Fellowship focus 2 - March 1997
Good news on the radio
The apostle Paul writes (Romans 10:14) 'How can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?'
One evening when I was listening to my local radio station: 106.6 Star FM, I happened to hear a short religious 'thought for the day'. I realised this would be an ideal opportunity to tell people about Jesus.
Star FM has a target audience of about 390,000 adults aged 15 and over in east Berkshire, south Buckinghamshire, north Surrey and the Heathrow area of London. People hear it at home, in their car, at work, or just dozing on the sofa!
I had to write 7 scripts (one for each day of the week), each about a minute long, so they had to be short and 'to the point'. Each is broadcast twice, first at 7.20am and then at 11.50pm.
I think it was the first time I went for a recording session that I was not to worry if I made any mistakes while reading out my scripts (which I did) because they would edit them out later. Guess what? They forgot! It was quite funny, but at the same time it must have made people pay attention. Radio is a personal medium with a regular and loyal audience which varies little from day to day or week to week, and unlike television, most radio listening is done alone.
Unlike commercial breaks on television, during which many viewers make a cup of coffee, or a phone call, radio listeners do not turn off their ears when an advertiser's commercial (or a 'thought for the day') is played. Saatchi and Saatchi funded a research project - The Ironing Board Survey - and found that, even after just one hearing, around one third of respondents remembered the names of the products/services they had heard advertised. Let's hope and pray that people remember Jesus and turn to him. Thankfully one is able to quote the bible freely.
Pause for thought contributors cover the whole religious spectrum. My desire is that people will hear God's truth rather than the false teaching of man-made religions.
There are other people in the church who are contributing to the radio slot, but if you know a Christian who lives, works or worships in the area, why not ask them if they want to contribute?
Nick.