Matt Mikalatos - Good News for a Change: How to Talk to Anyone about Jesus

While most of us arent full-time, vocational evangelists, were all capable of having God use us to bear witness to Christs work in our life. In Good News for a Change, my friend Matt helps us overcome our fears and grasp the practical ways we all can be liberated to join Gods timeless quest to build his Kingdom, life by life.

KEVIN PALAU, president, Luis Palau Association

I dont like books on evangelism. As a general rule, sharing the good news of Jesus is learned better on the street than in the classroom. But this book is different. Very different. For it is crafted by someone who knows the streets and has years of experience sharing Jesus with real, everyday, normal people. This book does two things: It presents the good news of Jesus as both good and news. In an age of fake news, this teaches us how we can share the good news, not fake goods, in a way that is good and life-giving. Mikalatos should get an award for this book. It is a masterpiece.

A. J. SWOBODA, P h D, pastor and author of Subversive Sabbath: The Surprising Power of Rest in a Nonstop World

Matt Mikalatos is a brilliant writer and teacher. Good News for a Change combines solid Bible teaching, relevant issues, compassion, humor, and practical application. The reader benefits from both the why? and how? of evangelism as Matt shares actual conversations from personal experience with clear, sharp, thoughtful insights. I appreciate Matts humble, learner posture and the thorough research used in addressing our current social landscape. Refreshing, pertinent, challenging, relatable I highly recommend this book!

VIVIAN MABUNI, speaker and author of Warrior in Pink: A Story of Cancer, Community, and the God Who Comforts

Every Christian I know is afraid of evangelism. We all know were supposed to do it, but none of us is any good at it. In Good News for a Change, Matt Mikalatos has shared with us his gifts as an evangelist. With the expertise of a teacher, the love of a mentor, and the passion of an artist, Matt demystifies the process of telling people about Jesus. As every great thinker does, he shows us that we dont need more information. We need a new way to look at the work God is already doing in our lives. Good News for a Change is a practical, inspiring, and exciting return to our first love and whats easier to share than that?

JR FORASTEROS, pastor and author of Empathy for the Devil: Finding Ourselves in the Villains of the Bible

In todays argument culture, Christians are leery to share their perspective. After all, who wants to get into a heated religious argument with a friend or coworker? Mikalatos reminds us that everyone along the social spectrum enjoys hearing one thing good news. Through engaging stories, helpful communication exercises, and insightful handling of the Scriptures, readers are reminded that the story of Jesus is not only inherently good but also attractive to others.

TIM MUEHLHOFF, P h D, professor of communication studies, Biola University, and author of Winsome Persuasion: Christian Influence in a Post-Christian World

A lot of us who grew up in a Christian fundamental environment often felt like we were doing Christianity wrong. If we didnt win souls by telling people they were sinners destined for the fiery pits of hell, then we must have been ashamed of Jesus, which meant we probably didnt truly love God. At best, evangelism was an icky sales pitch chore we were required to do. At worst, we may have driven away loved ones and developed resentment or worse toward the God who saves. In Good News for a Change, Matt reminds us why the truth of Jesus is such good news. Sharing in that truth is a privilege exciting and beautiful, and not even a little icky.

CLAY MORGAN, author of Undead: Revived, Resuscitated, Reborn

I loved this book! Evangelism can be scary. We often love Jesus but are intimidated to talk about him with others. Fortunately, Matt Mikalatos is here to the rescue: with funny stories from his personal experience and illuminating insights from Scripture, he breaks down stereotypes of stuffy evangelism so you can enter the freedom and joy of fresh, creative, respectful, and down-to-earth ways to catalyze life-giving conversations about Jesus. I plan to use this when training others and have already begun putting some of his ideas into practice myself!

JOSHUA RYAN BUTLER, pastor at Imago Dei Community in Portland, Oregon, and author of The Skeletons in Gods Closet and The Pursuing God

In the past twenty years, there has been a revolution in our understanding of evangelism and what it means to share the good news. Without fanfare or folderol, Matt Mikalatos takes the best of what weve learned and gives us a toolbox of creative resources and handy instruments that can help us lift up Christ in energizing and compelling ways.

LEONARD SWEET, author, professor, and founder and chief contributor to preachthestory.com

NavPress is the publishing ministry of The Navigators, an international Christian organization and leader in personal spiritual development. NavPress is committed to helping people grow spiritually and enjoy lives of meaning and hope through personal and group resources that are biblically rooted, culturally relevant, and highly practical.

For more information, visit www.NavPress.com.

Good News for a Change: How to Talk to Anyone about Jesus

Copyright 2018 by Matt Mikalatos. All rights reserved.

A NavPress resource published in alliance with Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

NAVPRESS and the NAVPRESS logo are registered trademarks of NavPress, The Navigators, Colorado Springs, CO. TYNDALE is a registered trademark of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Absence of in connection with marks of NavPress or other parties does not indicate an absence of registration of those marks.

The Team:

Don Pape, Publisher

Caitlyn Carlson, Acquisitions Editor

Elizabeth Symm, Copy Editor

Eva Winters, Designer

Cover photograph of chicken costume copyright Eric Chuang/Getty Images. All rights reserved.

Back cover photograph of grunge paper copyright PhotoAlto/James Hardy/Getty Images. All rights reserved.

The author is represented by Ambassador Literary Agency, Nashville, TN.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV). Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the Holy Bible, King James Version. Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version, copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Some of the anecdotal illustrations in this book are true to life and are included with the permission of the persons involved. All other illustrations are composites of real situations, and any resemblance to people living or dead is purely coincidental.

For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Tyndale House Publishers at , or call 1-800-323-9400.

Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-1-63146-856-8

ISBN 978-1-63146-858-2 (ePub); ISBN 978-1-63146-859-9 (Kindle); ISBN 978-1-63146-857-5 (Apple)