As Americans gathered to celebrate our country’s Independence Day, a group of fearless Christian men are celebrating their independence from something entirely different — shaving! While we are halfway through our annual “Year Beard” challenge, there is still time to sign up. The challenge encourages men to grow their beards to raise awareness for the ministry so that radio and television broadcasts can continue to expand around the globe.
We at The Tide® ministry are celebrating not only the freedoms we have in America, but also the excitement of knowing that millions of listeners are experiencing the freedom of the Gospel through our broadcasts. In areas of the world that are shrouded by darkness, many of our listeners are finally finding that the freedom of Christ is lifechanging. Our annual ‘Year Beard’ challenge achieves three things: it sparks a conversation about what The Tide® ministry is doing around the world, it spreads the word about those who might have not heard the Good News, and it allows the participants to share their faith with those who do not know Jesus when asked about their facial hair.
Utilizing radio and television broadcasts to share the Gospel of Christ, God graciously allows us to currently minister in more than 20 countries on three different continents; and with more than 7,000 languages spoken worldwide and more than 2,000 people groups that have been unreached by the Good News of Jesus, the opportunities are tremendous, and the need is great.
“There are bearded men all over the world,” said previous Year Beard participant and The Tide Director, Don Shenk. “But there’s a distinction between many of those bearded men and the bearded men participating in this challenge; that distinction is in the heart. My desire is to see more hearts change, and every bit of support that comes in makes it possible for more people to hear the Gospel message and have their hearts transformed.”
Participants in the Year Beard challenge can sign up to grow out their hair for one, three, or six months with the goal to raise money each month for The Tide® ministry. A motivating factor is the knowledge that for every dollar given, 20 more people worldwide can hear about Jesus.
Depending on the time committed, participants receive t-shirts, beard combs, beard oil, and a devotional book called “Bearded Gospel Men,” along with conversation starters such as country fact sheets, a testimony sheet and a pocket info card so they can speak to potential donors about The Tide® ministry. Those who raise the most money for The Tide® ministry throughout the year will be eligible to win sporting event tickets and gift cards.
For more information or to register to participate in the Year Beard Challenge, visit yearbeard.org or contact The Tide office at 717-264-7288 or info@thetide.org.