Deeper Reflection
OPPOSITION FROM THE JEWS FORCED PAUL TO LEAVE Thessalonica abruptly and his ministry of building the faith of his new converts was greatly disrupted (Acts 17:5-10). Feeling that he had not built their faith adequately, he longed greatly to see them again (vv.17-18). In his ministry, Paul sought to “return and visit” his converts “in every city” to “see how they are” and to strengthen them in the faith (Acts 15:36, 41; 16:5). Such was Paul’s intense concern.There was a time when Dawson Trotman, the founder of The Navigators, made it a rule in his life never to end his day without sharing Christ with someone;³⁶ and he had won many to Christ. One day, he made a shocking discovery when he shared Christ with a man. He was “one of his ‘converts’ whose decision had not been followed up and had virtually died on the vine”³⁷. Shaken, Dawson reasoned that there must be countless such persons who had sincerely received Christ, but whose lives had not been changed. Lost souls were saved but became lost again. From that time on, Dawson “resolved to follow up anyone he led to Christ – a work more difficult than winning souls”³⁸. Dawson said, “You can lead a man to Christ in 20 minutes to a couple of hours, but it takes 20 weeks to a couple of years to adequately follow him up.”³⁹ Dawson began to put “less emphasis on getting the decision and more on growing up into Christ”⁴⁰.Building the faith of new and young believers is highly critical.

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³⁶ Betty Lee Skinner, Daws, A Man Who Trusted God (Navpress, 1974), 67 ³⁷ Betty Lee Skinner, 70 ³⁸ Betty Lee Skinner, 70 ³⁹ Betty Lee Skinner, 70 ⁴⁰ Betty Lee Skinner, 70