'Safe at Home' Program Lets Christians Pitch the Gospel at the Ballpark
by Allie Martin
May 18, 2006
(AgapePress) - - An Alabama evangelist is using baseball as a tool to preach the gospel. This spring and summer, visitors to many minor-league baseball games around the United States will also be attending an evangelistic crusade. It's all part of an initiative by evangelist Scott Dawson called "Safe at Home." Through the Scott Dawson Evangelistic Association's "Safe at Home" campaign, local churches are encouraged to purchase blocks of tickets for select minor league games and Christians attend the sporting events along with a non-believer. Immediately after the game, an evangelistic crusade is held, involving Christian musicians and well-known sports figures, among others.
Dawson says the planning that goes into such an event is extensive and these crusades can take up to a year or more to coordinate. "Immediately after the game," he notes, "within four minutes we'll have a microphone; within 12 minutes, a full festival stage, and we'll have a one-day crusade at the ballpark."
But the preparation and effort invested in the game-day crusades are well worth the results, the evangelist points out. "We're seeing our percentages of responses just shoot through the roof because we've gone to where the people are instead of asking people to bring people with them to come to church," he says.
"And what we're finding," the minister adds, "is that communities are going, 'Wow, that is something where we can engage in culture,' and now we don't have to say, 'Would you like to come to church with me?'" While extending that kind of invitation to a non-Christian might seem difficult to many church members, he asserts, most find it fairly easy to say, "Would you go to a ball game with me?"
Still, Dawson acknowledges, evangelism can be hard. "It is difficult in sharing the gospel," he says, "but think about this: it costs. It cost Jesus' life. It costs us our time, our talents, and our treasure to invest ourselves in our neighbors' lives, to bring them into a relationship with Christ."
Dawson is excited about the "Safe at Home" initiative, which he says is providing a unique environment for preaching the gospel and winning souls for Christ. Several of the post-baseball game crusade events are planned through the end of July.
Allie Martin, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.
