While I was younger, it was a yearly routine to celebrate the children’s day service in Church with the recitation of memory verses.
It still is, especially in churches established decades ago. My Sunday school teacher invested a lot in helping us learn the words we would need to know to share the gospel as children. After the training that year, we went through a tough test during one of the church evangelism programs. It was an adult program, and we had to speak to an audience about Christ. We had to perform well as prepared. I cannot remember whether the evening ended with anyone getting saved or not, so my guess is as good as yours- It did not.
I’m not here to discount my well-intentioned Sunday school teacher or to critique her numerous memory tools for evangelism. They worked well to fill us with the basis of the knowledge that most of us now have, but the tides of evangelism have changed, and if we must raise children who would be digital evangelists for the gospel of Christ, we must update our methods. The Church must begin to choose a less formulaic approach that is invitational, relational, and convictional when training children on how to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.
As more and more churches begin to embrace digital evangelism, it is vital to carry the young adults’ Church along and choose the appropriate medium. If we run a quiz for church leaders on the best medium for digital evangelism, over 90% will pick social media, as expected. Social media evangelism is the most common method that most digital disciples use to evangelize. It involves creating content to reach, connect, and engage with people on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. However, there are other ways of digital evangelism outside these four popular ones. You have to be specific and know why you are choosing any particular medium.
Let us consider what happens in one internet minute. Statistics have shown us that approximately 1 million people logged onto Facebook, 3.8 million searches on Google, 4.5 million videos on YouTube, and 347,222 users were scrolling on Instagram.
That’s a lot of activity, but it leaves me wondering how many of those people checked a blog or watched a video that told them about Jesus- not a lot. That is why the Church needs to approach digital evangelism beyond social media.
Here are three ways you can effectively engage the young people’s Church in digital evangelism.
1. CREATE AND RUN AN ACTIVE SOCIAL ACCOUNT FOR YOUR CHILDREN’S CHURCH
Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, our kids are already on the internet- most likely the wrong sites- more than they pick up their books to read. Is that not an indication to leverage the internet for the gospel’s benefit without delay? That means having more than just a social media page. Create a strategy that aims to build relationships and increase engagement.
Social media is a great way to connect with people in the community around your Church and learn their pain points. However, the Church must look at sharing its content with people all over the world. Use the platform to get to know your audience better instead of only promoting events at your Church.
It is also not enough to count on the Church’s social media accounts alone; what about a community of young adults having online conversations about the gospel. What about hosting a party online for the young adults with a gate pass? That sounds exclusive and is only possible with the ChurchPad Children check-in/check-out system.
Let me even ask you this: As a church leader, when was the last time you considered the amount of influence you have online? Today, most of us have direct or indirect access to thousands of people through our social media accounts, and it’s easy to forget just how mundane this idea would have seemed decades ago. Not only that: powerful media platforms now allow you to target specific groups of people with direct messages. You may not be able to rent a large stadium; however, your church community can share Christian faith with thousands by simply using your existing social media networks in a targeted campaign.
2. HIRE CREATIVES FROM YOUR YOUNG PEOPLE’S CHURCH AND INVEST IN THEM
There are certainly young adults in colleges who have gone through professional training to become professionals at various creative jobs, and they are members of every Church. It would not be fair for a church to place a job advert for graphic designers outside its community when it comes to its design work when it can easily employ the help of someone within; who is skilled in that area.
Young people practically live online. They know the routes- put them at the helm of digital affairs. Hire the right people to do the job when it comes to the church’s digital work. You have them all in your ministry- the graphic designers, videographers, photographers, and social media strategists- get them busy to do the job right.
3. IF YOU MUST DO DIGITAL EVANGELISM, DO IT RIGHT!
For too long, we have been doing online church work at a mediocre level. That is no longer acceptable. If a church must do digital evangelism right, it has to be prepared to recruit, employ more productive digital tools, and continuously train the members of its creative department.
As the need for digital evangelists grows, more tools are being made readily available. We no longer have any excuse to keep using social media as the only means of digital evangelism. Technology is not the devil’s workshop; the Church must embrace relevant digital tools to improve its online presence and promote community engagement. The best way to spread the gospel in this dispensation is by leveraging technology and training members of the creative department to achieve more.
ChurchPad provides top-notch training in social media, digital ads, video, and audio editing, photo editing, writing, among others, to churches that are part of our community. It is easy to become a part of our community- no setup fee, no contracts, and you can cancel anytime.
With individuals trained and filled with the Holy Spirit, the Church can successfully reach more people across the globe.
