Heartfelt: Ministry uses Internet to spread message of faith
by Sally Litchfield
Special to the Cherokee Tribune
sallylit@bellsouth.net
June 23, 2012 12:08 AM | 869 views | 0 0 comments | 4 4 recommendations | email to a friend | print
The Rev. Bryant Wright is the senior pastor of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church and founder of Right from the Heart, a ministry that utilizes technology to spread the Gospel. Wright is featured in a ‘Father of The Bride’ TV spot.<br>Cherokee Tribune/Special
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Right from the Heart, a Christian ministry of Johnson Ferry Baptist Church, changes the lives of people all over the world through media. The ministry celebrates its 20th anniversary of sharing the Gospel through inspirational messages on secular radio, television, print media and the Internet.

“We are interested in sharing the Good News (of Jesus Christ) outside the walls of the church,” said the Rev. Bryant Wright, senior pastor of JFBC who founded the ministry. The church has 8,000 members with an average of nearly 5,000 in attendance each Sunday. RFTH’s mission is to reach and disciple people for Jesus Christ through the use of media.

“As Christiansm we have a very clear mission to share the news of Jesus Christ with all mankind, to those in our neighborhood and to the utter most parts of the earth as Christ commands us. (RFTH) is just using media as a tool for sharing the good news of Christ,” Wright said.

From its inception, RFTH made an immediate impact. Shortly after its first radio broadcast in 1992, the ministry began airing quick-hitting one-minute devotionals on radio followed in 1999 by 30-second television spots.

“It’s just a little nugget of the Gospel, a little nugget of truth that hopefully will cause people to think about God and realize that a relationship with God really makes sense,” Wright said.

Today, the radio spots are heard throughout Georgia on the 115 stations of the Georgia News Network and the 56 stations of the Florida News Network, as well as adult contemporary and Top 40 stations in 67 cities each Sunday morning on the national syndicated show “Sonrise.” Additionally, the English radio spots are heard in Alaska and parts of Russia as well as Northern Mexico and Poland.

Today, the television spots are also aired in the Atlanta area and throughout the U.S. “Our nitch is providing the spots on secular radio and television,” Wright said.

With change in technology, the Internet became a powerful tool in outreach of the ministry including email, Facebook, Twitter and other online media. The Internet also provides an avenue for discipling to those seeking additional Biblical material. “The Internet was not on our radar when the ministry began,” Wright said.

RFTH’s largest audience is via the Internet through the morning devotions offered and shared with friends. The Internet allows the ministry to reach vast numbers of people all over the world. Each month, more than six million devotions are distributed on Facebook alone.

“(RFTH) just continues to explode.We are thankful that God has blessed the ministry for 20 years. We are truly amazed at what’s happened with the Internet and how the one-minute devotions seem to be used now all over the world,” he said. “When something like that happens that you didn’t plan or dream about, I think it’s God’s blessing and we’re just thankful.”

JFBC is located in east Cobb at 955 Johnson Ferry Road. For more information, visit www.rightfromtheheart.org or call (770) 973-6561.
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