This Advent season, one small-town pastor decided to do something completely different. Rather than put on a pageant or show, Rev. Drumondo Simpson decided to use YouTube to minister to his community. With no paid production crew or fancy equipment, his team of volunteers produced a video that took a message from the pulpit and put it in the hands of the world. As a result, support has started rolling in.
Rev. Simpson is a man of passionate faith – but one who’s passion lies not in song and dance but in community-rooted ministry. It’s that passion that led him to try something new and different. Now he wants church leaders everywhere to benefit from his creativity.
Rev. Drumondo Simpson is pastor of Indiana Avenue Christian Church in Jeffersonville, IN. Just across the border from Kentucky, Jeffersonville is a town of about 45,000 people. But don’t let the size of the town fool you. Rev. Simpson has found a way to reach the community using the freely available tools of the web.
Starting in the beginning of Advent, Drumondo created a video asking for support to help orphaned children in the area. Called “Stuff the Ave”, his vision is to fill the entire church with toys and gifts for children that would otherwise not have a Christmas celebration. Check out this cool video he made explaining the ministry:
[tentblogger-youtube xQnjw8Vj81M]
Of course, lots of churches create videos and stick them on YouTube, wondering whether they do any good at all. But this one is different. Already he’s seen gifts come in as a result of the video. Part of that has been from people within his own congregation – but that doesn’t explain all of it.
As it turns out, Rev. Simpson’s story was picked up by the local news. Here’s their take on it:
WDRB 41 Louisville – News, Weather, Sports Community
WDRB 41 Louisville – News, Weather, Sports Community
I happened upon this story and just had to contact the guy behind it all. As it turns out, this is not Drumondo’s first run in with the media. Last Spring, his church gave away $5,000 in free gas to the community. After the local news picked up that story, the gas cards were gone in just a few hours. The response was overwhelming.
So I asked him – what was the secret to your publicity? With the gas promotion, Drumondo used a variety of marketing tools – Facebook, YouTube, direct mail, and even a press release sent out to the local news media. It’s that latter one that got his story out in the community in a big way.
But with this recent YouTube call for help, things just ‘fell into place’. No press releases were sent out. Yet the news got wind of the story anyway. Perhaps they were keeping an eye on this church with a vision. Or perhaps it was just pure luck they came across the Youtube video. Then again, I like to think of this as a Christmas miracle. What better message is there for the Advent season than having hope born from seemingly random events conspiring to bring justice to an injust world?
Rev. Simpson has a heart for God – that much is clear. But he also has a passion for seeing creative ministry take place around the world. That’s why he asked me to give you his email address, that he might share more of his ideas with anyone interested. In a time when churches are closing inward and pastors are becoming competitive, Rev. Simpson stands out as a model for servant leadership – and one that is desperately needed.
You may contact Rev. Simpson at [email protected]
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