Preview of Book 3

Chapter 1 – Getting Started

In case this is the first book in the Midnight in Marrakesh series you have started to read, book 1 focuses on what the Christian worldview is by answering 12 of life’s most important questions. Questions that everyone has…or should have anyway. Book 2 is all about God’s natural revelation in the cosmos. It presents an argument for an old universe as described by modern science and the Big Bang. Book 3 puts it all together and suggests ways of communicating the orthodox Christian worldview to our friends that ask us for the reason for the hope that we have.

The whole Midnight trilogy is for people that want to share the real hope that they have with anyone that asks them. And it’s also for people who are looking for purpose and meaning in their lives. People who are looking for some kind of order that will give them peace and hope in a chaotic world.

This series of books, along with the grace, wisdom, and power of our loving creator God, can help you achieve those goals.

Chapter 2 – 12 General Principles for Witnessing

On the evening of 7 December back in 2015, CeCe Winans was at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D. C. paying tribute in song to Cicely Tyson for her years of service to our country as an entertainer. CeCe sang about something that we Christians all too often take for granted. Something that we should be consciously thankful for every moment. That something that CeCe sang about is our Blessed Assurance that Jesus is mine, Oh what a foretaste of glory divine! Click and listen, as CeCe sings this beautiful old hymn. (By the way, that’s Terence Blanchard on trumpet.)

Midnight in Marrakesh is a summary of what I have learned about sharing my worldview over many years. I don’t consider myself an expert at talking to people about Christianity, but, for better or worse, I have had many opportunities to do that. And I would like to tell you what I have learned. My goals for doing this are three-fold.

My first goal is to obey God’s command to, “… go and make disciples of all nations….”

My second goal is to glorify God and help us to see The Holiness of God.

My third goal is that we might all grow in the knowledge, understanding, and wisdom of our Sovereign, Creator God.

In Proverbs 4:5-9, it says:
Get wisdom,
get understanding;
do NOT forget my words or turn away from them.
Do NOT forsake wisdom, and she will protect you;
love her, and she will watch over you.
The beginning of wisdom is this: Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.
Though it cost all you have, whatever else you get, get understanding.
Cherish her, and she will exalt you;
embrace her, and she will honor you.
She will give you a garland to grace your head
and present you with a glorious crown.”

Witnessing is just inspiring lost souls to face the ultimate question, will I live my life for the temporary pleasures of this world, or in light of eternity? Before continuing, please click on secularism to listen to Dr. R. C. Sproul as he wisely explains how the philosophy of secularism has impacted our culture. Understanding secularism is essential to be prepared to “go and make disciples of all nations.”

Keep in mind also that there are two groups of people that we must witness to, in order to “make disciples of all nations.” The first group is the lost souls that know they are lost, and the second group is the lost souls that think they are Christians because they don’t have a clue what Christianity is all about.

For the record, I believe that Christianity is a religious system that gives its true followers the desire and ability to seek, obey, and worship the one true and living God, Yahweh, by name. And to willingly make the many sacrifices necessary to become more and more like the Son of God in this world as we prepare to spend eternity in perfect communion with Him in the next.

In the beginning, when I was a young man, circa the middle of the last century, growing up in Stanberry, Missouri (downtown shown above) to witness to someone you only had to say, “the Bible says….” You know how far that will get you today among most non-believers.

Not long after I left Stanberry to explore the world, the world, including many Christians, decided that the Bible wasn’t necessarily completely true; it just contained some truth. So, before you could witness, you had to help people see that the Bible actually is, the inerrant Word of God. But we covered all that in Book 1.

STOP! I need to tell you at this point that when I first left Stanberry, I didn’t set out to save the world. Gogi Grant, shown here, was singing my theme song in 1956; and she was still singing it in 2004, The Wayward Wind. My priorities were airplanes, cars, and girls. Not necessarily in that order! It took me a long time to learn the things that I am writing about.

Next, people got so smart that they decided that God was NOT a necessary Being for their existence, so you also had to prove that God was real, necessary, even important before you could quote from God’s written Word.

But now, you have to start by showing that truth is NOT relative. And that fact is critically important!

A lot of my witnessing over the years has been directed to specific groups of people and frequently in written form. In Chapter 3, you will find copies of some of the handouts I have used for that purpose. You can see I have handouts for general purposes, for Mormons, for Jehovah’s Witnesses, specific people, specific occasions, and as you might guess, for pilots, and so on.

But before diving further into our subject, I would like to ask a question.
Why should we, as good providence-believing Christians, even take the time to witness? Please, let me mention three quick reasons why; starting with the least and progressing to the most important reason.

Third reason: because we will be changed in a positive way and add to our eternal rewards.

Second reason: because it is how God has ordained to save His lost sheep,
and equally important, to bring condemnation on the Wicked.

First and most important reason: just because God said to, end of discussion.

With that as an introduction to our topic, now I would like to turn our attention to a list of my 12 General principles for Witnessing.

(All of the following principles are discussed in book three.)

Principle 1. Never forget, that until the Holy Spirit changes a person’s heart, NO ONE ever earnestly seeks the LORD (Romans 3:11). Only Christians do that. But the point is to be sure that the non-believer you are sharing your worldview with has some interest in matters of faith. And be careful NOT to push that person further away from the Kingdom by forcing them to listen to something that they are NOT ready to hear.

Principle 2. Your witnessing must be accurate, with good references so they know you have a basis for what you say and it’s NOT just your opinion. It must be sincere and loving to be effective. If any of these things are weak or missing, your witnessing will fall on less than eager ears.

Principle 3. Never underestimate the influence that a person’s worldview has on their beliefs and that includes Christians too.

Principle 4. I like to use if-then conditional propositions when I can. They are a gentler way of making a point, they make it easier for the listener to accept and harder to disagree with, and this also allows those that disagree to save face. Saving face is NOT just something that’s important to our Asian-American friends. No one wants to lose face.

Principle 5. Never argue over disputable matters. Choose your battles carefully. If a matter in dispute won’t keep the person out of heaven, put it on the back burner. We won almost every battle in Vietnam, but we lost the war.
Swallow your pride and move on.

Principle 6. Think of witnessing in terms of a three-act play.

Principle 7. Never speak Christianese to a non-believer. Without a clear explanation, that they can understand, most people have no idea what you mean when you use terminology that is generally only used among Christians.

Principle 8. Be prepared to listen, listen, listen. Then carefully ask a relevant, non-judgmental question and listen, listen, really listen.

Principle 9. I suggest that our attitudes should be that we are going to learn something from every witnessing situation. Not that we are going to straighten out every lost soul, because WE CAN’T. ONLY the Holy Spirit can do that.

Principle 10. Our attitudes should be that of quiet humility, empathy, love, kindness, and gentleness.

Principle 11. DO NOT ever forget Romans 8:5-8 which says. “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace, because the sinful mind is hostile to God. It (the sinful mind) does NOT submit to God’s law, NOR CAN IT DO SO. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.”

Principle 12. To witness effectively, you need to be well prepared to answer certain basic questions.

Our goal in being a witness (and example!) for Christianity is to present a systematic worldview that works from creation throughout eternity. And most important of all, to present answers with which the Holy Spirit will be pleased.

Bottom Line — Have a plan.

My first jet was a Lear 24. When I was going through Martin Aviation’s Lear Jet ground school the instructor said that “The Lear Jet is an easy airplane to fly.”

He paused for a moment for that to sink in, and then he said, “But before you shove the throttle levers forward, have a plan.”

The reason was that very shortly after you pushed the throttles forward on a Lear 24, with no passengers and minimal fuel for training, you were going through 200 mph and rapidly accelerating. And if you didn’t have a plan for what to do next, you just became a passenger and NOT the pilot.

It’s the same with sharing your Christian worldview. When you least expect it, someone is going to open the door for you to present the Christian worldview in two or three good sentences. Don’t stutter. Have a plan. Write it down and memorize it now. Be ready for questions.

Keep it short and say something that will stimulate the listener to ask questions. That way you can begin to focus on areas that your friend is interested in.

How you guide the conversation about spiritual things depends primarily on where your lost friend is coming from and what their current interests are. The best situation is when your friend opens the conversation. Then you only need to answer their questions. And if they don’t ask all the right questions, then ask them the questions. (This is where Midnight in Marrakesh – Book 1 comes in.) If you feel led to open the conversation about spiritual things because the timing seems right, start with a question. For example,

“What do you think will happen to us when we die?”
“Do you think there is a God?”
“How do you think the universe got started?”
“What are you basing your answers on?”
“Have you ever read the Bible, or gone to any kind of church in the past?”

What you are hoping and praying for is to hear your friend say something to the effect, “How should I be living to be a good person?” Or, “So, how does a person get to heaven?” Or, “Why does any of this really matter for me?”

Remember this, most of the people in the western world believe that if there is a God of some kind, God just isn’t important; it just doesn’t matter. And these same people don’t even know they should have questions, let alone what questions to ask. So go slow. Once you get their attention lay the basis for everything that will follow.

Chapter 3 – Where The Rubber Finally Meets the Road

The following subjects are covered in Chapter 3:

The Sixth Class: Originally Witnessing 101 was only five classes long. But during the original presentation of Class 5, there was an interruption after about ten minutes into Florence Littauer’s talk due to the sound system being accidentally turned off. So, I had to do a sixth class that included Ms. Littauer’s talk plus some additional material that I added to fill up the hour. This is that class.

Talking to people about Christianity: Here are some preliminary things to think about before you witness that you may have never considered before.

Is There a God and Witnessing to Atheists/Humanists: For most people in the western world today, the first step in witnessing is establishing that there is a God and Yahweh is His Name.

“…my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge”: In Proverbs 19:2, it says, “Desire without knowledge is not good—” In Romans 10:2, it says, “For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge.” The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Dead as a Doornail: What do you think? Can a man be Born Again on his own without any help from God, or do we need to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit before we can “make a decision” to receive Jesus as our savior? What you believe on this subject will have a significant impact on how you witness.

Original Sin: This does NOT refer to the first sin, but to the results of that first sin. Understanding what original sin is about is basic to our Christian faith. Spend some time to check this out and decide what you believe on this subject. What you decide, if you are consistent, will not only determine how you witness but at which church you chose to worship, maybe even if you are a Christian!

The Real Causes: One of my main sources of daily news is from www.news.google.com. I came across an article entitled The Real Causes of Depression Have Been Discovered, And They’re Not What You Think. I believe this article can be of some value in Witnessing during Acts 1 and 2. I also believe that depression is NOT a problem that is confined to our non-Christian neighbors. Until we Christians take our last breath in this world and meet Jesus Face to face, depression, on some level, is going to be an issue for all of us.

A logical atheist is an oxymoron, but how do you explain this?: Art Linkletter used to say, “Kids say the darndest things,” and so do atheists. Does anybody know who Matthew Parris is?

What’s It All About Alfie? Hopefully, you will enjoy the song, the TED Talk, and even pick up something of value.

Some Things I Have Learned (Mostly the Hard Way): This is something else that I left copies of in places I thought someone might find it and read it. You can leave things like this anyplace. For example, I would put them inside magazines in waiting rooms where someone would hopefully find them.

General Witnessing Letter: When I was traveling, I left copies of this letter all over the world in any place that I thought someone might see it and read it.

Witnessing to Mormons: In my flying days, we stayed at Marriott hotels when they were available. Since Bill Marriott is a good Mormon, there was always a Bible and a Book of Mormon in every room. So, I always put a copy of my General Witnessing Letter on the desk and a copy of this handout in the Book of Mormon.

Witnessing to Jehovah’s Witnesses: Or, how to show a Jehovah’s Witness that Jesus is God in less than 5 minutes from their own bible (if you can get them to stand still and be quiet for that long). Jehovah’s Witnesses all hate this one.

Witnessing to God’s Original Chosen People: To begin with, who is a Jew? It’s complicated. I asked that question online and got 104,000,000 results.

Witnessing to Muslims: Whether you ever have an opportunity to witness to a Muslim or not, I believe it is very important to have an understanding of their faith. If everyone just did that alone, it would eliminate many of the problems we face today. Hopefully, this will get you started.

Witnessing to the Pro-Choice and LGBTQ Community: Witnessing to the average non-believer is one thing; witnessing to the pro-choice community is something else; witnessing to the LGBTQ community can, like smoking, be dangerous to your health.

Witnessing on the Internet: Over the years, I have received copies of this email several times. It’s about Jane Fonda and what an evil person some people think she was/is because of what she did during the Vietnam War. So, the last time I received a copy of this email, the thought came to me to reply to at least the people that had seen it before me. Interestingly enough, I found out that Jane had, at least in an Earthly way, repented of what she had done. And the people that continue to give life to this email are really the bad guys here!

Witnessing to someone that has had a “Near Death Experience”: Is there anyone that has not heard of someone having a near-death experience? Many Christians believe in these kinds of things. What do you think?

Witnessing in Hospitals and at Funerals: In hospitals and at funerals is where I used to feel the most uncomfortable in knowing what to say to the people there. It turns out that this is one of the easiest times to encourage and witness. (The people you are talking to are just as much at a loss for words as you are.)

Jerusalem Daily Times Christmas Edition: This is my idea of what a newspaper might have looked like if there had been such a thing after the first Christmas. This and the Easter edition were probably the most popular things I have ever written for witnessing. They were always well received by Christians and non-Christians alike.

Jerusalem Daily Times Easter Edition: This is my idea of what a newspaper might have looked like if there had been such a thing after the first Easter. This and the Christmas edition were probably the most popular things I have ever written for witnessing. They were always well received by Christians and non-Christians alike.

Witnessing Tools: This is some really great stuff. We are so blessed in this country to have almost unlimited access to things like this. The internet and things like Google can be used to the glory of God, or the evil one; it’s our choice.

LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?

Quod Erat Demonstrandum

Return to the home page

To receive a free copy of Book 3 please email your request to mimqed@gmail.com and I will send your copy as soon as I see your email. Normally within 24 to 48 hours.