Mission and music
February and March seem to be a big time of year for missions. Churches, University and School Christian Unions all over the country put on talks, events, dinners, and 'grill-a-Christians' to get their guests of wide-ranging tastes in earshot of the gospel.
Accompanying those events, or even integral to them, will be the use of music. Whether in the background during the event, or up front in a classical concert or jazz night, music can play a big part in breaking down cultural barriers so that the culturally uncomfortable message of the gospel can be heard. Many great evangelists have used music to great effect. Dwight Moody and Billy Graham are the two most famous examples.
Think carefully
The use of music in evangelism requires a lot of thought, however. Very often, the music can become the focus of the event, rather than the gospel itself. A friend of mine put on a band night. Great band, massive crowd, and some of the lyrics of the songs were pretty good. If you measured the success of an evangelistic evening by atmosphere and number of non-Christians, it hit the spot. The 600 or so teenagers were loving it. When the screaming of the fans was at its height, the lead singer decided to do his gospel slot. Here's the dialogue that followed between speaker and crowd.
