Church of Christ-Project USA Today

In August of 1991, we began advertising through the newspaper USA Today. We did this with two goals in mind: First, we want to give God's people a voice through a nationally accepted and recognized media. USA Today is our nation's only national newspaper. Its current readership is nearly 6 million per day! We want to be able to speak out on current topics of social interest from a Biblical perspective. Our intent is to do this through a 250 word Bible column in the "classified" section. Second, we want to teach the Bible throughout our nation. We do this by advertising Bible Correspondence Courses.

We named this effort Project USA . . today! and it is not a dream of what could be, it is a reality! There is a way we, as the People of God, can reach every week into our nation. That way is through the national media: newspapers, magazines, radio, and television.

*Twice as many responses in Phase II *
* See link below about a Free Gift! *

Phase I
In this phase we advertised Bible courses each Thursday through USA Today. Student contacts are taught using the 8-lesson Bible course developed by John Hurt. The ad appears in the "Classified" part of the Life section on Thursdays. When a student completes the third lesson, we ask a congregation (if there is one nearby) to follow-up on the student and again at the completion of lesson 8.
Whenever funds permit, we publish a large Bible column.
Click here to view Bible columns previously published.
Cost for this phase runs as follows:
$155/week.....Advertising
$26/week.......Bible Courses & Postage
Total weekly cost: .....$181.00/week

Weekly Phase I Advertisement

Phase II
In Phase II we will advertise 2-3 times per week. We began phase II in January 1996 and our strategy is resulting in a significant number of additional students! The cost for advertising will increase to over $310.00 per week. Free Gift!

Phase III
In Phase III, we will commit to running four of the large Bible teaching columns. Each Column will cost $4,000.00. Each column will constitute one of the largest single items in the classified section of this newspaper. It will get attention! When you consider that this newspaper is read by nearly 6 million people per day, our cost per reader is l/lOth of a cent per contact. Plus, we are the only religious group doing this, there will be no competition for attention. Phase IV
Phase IV calls for a quarterly Bible teaching paper (tentatively called BibleTalk) to be sent to all graduates. This will allow us to keep track of our students and to teach them further. In BibleTalk we will emphasize repeatedly the need for becoming a Christian. We will deal with the impact being a Christian ought to have on one's life. We will show students how to be evangelistic and establish congregations, organized and worshipping biblically, where there are none. As the need unfolds, we will go to these areas and help to mature these congregations through intensive seminars in the Bible.
Phase V
Phase V of this program will require great expansion. We will begin publishing the large Bible column more and more until it is being published every week. We will then begin to move into news magazines such as TIME and Newsweek. The advertising cost for running the Bible column every week in USA Today will be $208,000.00 per year. But remember, that's still 1/10 of a cent per possible contact. Students from over 200 cities enrolled in first three months of 1996!

Our nation needs this program!
The latest edition of Churches of Christ in the United States contains 650 pages of information and is the most complete statistical picture we have of the Lord's people in this country. Note the following:

44 States have at least one county with no congregation of God's people.
In 4 of those States (New Jersey, New York, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania) there are nearly 40 counties with a total population of nearly 3 million people and not one congregation of the Church of Christ.
There are 57 counties in Illinois, Georgia, and Michigan with no congregation of God's people.
36 counties in Virginia alone have no congregation.
5 counties in Texas, 2 in Alabama, and l0 in Kentucky with no church.

Clearly, there is a tremendous need for reaching these areas. How will we do it? We think Project USA . . .Today! provides a way.

Will You Help?
No single congregation could support this effort on its own - nor should it. The advantages are to all congregations nationwide: It will give God's people national exposure in a mainstream media. It will help to evangelize some of the more densely populated areas of our country where our numbers are the smallest. We need churches and individuals to support this effort financially. It is not weighed down with a lot of administrative costs (no one receives a salary - we use all volunteer help). 150 supporters giving $100.00 per month would get this effort immediately into Phase IV.

Sponsoring Church
The Maple Hill church of Christ in Lebanon Tennessee is sponsoring this effort. We are a congregation with nearly 400 in attendance, four elders, two ministers, and 24 deacons. We support mission efforts in Papua, New Guinea, India, and the South Pacific. We are also establishing congregations in large inner cities of our nation and have a strong World Bible School. We support the One Nation Under God program as well as a variety of other mission efforts. Current coordinator for Project USA . . Today! is our pulpit minister, Mike Tune. Mike's writings have appeared in every major brotherhood publication. He also wrote the adult material for the Gospel Advocate for one year and has produced teacher training audio tapes on every section of the Bible and most of the individual books.

E-Mail Mike Tune at miketune@aol.com

Mail correspondence and contributions to:
Project USA Today
Maple Hill Church of Christ
102 Maple Hill Rd
Lebanon, TN 37087

(615) 444-1544

March 15, 1996

Phase I In this phase we advertised Bible courses each Thursday through USA Today. Student contacts are taught using the 8-lesson Bible course developed by John Hurt. The ad appears in the "Classified" part of the Life section on Thursdays. When a student completes the third lesson, we ask a congregation (if there is one nearby) to follow-up on the student and again at the completion of lesson 8. Whenever funds permit, we publish a large Bible column. Click here to view Bible columns previously published. Cost for this phase runs as follows: $155/week.....Advertising $26/week.......Bible Courses & Postage Total weekly cost: .....$181.00/week		Weekly Phase I Advertisement
Phase II In Phase II we will advertise 2-3 times per week. We began phase II in January 1996 and our strategy is resulting in a significant number of additional students! The cost for advertising will increase to over $310.00 per week.		Free Gift!
Phase III In Phase III, we will commit to running four of the large Bible teaching columns. Each Column will cost $4,000.00. Each column will constitute one of the largest single items in the classified section of this newspaper. *It will get attention!* When you consider that this newspaper is read by nearly 6 million people per day, our cost per reader is l/lOth of a cent per contact. Plus, we are the only religious group doing this, there will be no competition for attention.		Phase IV Phase IV calls for a quarterly Bible teaching paper (tentatively called BibleTalk) to be sent to all graduates. This will allow us to keep track of our students and to teach them further. In BibleTalk we will emphasize repeatedly the need for becoming a Christian. We will deal with the impact being a Christian ought to have on one's life. We will show students how to be evangelistic and establish congregations, organized and worshipping biblically, where there are none. As the need unfolds, we will go to these areas and help to mature these congregations through intensive seminars in the Bible.
Phase V Phase V of this program will require great expansion. We will begin publishing the large Bible column more and more until it is being published every week. We will then begin to move into news magazines such as TIME and Newsweek. The advertising cost for running the Bible column every week in USA Today will be $208,000.00 per year. But remember, that's still 1/10 of a cent per possible contact.		Students from over 200 cities enrolled in first three months of 1996!