What exactly is the gospel anyway?

I asked the following question to my wise spiritual friends recently–Tell me what are your top answers/reasons you give a non-Christian as to WHY they should be a Christian.  Let’s go ahead, by the way, and assume you’ll already tell me/them about the heaven/hell thing, so leave that off.

I’m asking for real answers related to real experience down here.  I mean, when you tell someone to be a Christian, I can see more and more people looking at you with a quizzical expression wondering “why in the world would I do that?”

Leave off the answers that point to the truth of the Bible–I already know that and they won’t care (usually).  These are real people going through real issues, just like the people around you.  Where do you point them to give them any hope that your faith could actually deal with their issues, especially since you know of plenty of real Christians who STILL have those same issues.”

In case you, my readers of the blog, are curious, yes I am still a Christian. Yes, I still am the apostolic voice, the leader, for Numinous Inc.  Yes, I still love Jesus.  The issue is that finding the truth of the gospel around me seems a struggle.  Or, walking the Christian life is still a struggle.

Not sure why I think it should be any different.  I mean, Jesus was pretty darn clear about this, but over the past months, I guess I’ve just lost a bit of my perspective.  Maybe you need to pray for me rather than just reading the blog assuming I’ll have all the right answers.

Anyway, this issue is going to be a focus of mine in the coming days.  All around me good people, Christians I know well, end up hurting and struggling.  It does come across as unfair.  Isn’t the Christian life supposed to be “life abundant?” 

God is graciously taking me by the hand and leading me again to the Good News.  I’m going to try and unpack it more as we go along, so I hope you join me for the ride.  In the meantime, besides praying for me, feel free to drop me a line with your answers to the above question.