International (MNN) — In the past several months, 8,000 youth from 29 countries have come to Christ through one unusual medium: a Web site.
Ron Hutchcraft Ministries' "The Doug and Jon Show" is composed of a variety of digital shorts, comics, blogs, humorous videos and more, with the intent to walk with kids in life and share the Gospel with them. The cyber fun, which can only be viewed online at the show's site, www.thedougandjonshow.com, has more than doubled its viewership since January and now has a quarter of a million unique viewers.
The Doug and Jon Show has been around for a little while now, but only in recent months has it gained much international attention. Doug Hutchcraft, "Doug" of the show, says they are able to track what countries viewers are watching from. As they've done so, they've discovered that their American-run site is now reaching thousands of teens across the globe.
"That's the power of the internet: the Gospel is being preached all over the planet," says Hutchcraft. "[The show] is all over the place: U.S., Philippines, U.K., Australia, the Middle East, Italy, the Bahamas, Japan, Israel, France, Indonesia, South Korea, and Egypt. All over the place."
The amazing thing about the spread is that The Doug and Jon Show doesn't advertise. All of their notoriety is gained through social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, or sometimes through videos on Youtube. Kids hear from their friends as well, and are drawn to the site by its humor, life discussions and spiritual outreach.
Keeping the site relevant to people from so many different countries can be difficult, so Hutchcraft says they usually stick to situational humor. In videos and blogs that teach the Gospel, simple phrases like "rescue" are used rather than words like "redeemed," to avoid confusing un-churched kids or those speaking English as a second language.
In all that they do, members of The Doug and Jon Show seek to share life with students while introducing them to their Savior in a comfortable atmosphere.
"We're not treating them like a target," explains Hutchcraft about the show's approach to its viewers. "We're saying, ‘Look, we love to laugh; do you want to laugh with us? We love to work through life's problems; do you want to work through life's problems with us? We also love God; do you want to hear about the difference that He's made in our lives?'"
The show is finding that many do indeed want to hear about this difference. Over 8,000 kids have responded already to the Gospel. They indicate their response by clicking a button affirming they prayed to ask Christ come into their lives. After the button's been clicked, kids are given a list of ways to please the Lord and be a devoted follower. Numerous links are made available for youth to get involved in churches wherever they may be across the world. Other links are available for them to get questions answered. As many resources as are possible via internet are provided to ensure that lives can truly be changed for Christ.
Spread the word about this life-changing site to kids in your life. If you're linked to some sort of social networking, post a link to the show on your page. Pray that more and more kids worldwide would come to know Christ as a result of the Truth preached on The Doug and Jon Show.
