Duct Tape and Soda Pop
Dr. Marshall M. Windsor

Over the years I have enjoyed talking to folks about what has worked in their respective communities as far as outreach was concerned. I usually hear a lot of fairly common ideas that worked with varying levels of success. But, I happened to talk with a youth pastor about a very peculiar outreach event that took his small town by storm.

The event was held and promoted as a youth night lock-in. Everyone was told to invite all their friends, but to let them know there was one requirement: They had to bring one roll of duct tape and one 2-litre bottle of soda pop to get inside. No other details were given and the only explanation given for the duct tape and soda pop was that they would find out when they got there. No one knew the game plan except for the youth pastor, which confirms a vital truth; if you want to stir up excitement in a youth group just try to keep everything secret!

The fervor began as the young people told their friends at school. The week before the event, the local hardware store sold out of duct tape and the small-town, local grocery store’s volume of soda pop sales had exploded. In a small town it doesn’t take much to get the attention of local townspeople, so the aspect of a duct tape and soda pop lock-in was just the thing to stir the local interest and get the rumor mill running.

When the lock-in night arrived, all the youth assembled with their guests in the gymnasium. Of all the festivities that took place, the main event involved dividing the youth into teams of at least three people. Each team was given a scripture written in large letters on duct tape that was subsequently torn into several pieces and stuck to one wall of the gym. The team would have to transfer the duct tape from one wall to the opposite wall and arrange the verse of scripture correctly. Each team was given a Bible to help and the first team to correctly arrange and transfer their verse won the match. Play offs continued until there was a winning team that received a grand prize.

The game was more than just fun – it was strategic. At least one believer and one non-believer were on each team. The believer would have the unbeliever find the scripture in the Bible and read it to them so that they could arrange the verse correctly. The Scriptures were all salvation-related Scriptures, like Romans 3:23; 6:23; 10:13; John 3:16 and so on. You can use your imagination to select as many Scriptures as you feel might work well in your situation. In this way, non-believers could actually hold and read a Bible in a non-threatening environment. A salvation message was given at the end and many young people made decisions for Christ!

So the next time you, or your youth group, decide to hold a youth lock-in, stir up those creative juices for an outreach worth remembering. Look at the resources available to you and then get together with like-minded folks to share the love of Jesus Christ in an out-of-the-box, fun and exciting way! You might even have folks talking about duct tape and soda pop for a very long time.

Do you have an out of the ordinary outreach idea that you’d like to share? Send me an email at windsegroup@aol.com and let me know what caused you to remember a church outreach years later! Until then, may the Lord bless your efforts to scatter the gospel seed.