How to Talk about Jesus without Looking like an Idiot: A Panic-Free Guide to Having Natural Conversations about Your Faith

by Andy Bannister, Lee Strobel (Foreword)

Have natural conversations with your friends and family about your faith. Discover four key questions that invite people into engaging discussions about what matters most in life.

Why is it so difficult to talk to our closest friends about what's most important to us? Our true identity? Our hopes and dreams? Our true purpose and faith? Andy Bannister struggled with that question himself. As a twentysomething, he operated as an Undercover Christian at his job. He knew it didn't make sense, and he spent the following decades helping countless people find easy, natural ways to talk about the fundamental questions of life with the ones they love. How to Talk about Jesus without Looking like an Idiot explores

why you don't need to be afraid or uncomfortable,the four questions that help people open up,the five steps to respond to tough questions, andhow to effortlessly bring faith into a conversation.
It doesn't need to be awkward. Everyday conversations that open the door to evangelism can be painless and natural. Let Andy help you find easy ways to talk about the true meaning of life and learn how to share the gospel with your neighbors, friends, and family.

Genres: Christian, Religion, Evangelism, Nonfiction, Faith, Christianity, Theology

266 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 4, 2023

About the author

Andy Bannister is the Director of the Solas Centre for Public Christianity, speaking and teaching regularly throughout the UK, Europe, Canada, the USA, and the wider world. From universities to churches, business forums to TV and radio, Andy regularly addresses audiences of both Christians and those of all faiths and none on issues relating to faith, culture, politics and society.

Andy holds a PhD in Islamic studies and has taught extensively at universities across Canada, the USA, the UK and further afield on both Islam and philosophy. He is also an Adjunct Research Fellow at The Arthur Jeffery Centre for the Study of Islam at Melbourne School of Theology and also Adjunct Faculty at Wycliffe College, University of Toronto.

Among Andy's various books and publications are:

* Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God? — a popular, witty, and engaging look at this vital question

* The Atheist Who Didn’t Exist (or: The Dreadful Consequences of Really Bad Arguments) — a very funny (but also quite serious) engagement with the New Atheism

* Healthy Faith and the Coronavirus Crisis — I wrote a chapter in this multi-author volume looking at how we can engage in evangelism even in an age of lockdown

* Heroes: Five Lessons From Whose Lives We Can Learn — an exciting and fast-moving looking at the lives of five incredible giants of the Christian faith

* An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qur’an — a groundbreaking and innovative study that reveals many of the ways the Qur’an was first composed

* Burning Questions — a Canadian TV documentary exploring six big questions about God, faith, and Christianity

When not travelling, speaking, or writing, Andy is a keen hiker, mountain climber and photographer. Andy is married to Astrid and they have two children, Caitriona and Christopher.

Reviews

[Michael K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

IF you are like me, you have problems starting conversations with others about Jesu, religion, salvation and other spiritual matters. Then this book is for you. Great tips for breaking the ice with others. Even now, in the "twilight years" of my life...even though, for the most part I do not care what people think of me...I still have problems starting those conversations. Every little bit, and every tidbit of information and every tip I can take in order to use for the benefit of my God...I will take it! This book gives some good tips to apply the questioning and the types of questions to use. A very helpful set of skills that everyone who is either an apologist or an evangelist can put to great use in their ministry, as well as, in their gifts for God's great purpose in their lives.

[Jon Håversen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Svært god bok - veldig virkelighetsnær beskrivelse av livet som kristen. Gode praktiske råd til hvordan dele troen på en autentisk og relevant måte. Jeg håper mange leser denne boken!

[Oddmund Horpestad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, sjelsynt har møtt på slik ei bok, morsam, spennande, relevant, oppløftande og lærerik kan gje innleiande peikepinn på innhaldet i denne boka. Anbefalast utan tvil!

Andy byrjar med å ta for seg å setje ord på vanlege aspekt ein kan vera redd for og som held ein attende som Kristen frå å dele.

Han trekk og fram 4 spørsmål til hjelp og verktøy for å ha betre ssmtalar og unngå å gå i grøfte å være "churchy" kristne.
Han presenter og eit akronym: Shape, for korleis kan svare på vennars spørsmål når tida er inne for det og viktigheita av at finnes svar.

Gjennom boka tar han og for seg ei mengde med vanskelege spørsmål og gjev gode svar på dei, og grunnar til å tenke etter i møte med falske forutsenader.

[David Ukkelberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Syntes dette var en bra skrevet bok, og veldig praktisk med gode tips til evangelisering på en naturlig måte i hverdagen. Han nevner også viktigheten av å inkludere bønn i evangelisering, da det er ikke noe vi gjør helt alene, men noe Den hellige ånd er med på!

[Benjamin Eikrem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humoristisk, praktisk og evangeliefokusert. Kan virkelig anbefales!

[Luke Tappen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic guide for Christians at any comfort level when it comes to sharing their faith. I loved the wit and lighthearted British humor, but what stood out most was the humble and caring approach to how we engage in these discussions.

It’s widely understood that asking questions is key to being a good listener and understanding others more deeply. I especially appreciated how the book breaks down the “what,” “why,” “wondering,” and “whether” types of questions. This shift transforms our self-focused fear of being questioned or not knowing the answers into an opportunity for genuine curiosity about where the other person is coming from. Not only does this ease our anxiety and take the pressure off, but it also helps us focus on responding in a way that points to Jesus, rather than to ourselves.

Listened on Hoopla, and loved hearing the British accent. Got through it a bit fast. I need to work on being more attentive to the books I listen to, so that I can more fully grasp the content and let it seep into my memory. May want to come back to parts of this in the future.

[Desi RobeRson · Rating 5 out of 5]

"How To Talk About Jesus without Looking Like An Idiot: A panic free guide to having natural conversations about your faith" is NOT just another 'Christian self-help' book (or whatever it would be labeled as)! A true guide and tool -I believe- every christian should read!

If the title of this book hits you like it hit me, and you've been struggling with this topic... BUY yourself a hardcopy! Don’t use the library, or do the audiobook -unless that's your only option (it is great btw) - because you will want to highlight, underline, make notes & re-highlight & re-read this book! You will be so pumped you finally found the book you were looking for!
This was SUCH a great book! Not only helpful, interesting & inspiring, but so enjoyable! Some books can give you great & helpful facts, maybe even a few applications, but not be fun to actually read. You just want to be done with it and have gotten from it the help you needed. That was not the case with this book. I first saw this come up in my Spotify as an audiobook & I had a free trial. The title immediately got me. "I need that!" A quick search through the library catalog came up as a dead end, so I started the audiobook (I never buy books full price. Especially if I don't know they're any good). Honestly, as great as the title fit me, I didn't truly think the book would end up being anything like I hoped, or that I'd actually feel it worth finishing. I have been 'burned' by quite a lot of 'christian self-help books' in the past. I'd either finished it, or nearly finished it when I realized the author was still harping on the same points that were pretty obvious ones, their story dragged on in circles & sometimes just retold in a different way (just to add pages to the book rather than actually telling a story worth sharing -quantity rather than quality-) they hadn't yet given any groundbreaking discoveries or anything different from anyone else out there & they kept acting like the answer was on the next page...after next page & the next until.... BOOM! It's Jesus. The end! ...Okay that sounds very wrong to say because yes of course Jesus is the answer we're all needing, but you know what I mean. Some books just....I won't say should never be written because I'm sure those authors felt they needed to write that book to help someone, but..... Ughhhhh. Could you not have wasted my time? [RANT: I cannot tell you how bad it irks me that EVERYONE is writing a book now. *heavy sigh, low growl. We are in the end times I tell you!! I kid, but..... really, people. Maybe stop? Or...don't start?]. Okay continuing on! The Author, Andy Bannister, is the narrator which is fun because he's British & that makes it all that much more enjoyable with his wordage and way of talking. I don't know about everybody else who will read this book, but all the fears, reluctance, excuses, scenarios etc. I myself have come up with in not talking about Jesus, or sharing the Gospel with others, was basically all right there in front of me, but with realistic ways to work on them.
Mr Bannister tells you a little bit about his story & of course why he wrote this book, gives you examples & scenario after scenario of real life questions & conversations you can have with people anywhere and all "without looking like an idiot" in such a fun, quirky? & witty worded way. It's packed with practical solutions, application, examples from Scripture, and actually gives you the sense that "yes, it's not as hard as I've made it. I CAN do this!" & encourages you to go out and do it! I have too many sad stories of how awkward I've made conversations with people trying not to be awkward about it, but very awkwardly introducing the Gospel so randomly into a conversation because I literally could not just have an honest regular conversation & ask questions, or even just wait for the right time to share it. I've gone total "I was homeschooled" mode on several occasions. I pray the Lord has sent someone else to those people to let them know all christians aren't like that! This book just NAILS it! I am just SO encouraged by what I've learned from this book & I hope & pray it's the beginning of a more understanding heart, & better near future conversations with friends, acquaintances & strangers. Already looking into Mr. Bannister's other books, as well as his Solas ministry. So. I am definitely going to be BUYING this book to reread & take more notes. I also want to buy a copy for someone else I know will want to read this. :D

The author ends the book with this:
"I've experienced in my own life that when we find our voice & speak up, God can use even the smallest & weakest of us for His purposes. ...Jesus does not ask us to look like idiots, but He does ask us to be foolish & take a risk & in doing so He does not ask us to do anything he hasn't already done Himself. Indeed, that He has not done first. For in Jesus, God took the risk; took the initiative, gave His all, stepping into history knowing full well what it would cost Him. And God did this because of His tremendous love for us & His great love for our friends. Thus the good news is: however much we want to share the Gospel with our friends & colleagues, however great our desire is for them to know Jesus, God's desire is infinitely bigger than ours. Proven, by what He did in Jesus. God's love for our friends is far far greater than ours & so as we step out in faith we do this not in our power, but the power of the Holy Spirit that God gives us. As the Bible puts it so beautifully: "Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21. "

Amen & amen!

[Jenna Thornton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Common fears -> common sharing -> common questioning

[Kimberlee Baas · Rating 4 out of 5]

He will keep you laughing- great British humor! But also super practical and helpful ways to think through sharing the gospel

[Michelle Spencer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely will be revisiting this one over and over again. Bannister’s teaching style is approachable, practical, and sensible…not to mention goofy at times, which is a huge checkmark in the “Pros” column for me. With lots of examples and personal anecdotes, this book is chock full of helpful advice for anyone looking to have deep and meaningful conversations about their faith in Jesus.

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing! Such practical advice and great stories shared with a touch a humour. I will definitely be coming back to this to take more notes again and again!

[DPMG-67 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Lore

I got this book for Christmas. Of 2025. We are now three months from next Christmas, which means that this book was basically shelved for while. I don't remember when exactly I truly started reading this book, but it was months after the Christmas I got it. But recently, in about the past month (maybe two), I got more interested in the book and started to read it more than I ever had before. And then, the last few weeks of my reading, I got the book on Audible, which made my reading/listening so much quicker, since I suck at reading physical books.

I probably received the book because, at that time, I had progressively become more and more interested in the subject of evangelism and apologetics. And as the result of our extended family's Secret Santa, I got a well-appreciated resource.

But anyways. Today, the day I published this review, I decided to finish the push. Mainly because I wanted to start reading one book a month, and also because I wanted to buy the 2-credit version of Audible Premium to get the two parts of Systematic Theology (for school). And I did it. One-and-a-half hours of "grinding", with breaks in between, and I have finally finished the book.

But what did I think about it?

My Thoughts

Chapters On Fearless Evangelism

The first two chapters weren't really targeted at me specifically. At that point, I was never really afraid of evangelizing, because, frankly, I would just randomly ask someone "Would you like to have a theological discussion?" From this book, I've learned that my efforts then were not the typically ideal way to evangelize (although I have had a couple of fruitful conversations). That's probably why I'm more afraid to evangelize, but, as the book says, I just have to find a more casual and cohesive way to bring Jesus into the conversation.

Although the first few chapters didn't have as rich of information as the others, at least for me, there were still good parts. For example, the section where the author's friend brings to attention that the fact that people are admiring John Lennox for doing what they could never do was not very good. After all, why is it good that people are saying that can't evangelize like other people can? Maybe we need a lot of $1 evangelists rather than another single $1 million evangelist.

The point about Jonah is one I love. His sermon to Nineveh just... sucked. But God still used his awful sermon to turn the entire city. I liked this point so much that I've even started called it "The Jonah Effect". It's comforting that God is in control and can use even my worse evangelism attempts to turn hearts.

Evangelism In Everyday Places

The section about bringing up God in mundane and not-so-mundane conversations was a section I loved as well. It was small, but powerful. So many opportunities were presented there that I had never thought of but now realize are pretty realistic. From reading atheistic books in plain view to conversations about environmentalism, these were all things that I had never thought of before. And obviously, this isn't nearly a comprehensive list, but rather a launching point to basically say "If you can bring in Jesus without it feeling cheesy, do it."

Chapters On Questions

You know, I never thought about just how many questions Jesus asked, but after reading the chapter titled "Learning Questions From The Master", yeah he did ask a lot of questions! It's funny because he was the one person who didn't need to know what others were thinking. They were purely rhetorical. They got people thinking instead of just spouting out their version of TikTok nonsense they heard but never truly thought about (and no I do not have TikTok and don't ever plan to).

The four base questions of "Do you think there's god. If so what is he like?", "What does it mean to be a human being?", "What's gone wrong with the world?", and "What's the solution?" is a really broad but highly applicable template for a lot of conversations.

I'm combining these chapters with something that Wes Huff said, but we don't need to answer every question. Mainly because a lot of the things people "ask" aren't questions, they're statements! Like "The Bible is corrupted". You don't immediately go into defense mode, you ask questions like "Who told you the Bible is corrupted?" or "Do you know how is corrupted exactly?" Questions force people to think and not just parrot what they've heard from others (who also might be parroting what they've heard).

The types of questions were very organized. The what, why, whether, and wondering questions really get people to think, and I, Lord willing, will use them often from now on whenever the opportunity arises.

Answering Questions

The books gives its readers an acronym. That's so helpful! SHARE was the acronym, which stands for Sympathize, Hidden Assumptions, Apply the Bible, Retell the Gospel, and Equip (with further resources). I don't think I really need to explain much what the words in the acronym are talking about. I think it's mostly self-explanatory. I loved this section.

Bringing It Back To Jesus

What about bringing a conversation back to Jesus? Or starting one about him? Well, this book gives a few tips. First of all, talking about Christianity is different from what people might typically expect of religion and thus Christianity.

Second, avoiding words that people typically associate with bad things, if possible. Obviously, you can't just ignore God's judgement, that's kind of a key part of the Gospel. But there are other words that might make a conversation go better if they were avoided, like "religion". Apparently people tend to think of "religion" as a set of rules and guidelines for your life that you have to hold to. Christianity is quite different from that, so avoiding certain words can remove the need to dismantle any assumptions.

Lastly, the author also adds three extra conversation starters of "That reminds me of something Jesus said", "...did", and "...a story Jesus told". These also seem great for evangelism and I can't wait to get to using them.

How To Witness To People

The chapter titled "How Not To Be A Crunchy Christian" was very interesting. Trying to defend the horrible things the Church has done is stupid, so instead sympathize with them and point them to the only part of the Church body who would never do anything horrible: Christ.

Being graceful, kind, and gentle at all times during evangelism was a point that lined up pretty well with 1 Peter 3:15. Being like Jesus, in the sense of sacrificing yourself in various ways, hanging out with people who seem too far gone, being honest about your failures, and most importantly PRAYING were all great pieces of advice that I hope to cherish.

The chapter was didn't really have that many obvious highlights, but the highlights it did have were extremely significant.

Getting Started & Reminders

The book ends with a bit of a repeat of chapter four, fourteen, and parts of other chapters, but it's still good to be reminded. The main thing he emphasized were two things: First, don't feel like you need to read all of the evangelism books, and then you'll be ready. There will always be more to read. You would die before you read all of them, and thus, before you would ever evangelize.

Second, and this one's the big one, pray. I'm not that great at prayer, although God has been gracious to me and I have been getting better at it. If we cut ourselves off from God, we begin to think it's our job to change hearts, and that's simply not the case. Prayer will increase our trust and confidence in the Lord during evangelism.

The part about the hidden changing heart was really encouraging to me. The vast majority of the time, my evangelism efforts feel like they do nothing. But I can't see hearts, so who knows? Maybe God is changing their heart behind the scenes. And maybe that conversation wasn't a one trick effort that either completely failed or converted them on the spot. Rather, it could just be a small step that God uses over potentially years to bring them to Him.

Conclusion

With all that being said, I can't really find any problems with this book. I think it balanced man's free will and God's sovereignty perfectly. The part about not using words people associate as bad or negative I think could've used clarification, but other than that my main complaint is that I wish there was more!

I couldn't find any major flaws in this book, and it was extremely helpful for my future evangelistic efforts.

So for this, I give it 5 stars!

Glory to God in the highest! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!

[Kristjan · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are a number of reasons why christians might struggle in talking about their faith; and for the most part, I think the author does a good job identifying most of them in the first three (3) chapters. Perhaps the most significant one that I have encountered, and is missing from this book, is that many christians really don’t have a lot of depth to their faith and they are comfortably fine in their own little bubble with no real desire to learn more about it (or themselves). Regardless, christians are expected to evangelize and this book does have some good general ideas on how to do that; however, it falls down in the specifics that rely too heavily on gotcha moments and logical fallacies (I am looking at you scarecrow). For example … that author makes a huge deal about relative moralism and how it just doesn’t work, ignoring any nuance introduced by social needs … in other words, either it is every man for themselves or there are objective truths that must by nature be determined through divine revelation. Next up … the belief that good and evil are solely christian concepts because you can’t define evil in a relative moralistic society … et al. If any of these arguments actually work, you need to find a better class of atheist ‘cause even I can swat those soft pitches over the back wall.

But that is not why this book actually fails to prevent you from looking like an idiot. The whole premise of this book is how to drive openings into personal interactions so that you can engage in apologetics. This type of ambush theology is exactly what makes “crunchy christians” (define by the author as christians people go out of their way to avoid). It may work for the author, who is obviously quick-witted and disarmingly humorous, but for the rest of us, it’s a mixed bag (and there is a growing body of research that indicates that apologetics is not very effective in driving conversion). In other words, you may not feel like an idiot, but that opinion is not shared by your target audience. That is not to say that you would not gain any useful tips, tricks or ideas … only that some tweaking (and practice) is needed before achieving the results you may be looking for.

Chapter 1 Undercover Christian
Chapter 2 The Sum of All Fears
Chapter 3 The First Steps to Total Fear-Less Evangelism
Chapter 4 Evangelism in Everyday Places
Chapter 5 The Power of a Good Question
Chapter 6 Learning Questions From the Master
Chapter 7 A Toolbox for Evangelism
Chapter 8 The What Question
Chapter 9 The Why Question
Chapter 10 The Wondering Question
Chapter 11 The Whether Question
Chapter 12 Five Simple Steps for Answering Tough Questions
Chapter 13 Bringing It Back to Jesus
Chapter 14 How Not To Be a Crunchy Christian
Chapter 15 Foolish Evangelism

I was given this free advance reader copy (ARC) ebook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

#HowtoTalkaboutJesuswithoutLookinglikeanIdiot #NetGalley

[Patrick Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good look into evangelism, particularly how to communicate complex stories and themes in a gentle way. Also a good primer on how to talk about contentious things.

[Josh Simons · Rating 4 out of 5]

You could look at this book as merely a guide to help improve your communication and steps that lead to better conversations. If you apply that to gospel conversations, This will be a great benefit on how to talk about your faith without feeling like it’s a gimmick or shoehorning it in awkwardly and I’ve been able to immediately put into practice the the what and why chapters. There is a lot of good in here. Some of the chapters still left me feeling like, “I’m not quick witted enough to have the conversations he’s describing,” but if you look at them as examples and not prescriptions that’s not so bad. I wasn’t a big fan of the last three chapters for how it leaned on authors that are left-leaning, but overall, I thought it was good.

[Sydney Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was very encouraging! It was a little redundant and droned on a bit at times. Have a lot of practical, actionable goals and tips.
You also have to get over the fact that this man is a middle aged British dad and he has like 2 footnotes on every page with a tongue-in-cheek joke.
I read 75% of this book in one day last summer but then forgot about it/put it off until like a week ago and just now finished it

[Brock Cerny · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid book on evangelism. Andy’s humor is certainly what makes this book so unique from others in this category. The message within and the practical steps suggested are numerous enough to come away with at least more ideas than you went in with. A fast easy read that’s entertaining and educational at the same time.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

Favorite book on evangelism! I laughed! I cried! One great quote from this book is, “Fear reveals our idols.” The author’s reading and accent were AMAZING!!! I recommend the podcast “Hearts for the Lost,” that goes so well with this. Also, excited to check out all the books the author mentioned throughout this book - most I had never heard of.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Ideal Way To Talk About Jesus
... is to not look like an idiot.

This is a great book on discipleship.

I enjoyed Andy's writing, and found it fun, funny, and powerful.

Lots of great tips and recommendations.

Check this out if you too are a bit scared to bring up your faith in conversations.

4.8/5

[Gea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a readable book! The author uses his sense of humour to deliver a very helpful message to those who are afraid to share their faith. He makes some excellent suggestions on how to get past the fear that often holds us back.

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book very helpful as it gives many real life examples and has many plain and clear tips. Very fitting for today’s culture, very relatable. Easy read but full of meaty material broken down into to simple steps.

[Teri de matteo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the humor!

A very practical, down-to-Earth, inspiring guide to sharing your faith. I would highly recommend this book to those who have the desire but perhaps not the how-to. And, the footnotes are a must read!

[Christian Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bannister provides a a helpful, insightful, and entertaining read that illumines the difficulties that come with evangelism. He provides personal examples and useful questions to demonstrate that evangelism is not as nearly as scary as we make it out to be.

[Veronica Geyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating. Not what I expected at all. A little translating was necessary from British English to American English (slang mostly), but the author was able to get the point across using humor. I'd expected something much more dry. Very impressed.

[elthea solina · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Christian book l've read so far that really teaches how to share the Word of God by integrating both Biblical principles and practical steps. The practical advices are really good and shifted my whole perspective from viewing evangelism as something impossible to something feasible.

[PJ Berner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love how Bannister approaches the subject of evangelism by equipping us to employ strategic questions in our interactions with unbelievers.

Readable, practical, and if you like the occasional dad joke, funny.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommend the audiobook version.

[Rebekah Means · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humorous, practical advice for every Christian who needs empowerment to share Jesus, anytime, anywhere.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, accessible, and humorous guide to evangelism.

[Keith E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very helpful tool

This is a very practical and helpful guide to develop skills and a natural way to share your faith with others effectively.