The Beauty of Obedience | A Guest Post by Alicia Hamilton

Sharing the gospel doesn’t have to feel forced

Photo by Maayan Nemanov on Unsplash (edited)

Alicia Hamilton is the author of Eternity in Our Hearts. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband where she spends her days discipling students, serving the teens at her local church, and drinking coffee on her back porch. She writes A Creative Connection, a monthly devotional where readers rest in the wonder of God, and The Writer’s Cottage, a newsletter community for Christian writers who want to develop their craft and belong to a community of creators. You can connect with Alicia on Instagram and look for her next book in late 2025.

I was sixteen, sitting at a clunky metal folding table in a driver’s education class, when I felt it. It was a nudge, a simple prompt in my gut with the urgency of a bomb and the gentleness of a feather.

Go.

I rarely get this kind of “lightning bolt” from the Lord. I almost never get clear instructions or words, but when God speaks directly like that, it’s usually about something I do not want to do.

I tensed, every cell in my brain screaming no. I knew where God was asking me to go, and I did not want to obey. It wasn’t anywhere far; the Holy Spirit wasn’t calling me overseas or even across the country. Instead, he called me across the room.

There were two girls in my class to whom I’d never spoken. I’d never really thought about them, and I was certain they hadn’t thought about me. So why was the Holy Spirit asking me to talk to them? To sit with them? I was scared. I felt ill-equipped and tongue-tied. So I did the worst thing possible: I ignored God.

Christians want to have spiritual conversations and share the gospel. Most of us feel like we should do this. And yet—whether because of the crippling pressure we place on ourselves to do it perfectly, inexperience that leads to fear, a hesitation because we don't want to be "pushy," or a lack of knowing where to start—we never have the conversation.

How do we delight in following the Spirit into the unknown of gospel conversations? How do we share the hope that we have in ways that are winsome and wise instead of trite, forced, or uncomfortable? And how do we prioritize our love for God and love for people as we explore this topic? Gospel conversations don’t have to be scary or awkward. Instead, they can flow naturally out of our delight in what Jesus has done for us and a deep love for the people around us.

Delight in Obedience

I had a surgery my freshman year of high school that, among other things, expanded my lung capacity to a normal range. When I left the hospital the nurses gave me an incentive spirometer, a little device designed to exercise your lungs. I hated that thing. Blowing into it and holding my breath was so uncomfortable, and I couldn’t see it making a difference. Every part of me wanted to throw it in the trash. But sometimes the things that take effort, are uncomfortable, and feel useless at times are truly for our good. Hard things can effect change that we might not ever tangibly see.

God shows his love in many ways, most clearly in taking the weight of sin on himself so we can be free from it. He comforts us in pain. He gives us beautiful gifts. But sometimes God’s love comes in the form of a command that we do not want to follow.

God will not command something that is to our spiritual detriment. He sees all things, has all power, loves us perfectly, and knows us better than we know ourselves. If this is all true, why would he tell us to do something useless or harmful? Hesitation to obey might actually be hesitation to trust that God knows better than we do.

Many Scripture passages exhort us to share the good news, but the most famous comes through Jesus when he tells his disciples,

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19–20 ESV).

He pairs the command to go out and make disciples with the promise that he will be with us always.

Likewise, Paul asks,

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’” (Romans 10:14–15 ESV).

He communicates the urgency of inviting others into God’s family. If not you, then who?

Over and over throughout my life I have hesitated on the brink of spiritual conversations, not wanting to be pushy or awkward. But then I remember that day in driver’s education, and I dive in. Following the prompting of the Holy Spirit is not always easy, but it is always worth it, and God deserves our obedience. When God asks me to talk to someone, he knows what that person needs better than I do, and I can trust the Holy Spirit to guide our conversation.

Psalm 1 tells us that the person “whose delight is in the law of the LORD” is “like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (vv. 2–3 ESV). Indeed, the psalm opens by calling this person “[b]lessed” (v. 1 ESV). How often do we see obedience as a delight? Do we really believe that obedience leads to flourishing? We can engage in gospel conversations with the surety that God knows what is best for us and that obedience always leads to life.

Examine Your Motives

Sometimes sharing the gospel feels like an extracurricular for Christians—a box to check—instead of something that overflows from our delight and devotion to Christ. Sometimes we scramble to work the gospel into a conversation with a stranger to feel good about ourselves instead of to love them, and this is dangerous. People know when they are projects. But when we begin to see people as image bearers of God instead of receptacles for our gospel presentations, spiritual conversations become more organic, loving, and helpful.

Jesus had a deep love for the people he was ministering to and teaching about the kingdom of heaven. Matthew writes,

“When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest’” (9:36-38 ESV).

If we are having trouble seeing evangelism as a loving conversation, an overflow of gratitude for salvation, and a way to love those around us, there is a chance we need to be refreshed in our love of the gospel and of people. If we are having trouble delighting in the beauty of this good news and truly loving our fellow image bearers, we can ask God to renew our awe, spend time in the Word, and ask the family of God to fight in prayer for us. The Holy Spirit is the one who changes our hearts. Let’s ask Him to.

Simply Start the Conversation

We don’t need to share a four-point gospel presentation the first time we talk to someone, unless the Holy Spirit prompts us to do this. We don’t need to steer every conversation with our friends toward asking them to make the decision to follow Jesus. Everyone is on a spiritual journey, and we might just be one conversation or one relationship that is a stepping stone to faith. We can trust the Holy Spirit—He knows what each person needs. We can ask Him to guide us, and be open to what He asks of us.

The best way to start a spiritual conversation with someone is to actually care about them and get to know them. Here are a few questions to ask that will hopefully spark deep conversations about life and God.

Before starting the conversation with a friend, ask yourself:

• How can I ask questions to get to know them better and make them feel heard?

• What does my friend care most about in life?

Before starting the conversation with an acquaintance or stranger, ask yourself:

• Am I actually seeking to understand and get to know this person? In other words, am I seeing this person as a “project” or an image bearer of God to love and respect?

• What kind of conversation is the Holy Spirit asking me to engage in?

Possible questions to ask:

• What gets you out of bed in the morning?

• What are you most excited about these days?

• What do you think the goal of your life is?

• Do you consider yourself a spiritual person?

• Are there any ways I can pray for you this week?

• Are there any things worrying you or weighing you down?

• What makes you feel loved or appreciated?

• Who are the people who have shaped your life the most?

• Do you think there is a higher power?

• Where do you believe beauty and truth come from?

• What do you believe happens after life on this earth?

• Have you ever felt something supernatural? What was that like for you?

This is not an exhaustive list and not all of these are “spiritual” questions, but they can all lead to deep spiritual discussions. Don’t force a conversation. Instead, focus on loving the person by asking caring questions. And when the Holy Spirit gives you the opportunity to share the gospel fully, take the risk. Dive in. Trust Him.

On the last day of my driver’s education class, after the final was turned in and people milled around the room, I “accidentally” ended up next to those girls God had asked me to sit with. We talked about life. We talked about music. And eventually we talked about the created world, which led to a gospel conversation. These girls were spiritually curious and very open to talking about Jesus.

I do not know what would have happened if I had obeyed earlier, but I am grateful that God gave me a second chance to have this conversation. It was a gift, handed to me by the Holy Spirit, who is generous and sovereign. It taught me that we do not need to be afraid to hold out the hope that we have. It does not need to feel awkward to share the best story ever told. It is a delight and a gift to make disciples in partnership with our Savior, who is with us “always, to the end of the age.”