Presenting the Good News—Through Bible Studies
1 This past service year in the United States, over 535,000 Bible studies were conducted each month. Perhaps half of the 817,000 publishers in this country had some share in this joyful activity. Of course, if about half of the publishers shared in this activity, it would mean that the other half did not share in it. How can more of us enjoy the special satisfaction that comes from teaching someone else the truth?
2 Because we love God and neighbor, we want to share the truth with others. But we need help from Jehovah in our ministry. (1 Cor. 3:6, 7) Hence, would it not be good to approach Jehovah in prayer and ask him to help us to start a home Bible study? (1 John 5:14, 15) Then we must act in harmony with our request and participate in the field ministry as fully as our circumstances will allow, offering a home Bible study whenever the opportunity presents itself.
MANY OPPORTUNITIES
3 Over the past few years, we have placed millions of books, booklets, and brochures with people in the territory. Live Forever, True Peace, and Truth books, among others, can be found in the homes of thousands of people who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses. This represents a vast field of opportunity for starting new Bible studies.
4 When a householder informs us that he is familiar with our work or that he already has our literature, we should tell him how pleased we are. (See Reasoning, page 20.) If he has a publication, we could kindly suggest that he get it and let us point out some interesting features that would be of benefit to him and his family. If the response is positive, we could offer a home Bible study.
5 A variation of the foregoing would be for us to take the initiative and inquire if the householder has our literature. This may be especially effective in territory where we have placed much literature. After a friendly introduction, we could say that because of our frequent visits, many of the neighbors have some of our literature. We are interested in seeing people benefit from the information published. We could then ask the householder if he has any of our literature. If he does, we could kindly ask if we may see it and then offer to show him how we study it. A short demonstration may result in a home Bible study. If he does not have our literature, we can present the current offer or ask him directly if his family would like to have a free home Bible study.
USE DISCERNMENT
6 Since people are busy, it is wise to be discerning and not overstay our welcome. It may be that the first few studies could be limited to about 15 minutes. If the householder knows that a great deal of his time will not be taken, he may be willing to receive regular visits from us. Once the study is established and the householder’s interest has developed, a longer period of time may be spent on the study. Of course, some will want to study for a longer period right from the beginning.
7 There are sheeplike ones in the field who need our help, and many of them have our literature. Undoubtedly, some are sighing and groaning over the detestable things being done on earth today. (Ezek. 9:4) It is our privilege not only to distribute literature about the Kingdom that will remedy mankind’s woes but also to reach honesthearted ones with the truth through Bible studies.—Matt. 28:19, 20.