42 Seconds: The Jesus Model for Everyday Interactions

The average length of Jesus’ conversations as recorded in the Gospels was 42 seconds long. This is good news for all of us. It frees us up to talk about the most important part of our lives in a way that’s natural, meaningful, and helpful instead of clumsy, awkward, and irrelevant.

Anyone who has spent countless uncomfortable hours walking from house to house with a clipboard or flash cards that talk about four spiritual laws understands.

Jesus’ conversations were remarkably simple. Contemporary Christian lingo has set up a dichotomy between what we call “discipleship” and “evangelism,” but the Bible doesn’t do that. Jesus had conversations all the time with those who thought they were close to God, as well as with those who deemed themselves lost and without hope. He invited all of them to come and learn from Him.

42 Seconds is a simple book that uses the ordinary moments of our lives the way Jesus used the same moments in his own. The premise is straightforward: If we can learn from Jesus how to have great conversations, it will change our lives and the lives of those around us. Its four-part structure, including five short chapters per section, is for churches and small groups to engage with the practical ideas together. 42 Seconds includes discussion questions to help groups and individuals implement Jesus’ natural rhythm of interaction in their own lives.

Carl Medearis does it again. He brings enormous ideas down to earth where we all live and helps us to see how―as Dallas Willard used to say―“We can live our lives the way Jesus would live our lives . . . if Jesus had our lives to live.” And Jesus is supposed to have our lives to live. Carl brings amazingly simple, insightful, and practical suggestions directly from the life of Jesus . . . and offers them to us to practice in our real, everyday lives. (Bart Tarman, speaker, artist, and former chaplain of Westmont College)

I am a big fan of Carl Medearis. He’s always fun yet challenging, provocative yet deeply biblical. In 42 Seconds, he is no different. Exploring the art of getting to the point with people just like Jesus did is so necessary in our present cultural moment. You will be blessed and challenged by this book. (Daniel Fusco, poast of Crossroads Community Church)

Jesus is the most disruptive person who ever lived, because he’s always focused on growth, not on perpetuating the status quo. Likewise, my Jesus-loving friend Carl Medearis is one of the most disruptive people I’ve ever met―you’ll see what I mean when you read 42 Seconds. These short bursts of truth, at times hilarious and at times profound, will move you deeper into a lifestyle that produces fruit in others’ lives. Listen and learn from Carl, and you’ll leave the status quo behind for something like an epic adventure. (Rick Lawrence, author of The Jesus-Centered Life)

It’s amazing how often our words and actions can make the Good News Jesus proclaimed and embodied sound and look like Bad News. Our world is in desperate need of Jesus people to take seriously our invitation to speak, think, and act in ways reflective of the One we follow. In this book, Carl offers a relatable, thoughtful, and extremely tangible guide for how to not only say we believe in the Good News but also narrate it with our lives. (Jon Huckins, pastor and coauthor of Mending the Divides)