Monday, 17 December 2007 00:00 | and posted in Sharing Your Faith
I hate flying, especially landing and taking off. Actually the bit in between is not that enjoyable either! However it's something that just has to be done.
On one particular flight to Belfast we had started to descend and I was starting to freak out as usual. What could I do? The friend sitting next to me had a fascinating job in HIV research which I didn't know much about, so I decided that instead of focussing on my fear I would concentrate on something I really enjoy - asking questions! By the time we landed I had an incredible insight into the devastation of HIV and AIDS worldwide, and I had been beautifully distracted from another fear inducing landing!!
Questions are good. In fact they are essential for any relationship, not just to get us through scary situations, but to help us get to know people, show concern for people and to be alive!
If someone has a different world view from us it's much more helpful to ask them real, honest, interested questions than to force them to hear what we believe and why. When we let someone share with us the stuff in their hearts and the things that really matter to them, they may respond by asking us, "Why do you believe what you do?" If this happens then we will be engaged in a real conversation and in a real friendship with the person we are talking with.
Jesus constantly answered questions with questions! Once a young man asked him "What must I do to gain eternal life?" Jesus answered, "What are the two greatest commandments?" Jesus helped the man realise that He already knew the answer and then he told him a story to help him understand better. Jesus didn't just give an answer; he helped the man discover for himself the things of God.
Questions should be the centre of our conversations. They help people to be real and allow people to say what they really think and not just say what they think is the "right" answer. You can become a good questioner! Practice it and develop your skills so that it becomes part of you.