August 12, 2021
Story time.
I was walking on the campus of the large state university in my hometown. I was leaving the Quad and heading toward the union when I saw them coming.
They were two normal college-aged guys, but they had that look. I can’t really explain it, but if you’re reading this site, then you know it too. It’s the vibe you can spot only after you’ve spent most of your life in the Church—the vibe of two dudes cruising around campus looking to evangelize. I know that look so well because I used to be just like them.
I absolutely knew they were going to talk to me because I was alone. People who are alone are a lot easier to approach for evangelistic purposes. It’s a lot less awkward.
It hadn’t been that long since my previous encounter with someone trying to convert me. And as I predicted, they latched onto me.
“Excuse me. We just wanted to ask you a quick question. If you died today, do you know for sure where you’d go?”
I could only smirk. With nowhere to be urgently, I settled in and got ready to engage these two. I stated that they belonged to the campus ministry (which I called by name, because I used to attend) and explained to them that I used to be exactly like them doing the exact same thing they were doing now.
The two guys were at first taken aback because I’d read them perfectly. They lit up. They thought they’d found an ally. But their hopes were soon dashed when I added, “And I came to eventually learn that none of it is real.”
One guy stood out as the “leader.” He talked the most while his friend was quiet and reserved and seemed to be “observing” his mentor on the mission field.
The leader then proceeded to launch into apologetics and debate mode. Here are some highlights:
Him: “The gospels are reliable.”
Me: “No, they’re full of inconsistencies. Just read them and compare.”
Him: “If we both die tomorrow and I’m right, then you have a big problem on your hands. You really have nothing to lose by believing.”
Me: “That’s called Pascal’s Wager and I don’t want to believe in a God who can be tricked by that.”
Him: “If there is no God, then how do you explain where morality comes from? What keeps me from murdering and raping?”
Me: “I’ve just met you, and I already know that you don’t need a god to tell you not to rape or murder anyone. You’re just not going to do that because you’re a good dude.”
That one felt like a gut punch because when I said that, he gave off a very knee-jerk expression that he was quick to bury. But since I saw myself in him, there was no way I could miss it. I could tell he’d never been told that before—that he was actually a good person on his own without God. He’d never before stopped to consider that even if God didn’t exist, then he still wouldn’t rape or murder anyone.
He kept throwing out more apologetic lines, all to which I responded to by reminding him that not only had I heard them all before, but I used to actively argue the same things. He even tried to win me over by meeting me on a more “liberal” level by saying some “controversial” things, such as Christian films like God’s Not Dead aren’t good and that Lee Strobel could’ve done a lot better with his book The Case for Christ.
Once this dude realized that he wasn’t going to reclaim my soul for the Lord, I directed our conversation to more neutral territory. I asked him how old he was (21, which was older than I had guessed) and asked him what he was going to do after he graduated. He said he’d either become a dentist or go to seminary, to which he quickly added that he could guess which one I’d advise him to choose. He was right.
Eventually, I said that I had to go and left them with some parting words. Here’s a summary:
“I can tell y’all are good guys. Y’all remind me of myself when I was your age. I also have a good feeling about you. I think that in about eight or ten years, you’ll finally have some perspective with which to closely examine your faith and Christianity. I’m optimistic that by the time you’re thirty, you’ll have left this religion behind and realized that you don’t really need it to live a good life and be a good person.”
He smiled and took this as graciously as he could, but not without first also telling me he hoped that I also remembered him in ten years when I would supposedly return to the Lord.
We parted ways and they continued on toward the Quad in search of their next target. I watched them go. I could tell by the way the leader was talking to the second guy that he was giving him a “debrief.”
I meant everything I said. I really did get the impression that these guys wouldn’t live the rest of their lives as Christians. Due to their enthusiasm for apologetics and debating, I had them pegged as hardcore Thinking Christians. That means they have a thirst for knowledge and research and learning. That quest for new knowledge will probably lead them down the road of taking a more honest and critical look at their religion—which was what happened to me.
What about you? Do you still engage with people who try to evangelize to you? Or do you just blow them off and move on? Let me know in the comments!