John Thompson, a member of Park Cities Presbyterian Church in Dallas, believes he’s stumbled upon the best-kept secret in evangelism strategy. Think Steve Jobs meets Jesus, and the result is an internet ministry that delivers the gospel to 350,000 people worldwide every day. Thompson, the director of marketing for Global Media Outreach, recently spoke with byFaith about how geolocating and Google Ads are helping online missionaries reap the harvest and grow the global and local church.

How did Global Media Outreach begin?

Global Media Outreach was founded in 2004 by Walt Wilson. From a street gang in NYC’s Hell’s Kitchen to the Marines, then to a successful sales career in technology, Wilson eventually became the general manager of operations for Apple Computer Company. He later led worldwide consulting for Computer Sciences Corporation. In 1993, while working at MIT, Wilson says he heard from God that he was supposed to use the World Wide Web to share God’s truth with the world. The result was Global Media Outreach.

So how does Global Media Outreach work?

We spend more than $3 million a year on Google, Facebook, and Instagram, not to mention ads on other platforms like WhatsApp, LinkedIn, and Pandora, to connect people with the gospel.

 Here’s how it works: From anywhere in the world, felt needs and pain drive people to the internet searching for answers: How do I forgive? How can I know God’s plan for my life? How do I overcome grief? These queries lead to related ads that link to sites we’ve created addressing these topics. Once on a landing page, they can read the gospel message and then are offered a prayer of response. From there, they can give us their contact information and connect to one of our 3,500 online missionaries who work from their personal computers, developing relationships with respondents and discipling them.

Some 70% of those who view your website are outside the United States?

Correct. If you type in “grief” from your computer in the U.S., it’s unlikely that you would see one of our ads. There’s too much competition. If you do the same search from a computer in Kenya in Swahili, it’s more likely that you will find one of our links.

To reach people in their native languages, we have 200 websites in 13 languages. Beyond that, we have trained volunteers in 104 countries who speak some 50 languages.

To reach people in their native languages, we have 200 websites in 13 languages. Beyond that, we have trained volunteers in 104 countries who speak some 50 languages. We also have a U.S.-targeted initiative designed to get the attention of the lost with the countercultural idea that Jesus is as relevant today as ever. This initiative alone reached 669,000 people in the U.S. in 2019.

Your numbers sound unbelievable. Are they real?

Every day, we have about 350,000 people who come to one of our sites and receive a gospel presentation. Of that number, around 50,000 indicate a decision for Christ. And from there, about 6,000 will give us their name and email address and will be connected to an online missionary. Last year, we shared the gospel 130 million times. And we are on pace to reach a total of 2 billion people by the spring of 2020.

So someone indicates a decision for Christ and gets connected to an online volunteer, but what about connecting these new converts to the local church? A ministry partner works with church- planting networks to geolocate churches around the globe. We connect new believers to these churches much the same way online dating sites match couples. This is a strategic way to fuel church growth and to identify church-planting needs.

Has Global Media Outreach ever gotten into trouble for the work it’s doing?

Last year, eastern Asia was our No. 1 region for conversions. But then, one oppressive government shut down Google, raided our offices and other organizations, confiscated passports and computers, and detained nationals. But the point is that the gospel still gets through. God doesn’t need Google to get into closed countries. He is still opening up doors in east Asia through other websites, through satellites, through social media.

How does all of this relate to the PCA?

God gives us the privilege and responsibility to share His Word with others, and despite our brokenness, God uses us. My prayer would be to see more Presbyterians involved in online missions. Mission to the World does a fabulous job of recruiting, training, and helping people raise support and sending missionaries overseas to disciple or train local pastors. But not everyone is called or can go. We need online missionaries who have a willing heart and a desire to disciple and encourage others, regardless of where they are. Cross-cultural experience and foreign language skills are a plus, but not necessary. You can be called as an online missionary and work from your kitchen table. I would love to see more PCA churches engaged in evangelism, and this is a way they can be involved.

What does it take to be an online missionary?

Interested volunteers fill out a thorough online application. It includes questions about the applicant’s personal faith, requests references from their pastor and others, and asks how they currently share their faith. We want our missionaries to be mature Christians who will share the truths of God’s Word in their discipleship of others online. Once someone is accepted as a volunteer, they are connected to a community of online missionaries where they are trained, supervised, and coached through topics they might encounter.

What excites you most about this ministry?

Ninety-five percent of the world has cellular access, and 70% has access to at least one cell phone. You might be in remote Kenya and you see a guy in the bush wearing a cell phone on his hip. We have reached a quarter of the world’s population this way in the last 15 years.

This is a scalable and digitally- driven ministry. I believe God is doing something unique and is using us to help fulfill the Great Commission in our lifetime. And never forget that every single story of rescue is a miracle.

To learn more about Global Media Outreach, email John or visit globalmediaoutreach.com.