Do you believe evangelism is about a single moment?

Do you know that moment during a church service when silence falls over the crowd and the speaker asks everyone to bow their heads, close their eyes, and repeat a prayer line by line?

 You’ve been there plenty of times. I (Lizzie) have too. Growing up I went to a week-long camp every summer. The week climaxed on Thursday night—the last night of the week—with a powerful presentation of the gospel and time around the campfire sharing testimonies from the week (followed by smores, naturally).

 Moments like this stick with you.

But does all evangelism need to lead to a single, powerful moment of decision? Or could evangelism look more like a journey? 

We interviewed Caitlin from Phoenix, Arizona who said:

“For me, it’s about opening up to the idea that evangelism is not just about a conversion and someone saying a prayer, but about being open to be a part of a stage on someone's journey. Like how Paul talks about one person waters, one person fertilizes the soil, and another harvests. I think often we think about evangelism is about a prayer or a moment. I’m praying for courage in all of those moments in someone’s journey.”

Why do many of us believe that evangelism is about a single moment? What are the strengths of this mindset? And what are we missing here?