5: Interview Release, Phase 3 In this interview, Graham Watt, will be taking notes to gather key themes related to what facilitates (helps, encourages, resources) and what are barriers (that prevents or challenges) people from sharing the gospel with others. These interviews are part of a Doctor of Ministry Project at Tyndale University College and Seminary. The interviews will be recorded and stored by Graham Watt. Graham Watt will be taking notes and the research team will listen to the recording. The recording will be stored until the completion of the entire research project, after which they will be deleted. The interviews will be reviewed in order to understand the factors that facilitate and the factors that are barriers to sharing the gospel. The notes will then be used to inform the design of a survey that Graham Watt is developing as part of a Doctor of Ministry project. By participating in this interview, I agree to the following: My participation in this project is voluntary. I understand that I will not be paid for my participation. I may withdraw and discontinue participation at any time without penalty. If I decline to participate or withdraw from the study, no one on my campus will be told. I understand that the researcher will not identify me by name in any reports using information obtained from this interview, and that my confidentiality as a participant in this study will remain secure. I understand that Power to Change will use the data from this research project. I understand that the researcher is asking me questions. I understand that I won’t be asked to do anything as a result of this interview that is outside of my normal activities in relationship to Power to Change. I understand that by consenting, I have not waived any legal recourse related to research related harm. This research has no anticipated risks. This interview may benefit the participant in helping them share the gospel with others. I understand that there are no more risks to this interview than my regular life. If I have questions about this research project, after the interview, I understand I can contact Graham Watt I ________________________________________________________ release Graham Watt to interview me as part of a Doctor of Ministry project at Tyndale University College and Seminary and to contribute to the work of Power to Change. I ________________________________________________________ release Graham Watt to record this interview and allow his research team to listen to it. I am aware that my name will not be used, but the content of the interview will be used to help identify factors that facilitate or are obstacles related to sharing the gospel. Print name:__________________________________ Signed:______________________________________ Date:________________________________________ [ Page ] 119 Appendix 6: Small Group Lesson on Taking the Initiative to Share the gospel Main Takeaway • The Christian life is most fully realized when faith and action meet. This is especially true of evangelism. Resources • Two envelopes, two pieces of paper (one blank, one with “CARROT” on it) It’s time to play “Carrot in a box,” a game of wits and persuasion! One person gets to check one of the two “boxes” to see if it has the “carrot” inside. That person must persuade the second participant to take the empty box. The second person’s job is to weigh the arguments of the first player and choose the box with the carrot. Whoever has the carrot in the end wins! Who won the “carrot”? In order to win, you had to trust your partner or mistrust them. You put your belief that you were being told the truth or not into action by choosing an envelope. Likewise, the Christian life is putting your belief in Jesus into action. Let’s look at what the bible has to say about taking initiative. 1. God is a God of many attributes. He is holy and wise and all-powerful to name a few. He is also a God that takes initiative. What ways would say God has taken initiative in History and also with you personally? 2. Can you think of biblical passages or examples to prove your answers from above? Use concordances, your bible or google as necessary. 3. God calls us to be increasingly like him day by day. We are called to take initiative in many ways in our life as we become like him. Read the following passages and fill out the chart below. [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for table details ] [ Page ] 120 4. Let’s play a little game about taking initiative in conversation. As we can see from the above chart, one of the ways we are called to take initiative is in telling others about Christ. Read the following verses and write out how each one of these encourages us to take initiative: [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for table details ] 5. When taking initiative in telling others about Christ there are many different skills/styles/approaches that you can use. Look at the following approaches and describe their style and situations where they might be helpful. a. Peter - Acts 2 b. Paul - Acts 17 c. Blind Man - John 9:25 d. Matthew - Luke 5:29 e. Samaritan Woman - John 4 f. Dorcas - Acts 9:36 6. Which of these approaches are you naturally gifted at and which would you like to grow in? 7. LOOK IN: Praying for boldness LOOK OUT: How are you going to share? [ Page ] 121 Appendix 7: Small Group Participants Interview Protocol, Phase 3 1. What impact has this study had on your spiritual life? • Prompt: How did the study benefit you? 2. What are your take-aways from the study? • Prompt: What did you get out of the study personally? 3. How did this small group contribute to helping you share the gospel with others? • Prompt: encourage, facilitate? • Probe: tell me more about that... 4. Did this small group address anything that hinders you sharing the gospel with others? • Prompt: what hinders you sharing the gospel with others - did this address that? • Probe: tell me more about that... [ Page ] 122 Appendix 8: Interview Helps Coding, Phase 1 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 8 details ] [ Page ] 123 [ Appendix 8 continues, please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 8 details ] [ Page ] 124 [ Appendix 8 continues, please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 8 details ] [ Page ] 125 Appendix 9: Interview Hindrances Coding, Phase 1 [ Please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 9 details ] [ Page ] 126 [ Appendix 9 continues, please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 9 details ] [ Page ] 127 [ Appendix 9 continues, please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 9 details ] [ Page ] 128 [ Appendix 9 continues, please contact repository@tyndale.ca for Appendix 9 details ] [ Page ] 129 REFERENCE LIST Baurain, Bradly. 2007 “Christian Witness and Respect for Persons.” Journal of Language, Identity and Education. 6, no. 3: 201-219. Bosch, David. 1980. Witness to the World: The Christian Mission in Theological Perspective. 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