Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Uh, Tell Me Again; What Is Vital Signs Ministries?


Well, since our beginning in 1982, the hallmarks of Vital Signs Ministries have been a commitment to Christian orthodoxy and a comprehensive sanctity of life ethic. But the question could probably be better answered by giving a brief recap of the things Vital Signs Ministries has been up to lately.

* The prayer meetings and the sidewalk counseling outside the abortion center.

* The “When Swing Was King” shows at area senior living facilities. We do shows at 11 different places every month. Every show is different with 12 songs from the big band era accompanied by 180-220 photos of the same years in an entertaining, memory provocative Power
Point display. In addition to the shows, we visit with residents and their families, develop relationships with staff, and pass out to residents a special 4-page newsletter every quarter. (By the way, you can read those newsletters on the Vital Signs website. And the monthly schedule of our “When Swing Was King” appearances is there also.)

* There is cyberspace activity almost daily. This involves posting articles, compilation lists of “must see” news and commentary, and original material as well on the VSM website, Vital Signs Blog, The Book Den blog, our personal Facebook pages and the Vital Signs Facebook page. We also engage in a lot of correspondence. A lot of that involves cards and letters sent the traditional way but, of course, we do utilize email an awful lot too.

* The ministries of discipleship, intercession, hospitality, and networking occur in many different forms. These include Denny’s writing, book discussions, dinner parties and lunches out, Santa runs, prayer walks, the Panera conversations with colleagues, and involvement with other pro-life ministries.  There is also the occasional speaking engagement at churches, pro-life groups, and men’s meetings. In fact, we have several such engagements coming up this summer and fall including 2 weeks of meetings in Great Britain.

* Our advocacy outreach includes quarterly letter-writing parties. In fact, the next one is coming up on July 8th. There’s a lot to be addressed there: companies, celebrities, and the Girl Scouts contributing to and telling Planned Parenthood; companies and celebrities squawking about the recent pro-life legislation; the sellout of Christian schools to the propaganda and pressure of the new left; and other bad faith moves made by the likes of Disney, Netflix, CNN, Target, Estée Lauder, the NCAA, and many more. And as always, we will also take time to write heroes of the faith who could use some encouragement and appreciation.