Be A Herald In The Marketplace

I spent the last few days at the Greater Philadelphia Christian Writers Conference.  A fantastic line up of authors, speakers, editors and agents presided over the four day yearly event. I had the pleasure of having lunch with a Hollywood Superstar, Ted Baehr, who taught scriptwriting. Our workshops and continuing classes ran from early morning till late at night. Talk about information overload! However, one theme drove the heartbeat of the faculty.

It is time to get out of our comfortable Sunday pews and take the gospel message into the streets. 

I love this challenge of being a herald, a God ordained messenger, but where do I begin?  We brainstormed some options to take serving at soup kitchens to the next level. Since we all love to be entertained the new troubadours might want to add a little skit or funny poem to the menu to catch a few fish. One girl in our group suggested taking your home group to the next Ghost Tour in the city cemetery and prepare a monologue or poem about salvation. A creative teen could help you give it a beat.  I know this sounds a little weird and crazy but many people are suspicious of church, clergy, and Christians but will relax and enjoy something a little different.

We have to take a new approach and be salt and light to a generation that has been given a lot of mixed messages about God.  People need to see us without our religious face.  I can’t sing, dance, juggle or swallow swords but I broke out of my usual quiet shell and acted in a little drama we performed in front of the class.  For me that was huge.  I came out of my comfort zone because if I really want to be an effective witness I have to care enough to be uncomfortable.

Ted Baehr, the Chairman of the Christian Film and Television Commission had some sobering statistics we need to take seriously.

•  Good News Publication noted that 50 years ago, 70 percent of children had heard the gospel and were familiar with the Bible.  Today that number is 4 percent!
•  In the United States we are experiencing an unprecedented 22 percent decline in Christianity among children and teenagers. (George Barna)
•  Christians have increasingly been adopting spiritual views that come from Islam, Wicca, secular humanism, eastern religions and other sources.

Why…..because for the past 20 years we have seen the nation’s spiritual views slowly become less aligned with the Bible.  I don’t know about you but I want to see these statistics reverse.  If you have done something out of the ordinary to reach people for Christ please post and let us know, together we are a mighty army!
Watch how this little poem captivates the listener….