I recently read Preston’s Ulmer’s book, The Doubters’ Club: Good-Faith Conversations with Skeptics, Atheists, and the Spiritually Wounded. Preston is the founder and director of the Doubters’ Club, and he serves as director of network development for the Church Multiplication Network.
In The Doubters’ Club, Preston offers a raw and authentic look into his own faith journey, the doubts he experienced, and his journey back to Jesus. His personal experience has since given him credibility with doubters from all walks of life, and his efforts have led him to start the Doubters Club.
The Doubters Club has one goal: Model friendship with people who think differently and pursue truth together. They meet in coffee shops in various cities around the country, and they are made up of people who don’t think alike. Preston says that Jesus spoke of the Kingdom of God as a reality that exists inside of us (Luke 17:21). He writes:
“If the Kingdom of God is within you, you should leave a little bit of heaven everywhere you go. And I think that is our new strategy. Go to heavenless places and leave a trail of evidence for the doubter.”
He asserts that “doubts, not answers, might be our common ground with the unbeliever.” With this understanding, Preston challenges his readers with a question: “Would you be willing to start breaking bread with the people Jesus broke bread with?” Jesus didn’t insulate himself from people who thought differently than he did. Instead, he engaged them in conversations and listened carefully to their stories. Ulmer observes, “Friends talk about what they are most passionate about. Since we are passionate about our relationship with Jesus, wouldn’t it make sense that at least some of our spiritual energy is devoted to sharing that passion with others?” The question is, how? Preston offers five practical steps that brings a fresh perspective to evangelism.
The first step is Impression. So often we make a poor impression, and as a result, our nonbelieving friends cast the shadow of that impression onto God. Ulmer writes, “Pursuing truth together means there is a humility (on both sides) to submit and admit. Submit to the truth, and admit when we didn’t have it.” Disagreements are an opportunity to grow, and humility is what makes that growth possible. Unfortunately, we are too often known for our disagreements rather than our humility. Preston notes, “When it comes to people having the right impression of you, everything is about acting like Jesus.” And Jesus was humble.
The second step is Intention. In other words, what are your intentions with your unbelieving friends? Too often we view relationships with unbelievers as transactions, but that’s not what real relationships are about. Intention is all about our motives. We can have an ultimate motive (which is to befriend unbelievers regardless of whether or not they become followers of Christ), but we cannot have an ulterior motive. An ulterior motive is when your friendship with the person is based on them deciding to follow Christ within an allotted amount of time. As Preston notes, “The intention of the Doubters’ Club is not to ‘win’ the debate. The intention is to build a platform of friendship for us to pursue truth together…The purer the intentions, the more influence we gain.”
The third step is Invitation. In most cases, we think of “church” when we hear the word invitation. But Preston offers a greater perspective, and that is to invite the nonbeliever into real life. Take a genuine interest in the person and show an interest in what they are doing. Do life together and recognize that “you both are going somewhere much bigger than yourselves.”
The fourth step is Initiation. Initiation is all about re-examining our views through conversations that matter. Talk to them about something they are familiar with. That’s what Jesus did with the woman at the well. One way Preston does this is to ask nonbelievers what book or movie has really shaped them. That question has led to deep conversations and long-lasting relationships. Preston notes, “Initiating conversations that matter is not so that we can create converts. It’s so that we can taste the goodness of God with others, leaving us both craving more.”
The fifth step is Imitation. Preston challenges his readers to invite people to participate in imitating Christ with us. That’s what happens in the Doubters’ Club. “The Doubters’ Club is proof that sometimes behavior imitates faith before the mind does.” Imitation is how we define progress, and progress happens when our unbelieving friends join into the story of God.
I found The Doubters’ Club to be extremely refreshing, and Preston’s insights offer a compelling way to connect with nonbelievers…a way that is authentic and Jesus-like. Preston’s writing is not only inspirational, Biblical, and practical, but it stirred within me a fresh desire to build meaningful relationships with people who don’t think like me. I highly recommend The Doubters’ Club. You will be challenged, and your commitment to nonbelievers will be renewed.
