Fighting the Good Fight

Fight the good fight of the faith; lay hold of the eternal life to which you were summoned and [for which] you confessed the good confession [of faith] before many witnesses.  1 Timothy 6:12(Amplified Bible)

Fighting the good fight is what the good people over at the Hollywood Prayer Network do every day. And it is an enormous battle to convince Christians to pray for Hollywood and the entertainment industry. I should know because I am the Director of the local Cincinnati Chapter of the Hollywood Prayer Network.

When I talk to Christians about the importance of praying for Hollywood, most people look at me as if I am an alien from a different planet. They ask, “Why should we pray for heathens who are destroying our culture and leading our kids to damnation.” That’s not exactly what they say, but I can see it in their faces. I know it’s a tough sell. We see the people in Hollywood as the rich and famous living a lifestyle that we could hardly call anything close to normal. Their views and actions would seem to be extremely anti-Christian. But there is another side to the story that we don’t hear.

The Hollywood Prayer Network is doing their best to inform us that there are many Christians working in the industry who need our prayers. People in Hollywood are just like us. They are in need of redemption and are looking for hope. Most in Hollywood do live normal lives, are trying to raise a family and are struggling with finances just like everyone else.

Real change for our culture will only come when Christians start to pray for Hollywood. Why? Because media is the most influential industry in our world. I’m convinced we will start praying for Hollywood when we embrace two key principles. First, media, which includes film, television, internet, or any other visual image, is the new church for our society. My next statement may be controversial, but I believe it’s true. I’m convinced the media is more powerful and has more influence than the Church. Our beliefs, values, morals, and worldview are now a direct product of a media culture that we find ourselves emerged in. There can be no change until we admit this and recognize the reality of our current situation. Media is not a side show. It is the issue that we as Christians “must” have an answer to.

Second, We have to recognize Hollywood as a valid mission field. We can no longer see them as the enemy. They are a valid mission field because as a people group they are unreached. They have their own unique language, customs, and culture. Who’s going to reach them unless we do? We’ll start to pray for Hollywood when we fully understand and embrace these two concepts. Until we do that, we are just playing games. We have to mean it when we pray. That’s the mission of the Hollywood Prayer Network.

The Hollywood Prayer Network offers a ton of resources on their website at hollywoodprayernetwork.com. One of my favorites is a DVD they offer called The Hollywood Tribe. It’s a great resource and helps to explain in detail why Hollywood is a mission field. They also offer a monthly newsletter about what and who to pray for. If you’re not happy with the direction of our culture, and you want to reach people for Christ, may I suggest that prayer is a good place to start. And no better place to start would be praying for Christians working in the entertainment industry as well as praying for nonbelievers to come to Christ. If we are looking for real change we all can believe in, then help support the work of the Hollywood Prayer Network.