For this month's episode of Gospelize with Greg Stier we wanted to allow you to peek behind the curtain at one of our trainings. Dare 2 Share is in the midst of an event so this is a very special episode.

Our family normally attends Red Rocks Church here in the great state of Colorado. But, for the last few months, "attending" has been "logging in" and watching the church services online.

While there are some churches in our state that have started to meet in person again (with limited numbers), our church has chosen to continue to meet online for awhile longer. After all, online viewership is through the roof!

Of course, there's nothing like meeting together as a church family. From fellowship in the lobby to worship in the sanctuary to going out for lunch afterwards to gathering together during the week for small group, there's something about the in-room experience that can never be truly and fully duplicated online.

But, instead of whining about what we miss attending in-person church services, the Stier family has chosen to play the advantages of experiencing church online.

Here are three Big Benefits of attending church online:

One of the best pieces of advice I received when it came to having the much-needed, but very hard conversations surrounding race, injustice and inequality was this: give the microphone away to those who have experienced the struggle. 

So I've been doing a lot of reposting of guys like Tony Evans, Derwin Gray and Miles McPherson. Not only are all three of these African American preachers rock solid theologically, they are powerfully practical when it comes to taking action that makes a difference.

A month ago I was able to interview Jerrod Gunter, an inner city youth leader in Memphis (and speaker for Dare 2 Share LIVE as well as Lead THE Cause). His interview can be seen here.

Serving as the youth leader at a church where, a few years ago a white cop shot a black teenager on their church property, Jerrod had many painful but powerful insights. His response to that teen's shooting then and George Floyd's murder in May, is rooted in a prayer-fueled gospel response. But it also has huge implications when it comes to creating policies that make a difference. I really encourage you to watch Jerrod's interview if you haven't.

Today the microphone goes to my friend, Tyree Sterling. After all his Twitter handle is "RockYourMic",  so today it's time for Tyree to rock his.

Tyree has been a youth leader as well as a public school anti-bullying speaker for years. He has also been a part of the speaking team for our Dare 2 Share conferences in the past as well as Lead THE Cause, and is a long-time member of our Gospel Advancing Council.

I strongly encourage you to check out this interview. Tyree's story is compelling and his sage advice is much needed at this tumultuous time in history. It comes with some very practical steps youth leaders can take to truly make a change in their communities and rip racism out by the roots, both in the hearts of their teenagers and the communities in which they live.

May his challenge to us prove fruitful for such a time as this.

Our Cause as believers in Jesus is to share his Good News with those we encounter and to make disciples of those who respond (Matthew 28:18-20.) Some call it “The Great Commission.” I call it “The Cause.” There are a ton of good causes out there that we, as believers, can and should be a part of. But there is one overarching, great Cause that every believer is called to as their primary mission in life. It is the call to reach the lost, disciple those who respond, and train them to do the same.

In this month's episode of Gospelize, we continue our current series to focus on the current state of our nation and world. We dive into the biblical truths about the comfort that God gives in times of trouble and suffering. In this part, we focus on how we can have an abundance of faith in the midst of difficult times. 

The National Senior Sendoff was a labor of love. It was broadcast live on May 28th  to 10,000+ families across the country (not counting the many who watched it on CBN!)

If you haven't had a chance to see it I encourage you to check it out. This hour long program is full of inspiring challenges to the graduating class of 2020 from professional athletes and top Christian musicians like Tobymac, for KING and COUNTRY, Michael Tait and David Crowder! Gabrielle Odom hit a huge home run with her "senior speech" and I was honored to speak as well.

I was inspired to do this event, not just for high school seniors across the nation, but the one in my own house, my son, Jeremy Stier. My prayer was to provide a "marker moment" that they would remember in spite of all of the disappointment surrounding this pandemic (cancelled proms, delayed graduations, shelter-in-place, etc.)

The entire program was very moving and encouraging. But the most powerful part didn't happen on the screen but in living rooms across the nation as family and friends surrounded the high school seniors in their homes and prayed over them.

I am so grateful for Faith Christian Academy and Mr. Hasz (the superintendent at Fatih) for saying "yes" to helping to pull this event off with excellence.

I'm super grateful for my friend Allen Weed, who runs a music and media ministry to teenagers and youth leaders called interlinc, for partnering with us  to make The National Senior Sendoff their official streaming event!

It also happens that Allen's ministry provides the number one grad gift in the nation: The gift of music and encouragement, ConGRADulations! These gifts of music have been given to over 1.3 million graduates! 

God provided so many amazing partners who helped to get the word out. All of them are listed on the website so I encourage you to go check them out.

"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.” 2 Corinthians 10:4

In the face of extreme hate and extreme racism brought to the forefront by current events, as believers we can have a second response. I had the privilege of sitting down for a candid discussion with Jerrod Gunter, a main stage speaker for Dare 2 Share LIVE and Lead THE Cause Virtual and a great friend and collaborator for the gospel.

We talked about his reactions to the news of the killing of George Floyd, what he’s seen take place in his own ministry in Memphis, TN, and how he’s powerfully mobilizing young people in prayer, evangelism and policy to make a difference in his community and the nation. Jerrod is showing us how to start a "Righteous Riot, not driven by our anger or our strength, but by the Holy Spirit."

In this month's episode of Gospelize, we pause our current Gospelize series to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Did you have to cancel your camps and mission trips this summer? Did you have them cancelled for you? Does it feel like your whole summer has been cancelled?

Several weeks ago it started becoming clear that proms were going to be cancelled, graduations were going to look different, and high school seniors- instead of having their diploma handed to them in the traditional way- were going to get the short end of the pandemic stick. My heart broke for these frustrated high school seniors, who've been robbed of a normal, public celebration by a horrific virus.

My life has been devoted to ministering to teenagers. For the last 29 years I have sought to inspire, equip, and unleash teenagers to spread the good news of Jesus through the ministry of Dare 2 Share.