Overcoming the Fear of Sharing Your Faith with Mark Teasdale

Thursday, May 28, 2026

Most Christians believe in evangelism. Very few actually do it — and the fear isn't hard to understand. Mark Teasdale, president of United Theological Seminary and author of Socially Awkward Evangelism: Overcoming Fear in Sharing the Gospel, joins Brian From to diagnose why the word alone makes so many believers anxious, and what to do about it. The short answer: we've been taught that evangelism requires confrontation, and almost nobody wants to bludgeon someone to Jesus. Mark unpacks what healthy evangelism actually looks like — relational, patient, non-judgmental, and built over time rather than executed in a single beach encounter. He also shares a fascinating finding about Gen Z: they're strongly in favor of evangelism as an idea, but terrified of coming across as one of those Christians. And his most practical starting point for anyone who wants to grow? If you're not ready to talk to another person about Jesus, start by talking to Jesus about another person. Free exercises from the book are available at the InterVarsity Press website — no purchase required.

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