Conversations with Unbelievers

I had the privilege of speaking in the Sunday morning service of Bluemont Church in Manhattan, Kansas a week ago. You can listen to the message here.

Click the image to listen to Steve’s message at Bluemont Church on 11/2/2025.

Here are the Biblical passages I referenced in my message:

Matt. 12:9-14

Departing from there, He went into their synagogue. And a man was there whose hand was withered. And they questioned Jesus, asking, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” — so that they might accuse Him. And He said to them, “What man is there among you who has a sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will he not take hold of it and lift it out? How much more valuable then is a man than a sheep! So then, it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” Then He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand!” He stretched it out, and it was restored to normal, like the other. But the Pharisees went out and conspired against Him, as to how they might destroy Him.

II Cor. 5:17-21

(17) Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.

(20) Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

Col. 4:2-6

Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.

(5) Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

Note about the Series and Image

The image above is from the series of messages currently in progress at Bluemont Church.

More about Deception Island:

• Wikipedia Article

• Article at Atlas Ocean Voyages: “How Did Deception Island Get Named”

Watch Kristina Massa present to 2000 people at SFLA's National Pro-Life Summit 2023

We are very proud of Kristina Massa, who presented to 2000 people at the National Pro-Life Summit on January 21. Kristina did a beautiful job helping the audience see some of the essentials of good dialogue through stories of her conversations on campus. I had the privilege of joining her on the platform to model good dialogue for the audience. You can watch the presentation above or click this link for SFLA’s video post.

My Presentation at Yale on October 1

I'll be speaking at Yale this coming weekend on the topic "Mastering Dialogue to Make Abortion Unthinkable" as part of the "Vita et Veritas" Conference hosted by Choose Life at Yale (CLAY).  Here's a description of what I'll share in that presentation: 

The pro-life movement is full of good intentions, but without a focus on changing public opinion, we can’t hope that the unborn will ever be protected in law the way other human beings are.  Contrary to popular perception, however, public opinion is not fixed, and it’s not easy to pin down.  It's all over the map, with many people uncertain of their positions.  Many others are certainly against most abortions, but they lack the courage or confidence to argue publicly that abortion is wrong or that the unborn should be protected in law.  While there is value in many pro-life activities, the pro-life movement must at the very least “get back to the basics” of mastering the skills of dialogue that makes abortion just as unthinkable as other human rights violations.  Dialogue cannot be merely a buzzword, however, and its substance must be permeated with genuine love for every human being, including the pro-choice advocate and the women and men personally wrestling with unplanned pregnancy and abortion.  In “Mastering Dialogue to Make Abortion Unthinkable,” Steve Wagner draws upon thirteen years of outreach experience and hundreds of conversations with pro-choice advocates to give the audience a road map for becoming skilled at the sort of dialogue that helps pro-choice advocates change.  Steve outlines the key principles of dialogue, but also gives practical tools pro-life advocates can begin using to change hearts and minds immediately.