From South Africa for one week, then to Côte d’Ivoire the next, and then back home to Germany, Crystal Gibbons keeps busy with her travels. But it isn’t for leisure purposes, as Gibbons is the Global Missions Communications Coordinator for the Nazerene Church, and travels to train people on how to reach others to Christ through media content.
Missionary Media Outreach
Missionaries have used media as a way to spread the gospel for decades, as they adapt to the new technology that comes with it. Whether it’s through film or radio, creatives from all over the world have used their gifts in the mission field.
One organization that specializes in media missions is World Mission Broadcast, which creates resources to reach people outside of the church in thousands of languages across the world. Originally, the organization started with just radio broadcasts, but now has expanded into television and podcasting programs.
The Importance of Mission Media
Brian Utter, the Global Coordinator of World Mission Broadcast, understands the importance of mission media in the context of ministry. “The biggest need that media helps with is offering hope in Jesus Christ in their heart language, and someone’s going to come to Christ listening to that content,” Utter said.
Utter also explains how, as new technology arises, missionaries are able to strategize how to reach countries and places where it’s hard to spread the gospel, like in China and India, by utilizing Bluetooth pushers directly to people’s devices.
Communication through stories, in general, has been a part of the church since the beginning, as Jesus told stories or parables to share truths of the Kingdom of Heaven. “Jesus was a communicator, and he has sent us out to communicate the message,” Gibbons said.
Anyone Can Spread the Good News
There is a presumption that one has to be in ministry, be a pastor, or travel overseas in order to do mission media. However, this isn’t the case, Gibbons explains. “You can start doing it exactly where you are, and God will train you, give you opportunities if you’re just following His guidance,” she said. If one has the passion and heart for stories, all it takes is to just start creating.
To effectively share messages, being personal has been something that has been working for Global Missions. When they shared a behind-the-scenes Instagram reel or a selfie video from the Global Mission director, Gibbons shared that people felt more engaged and connected to the content and the mission.
“People don’t really want perfect anymore; they want authenticity, so we want to be authentic and not untouchable and distant,” Gibbons said.
A way that people can get involved with missionary media could be on a mission trip that specializes in the communication realm. Two Olivet Nazarene University students had the opportunity to go to the Europe region and Guatemala on separate trips.
The good news of Christ was meant to spread to the ends of the earth, and missionaries have utilized media to spread that light. Even if the world looks bleak, there is still hope in the stories of those who put their trust in the Lord.
