Evangelizing 101: ‘Be real,’ missionary tells aspiring evangelizers

VANCOUVER—“I’m the worst Catholic in the world.”

When missionary Amber Zolc heard those words, she knew the university student in front of her needed to hear the Gospel.

A few days later, they went out for coffee and Zolc started a life-changing conversation with the young woman. Now, the missionary is sharing some tools all Christians can use to reach out to those around them.

“Don’t be afraid to be real with people,” said Zolc, who led a workshop on evangelism for 70 people at the John Paul II Pastoral Centre Jan. 19.

“People are far more likely to listen to people who have influence in their life, or friends who care about them and have their best interests at heart.”

Zolc and her new friend, who she had met at a pro-life event on campus, enjoyed a coffee and a conversation about their lives. Her friend opened up about her background; growing up Italian, she had pride in her culturally Catholic identity, but didn’t attend Mass and didn’t talk about Jesus.

“I felt prompted in that moment to ask: ‘Who is Jesus in your life?’”

The woman got uncomfortable and didn’t have an answer. Zolc said “it was the perfect opportunity for me to invite her to take part in our Discovery faith study.” Discover, run by Catholic Christian Outreach, “is all about who Jesus is and how he is relevant in our lives.”

The woman was curious, so she joined the six-week faith study. It helped her build a relationship with Jesus, and after another six months (and many more coffees) the young woman went back to church.

“The first thing is always to remember to love people and care for people. When we establish that level of friendship and relationship, we shouldn’t be afraid to speak,” said Zolc.

“Often, I think some fear comes in: ‘Will I jeopardize this relationship? What will they think of me? Will they stop talking to me?’ When we really work to establish good relationships, that fear is alleviated because no matter what we say or do, that person is going to be a friend.”

Zolc has been a missionary with Catholic Christian Outreach for 15 years and is a bold advocate for Discover Discipleship in the Archdiocese of Vancouver. She said another fear that stops people from evangelizing is the worry that they don’t have all the answers. 

“There are examples in the Scriptures of people who encounter Jesus and go on to share the Gospel immediately,” like the woman at the well, she said.

The woman didn’t have a theology degree and didn’t spend years thinking about Jesus’ words to her before telling everyone else in the town. She did so at once.

“We don’t need to have all the answers, but if we love Jesus, that’s what we need to share with the world: our own encounter and relationship with him.”

Zolc encouraged the 70 people at the workshop to be good friends, be honest about their faith, and invite friends who are interested in God to faith studies such as Alpha or Discovery.

“The very basis of it all is trust,” she said.

“They might have a trust in God, or the Church, or because they went to Catholic school. It could be a cultural trust. Some people have no association with the Church, but their bridge of trust can be a Christian who has been a good friend to them.”

Helping people “Get closer to Jesus” is one of Archbishop J. Michael Miller's goals for the Archdiocese of Vancouver. The archbishop has used every opportunity he can find to encourage those interested in introductory faith studies to try Discover Discipleship or Alpha.

Amber’s Tips For Evangelism:

Love people. People are far more likely to listen to those who have influence in their lives or their friends who care about them and have their best interests at heart.

Call upon the Holy Spirit. When you don’t know what to say, quietly in the depths of your heart, ask: “Come Holy Spirit and give me the words to say,” and trust that he will speak.

You don’t need all the answers. When a question comes up that you don’t know the answer to, say: “that’s a really great question. Let me look it up and get back to you.”