by Carey Kinsolving

– In today’s media climate, a journalist actually on the lookout for good news may sound like an oxymoron, but even more rare is a journalist whose journey-of-faith feature stories have appeared in The Washington Post and other major newspapers. For years I have reported on the most neglected stories in the media—of Christ making a difference in the lives of his people. You can read many of these stories at www.FaithProfiles.org.

When I wrote journey-of-faith stories for The Washington Post, I used to call pastors to ask them for story ideas. Now, I have a better idea on how to write many more stories and publish them for distribution in your community. Recently, I’ve written an open letter to pastors on this new evangelism concept that I’m introducing to churches. The following link will take you directly to that letter and to the website that contains most of the faith, feature stories I’ve written for major newspapers: http://www.faithprofiles.org/News.aspx.

I believe that all Christians have faith stories to tell, even those who were children when they trusted Christ as savior. Your story might be about faithful parents.

My Journey-of-Faith Writing Workshop challenges believers to think anew about their own testimonies, and then gives them the tools to write their stories well and get them published. A well-written, journey-of-faith story allows the individual to own the gospel message because it’s his or her personal story, too! People get excited about their own stories, but for many, giving out a gospel tract can be intimidating. How much easier to hand someone your own attractive business card that directs them to your published, Christ-encountering story.

For more than two years, my wife and I have been engaging people with our own faith-based stories that have the gospel embedded in them. The method we use is simple, effective and non-threatening. Take a look at our stories and the business cards we’ve distributed from California to New York to engage people with the gospel of grace.

When we pass out our business cards in the manner we teach in the Journey-of-Faith Writing Workshop, people respond positively. In fact, our experience has been nearly 100 percent positive. We’ve even had people congratulate us for having our stories published!

One of the most challenging aspects of sharing the gospel is starting the conversation. When time or circumstances don’t allow for an extended conversation, these business cards stand alone in pointing people to our online testimonies. When time and circumstances are favorable, our cards open the conversation like nothing we’ve ever experienced. Imagine what could happen in your community when people start receiving business cards prompting them to read well-written, real-life stories of their friends and neighbors with the gospel of grace embedded in them.