Tract Ministry - Being a Good Citizen and a Good Christian
Jesus says to us:
Being a good citizens means acting in accord to our Constitution.
As a Christian, you are obligated to "preach the Gospel".
As a citizen, you are obligated to protect everyone else's rights as you exercise yours.
Rights are like muscles, if you do not exercise them, you loose them.
Use them or lose them.
But most of us are not public speakers.
We may be able to talk one on one but certainly not to a group.
And who would just walk up to a total stranger and start a conversation.
I for one would break out in a cold sweat.
If I were to do anything I would need an ice breaker.
The "tract" is the perfect tool.
It is a short document promoting Christianity on one sheet of paper folded like a very small brochure.
It normally has some inspiring story and a call for action.
It has a place for a rubber stamp to identify some local contact suggestion.
You can get these items from the American Tract Society at their website,http://www.
atstracts.
org/ at a very reasonable price.
Select something appropriate that relates to you and who you might give a tract to.
As an example, if you like sports, you can find one featuring the story of a famous sports figure.
You need to be creative here.
Assume someone will ask about what is in the tract, you don't want to appear ignorant on the subject.
So the next step is to distribute them.
The rules are that you need to be in "the public square" when giving them out.
If you live in a big city you can just stand on any corner and give them to people as they walk by.
What do you say when you give them out? You could say, "here" or "this may be of interest to you", or nothing at all and just stick it out towards someone.
They either take it or they don't.
No fuse.
No bother.
It they ask, "What's this?" just say "Its about ...
" (whatever it is about) Now what happens next is up to you.
Some people will want to talk to you.
You do not have to talk to them.
You could simply refer them to the contact information on the tract.
If you did not add any, the tract still has the contact for the American Tract Society.
But if you want to talk and or you feel led to talk, you know that the ice broken and you can start using the subject matter of the tract.
You can use this as a regular ministry.
Or you can do it with a group.
My church in Jersey City, NJ in the 1950's would have an outreach of giving out tracts and then have a group out door "street meeting".
This was done on certain Friday nights in a shopping district which was busy then.
A small crowd regularly gathered and listened to the evangelical message.
Anyone could go and participate in any way they chose.
You could just stand in the crowd as no one wants to be the first to stop and listen.
You could hand out tracts to people.
Or if you wanted, you could say something publicly as part of that street meeting.
Or you could just do it on your own any time you wanted to or decided to.
I remember being alone while traveling from New Jersey to Virginia along route 81 in 1999.
I stopped at a Cracker barrel for breakfast or lunch.
I had on Jeans and a long sleeve flannel shirt.
A woman came up to my table and said that I looked like a truck driver and that she felt compelled to give me something.
It was a tract.
I took it gracefully and thanked her.
I did not know why she felt I needed that tract.
Maybe me writing this now is what God had in mind when he prompted that woman to give me that tract some 8 years ago.
Perhaps God knew it would take me 8 years to get around to do it.
(I cry when I read what I just wrote here.
) So my honest suggestion, just give it a try.
"And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.Our United States Constitution says:
" [Mark 16:15]
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.Being a good Christian means doing what Jesus said.
" [First Amendment of the US Constitution]
Being a good citizens means acting in accord to our Constitution.
As a Christian, you are obligated to "preach the Gospel".
As a citizen, you are obligated to protect everyone else's rights as you exercise yours.
Rights are like muscles, if you do not exercise them, you loose them.
Use them or lose them.
But most of us are not public speakers.
We may be able to talk one on one but certainly not to a group.
And who would just walk up to a total stranger and start a conversation.
I for one would break out in a cold sweat.
If I were to do anything I would need an ice breaker.
The "tract" is the perfect tool.
It is a short document promoting Christianity on one sheet of paper folded like a very small brochure.
It normally has some inspiring story and a call for action.
It has a place for a rubber stamp to identify some local contact suggestion.
You can get these items from the American Tract Society at their website,http://www.
atstracts.
org/ at a very reasonable price.
Select something appropriate that relates to you and who you might give a tract to.
As an example, if you like sports, you can find one featuring the story of a famous sports figure.
You need to be creative here.
Assume someone will ask about what is in the tract, you don't want to appear ignorant on the subject.
So the next step is to distribute them.
The rules are that you need to be in "the public square" when giving them out.
If you live in a big city you can just stand on any corner and give them to people as they walk by.
What do you say when you give them out? You could say, "here" or "this may be of interest to you", or nothing at all and just stick it out towards someone.
They either take it or they don't.
No fuse.
No bother.
It they ask, "What's this?" just say "Its about ...
" (whatever it is about) Now what happens next is up to you.
Some people will want to talk to you.
You do not have to talk to them.
You could simply refer them to the contact information on the tract.
If you did not add any, the tract still has the contact for the American Tract Society.
But if you want to talk and or you feel led to talk, you know that the ice broken and you can start using the subject matter of the tract.
You can use this as a regular ministry.
Or you can do it with a group.
My church in Jersey City, NJ in the 1950's would have an outreach of giving out tracts and then have a group out door "street meeting".
This was done on certain Friday nights in a shopping district which was busy then.
A small crowd regularly gathered and listened to the evangelical message.
Anyone could go and participate in any way they chose.
You could just stand in the crowd as no one wants to be the first to stop and listen.
You could hand out tracts to people.
Or if you wanted, you could say something publicly as part of that street meeting.
Or you could just do it on your own any time you wanted to or decided to.
I remember being alone while traveling from New Jersey to Virginia along route 81 in 1999.
I stopped at a Cracker barrel for breakfast or lunch.
I had on Jeans and a long sleeve flannel shirt.
A woman came up to my table and said that I looked like a truck driver and that she felt compelled to give me something.
It was a tract.
I took it gracefully and thanked her.
I did not know why she felt I needed that tract.
Maybe me writing this now is what God had in mind when he prompted that woman to give me that tract some 8 years ago.
Perhaps God knew it would take me 8 years to get around to do it.
(I cry when I read what I just wrote here.
) So my honest suggestion, just give it a try.
Source...