In this episode, Mike Treen of Crawford Media Group sits down with David Decker to uncover the secrets behind successful evangelism strategies rooted in genuine human connection and how his book serves as a pivotal conversation starter. Discover the intersection between sports and spirituality, as David explains how a shared cultural experience like the Super Bowl can open doors to deeper, life-changing conversations. Whether it’s about faith or just getting to know someone better, learn how to create engaging and impactful dialogue.
Well, hey, it’s Mike Treen with Crawford Media Group. I’m joined by David Decker. Dave is the author of the book, How to Get to the Super Bowl for Free and Other Success Secrets from the Victory Playbook. And Dave, thanks for taking the time with us.
SPEAKER 02 :
Mike, it’s a pleasure to join you. I’ve really been looking forward to this.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, we have to. And Dave, I think a good starting point is please tell us a little bit of your background and why did you write the book?
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, certainly I’ve been in business for 40 years in real estate, and I’ve learned some success principles through that that I wanted to share with people. But way ahead of that, my heartbeat is I like to call myself an evangelist. I was involved in door-to-door evangelism for 12 years. And that’s my heart. I want to reach lost people for the Lord. And the person I’m thinking about, there’s plenty of people out there that just don’t give thought to spiritual matters. They don’t attend church. They’re not bad folks, but that’s not on their radar. So how do we reach those folks? Increasingly, we’re in the era of the everyday believer. We know our church attendance is declining. denominations, mainstream denominations are struggling with attendance. And so we have many great pastors and great evangelists, but the people that are supposed to hear that message aren’t showing up. So what we need is a tool for the everyday believer. That’s the folks listening to your show. That’s me, you, all the folks that are listening. They’re the ones that have to carry the mantle of Christianity forward. They’re the ones that have to carry the mantle of the gospel forward, because who else is going to do it? So that was my burden in writing this book. And, you know, I know, Mike, you know, we all have that hard case on our prayer list, you know, the one that we’ve been praying about, and we witness to them time and time again, until we think, oh, boy, the opportunity to witness to this person has been lost. And so we’re, you know, this is one more chance. It’s a very unusual thing. You know what? it’s not a book about Jesus because it’s, you know, somebody who’s maybe, you know, you’ve, you’ve exhausted that opportunity. Hey, they’re not willing to consider that, but Hey, this is a book about how some joker got to the super bowl for free. So how about that? You know, it’s, it’s, you know, the super bowl is, is the one cultural experience outside of Christmas that almost all of us share. You know, I was shocked to learn, like, that only 40% of the U.S. population watches the Super Bowl. I thought it was way higher than that. You know, I don’t know where these people are that don’t watch the Super Bowl. I know they’re not in Wisconsin where I live, and they’re not in Denver. I mean, Denver’s got that football team. What are they, the Denver Dinosaurs or something like that? Well, I have to tease you a little bit. I have to tease you a little bit because when I went to the Super Bowl, The Packers played the New England Patriots, and the Packers won, and it was really amazing. But the next year, the Packers were so good in those days, that the next year, they go to the Super Bowl again, and who are they playing but those doggone Denver Dinosaurs.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, John Elway ruined your day, right?
SPEAKER 02 :
You know, the Packers were heavy favorites. They were supposed to win, and everybody believed it, except for those Dinosaurs, and doggone it, you know, the Dinosaurs won, and I’ve been in counseling ever since. So… But here’s the point is that 120 million people watch the Superbowl on TV every year. One would assume they’d prefer to attend in person if it were free. So the topic is a conversation starter because that’s what I know from 12 years and then door to door evangelism. The hardest part of the whole enterprise is how do I get this conversation started? You know, how do I go, you know, whether it’s a stranger, or someone that you’re casually acquainted with, your colleague, coworker, neighbor, family friend, whoever it is, how do I get that conversation started? And Mike, you and I earlier, we were just talking that there’s some people that have that gift. And they can just say to somebody, hey, are you a Christian yet? Have you thought about Jesus? Some people can say that. I’ll be honest with you, Mike. I’m a shy, introverted person. For me to walk up to someone and start talking to them about Jesus is about the most foreign thing I can ever imagine doing. So I need a little help. I need a conversation starter. And that’s what this book is. Because, you know, I can’t think of a topic that would be more interesting to people, particularly secular people, that would draw them in. And that’s the premise behind this book. You know, Mike, 75% of nonfiction books The reader doesn’t finish the book. And, you know, I like to read, Mike. So how many times have I picked up a book and say, wow, that sure looks interesting. I want to know more. You start reading it and boy, it just gets so boring. You can’t finish it. And so I couldn’t take a risk with that with my book. So this book, you know, I’ve been in business for years, Mike. I mean, the success principles there are real. It’s the things I learned over a 40 year career. I think it’ll be a help to you. It’ll be a blessing. But truth be known, Mike, there were so many times that I messed up. It was funny. So I put that in there too. The bottom line is I wrote this book to be entertaining and grossing and engaging because the message of the gospel is towards the end. I really felt like I had to develop a rapport with the reader so that they would trust me by the time that we got to the end. So when I was sharing the gospel with them, they’d feel comfortable in trusting what I was sharing with them. So it’s just so important to really have that engagement. And I trust that’s what the book does. And so, again, I know so many of the listeners already know the Lord. So this is not about your salvation, because praise the Lord, you’re already there. But what this is about is turning you into an evangelist. You know, something, Mike, that really grabbed my attention. Of course, we know Pastor Adrian Rogers. He’s on your station. You know, we have him here in the local stations, too. I love listening to him. And, of course, he’s passed on, but his messages live on. And thank God for him. But there was one occasion when Pastor Rogers was talking about evangelism. So I was on the edge of my seat. And as he wound down the conversation, he observed that if every Christian every year were to lead just three to Christ, and those three would likewise lead three every year, that in just 25 years, we’d reach the entire population of the globe with the gospel. And then when he said all that, then he quipped, he said, it’s not that Christianity doesn’t work. It’s just that it’s never been tried. And so when I heard all that, I thought to myself, my goodness, I had no idea we were so close. And my second thought was, why don’t we try? So that’s part of what got behind me writing this book. And so I’ve written this book. I trust that your listeners will read it and enjoy it and be blessed by it. But you don’t put it away to gather dust on the shelf. When you’re done, you start sharing it. with your friends and family and colleagues and coworkers, all those people that are unsaved that you’re burdened about. And guess what? Now you’re an evangelist, but here’s where it gets exciting. So here you are, you’re sharing the book at two-week intervals, 26 times a year. And as you do that, you know, we were trying to get three, right? Everyone’s got to go and get three. Well, what I know from business, if you want to get three, you don’t talk to three, you talk to 26, right? Because if you talk to 26, you might get three or you might get five or you might get seven or you might get 26. But when you get one, here’s what you do. You give away your to them so they can tell their 26. You go get another copy. You keep on with your list. But now they tell their 26. So let me just summarize this for you, Mike. I tell 26 and you tell 26 and then they tell 26 and they tell 26 more. It’s an exponential progression, and now we can talk about the real reason why we’re talking today, and that’s for the cause of revival. I mean, do we dare say it out loud? And, you know, Mike, I don’t blame you if you or some of your listeners are skeptical, and they’re probably saying, hey, wait a minute, Brother Dave, you really think you’re going to spark a revival with you and your silly book? And I have to say, Mike, of course not. Of course not. I don’t expect that. But let me say this. Across 12 years of door-to-door evangelism, I have seen with my own eyes what Jesus can do. And the Lord can take the most miserable and broken-down tool, even me, and do the most miraculous things. So yes, Mike, you know what? I am confident there is going to be revival. And it’s not because there’s something special about my book, but it’s the Lord. And what he can do, I’ve seen him do it before. I think he’s going to do it again now. I mean, the signs are there. They have nothing to do with me. But did you know, Mike, did you know that it was just a few months ago I had heard that Bible sales were up in the last year by 40%?
SPEAKER 01 :
Isn’t that incredible?
SPEAKER 02 :
Yes, isn’t that incredible? Because, you know, I mean, just to clarify, it’s not like, oh, okay, there weren’t very many Bibles selling. So, you know, 10 sold last year, 14 sold this year. So it’s up 40%. No, no. I mean, the Bible is the best seller of all time and the best seller of any time. And tons of Bibles are being sold all the time. So in order for it to be up 40%, that is just incredible. So I think the Lord is already moving. He’s already working. But again, you know, I did my best with this book, Mike, but I’m just a guy. It’s the Lord that has the power. It’s the Holy Spirit of God that has the power. And that’s why, you know, you might be somebody listening to this broadcast and you say, listen, I’ve never talked to anyone about my faith. And I just wouldn’t know how. But you get this book and it gets you started. And like I say, I’m so excited because there’s going to come that day when, boy, you don’t have the book available and there’s an opportunity you’re going to witness to them anyway. And now you’ve thrown the training wheels off and you’re an evangelist. You’re an evangelist as much as anybody is. And this book can help you do that. That’s what it’s all about.
SPEAKER 01 :
We’re speaking with David Decker, and the book is called How to Go to the Super Bowl for Free and Other Success Secrets from the Victory Playbook. The website’s davidjdecker.com, davidjdecker.com. Dave, we’ve got a couple minutes left. Is there one key principle that from an evangelizing standpoint sticks out for you that’s in the book?
SPEAKER 02 :
Well, you know what? There’s a couple of things. I didn’t specifically write about this in the book, but I wanted to be a blessing to your listeners. You know, one of the things that keeps someone from sharing their faith, and this is coming from an evangelism explosion, so this isn’t just not my observation, but this has been researched. And the key thing to keep somebody from sharing their faith is the apparent conflict or hypocrisy, if you will, between someone’s lifestyle and and the message they’re trying to share. And that is just the devil up to no good, because let’s remember that Moses and Paul and David were all murderers, and the Lord still used them. So you cannot let that be an impediment. And I will tell you, if somebody confronts you and they say, hey, listen, you know, you’re trying to tell me about Jesus, and I’ve seen you do this, and I’ve seen you do that, and… they throw that at you. Don’t defend yourself. Instead, go the other way. Say, hey, you know what? I’m not only guilty of that, it’s more beside. And it’s amazing that God loves me so much. He has forgiven me for that and for more. And how can I not tell people about him? So that’s just something I wanted to share with your listeners. But one of my favorite topics in the book, and whether it’s or anything else you do in your life. It comes from the chapter on what to say at the graduation. And I use this chapter as, you know, the backstop for a Christian group. I was a Christian young people. I was just speaking to a few weeks ago. And it’s really about getting your life in the right order. Because here’s the order, Mike, is it’s God first, others second, and you last. You put yourself last, and you’ll finish first. And that’s true whether you’re trying to do business or you’re trying to reach the lost. If you have a genuine concern for others, a Christ-like concern for others, and that has to be an end in itself. You’re not concerned. You don’t have a love for others so that you can do business with them or this you can witness to them. The concern you have for others is an end in itself because if you live that way, you show up that way – Some people are so self-absorbed they won’t notice, but enough people will. People will say, I can trust what that guy tells me. I want to do business with that person. I want to be friends with that person. I want to be married to that person. And you will have a rich life. You will have a wonderful marriage. You’ll have a great relationship with your kids. You’ll have friends. You’ll have plenty of business. You will have joy. That’s what I want. You know what? The Christian life, you know, to live is Christ, to die is gain. This is the Christian life. I want to help people have that experience. You know, this is a life of joy. You know what I could say to your listeners, Mike? I could say, you know, revival, the gospel, isn’t it worth sacrificing for? But wait a minute, Mike. Why should I call your listeners to sacrifice when I’m on this joyride? You know, all you’re seeing now is another victory lap in the joyride. So my message to the listeners is don’t sacrifice. Come join the joyride. I mean, let me put this in perspective for you, Mike. I’ve been to the Super Bowl. I watched the game from the 50-yard line. It was free, and my team won. I mean, does it get any better than that? Does it get any better? Well, let me tell you, it sure does. Lead somebody to Christ, because that is like 10 Super Bowls.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, Dave, you’ve given us a lot of wisdom. People can connect with you through davidjdecker.com, davidjdecker.com. And again, the book is How to Go to the Super Bowl for Free and Other Success Secrets, Leading People to Christ, by the way, from the Victory Playbook. And Dave, thanks for your time with us. We’ll have you back again. There’s so much more to talk about. Thanks again.
