‘Gotta Get the News Out’
**CAMPAIGN NEWS**
$12,092! And we’re just getting started.
Something is happening across the Catch Community. People are stepping forward, investing in the future of a ministry committed to taking the Gospel of Welcome to everyone, everywhere.
And the news is traveling!
Our Founder, Peter Herschend, stepped forward with a $5,000 leadership gift. Peter’s challenge has been met and exceeded bringing us to $12,092 toward our $20,000 goal!
That’s more than halfway there. And every giver represents someone who believes the Gospel of Welcome is news worth sharing.
We are especially delighted to have Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary standing shoulder to shoulder with us as Chairman of Gotta Get the News Out! Noel is not simply lending his famous name. He believes in the story behind this campaign, John’s novel Saint Ben, and in the power of ordinary people to carry extraordinary news.
Don’t miss Noel’s video message below. You’ll be hearing more from him!
And now there’s room for another name in this story.
Yours.
The Catch Community isn’t an audience watching a campaign unfold. We are the people who make the Gospel of Welcome visible in the world with our boots on the ground.
The news is out. The route is ours. And there’s a place for you!
John Fischer
______________________
Take the Other Side of the Street
So Ben convinced Jonathan that Jonathan needed help with his newspaper route, but when they actually got out on their first street, Ben discovered that Jonathan still hadn’t gotten the point.
Because when Ben got to the top of their first block after delivering papers to the houses on his side, he looked for Jonathan, expecting to see him on the other side of the street, he wasn’t there. Lo and behold, there was Jonathan, right behind him.
“Jonathan, why are you following me?”
“Because we’re delivering newspapers.”
“Then why are we both on the same side of the street?”
Jonathan looked puzzled. “Because we’re doing this together?”
“Well who’s going to get the other side of the street?”
“We are. Aren’t we doing this together? We went up this side, now we’ll go down the other.”
“Yes, but we each have a different side. You have your side to focus on, I have mine. You have all the even numbers; I have the odd.”
“Well that’s appropriate,” said Jonathan.
There’s a sermon in here somewhere.
Christians have become very good at attending things. Churches, Bible studies, conferences, Sunday services. We gather, listen, learn, and occasionally manage to stay awake through the announcements.
But Jesus didn’t say, “Go into all the world and build an audience.” He said, “Go and make disciples.” There’s a difference between attending something and participating in something. Attending means showing up. Participating means showing up for somebody.
Institutions can organize, publish, preach, and broadcast the Gospel halfway around the world before breakfast. But relationships carry it across the street.
A neighbor who notices you’re struggling. A friend who listens without judgment. Someone who remembers your name or sits beside you when life falls apart.
That’s where the Gospel of Welcome puts \its boots on the ground.
You don’t need a theological degree to love your neighbor, a pulpit to offer grace, or even all the answers. You just need to be willing to cross the street.
At the Catch, we gather around the Good News every day. We read it, wrestle with it, and discover what grace looks like when it’s turned outward. But the Catch isn’t the destination. It’s where we pick up our newspapers. The real ministry begins when we carry what we’ve received into our neighborhoods, workplaces, families, and friendships.
Every one of us has a route. No two routes are exactly alike.
Ben understood something Jonathan hadn’t yet discovered: Sharing the mission doesn’t mean following the same footsteps. It means carrying the same news to different sides of the street.
And Ben wasn’t abandoning Jonathan by sending him across the street. He was trusting him with the mission. It’s all about trust.
That’s discipleship.
Imagine what happens when every person receiving the Catch takes the other side of the street. Suddenly, the Gospel of Welcome travels through ordinary people, one relationship at a time, to everyone, everywhere.
And somewhere, Ben is grinning. “Jonathan! What are you waiting for? There’s a whole world on the other side of the street!”
Gotta get the news out.
Grace Turned Outward.
A Special Message from Noel Paul Stookey:
Click here
To participate in the “Gotta Get The News Out” Campaign:
