Recently, I have seen many Christian newspapers and magazines talking about multimedia ministry and actively recruiting professionals who can handle copywriting alone and are familiar with the specifications of different media. These are indeed a "new thinking, new operation" under the epidemic.
The Solar Act's online experiences
When we search on the net, there are not many Christian non-profit organizations in Hong Kong, with a total of less than 100, and most of them are supported by sects and churches. Very few people like the "Solar Act" were established directly by believers who had less than five years of seniority and did not belong to any denomination or church. On the other hand, the "Solar Act" positioning is to support missionaries and walk with them on missionary paths. Nonetheless, it is not easy to encourage missions among believers in Hong Kong, and the target field is predominantly Islamic Indonesia. Before the pandemic, we still had few opportunities to share missionary work and aspirations with different churches and groups. But during the epidemic, there was much less contact with the outside world. To continue to speak out for the mission, we decided to switch to multimedia and continue to serve God through a new platform.
While applying to become a charity in the Inland Revenue Department of Hong Kong, we never stop working. By the end of 2017, we first set up web pages, blogs, newsletters, and, subsequently, Facebook. In 2019, the first e-book, Perspectives, was published, and since then, both hard copy and e-books have been published every year, such as: "The Forgotten Man," "By Faith not by Sight," "The Good News that the "Remittance Hero's" etc. E-books are available on Amazon and Readmoo. In 2021 we tried out Podcasts to help keep listening at any time with audiobook help.
Before 2019, we also produced short videos but not regularly. However, in mid-2022, we saw the outbreaks of the videos; therefore, we caught the wave, started a new channel on YouTube, and named it "Missionary Talk Non-Stop ."Till now, eight videos have been launched.
The challenges of media work
Digital media is now in flux, and more churches are willing to join and use it. Knowing the target congregation is vital, especially as the generation is getting older and many youths emigrate to foreign countries. How to hold the gospel, ministry, and mission messages steady and sending them out is not an easy task. Therefore, it is essential to understand the characteristics of the congregation, and there is also a need for staffing to teach the elderly how to use computers or mobile phones to receive information.
Willing to invest resources?
We had the unfortunate experience that the camera equipment was initially perfect. Still, after the computer software company forced the user to upgrade, our equipment could not use the computer software. Not to mention the preparation of copywriting materials, video equipment, and high-speed computing computers, more expensive is the annual usage fee of different software.
On the other hand, if the short film or information is not updated regularly, the audience will not be able to develop the habit of watching it, which will be easily ignored or forgotten. In the future, when a new film is launched, it will cost more effort to promote it.
Overcome the test of temptation
As we all know, in producing a short film, whether it is three minutes, ten minutes, or more, the workforce and material resources are not simple! Good grades, of course, will be happy. Not as expected, the mood will also be low! But because of the weakness of human nature, after the film is released, it is often very concerned about the number of viewers and times.
The painful experience I have had is that I am too careful, so I care about the results of my work. Then I was reminded by the Holy Spirit that I should care about God, not the result, and that I could do my best.
You have a saying, 'Today, tomorrow we are going to go to a certain city, where we will live for a year and make a profit from the business.' In fact, you don't know what tomorrow will be. You were a cloud, and when it appeared, it was gone. 」（James4:13-14）
I repented to God and asked him to help me only see the beauty of working with Him, to enjoy the process of serving, to allow the spiritual gifts to function normally, and to wait with peace for the Lord's time and deeds!
The Lord gives comfort and encouragement.
Putting out a video every week is a real struggle. Some brothers and sisters who have seen my "NG Short Film" must understand. Thank you very much for your loving blessings. Your responses are encouraging, so I have positive energy, and my head is raised again. In addition, the Lord reminds me once again of the difference between effort and faithfulness!
An effort is an attitude of doing things, but faithfulness is looking up to God and obeying Him. Prayer is reliance and assurance of faith!
The great prophet Elijah also had moments of extreme weakness. He had performed great miracles on Mount Carmel and destroyed the prophets of Baal, and he had grand ambitions to bring the Israelites back to Jehovah. Still, because of a threatening word from Queen Jezebel, he fled into the wilderness and even begged for death under the tree of Roten. God fully understood that Elijah, whom He had chosen, was by no means a cowardly and incompetent man. His fear and anxiety were related to the extreme fatigue and near exhaustion of his body and mind at that time. God's way of care or healing is to let him eat, drink, and sleep and then find a safe and secret cave where he can rest quietly and regain strength. (See Feng Yongliang Missionary, Chinese Biography, January-March 2022 Quarterly, p. 20.) ）
"The Lord Jehovah, the holy one of Israel, said, 'Your salvation is in your return to rest; your strength is in peace and security. (Isiah 30:15)
The light shines in all directions.
Fatigue makes people lose their light. After God's comfort, looking back at some data again, I feel entirely different. The "Missionary Talk" video has been viewed up to 200 times, and others are also on the rise. This number cannot be compared with any congregation or institution; as mentioned above, the "Solar Act" is only a small unit. In the stage of epidemic spread, our contact surface is close to zero. However, the videos can be sent to the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Germany, which is beyond imagination!
Although e-books are still in their infancy, every time a hardcopy book is published, God has a beautiful supply, so we do not have to bear the cost of printing!
What's even more impressive is that because of the short film production, I, a native Youtuber, can actually attract the attention of young people, and soon everyone will become acquainted!