My life has not been the same since learning to share the Gospel. Knowing what the Gospel is was one thing. But knowing when and how to share it was a skill that I hadn’t been taught. Until I came across Mike Breen’s work in England. Suddenly it all made sense and I had a practical tool to help me– the octagon.
The octagon teaches you the who, how , and when of living a mission centered life by teaching you eight facets that all begin with the letter “P”. And it all starts with who: the person of peace.
Luke 10:1–11 (ESV) — 1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. 5 Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ **6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’
In verses 6-11, do you see how Jesus instructed his disciples? He taught them to find persons of peace. What this means is that as they entered a town and met the people of the place, they would share the peace of God– something that tested their openness to the Gospel. I’ve found that a simple question works well to determine if someone is a person of peace. I spend a lot of time at Starbucks in Wayne, NJ. It is a very popular place for people of just about every walk of life imagineable. After conversation, usually with a stranger, we eventually come to a place of sharing real life with one another. Our struggles, frustrations (this week snow is a problem in north Jersey!), joys, favorite roasts of coffee, what is going on at work, family stuff; it all comes out in a great conversation. In that conversation somewhere I will express to my new friend that I intend to pray for them. And I closely watch their reaction. Most often I ask them *the* question: ‘how can I pray for you?’ and other variants like ‘Is there anything that I can pray about until we meet again?’. And as always, I watch closely. More often than not, I find that people’s guard comes down and they start sharing what is weighing heaviest on their hearts. I met a jewish hippie about a year ago and I pray for him regularly. He is about to retire and almost every time we see each other we talk for an hour. He is a person of peace. From the first day we met until now I share the Gospel with him and he gets closer and closer to responding. Our relationship isn’t based on whether he becomes a follower of Jesus. I love this guy. I will miss him when his retirement moves him out of Jersey. He is a person of peace. Everyone has their unique way of finding persons of peace. You can try using my question or come up with others of your own! Give it a go.
The octagon teaches that persons of peace are found in both passing relationships and permanent relationships. They could be the guy or gal at Starbucks but they could also be your Uncle Eddie or your mother-in-law. Only God knows, but you must be on the lookout for them!
Here are all eight facets as described by Mike Breen in Living a Life with a Mission, by Mike Breen with Bob and Mary Hopkins:
1. The Person of Peace is the first of eight Ps in the Octagon. All the “P” words help us understand the principles at work when we have our eyes open for opportunity to share the kingdom news. The Person of Peace unlocks the process, and the other seven Ps help us understand the situations in which we might find a Person of Peace and how to respond to those situations. But it’s not a sequential, one-two-three kind of process. We’ll look at each of the eight Ps individually, but you’ll see that they naturally occur in various combinations. Where there’s one P, there are always more.
2. Perception. Perceptions can be false and misleading. We must constantly be in contact with the Holy Spirit as we try to discern a Person of Peace. Open yourself up to observation, to become increasingly aware of the times the Holy Spirit leads you to respond.
3. Presence. Presence evangelism happens when you are simply present in a situation with an individual or group. Being present always provides opportunities to model Jesus, acting as he would act, speaking as he would speak.
4. Proclamation. Proclamation is not just for preachers and writers. You don’t have to stand on a street corner or in front of a large crowd. To “proclaim” means to give outward indication of something—to show others the kingdom life openly and publicly.
5. Passing Relationships. We have passing relationships with people we meet only once or twice. The young man who bags your groceries. The mother with three restless children in line at the drug store. Someone who changes seats and ends up next to you on the airplane. Even if you recognize a Person of Peace at these moments, most likely you are not going to lead the person into a personal relationship with Christ. But God may use you to move the person closer to that point.
6. Permanent Relationships. You have permanent relationships with your family and close friends. If a passing relationship is like a sprint, a permanent relationship is a marathon. We often have the hardest time sharing the gospel with those closest to us. Pray, wait, and watch. God is never in a hurry, and he is never late.
7. Preparation. Preparation is similar to cultivating soil and planting seed in advance of the harvest. Your words will be one turn of a person’s soil. Someone else comes along and, sensing an opportunity with a Person of Peace, turns the soil once again.
8. Power. Jesus often used the power of God in miracles to reveal the Person of Peace. Praying for the sick and seeing a miraculous healing may reveal a Person of Peace.
Now, in order to live out the mission of Jesus, you actually have to get out there and live it. Following Jesus on the mission is more of a contact sport than anything else. So get out there and make contact! The world is waiting.
You can learn more about the Octagon through the free resource for all BCC DC Leaders.
