NEWS PROVIDED BY
Hope Story Challenge
May 29, 2020

UNANDERRA, Australia, May 29, 2019 /Standard Newswire/ -- The Hope Story Challenge has inspired Christians to reach over a million people with the good news of God love. We invite your help to make that figure one billion. Global Outreach Day is this Saturday 30 May 2020. Accept the Hope Story Challenge and share your 60 second testimony of how you found Jesus on Social media. Everyone can reach someone, together we can reach the world.

Hope Story Challenge launch video: https://youtu.be/Vkx5A2mcWSI

Playlist of Examples (These play well on radio):
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5xef6-lMwoPBvY_3bVnG9SPaiLAN4MBA

"Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." Mark 16:15 

COVID-19 has caused our way of life to be flipped on its head. People are losing their income, Churches are in lockdown, people are stuck at home. Now more than ever the world needs hope. Young people are spending more than 3 hours a day on their devices. Social media use is skyrocketing. Online entertainment is in demand. The world is looking for connection and meaning and hope. They need Jesus.

Introducing the #HopeStory Challenge. A challenge asking people to share their 60 second Hope Story, or Testimony of how they met Christ, on their social media channel, and then challenge 5 others to do the same. The Challenge was launched on May 1st, in partnership with Global Outreach Day, and fueled by prayer from the Canberra Declaration Community. The Australian Youth for Christ team could have never imagined this simple idea could get so much traction.

Thousands of Hope Story videos have now been shared in over 30 countries, reaching well over a million people already. Our goal is to see at least 5 million Christians share their Hope Story online. If we did this, we would reach 1 billion people with a message of Hope! Already we are hearing stories of people getting saved through this challenge. This is one challenge that can change someone's eternity forever.

"Who better to reach a young person than their own peers? And where better to reach them than where they are, online." - Cindy McGarvie, National Director, Youth for Christ Australia

"Every believer can do this, and every believer has a Hope Story, share yours today." - Pat Steele, Pulse 94.1.

"This is not just for young people. I have seen older Australian's fired up for the Gospel after sharing their Hope Story online. The afterburn effect of the Hope Story Challenge is massive!" - Warwick Marsh, Canberra Declaration.

"With youth spending more than 3 hours on their phones each day, we have an opportunity to get the gospel right into their hands through social media. We are asking the world to take the Hope Story Challenge." - Andrew Scarborough, Ministry Director, Youth for Christ Australia

Instructions for a #HopeStory

Step 1. Shoot a 60 second video on your phone of your testimony / story of hope (My life before Jesus, How I Met Jesus, My Life with Jesus). End with an invitation to follow Jesus.

Step 2. Upload & share the video to your social media channels (Facebook, Instagram, Tiktok etc.) and send it to your friends. Challenge your friends to do the same. Tag #HopeStory #bestdayofmylife PLUS a hash tag of what God saved you from eg. #suicide #addiction #insecurity

Step 3. Tag & nominate 5 friends to do the same to help fuel a viral explosion of hope stories online!

Hope Story Interview Contacts:

Andrew Scarborough: +61456478935
Pat Steele: +61433006934
Warwick Marsh: +61418225212

Hope Story Challenge: https://www.hopestorychallenge.com

Youth for Christ: https://www.yfc.org.au/hope

Go2020: https://www.go2020.world/en/bestdayofmylife

Canberra Declaration:
https://blog.canberradeclaration.org.au/2020/05/19/how-to-share-your-hopestory

SOURCE Hope Story Challenge

CONTACT: Andrew Scarborough, +61-45-647-8935;
Pat Steele,+61-43-300-6934; Warwick Marsh, +61-41-822-5212