“Are you a Christian?”

Over 50 years ago, one question by a mechanic rerouted my grandpa Tom Pace’s life.

“Yes, I’m a Christian,” Tom said. But he didn’t get why Dave Covington, the large, friendly mechanic, would ask.

Dave grinned and said, “Really? I am too!”

Tom wouldn’t have even met Dave if his Volkswagon bug hadn’t flipped–with him in it. Now the bug was stuck in Dave’s shop and Tom was stuck with Dave as his only ride back.

As Dave drove Tom back to his Christian college in Longview, Texas, the mechanic didn’t swear or pass on dirty stories, instead he eagerly kept on talking about Jesus–in a way Tom hadn’t heard before.

Something was different about Dave. For him, being a Christian didn’t just mean church on Sundays. Jesus wasn’t just a good teacher; he was his personal Savior & his true friend.

Tom’s life changed because of one mechanic who couldn’t keep quiet about Christ. 

Tom had known the truth his whole life, but he hadn’t known the difference it could make. He went to church, sat through his 7 a.m. Bible classes, dropped 10% in the offering plate . . .

But he wasn’t saved.

God used that conversation with Dave, along with the influence of other Christians in Tom’s life, to not only change Tom’s life, but to change his future.

Now, all these decades later, my grandparent’s life of service and ministry in Peru has affected thousands of people.

These past few days, I’ve been evaluating how often I share Jesus with those I meet. Shouldn’t that be the priority? But as a student at a Christian high school . . . and then a Christian college, I’ve noticed how little I’ve asked those around me, “Are you a Christian?”

Too often I’ve assumed that those around me have encountered the same hope I cling to. But just knowing about the truth or hearing about Jesus in a classroom won’t cut it. I know that many of the students around me weren’t saved.

We have the freedom to speak of Jesus & proclaim the amazing work He’s daily doing in our life . . . yet, at least in my case, we often don’t. 

Yesterday, I took an Uber for the first time. Before the driver pulled up, I prayed that I could use the 50-minute drive from the hospital to my house to talk about Jesus.

God, as always, came through.

Almost immediately, my conversation with the driver turned to churches in Lima. And then, my driver told me his testimony and how he came to know Jesus as a teenager.

“I gave my life to Christ and it changed everything,” he said, then went on to tell me about the church he was attending and the Christian school his wife taught at.

How amazing! I got to have an hour-long conversation with a stranger–about the most important Person in our lives!

We should actively seek out these conversations. It may be awkward and it is certainly intimidating, but just asking “Are you a Christian?” could change someone’s life. 

This isn’t something that comes easily or naturally to me, but it is something that God continually calls us to do.

The song “One Awkward Moment” by Casting Crowns perfectly depicts this:

One word, one hand

Tell me, is that too high a price?

One awkward moment

Could be the one that saves a life

Your hurt, your scars

God will use to open up her eyes

One awkward moment

You’ll see the gospel come alive

Come alive

Satan keeps whispering that I won’t have the right words to convince or that no one will listen if I did. But God’s truth stamps out these lies. If we ask, God will give us the words, the conversations, the opportunities.

I want to see the gospel come alive, not just in my life, but in the lives that “brush” against mine. 

What about you? When will you turn and ask, “Are you a Christian?”