Advantages & Disadvantages of Handing Out Tracts

Following on the heels of my post on "Does Handing Out Tracts Do Any Good?", I wanted to share with you a couple of well written and thoughtful posts over at The Reformed Evangelist blog:

The social dynamics of handing out tracts are a bit different in Thailand than in the West. As I mentioned before, just going out and handing out tracts is not nearly as ideal as sharing the Gospel in a conversation with someone that you already know. However, when someone receives a tract and reads it, it is food for thought and it might get them thinking about things they haven't previously considered. I find most people in Thailand to be receptive to receiving tracts. I say something like "This is free" (แจกฟรีครับ) or "I've come to hand out Good News" (มาแจกข่าวประเสริฐครับ). Occassionally, I've gotten stony faced looks when I go to hand a tract to someone but once I say that it is free, the person smiles and willingly takes it. I've learned from my Thai brothers and sisters that some people are afraid that you want money to make merit in return for receiving a gift of some sort. I've met these folks before. Usually they approach you on the street with some kind of cheap trinket and ask a small amount for it - to help handicapped children or make merit (create good karma) or some such. So, I can understand how some people are leery of receiving something on the street from a stranger. But happily, most people cheer up when told

that the tract is free. And the practice of handing out tracts certainly forces me to overcome that fear of people looking at me as a weirdo. However, being a white guy in Thailand, I get all sorts of strange looks anyhow so regardless of whether I hand out a tract or not, people wonder "Who is that and what is he doing here?" Giving out a tract helps answer those questions.