When Your Map Can’t Get You From Here to “There”

by Gail Ficken

Let me guess!

You’ve lived enough life to know when something’s missing.

You’ve got a career (or at least a path), responsibilities, relationships that matter. You’ve figured out how to show up for work, for family, for life.

But when it comes to your faith—especially sharing it with someone who doesn’t believe—you might feel… stuck.

Not guilty. Not resistant.

Just… untrained.

You Were Never Given a Map

Think about how you get anywhere today.

You pull out your phone.
You trust the route.
You know the next turn.

Even if you’ve never been there before—you’re confident you’ll arrive.

For Christmas, I received an actual spiral-bound Rand McNally roadmap!

Sometimes it’s good to see the BIG PICTURE!

Now compare that to sharing your faith.

Most Christians can tell you:

  • how they were brought to Jesus
  • how to attend church
  • how to grow personally

But when it comes to having a natural, real conversation about Jesus with:

  • a coworker
  • a neighbor
  • your adult kids
  • your friends

…it’s like opening your phone and realizing:

There is no route.

Not because you don’t care.
Not because you don’t believe.

Because no one ever showed you how.     

We call it a GAP.

It’s Not That You’re Doing It Wrong

Let’s be clear—this matters.

Most Christians weren’t discipled to engage people outside the church.

You were given a map that helps you:

  • follow Jesus personally
  • connect inside Christian community

But that map often stops at the edge of your church life.

It doesn’t extend into:

  • everyday conversations
  • real relationships with non-Christians
  • navigating doubt, curiosity, or resistance

So what happens?

You default to:

  • “I’ll let someone else handle that”
  • “They’ll figure it out if they really want to”
  • “I don’t want to make it awkward”

And slowly, quietly, you settle into a belief:

“I guess I can’t get there from here.”

But Something Is Shifting

Here’s the part that’s changing—and it’s powerful.

More and more people are starting to admit:

“There are people I genuinely love…
and I have no idea how to talk with them about Jesus.”

That honesty?
That’s the beginning of an awakening.

Because once you name the gap—you can actually do something about it.

The Real Problem Isn’t Fear—It’s Formation

You’re not looking for hype.
You’re looking for something real. Something that works.

And here’s the truth:

This isn’t about becoming bold overnight.
It’s about learning a pathway.

You don’t need a personality transplant.
You need a map.

A way to move from:

  • caring → to engaging
  • silence → to meaningful conversation
  • good intentions → to real impact

What Happens When People Get a New Map

When people actually learn how to do this, things change fast.

Not in a forced, awkward way—but in a natural, relational way.

You start to see things like:

  • A young, hard-working diesel mechanic intentionally building the friendship and sharing with another guy in the shop—and seeing faith in Jesus come to life
  • A newly retired defense contractor that’s transforming an early morning pickleball league into a personal mission field.
  • A couple that’s mapped a pathway into their neighborhood by a Friday afternoon “happy hour”  that not only builds relationships but continues to create a “spiritual space” for Gospel conversations.   

No scripts.
No pressure.

Just… a clear path forward.

This Is What “Awaken” Is About

That’s why we created Awaken.

Not another program.
Not more information.

It’s a simple, practical way to help you:

  • see the people already in your life differently
  • build authentic relationships
  • and actually know what to do and say

Two options:

It’s designed for people exactly like you—who care, but were never shown how.

Let’s Be Honest

You don’t need more motivation.

You already care.

What you need is a way forward that actually works in your real, everyday life.

Because the people around you?
They’re not projects.

They’re relationships.

And you don’t need to force anything—you just need a map that helps you walk into those relationships with purpose.

There’s a Bigger Vision

At Multipli, we’re aiming high—but it’s grounded in something simple:

  • 10,000 Christians
  • each engaging 10 people they already know

That’s 100,000 real conversations about Jesus.

Not strangers.
Not random encounters.

People already in your life.

Next Step

The next Genesis Leader Online Community launches May 3.

If you’re ready to:

  • grow in your own faith
  • Learn tools that will last a lifetime

This is a great next step.

You can also connect directly with Erin to talk it through and see if it fits your season.

There’s an awakening happening.

And it starts when you stop blaming yourself…
and realize:

You were never given the map.

But you can get one now.

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