Unchurched Mary

“Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary”, written by Lee Strobel is a very practical book that gives an action plan on how to reach people who avoid God and church. The purpose of the book is to, “help advance readers in their understanding of unchurched people so that personal evangelistic efforts and the efforts of the church might become effective” (Strobel 15). This book shows how Christians can be effective in connecting and evangelizing to non-Christians without feeling the need to shove religion down their throats. The chapters that grabbed my attention were, “Introducing you to unchurched Harry and Mary”, “Understanding your unchurched friends Part I”, and “Meeting Harry where he lives.” During this chapter, Strobel answers a
This point convicted me personally. Everything Strobel says in this section astounds me. “After a while, Harry feels like a case study. If this was a real friendship… it would not be dependent on whether we succeed in bringing him to Christ” (Strobel 61). The last thing hurting a lost people want is for someone to treat them like they are their “religious science experiment”, what they really want and desire is a meaningful relationship and someone who will sincerely care about them. One evangelism tool that I found and that is mentioned in the book is small groups. I have found that it is so much easier to bring a friend to a barbeque or bowling activity, than it is to the church. If a non-believer sees the community aspect of the small group, they will eventually have their heart softened towards the church as a whole. Just as Strobel said, “Harry’s attitude softens when he sees the church not as an institution but as a caring community where his relational longings can be fulfilled” (Strobel 63). I believe that the church needs to stop viewing themselves as a “hospital for the broken” and start viewing themselves as a “helping hand to the