While watching this video, I was struck by the idea that we, as pastors, need to tweak our presentations, not change the message . Through singing "Old MacDonald," "Twinkle, Twinkle," "Humpty Dumpty," and "If You're Happy and You Know It" in a different style, Edward Reid connected with the audience despite the fact that they already knew all these songs and are familiar to death with them.
It's similar to the great, life-changing gospel message that we share with churchgoers week in and week out. They know the gospel inside and out, backwards and forwards. But knowing it is different than having it connect and allowing it to transform.
These songs provided the joy they were intended to bring about. The audience enjoyed thesm like they hadn't since they were little children being sung to by fun, dancing parents. But if they heard the songs in the old traditional way, it would have produced boredom. It would not have the intended effect.
When we tweak our style, it could also completely flop. But it might not, and the reward if it doesn't far surpasses the risk. What we see is that when the songs were presented in a different style, it connected and allowed the audience to enjoy the moment. Our message can do so much more than that, yet we continue to present it in the same, boring way. The Gospel deserves so much more than that.
How I long for the message of the gospel to connect with everyone we present it to and to transform lives for His glory and the growth of His kingdom. Maybe we just need to tweak our style because we are ignored when we share the great message in the same old way.
