In spiritual conversations, landmines abound. That鈥檚 why talking with others about controversial, volatile topics like the gospel can be scary. I get it. It scares me, too.

I鈥檝e found a good way to minimize the risk, though, and increase my courage. I use questions. Why? Because questions keep me safe.

Here are four ways questions can increase your margin of safety, too, while still providing a great opportunity for you to make a difference.

First, questions get you going. Most people find that starting a spiritual conversation is a bit awkward. Using a well-placed question, though, is a safe way for more timid types 鈥撯 and aggressive types, too 鈥撯 to get off the bench and into the active conversation. It helps you ease into the game, so to speak, in a genial, non-threatening way, especially when your question shows a personal interest in the other person.

I had a fun conversation once with a witch in Wisconsin simply by asking about her necklace 鈥撯 a five-pointed star called a pentagram often associated with the occult. 鈥淒oes that jewelry have spiritual significance?鈥 was all I asked. Yes, it did. She was 鈥渁 pagan,鈥 and happy to talk about the particulars. More questions followed as I probed for detail on her views. I was relaxed and so was she. It was painless.

There鈥檚 a reason questions make the initial stages of conversation so much easier. Once you ask, it鈥檚 the other person鈥檚 turn to answer. Your job is done for the moment. All you need to do is listen. It鈥檚 simple. Once you鈥檙e rolling, the conversation almost always gets easier as opportunities for more questions present themselves.

Second, questions give you valuable 鈥渋ntel.鈥 Like I said, sometimes there are landmines out there, and it鈥檚 safer if you find them in advance.

Once, on a flight out of LAX, I chatted amiably with a thirty-something passenger sitting next to me. As I gently drew him out with questions, I learned he was not a Christian, though he used to be. In fact, he said, he used to be a preacher鈥檚 kid. What had happened to his preacher dad? 鈥淥h, he鈥檚 still alive. He鈥檚 just not a preacher anymore. In fact, he鈥檚 not a Christian anymore, either.鈥

Valuable intel? You bet. As I listened more to his story, the outlines of his spiritual topography came into focus. It wasn鈥檛 a pretty picture. If I鈥檇 jumped into the conversation leading with the gospel, I鈥檓 sure I would have hit a tripwire. In situations like this one, questions often reveal obstacles in your path you can carefully maneuver around if you know where they are.

Third, questions protect you from having to defend your own view. The reason is simple. If you鈥檙e asking questions, you鈥檙e not making statements. Since the burden of proof is always on the person making the claim, you鈥檙e in the clear. If you stick with questions, you鈥檒l have nothing to defend, so you鈥檙e in a safe place, not vulnerable to counterattack.

Fourth, starting with questions makes exiting easier, so entering is easier, too. Flying home after nearly two weeks of grueling work in Paraguay, I had a midnight layover in S茫o Paulo, Brazil. I was tired and didn鈥檛 want to talk. I was also hungry, but I didn鈥檛 trust the airport restaurants, having had a bad experience in Uganda a month earlier.

I saw a young American chatting in Portuguese with a waitress, so I asked for his advice. He gave the restaurant a thumbs up, then we sat together to enjoy our meal. I learned quickly why this young Yank spoke Portuguese so well. He was an LDS missionary. Now I faced a conflict.

It was a great opportunity to witness, of course, but to be completely candid, I did not want to endure an evening of evangelism with a Mormon missionary at midnight in Brazil after two weeks of talks. Like I said, I was tired.

Then it dawned on me. I didn鈥檛 have to commit myself to a lengthy bout with a non-believer. I could simply start with questions about Mormonism and easily exit whenever I ran out of gas. Plus, asking about his views was a lot simpler than preaching about my own. It gave me the sense of safety I needed to step out.

Can you actually make a difference for the gospel by focusing principally on questions? You bet. I do, and you will, too. Plus, questions help you ease into conversations, give you valuable intel, allow you to sidestep the burden of proof, and make it easy to exit when it鈥檚 time to go.

Put simply, questions keep you safe.