By Patrick Webb
InkFreeNews
BREMEN — Volunteers will read the entire Bible to share the Gospel as part of Every Word For Bremen, starting 7 a.m. Monday, June 3.
Bern McGrane, one of Every Word For Bremen’s organizers, said he was inspired by a similar event in Warsaw, which he saw when visiting Ken Chupp, a pastor at Warsaw Missionary Church.
McGrane lives in Bremen, which has a population of around 5,000.
“I had an immediate sense of the impact that could have on our community here,” said McGrane. He spoke to other members of the Bremen community, including churches and businesses, and “found a great deal of support.”
Volunteers will read from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday, June 3; to Friday, June 7, for half-hour blocks beginning Monday, June 3. If necessary, reading will also go on to Saturday, June 8.
The event will take place in Bremen’s downtown pavilion, 123 S. Center St.
“We’re looking forward to the opportunity to be in the town square to share the Gospel,” said McGrane. Being in the town square adds to the sense of community, he said.
“We’ve tried to make it clear right from the beginning that we wanted this not to necessarily be a church event, we wanted it to really be a community event,” said McGrane.
According to Every Word For Bremen’s website, part of the event’s motivation was Bible reading declining.
“In January 2022, Bible users—defined as individuals who read, listen to, or pray with the Bible on their own at least three or four times a year outside of a church service or church event—had reached a 10-year low, registering only 48% of Americans,” said Every Word For Bremen on their website.
McGrane said he had the “general sense that there is so much presented to us, particularly in the way that come across on the internet… on phones and other devices, people are distracted (and) can’t see the need for God’s word.”
McGrane shared an example of eating at a restaurant with his wife. They observed a family looking at their separate devices and not speaking.
McGrane said looking back, it used to be a special thing to eat out together, and interactions were disappearing.
“I believe the truth of the Gospel helps people see more clearly the value of God, the value of family and those things that can impact and make a cultural change,” said McGrane. “I hope in some small way that Every Word For Bremen can be a seed for that.”
McGrane said there’s also been a decline in church attendance, including among young people. He said part of the problem was churches embracing current cultural norms, which he described as “in direct opposition to biblical teaching.”
“The statistics would tell you, as a result of that, young people are abandoning Christianity all together,” said McGrane. “And it’s our hope and belief, as it’s stated in Isaiah 55:11 ‘God’s word will go forth and will accomplish the purpose where unto it’s sent, and not return void.’ So if we present the Bible, God’s word, to our community, we believe it will have an impact.”
McGrane said past cultural norms included family, community and church. As the culture has changed, McGrane said churches embracing modern culture are losing attendance.
“At the heart of it, I believe people are still looking for something to anchor themselves to. And as churches become more and more a model of this strange culture that we live in, people leave because that’s not what they’re looking for,” said McGrane.
McGrane said it was more important to consider “how lives can be changed by the gospel,” versus where people attend church or if they meet in homes or attend alternatives to traditional church.
McGrane said he hopes Every Word For Bremen will become a model for other events based in Christianity to change lives.
McGrane said volunteers to read or pray do not need to live in Marshall County to participate. He added some volunteers have signed up who aren’t from Marshall County, and people as far as Kentucky had volunteered to pray. Volunteers who sign up to pray are able to do so off site.
To learn more, go to everywordforbremen.com or Every Word For Bremen’s Facebook group.
