Missionaries use YouTube to reach new audience
Within that smorgasbord of information is where missionaries Martin and Julie Johnson, who work with a Church of Christ in Jakarta, Indonesia, have planted themselves.
“It started as a way for me to practice Indonesian on a daily basis,” Martin Johnson told The Christian Chronicle. “I made a commitment, I was going to put out a video every day in Indonesian and it really caught on. People really liked it.”
The Johnson family’s channel took off. To date they have more than 86,000 followers, a number that continues to grow.
“It’s been interesting to see how certain opportunities have come out of that,” Martin Johnson said.
The family’s YouTube channel is a place where they document their day to day life as they navigate the country and learn the language.
From cutting down trees to their travels, there’s no topic they won’t tackle.
It’s an avenue they’ve found not only appeals to the people in Indonesia, but one that is helping them share the Gospel with the people there.
While they don’t preach on YouTube, Martin Johnson does take time to mention his faith and invite their viewers to church.
“Every video has a link to our church’s website and our personal website. And on our website, they can find the Gospel there,” he said.
Those invitations are working.
There have been several occasions where visitors to the church have told them they came after seeing the family on YouTube.
In fact, that’s exactly how one of the church members, a man named Halasan, found the Johnsons.
“He started watching our videos and found out we were different,” Martin Johnson said. “He showed up one day just to come to church, Bible in hand.”
Halasan was baptized in 2016. (PHOTO PROVIDED)
Halasan began studying with the Johnsons and then made the decision to be baptized.
He’s now an active member of their small congregation.
But he’s not the only one.
A few of those who regularly attend first found out about the church through YouTube.
The Johnsons believe this use of technology could be instrumental not just in growing the church in Indonesia, but around the world.
“We really want to encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ, if they’re thinking about it, to start a YouTube channel whether it’s a Bible study channel a sermon channel or just sharing their life, their hobbies their passions and being that example to people who will want to contact them personally,” Martin Johnson said.
They believe sharing your faith through your talents on a site like YouTube could help people see Christians in a different light.
You can find the Johnson’s English channel by clicking here.
