Do you think they're wasting their time? What things about the person would you quickly size up before deciding to stop and listen, assuming you didn't have a class to get to right away? Why campuses? 1) high foot traffic, and 2) you're getting them while they're young, before they've spent their entire adult lives outside the will of God.
I did a youtube search, and have listened to about 4 of them, not at all impressed. One leaned against a poll (not on a college campus, just a city street), stared down reading scripture the whole time with a "don't bother me" attitude. A news reporter tried to talk to him, and was put on ignore.
Another was constantly moving up and down the sidewalk, yelling and winging it with nonsensical random stuff, even with amplification equipment.
I personally witnessed the protesting of a liberal church by so-called street preachers, ON Easter Sunday, as people arrived for church and got out of their cars. I didn't see the point. The only people that their megaphone was reaching, were not going to change. Their leader videotaped it, uploaded it to youtube, but later took it down.
Another was addressing a small handful of students who were engaging him in back and forth random conversation that didn't look like anyone could possibly be saved.
Sometimes I think these guys just want to hear themselves talk, or thinking they're engaging in good works, even if they don't produce fruit. None sounded remotely similar to good pastors giving sermons in hopes that people would come back to hear more.
I'm thinking about doing it, focusing on college campuses, telling them what I think everyone needs to hear, using a prepared script that presents important Biblical concepts and God's plan for salvation, focusing on what it means to 'follow Jesus,' to be exclusively saved in a lost and dying world, and live godly lives, not worldly lives. I would quote scripture mixed in throughout.
The emphasis would be on getting people to read their Bible - 'at least try it,' (i.e. Genesis at a minimum), to know about the fall of man, God's wrath, the great flood, and the patriarchs, emphasizing the 'character and nature of God,' then skim across other books, quoting scripture along the way, letting God take over from there.
I'm not looking to be confrontational or single people out amongst the crowd as that would interrupt and distract from my message. I've already started typing out what I want to say, and hope to keep it no longer than 30 minutes so that anyone who stops to listen wouldn't have to be there that long. Attention spans are often short. The timing would likely be around lunch time or late afternoon, or both, when there's the most foot traffic due to morning or afternoon classes being finished, and students not having someplace they have to be in the next 10 minutes.
I'm not sure how far I'd travel to get to colleges, but would like to go out of state, and eventually be a non-profit in order to do fundraising to help with expenses, so if anyone has experience running a 501(c) and can guide me along, it could help. I wouldn't even begin spending time raising finances to cover costs like gasoline, without having done it for awhile and being able to give examples of my work being productive. I'd expect to have a youtube channel to make access to what's being done an open book for all prospective donors, and anyone else for that matter, to watch.
Based on viewership, I wouldn't expect many views of my uploads cause even the best of preachers, preaching excellent sermons, don't get that many channel subscribers and views, unfortunately. But they sure do a great job of fundraising for their churches and mission causes. So do the many professional praise teams making records, like Hillsong. They fill auditoriums with concert goers, and reach a lot of people worldwide. Frankly, I don't know why there aren't more preachers out in public air, instead of just focusing on who comes to church on Sunday, as they edify to souls that are already saved. Unless it's a very large church with an alter call and 'sinners prayer,' (i.e. "repeat after me.....), they often do 'invitations' without anyone accepting, cause the people there aren't hearing anything new.
I want people to hear something new, that most pastors are not preaching, even to their church-going flocks. But I don't want to waste time either.
So back to the original question....what do you think of street preachers? Do you know any who have successfully done it? What makes a good one? Could you see yourself doing it? Why or why not? I've toyed with the idea for years, and am more strongly motivated now due to misguided non-truth I'm hearing, in more and more stunning, unbelievable churches. If people don't hear the truth from somewhere, they may never hear it, and the Bible says that ideally, we aren't suppose to just think of heaven being for us, but to try and take some people with us. That's why I chose this category to post in, about following Jesus and discipleship. I'm looking forward to seeing people I knew on earth, once I get there. The more the merrier, especially if I had a hand in them being there when they may not have been otherwise. The fact that people's lives are made better by God before they die seems like icing on the cake.
I did a youtube search, and have listened to about 4 of them, not at all impressed. One leaned against a poll (not on a college campus, just a city street), stared down reading scripture the whole time with a "don't bother me" attitude. A news reporter tried to talk to him, and was put on ignore.
Another was constantly moving up and down the sidewalk, yelling and winging it with nonsensical random stuff, even with amplification equipment.
I personally witnessed the protesting of a liberal church by so-called street preachers, ON Easter Sunday, as people arrived for church and got out of their cars. I didn't see the point. The only people that their megaphone was reaching, were not going to change. Their leader videotaped it, uploaded it to youtube, but later took it down.
Another was addressing a small handful of students who were engaging him in back and forth random conversation that didn't look like anyone could possibly be saved.
Sometimes I think these guys just want to hear themselves talk, or thinking they're engaging in good works, even if they don't produce fruit. None sounded remotely similar to good pastors giving sermons in hopes that people would come back to hear more.
I'm thinking about doing it, focusing on college campuses, telling them what I think everyone needs to hear, using a prepared script that presents important Biblical concepts and God's plan for salvation, focusing on what it means to 'follow Jesus,' to be exclusively saved in a lost and dying world, and live godly lives, not worldly lives. I would quote scripture mixed in throughout.
The emphasis would be on getting people to read their Bible - 'at least try it,' (i.e. Genesis at a minimum), to know about the fall of man, God's wrath, the great flood, and the patriarchs, emphasizing the 'character and nature of God,' then skim across other books, quoting scripture along the way, letting God take over from there.
I'm not looking to be confrontational or single people out amongst the crowd as that would interrupt and distract from my message. I've already started typing out what I want to say, and hope to keep it no longer than 30 minutes so that anyone who stops to listen wouldn't have to be there that long. Attention spans are often short. The timing would likely be around lunch time or late afternoon, or both, when there's the most foot traffic due to morning or afternoon classes being finished, and students not having someplace they have to be in the next 10 minutes.
I'm not sure how far I'd travel to get to colleges, but would like to go out of state, and eventually be a non-profit in order to do fundraising to help with expenses, so if anyone has experience running a 501(c) and can guide me along, it could help. I wouldn't even begin spending time raising finances to cover costs like gasoline, without having done it for awhile and being able to give examples of my work being productive. I'd expect to have a youtube channel to make access to what's being done an open book for all prospective donors, and anyone else for that matter, to watch.
Based on viewership, I wouldn't expect many views of my uploads cause even the best of preachers, preaching excellent sermons, don't get that many channel subscribers and views, unfortunately. But they sure do a great job of fundraising for their churches and mission causes. So do the many professional praise teams making records, like Hillsong. They fill auditoriums with concert goers, and reach a lot of people worldwide. Frankly, I don't know why there aren't more preachers out in public air, instead of just focusing on who comes to church on Sunday, as they edify to souls that are already saved. Unless it's a very large church with an alter call and 'sinners prayer,' (i.e. "repeat after me.....), they often do 'invitations' without anyone accepting, cause the people there aren't hearing anything new.
I want people to hear something new, that most pastors are not preaching, even to their church-going flocks. But I don't want to waste time either.
So back to the original question....what do you think of street preachers? Do you know any who have successfully done it? What makes a good one? Could you see yourself doing it? Why or why not? I've toyed with the idea for years, and am more strongly motivated now due to misguided non-truth I'm hearing, in more and more stunning, unbelievable churches. If people don't hear the truth from somewhere, they may never hear it, and the Bible says that ideally, we aren't suppose to just think of heaven being for us, but to try and take some people with us. That's why I chose this category to post in, about following Jesus and discipleship. I'm looking forward to seeing people I knew on earth, once I get there. The more the merrier, especially if I had a hand in them being there when they may not have been otherwise. The fact that people's lives are made better by God before they die seems like icing on the cake.
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