Questions, Questions, Questions!

Somewhat recently, my husband and I were reminded that we can make a godly impact on our culture through a very simple gesture – asking questions. Close friendships provide opportunities for both speaking and for listening. And, what a gift a true friend gives us in asking meaningful questions! I feel so cared for when a friend sincerely inquires into the happenings of my life, don’t you? In the past, Wayne and I have been involved in a handful of conversations where only our ears were invited to the party… : ) Have you ever felt a bit unimportant after being with a friend who rarely asks you questions? As I thought about these “listening” exchanges, it occurred to me that if Christians can feel uncared for by time spent with other Christians, I wonder how a hurting and lost world feels when we engage only their ears?

Jesus was so masterful at engaging a lost culture, divinely intriguing them to long for more of Himself. As I thought about how He did this, three things came to mind. First, He asked questions, good questions that often got right to the root of a person’s pain. Second, he listened fully, without interrupting; and His responses indicated how well He had listened. Lastly, He relied upon the Father for what to say. For us, that means allowing the gifts of Holy Spirit within us to operate in day-to-day conversations.

As Christians, we have the very Spirit who raised Jesus Christ from the dead dwelling in us. Therefore, we have all the tools we need to follow the example of Jesus as He engaged His culture. Don’t you find it interesting that Jesus being fully God, asked questions rather than spouting out every bit of truth He knew? If He, being The Truth, knowing everything, asked questions, how much more impact can we have by doing likewise? By relying on the Holy Spirit to direct our conversation topics and even our words, we can be conduits of divine impact on a culture who has yet to realize how crazy their Heavenly Father is about them. Any questions? : )

“Jesus gave them this answer: ‘Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.'” – John 5:19