This song was why summer camp buses were invented. The song comes alive when accompanied by the wind howling through the bus’s open windows and the bus tires tapping their feet on the rolling asphalt. It’s a match made in heaven like burnt hot dogs and fresh-carved cooking sticks. But when camp is done and we are back at school or work do we still want to sing it? What if someone HEARD us and asked WHY we are Christians? Please give the song a sing-along listen, then come back and we’ll talk.
Our elevator speech
Someone MIGHT hear us sing this song and ask, “WHY are you a Christian?” What an opportunity! Let’s be ready for it. We don’t want to reply with a deer-in-the-headlight look and say, “I’m not sure.”
An elevator speech could be helpful. An elevator speech is a prepared “sales pitch” short enough to deliver during a quick elevator ride and interesting enough that the listener will say, “Tell me more.”
Jesus’s elevator speech
Did Jesus have an elevator speech? If we mean a short, attention-grabbing opener that leaves listeners wanting more, how about this record in Luke 4? Jesus is in the synagogue in Nazareth on the sabbath day and stands up to read from Isaiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those that are bruised,
To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.“
For his “elevator speech” he quoted scripture. (Not a bad idea!) Did it evoke interest from the listeners? Did they want to hear more? We read on:
“And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”
Can you picture the listeners leaning forward in rapt attention as he handed the “book” back to the minister and sat down? They wanted to hear more! Perfect! What a brilliant, wonderful Lord!
Can we chat?
Do we need to expect hearts to pound, tempers to flair and veins to pop if we share about our Christian beliefs with someone? Of course not. Consider this from Peter’s epistle: “Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life. Always be ready to give an answer when someone asks you about your hope — yet [do it] with gentleness and respect.”
Here are the keys from I Peter 3:15:
1. Live your life with Christ as the Lord
2. Be ready to answer when someone asks
3. Be gentle
4. Be respectful
Why are you a Christian? Be ready with a brief, interesting answer. You could start by picking something in your life that is now better because Jesus is now your Lord. Have you seen any improvement in your outlook, attitude, faith, hope, love, health, forgiveness, purpose, prosperity, relationships or patience? Build an elevator speech around something Jesus has brought to your life that you are thankful for.
As you get clear on what you would tell someone who asks, you might be surprised how little time passes before someone asks you why you are a Christian. Tell them! It’s how lives get changed! (And if people are slow to ask, you might try singing this song out loud. 😊)
God bless you lots!
-Dale R. 🙏💗😊
LYRICS: I Am A C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N
Traditional
I am a C
I am a C-H
I am a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N
(Woo hoo!)
And I have C-H-R-I-S-T
In my H-E-A-R-T
And I will L-I-V-E
E-T-E-R-N-A-L-L-Y
Please share your elevator speech
Do you have ideas for a good elevator speech? Please share tips in “Leave a Reply” below.
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-Dale R.
I have a tough time keeping up in the last stanza every time as well! 🙂 I have found it helpful to have a prepared ‘elevator speech.’ Yes, in the minute it may vary a little, but when asked why…? It’s not the time to stutter.
Thanks as always.
Dina, Thanks for your comment! It’s funny trying to sing this fast. But you are right, our minds should think fast when the door opens, and practice ahead of time makes that work better. God bless you lots! – Dale R. 😁
Perfect. Just PERFECT. Ya see, I needed to laugh tonight and the school bus comment makes a whole bunch of sense for group of care free happy go lucky teens if you will which receive Christ without any false pretenses or strings… They just simply accept Jesus as Lord and go on about their day living and HE is a part of their heart.
I got out of the car in San Antonio TX last week with all that winter YUK going for them if you are a southern Texan and your world got rocked with snow and ice with frozen pipes and no electricity. (Not a big deal for someone from Minnesota or myself being a Hoosier running service calls in a foot of snow to fix someone’s neglected oil furnace at 1:00 am.) “BUT,” God wanted me there.
Not to sing this song but with my heart of a child a door of utterance opened to me as this young man who came to valet park our car. God gave me the words of wisdom to speak to him because he was troubled. He received my words which were the good news of the gospel about his relationship with God and Jesus and to not worry about a previously negative situation where he stated his boss just yelled at him. He received Hebrews 12:1 and 2 from my brief encounter with him as I recommended he start reading scripture with the gospel of John as a starting point so he can know Jesus better in relationship.
I asked him a question, are you a C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N? (No singing of course and obviously no great guitar playing.) And his reply was yes.
He received the gospel with the heart of a child let me say again.
I had to go down to the lobby of this motel where we were staying with no running water and electricity coming on and off inconsistently.[OH WOW. We and others got water from the indoor pool to flush our toilets and took day trips south to warm up some, recharge our phones, and be back by 9:00 pm before the melted snow refroze into black ice. Yesiree Bob, GLAMPIMG was tough and God wanted this young man to hear the gospel off my lips.]
Later while still in the lobby, this same young man said to me,”I really needed to hear what ya said to me.” In this I rejoiced because God and Jesus got the glory and THEY worked through me to deliver a message at one of the worst winter times in Texas history via reservations my wife and I made in October of 2020. We had no idea of the weather then, God and Jesus did not give a 3 to 4 month weather forecast. LOL.
Hope this blesses someone. YES, I had to push mentally at times to remain thankful despite the circumstances for our vacation were not as planned. It made me a better C-H-R-I-S-T-I-A-N. WooHoo!
Michael, what a great incident you’ve shared! Thanks much. You make a lot of people smile, and God sees and knows and remembers and rewards. Bravo! God bless you lots! – D🙏💗
Sure enjoy every song and sharing and especially the visual this one brings back to my heart. Love all the Christian Camps I have participated in and all the joyful wonderful uplifting moments. These things stay with folk for a long time after. Hope to sing this one at the tables in heaven. See you at the Fun Table!
Alicia, thanks for your note. I’m very much looking forward to that Fun Table! See you here or there. BLESSINGS! – D.