The leading British evangelical Andy Frost has spoken of how he became aware of God's 'promptings' during a formative experience when he had a chance encounter with a homeless woman selling the The Big Issue last year.
Frost, who is director of Share Jesus International, is the project leader behind the 'Prompt' campaign introduced in 2017 to mark the month following Pentecost, which was so popular last year that it has been relaunched for the whole of 2018.
The idea behind the campaign is to encourage participants prayerfully to ask God a weekly question and then look out for opportunities that arise where they can follow through with a challenge. Each Monday the Prompt team sends out an email and text message including a question such as, 'How can I bless one of my neighbours today?' or, 'What God-given characteristics can I affirm in a stranger today?'
Frost told Christian Today about the importance of 'working out that God isn't just at work on Sunday mornings but in every part of our lives, so we are more aware of what God is doing day to day, and not just boxing him in on Sunday mornings'. Instead, 'it is about finding God in the street, the workplace, everywhere. God's often prompting us but we're often so busy with heads down, looking at our phones and so on.'
He says: 'Last year, for first time I became way more aware of God's promptings – there was a Big Issue seller outside my station and the prompt I received was about God's hope.' Frost acted on this prompt and sat down with the woman, bought her a coffee and 'talked to her for 15 minutes about hope in her situations'. Now, they chat regularly.
Awareness of God's promptings makes Frost 'more audacious, more brave' on a day-to-day basis.
'Often we forget how through little things God wants us to do something special,' he says. 'When it comes to sharing our faith, people often find it daunting – how to lead someone to Christ. It's about being aware that God is already at work, drawing people close to him. Our job is about playing an active role in that, helping nudge them towards God. As Christians we need to be encouraged to share our faith, to give a little nudge, day-to-day rather than feeling we have to do everything at once.'
On the campaign, Frost says: 'Last year we were blown away both by the engagement and the response to what is a simple challenge to listen to God's prompting and do something. This year we wanted to take this to the next level and we are so excited about how God might use his people when they are simply obedient to his call.'
He continues: 'The Church of England campaign, Thy Kingdom Come, has been a brilliant way of galvanising prayer for people to come to faith. We hope that after Pentecost people will continue to pray for those around them and look to see how God will use them in part to see their prayers answered.'
Last year's Prompt campaign saw hundreds take part. And a recent Barna Global study found that one in five people in the UK are open to a conversation about faith and Jesus. Now, organisers hope that the Prompt campaign can be a catalyst for those conversations to be a reality. Both individuals and churches are being urged to sign up to this year's Prompt challenge and the website provides church leaders with a variety of resources including teaching videos, promotional cards, sermon outlines and house group discussions.
For more information and to register for this year's campaign, click here.
