Mini-Decisions Handout From Jeremy Jones (adapted from Tim Keller)

People (ordinarily) come to Christ through a process in which dozens of “mini-decisions” are made over time.
(Keller) Tim Keller groups these mini-decisions into several different kinds. These could be seen as “phases” through
which an unbeliever progresses on their way to faith in Christ

I. “Plausibility” Mini-Decisions:
Beliefs are only held as credible within prevailing plausibility structures: the social and cultural context that makes
any belief possible to hold. At the plausibility level you don’t discuss whether something is actually true or not; if a
belief isn’t plausible its truth is not even up for discussion because it’s simply assumed (often without much conscious
thought) that the belief in question is “obviously” untrue.
Listen to how Sheldon Vanauken describes the implausibility of Christianity as a unbeliever: “Christianity was
something I wanted nothing to do with. How could anybody believe such rubbish? I, indeed, had seen through the
pretences of Christianity in my teens, and forthwith abandoned it. How could any intelligent person actually believe it,
believe that an obscure crucified Jew was God!” (Severe Mercy, 53).
The first mini-decisions such a person must make, if he is to move at all towards Christianity, regard its plausibility.
Through these means the Spirit begins to change the non-Christian’s general impression of Christianity; suddenly,
Christianity isn’t the totally implausible religion the person once thought it was. If we could listen in on a person’s
thoughts and hear what they were thinking as these plausibility mini-decisions were occurring, it would sound like this:
“Wow, she’s a Christian and she’s actually kind of cool.”
“I like her; she’s intelligent and kind.”
“These people aren’t mean, narrow-minded, conservative, etc.”
“She seems to really care for me and others around her.”
“She loves what she studies and takes school seriously.”
“I just can’t dismiss her religion anymore.” (climactic point)
Again, the story of Sheldon Vanauken’s conversion shows us the power of relationships to challenge a hostile
plausibility structure. Listen as he describes the Christian circle he and his wife fell into at Oxford: These were our
first friends, close friends. More to the point, perhaps, all five were keen, deeply committed Christians. But we liked
them so much that we forgave them for it. We began, hardly knowing we were doing it, to revise our opinions, not of
Christianity but of Christians. Our fundamental assumption, which we had been pleased to regard as an intelligent
insight, had been that all Christians were necessarily stuffy, hide-bound, or stupid – people to keep one’s distance
from. We had kept our distance so successfully, indeed, that we didn’t know anything about Christians. Now that
assumption soundlessly collapsed. The sheer quality of the Christians we met at Oxford shattered our stereotype, and
thenceforward a reference in a book or conversation to someone’s being a Christian called up an entirely new image.
Moreover, the astonishing fact sank home: our own contemporaries could be at once highly intelligent, civilized, witty,
fun to be with – and Christian. (A Severe Mercy, 73-74).
Another turning point for Vanauken came when he confronted the evidence of truly intelligent Christian believers:
What was so odd was that quite a lot of people, not just sheep but highly intelligent people, did apparently believe it.
T. S. Eliot, for instance…in fact, quite a few physicists, the very last people one would expect to be taken in by it.
Philosophers, too.. Was it possible – was there any chance – that there was more to it than I had thought?
Of these Christian intellectuals, Vanauken says: And it wasn’t just a matter of them keeping their childhood faith
without examination, either. Some of them – intelligent people, too – were actually converts from atheism or
agnosticism. (53) If minds like St. Augustine’s and Newman’s and Lewis’s could wrestle with Christianity and become
fortresses of the faith, it had to be taken seriously. (82)

II. Relevance Mini-Decisions:

The next most negative thing you can think about a particular belief-system is that it’s not only implausible but also
irrelevant to you personally. You don’t perceive the worldview in question to speak at all to any of your pressing
needs, real problems, hopes, fears, etc. Again, through relationship w/ individuals and groups of Xns + good
information, non- Xns can begin to see that Christianity is relevant to their lives.
What would these relevance mini-decisions sound like?
“There really are some advantages to being a strong Christian.”
“An awful lot of normal people really like RUF.”
“I see that Christianity gives her a sense of meaning/purpose in life”
 “It would be nice if I could believe like she does.”
Vanauken records a conversation between his wife, Davy, and himself about the happiness of their Christian friends:
“And they’re all so – so happy in their Christianity, said Davy. And I said, ‘Could it be – that happiness – what’s
called ‘Christian joy,’ do you think?”

III. Content Mini-Decisions:

Here the misconceptions about what orthodox Christians really believe begin to get cleared up and basic concepts
understood. Whereas enough information may have been “gotten through” in the plausibility/relevance phase to
destroy their “straw-man” version of the Christian faith, now enough new information “gets through” to begin to give
them a good understanding of what the Christian world-view is all about. This especially involves clearing up specific
misconceptions (at points of ‘defeat’) a particular culture or individuals within it may have.
Content mini-decisions sound like:
“Christianity really isn’t anti-Semitic.”
“The Bible isn’t just a book of myths and legend.”
“I see the difference between Christianity and just being good/religious and other religions.”
“Science really hasn’t refuted Christianity.”
“I see that God isn’t just a nice or mean guy….the Xn view of God is amazing.”
“Wow. Christianity actually has a way of dealing with the problem of pluralism, relativism, and
tolerance. It’s not so stupid after all.”
“I see the big picture of Christianity.”
Vanauken writes about reaching a point where he and his wife began to wrestle with what Christians actually believed:
What was happening was that our mind’s gaze, almost without our knowing it, was being directed towards the
Christian faith that…animated our living contemporary [Christian] friends…. (76) We became interested, absorbed in
the study of Christianity right from the start – though still it was only a study. (80-81) [After this period of reading
various Christian apologists, Vanauken confesses]…I writhed a bit at the thought of my easy know-nothing contempt
of other years. Most of the people who reject Christianity know almost nothing of what they are rejecting…Thank
God, if there is a God, we said, that we are at least looking seriously and honestly at this thing. (82-83)

IV. Credibility/Coherence Mini-Decisions:

Here the TRUTH of Christian belief begins to be dealt with. The new content and new experiences of relationship
begin to undermine the hostile worldview and make Christianity deeply compelling.
“I see that science and the Bible really go together.”
“I see that the Bible really is historically reliable.”
“There really were eyewitnesses to the resurrection” “Jesus really is God.”
“Christianity is the only worldview that makes real sense.”
When Vanauken is led to actually wrestle with the truth of Christianity, he turns to two sources: the apologetic writings
of C. S. Lewis, G. K. Chesterton, Charles Williams, and Dorothy Sayers; and his circle of Christian friends. While
books were important for Vanauken, his personal interaction with his Christian friends and C. S. Lewis enabled him to
deal with his specific questions and problems more directly.
But – this phase is NOT just intellectual! “It’s my opinion that the credibility of Christianity in a postmodern context
cannot be established apart from participation in a Christian plausibility structure – authentic Christian community.”
(Jeremy Jones) Listen to how the unbelieving Vanauken describes the effect of being in Christian worship: It was not
precisely that we were being called upon to accept that faith but that we were being called upon to acknowledge its
existence as an ancient and living force. There was a terrible splendour in these churches with their glorious glowing
glass and in the music of the plainsong and in the words of the liturgy. The splendour of course did not mean that the
faith was true; but perhaps we felt vaguely that it did somehow hint at validity. (76)

V. Commitment Decisions:
This is when they actually cross the line into faith! Lots has been written about this.
“I am a sinner.”
“I need a Savior.”
“Jesus is the only way for ME to be saved.”
“Though there are lots of costs, I really must obey him.”
“I will believe in him and live for him.”