We thank God for bringing us to the final month of the year-long Double Our Numbers Campaign.  Today we are thrilled once again to release another mini-strategy.  This is the second last of the planned seven mini-strategies.  In doing so, we want to thank God and as well as you for your wonderful cooperation and encouragement to us. The good news is that the Canberra Declaration website counter has now passed 60,000!  This is a 32% increase since the campaign began.

 

 

Here we acknowledge that it's not easy to act on a new mini-strategy every fortnight.  You may feel that you have not had sufficient time to do all that you would like to do on the previous strategy.  You may even be feeling weary.  This is very understandable.  But may we encourage you to take heart!  In setting up these mini-strategies, we now realise that all of them can be used on an on-going basis. We now have new promotional materials, tools and approaches to get the word out.  We plan to permanently feature these on our website.

 

There are many more church leaders to contact, many more Advocates to be recruited and many more translations to be made etc..  The important thing is that we, collectively as the Canberra Declaration community, have made a start!

 

Here we want to give special thanks to the 750 volunteers on the fourteen different teams who have made the Double Our Numbers Campaign possible. God is indeed growing the Canberra Declaration community!  Over the next month we hope to appoint coordinators for the different teams.

 

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Strategy 6 is based on another suggestion from last year's Double Our Numbers Survey.  Many suggested that the Canberra Declaration should be promoted through Christian Radio, TV and other publications.

In our most recent Good News Update 130 we highlighted an outstanding example of the use of media.  This was the Magna Carta, a document produced eight hundred years ago and still in existence today!  Using the appropriate media of the day, it was hand-written and hand-copied onto untanned animal hides.  The message went out and history was made.

In this Good News Update we include four forms of modern media for you to consider - 

 

1. Christian Radio - 60-Second and 30-Second Radio Spots

 

We have produced four radio spots that you can use. The speaker is Warwick Marsh as his voice is well-known on Christian radio. We suggest you pass these on to the manager of your local Christian radio station.  We will also do this through our contact information database.

 

But because email addresses often change, we are not sure sometimes if we have made contact.  Even if the radio station manager did receive the radio spots, your call would not be wasted. He or she may still be deciding on whether or not to schedule a spot and how often.  Your encouragement may make all the difference. We are asking the radio station to broadcast the radio spot at no cost to the Canberra Declaration.

2. Christian TV - Trinity Broadcasting Network

 

Recently a program was recorded by Trinity Broadcasting Network Pacific TV featuring the Canberra Declaration. It is now available as a YouTube. You can view that 15 min segment from 12-27 min then decide how you might be able to use it with your contacts and networks. For example, you could post it on your Facebook timeline or send it to your friends via email.

 

3. Christian Publications - An 800-word article titled 'A Call to Take a Stand'

 

This article paints a picture of the Canberra Declaration from its beginnings in 2010 to where it is today.  Near the end of the article the Double Our Numbers Campaign and the Canberra Declaration website are mentioned.

We suggest you pass this on to the editor of your church or local Christian publication for consideration.  (It is appreciated that editors need lead time so it may not appear immediately but in a future issue.) Please feel free to adapt it for use in a local newspaper. 

 

If the article does go to press, we would be very interested in receiving a copy of the publication.  And even if the article does not go to press, we would appreciate a contact email address and name of your church publication for any future media releases. 

 

You will see below the line another article that appeared recently in the Central Western Daily News. 

 

4. Canberra Declaration Promotional Youtube - 'It's Time to to Take a Stand'

 

This Youtube was first presented at this year's National Day of Prayer and Fasting in Canberra on 15 February 2015. We recommend that you use 'It's Time to Take a Stand' often.  For example, you can show it on your laptop computer to a fellowship group or home group.  Or you can arrange to show it to your local church during a church service.  You might like to speak to it using some of the thoughts in the above article 'A Call to Take a Stand'. It would also be good to have some copies of the Canberra Declaration and brochures handy.  These can be downloaded from our Promotional Pack page.

Please pray - 

• that God will go before and inspire us to use media to get the message out.
   
• that God will prepare hearts to receive the invitation to read & sign the Canberra Declaration.
   
• that God will give the increase and many will join the Canberra Declaration community. 

As we do may these words of the apostle Paul spur us on,

 

"I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.  I do all this for the sake of the Gospel ..." (1 Corinthians 9:22,23).

 

Yours for the communication of Christian values,