10 Thoughts on Introverts and Evangelism

Anyone who knows me much likely knows that I’m an introvert. In fact, I tell people I would happily go “off the ‘I’ scale” that measures introversion if I could. I like my space, my quiet time, my aloneness to recover from a busy day. Yet, I’m also a Senior Professor of Evangelism and Missions at Southeastern Seminary, which might sound almost like a contradiction. Introversion and evangelism don’t seem to go well together.  

I’m convinced, though, that introverts can do well in ministry, including doing evangelism. It’s possible, in fact, that it was an introvert who first introduced you to Jesus. With these thoughts in mind as we continue this series of articles on evangelism, here are some steps that have helped me—and might help you—in evangelizing: 

1. Refuse to allow your introverted nature to excuse you from doing evangelism. I typically don’t mind being by myself. I’m not going to be the “life of the party” at the office gathering. I’m generally quiet in crowds. None of these tendencies, though, gives me permission to not tell others about Jesus. We cannot allow our personality style to limit our obedience to God.  

2. Be motivated by the reality of lostness, judgment, and God’s grace through Christ. That is, it’s my theology that compels me to get outside my introversion and reach out to people. I truly believe that eternal life with God is possible only through a personal relationship with Jesus. Likewise, I do believe in judgment for those who do not know Christ. My beliefs simply won’t allow me to stay in the corner even though I might prefer to stay there.  

3. Use some alone time to pray for non-believers by name. The Bible portrays non-believers as following the prince of the air (Eph 2:1-3), blinded by the god of this age (2 Cor 4:3-4), living in the kingdom of darkness (Col 1:13), caught in the devil’s trap (2 Tim 2:26), and under the power of Satan (Acts 26:18). They cannot save themselves—just as we did not save ourselves—and they need our prayers. One of the reasons I love evangelistic prayer as an introvert is that I get to intercede for others from the quiet seclusion of my office.  

4. Make yourself see people not as intruders on your space, but as sheep without a shepherd. As I said earlier in this article, I like my alone time. I fight to get it somedays, though, because of the busyness of ministry. Quiet rejuvenates me, but ministry demands being with people. Anytime I feel overwhelmed by people, however, I prayerfully try to see them as Jesus saw them (Matt 9:36). They are wandering sheep in need of a shepherd—and I know the Good Shepherd.  

5. Focus on a few people at a time. That’s naturally my bent—that is, I have fewer deep relationships—but that helps me focus in evangelism. I want to be ready at any time to name the non-believers for whom I’m praying, with whom I’m developing relationships, and with whom I’ve shared the gospel. In fact, I challenge believers to always have at least five non-believers on their prayer list, at least two non-believers who are genuinely friends, and at least one non-believer they most want to lead to the Lord. Even introverts can take all those steps.  

6. Pray for daily opportunities to share the gospel. I’ve mentioned before in this article series that the apostle Paul requested the Ephesians and the Colossians to pray that he would have opportunity, boldness, and clarity to tell the good news (Eph 6:18-20, Col 4:2-4). I surely need that kind of prayer support, too—and praying that way forces me to keep my eyes and ears open for opportunities. When those opportunities become apparent, I want to be ready to push past my introversion and take the initiative to talk to somebody about Jesus.  

7. Listen well to others. Introverts are often good listeners, and I try to be. Inviting someone to tell his or her own story—and then genuinely listening with intentionality—often says, “I care about who you are and where you’ve been.” It says, “I truly want to know you not as an evangelistic project, but as someone created in the image of God.” That kind of attentive care can open the door to sharing the gospel. 

8. Ask for an opportunity to share the gospel with someone. I wrote about this approach in last week’s article on this site. There, you will find that this method helps me avoid the sense of trying to slide the gospel in the side door of a conversation. As an introvert, I would prefer just to get to the gospel without a lot of superficial, extraneous conversation. If my listener grants me space for talking about Jesus, I’m ready to go. 

9. Start by telling someone your Christian testimony. All of us who are believers can talk about our life before we met Jesus, how we met Him, and how He has changed our life since then. We all have a story to tell that can pave the way for our telling the gospel. For those of us who would prefer to talk quietly and one-on-one with others, sharing our testimony is an easy way to engage in evangelism.  

10. Get somebody else to partner with you in doing evangelism. Even those of us who prefer working alone appreciate having somebody alongside us to help us. An extrovert with us might take the lead in doing evangelism while we pray, watch, and learn. Or, another introvert can become iron sharpening iron (Prov 27:17) for us as we push each other outside our comfort zones to gospel obedience. It takes only one other person to make you an evangelistic duo—and that’re right where introverts often want to be.