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February, 1946
Indiana, the Best Seller poster stands above a one-story building which houses a saloon. The story of Best Seller in Van couver is fascinating. It is a testi mony to the value of Best Seller posters, which were instrumental in the formation of the Street Railway Christian Fellowship, a prayer band of Christian transit employees, 'who well know the influence of transit advertising. After several months of prayer and preparation, the first Best Seller post ers in Canada appeared in 220 Van couver streetcars. Within six months, the coverage was raised to 330, and before a year was ended, every public vehicle carried a Best Siller. Transit company officials estimate that more than 90 percent of Vancouver’s popu lation uses public conveyance. More than 300,000 persons a day read the Word of God. Results Many are the personal testimonies of blessings received from Best Seller posters. A man, unable to sleep at nights without drugs for three months because of financial reverses, read one morning on the streetcar: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap,” and was saved., Once a skeptic, standing in front of a Best Seller poster, began to deride the Scriptures to his neighbor. The man quietly replied: “ I need no other argument, I need no other plea: it is enough that Jesus died and that He died for me.” The scoffer turned away, with tears in his eyes. One day a Christian worker among the Chinese was taking some children home on the streetcar. One l i t t l e girl noticed the Best Seller poster. “Teacher,” she said, “there’s Jesus. Jesus loves me.” Then she sang, “Jesus Loves Me,” ' for the benefit of all the passengers. Best Seller posters produce amazing results for two reasons: first, they
The Streetcar Missionary
Other Uses The newest angle on the uSe of Best Seller posters is placing them in the public schools. A number of com munities have taken up this ministry, but nowhere has it been as success ful as in Nappanee, Indiana. There is a poster in every public school class room. Small replicas of the posters are. given to each student every month. Many'of the children are fil ing them in scrapbooks. The cards are used as an aid to memorizing Scripture verses in another school in North Carolina. The total value of Best Seller Publicity will never be tabulated this side of Heaven. Christians have testi fied that reading the cards at certain times has given them a spiritual “ shot in the arm” when most needed. These posters have been instrumental in the salvation of souls. But the known re sults can be only an Infinitesimal per centage of the unknown spiritual blessings received by the millions of “straphangers” ' who thus read God’s Word daily. Dr. Harry Rimmer has expressed it well: “I think Best Seller posters the smartest idea God has given to people in this generation.” Certainly Miss Josephine Peterson had no inkling of what the future held in store that night on a Chicago “L” when she decided that the Word of God must go up t h e r e beside Serutan and Coca Cola. What she brought about, under God, was to give to everyone who rides a streetcar or bus the answer to his deepest needs —the Gospel of Christ Jesus. She be gan this “Battle of the Billboards” —a struggle between commercialism and the Scriptures for the attention of men. Surely Christians everywhere will carry it on in their own com munities—by praying, by using their influence, and by contributing funds to its support. It’s an easy way to be a missionary!
contain the Scriptures, which God has promised to honor and bless; and sec ond, because they attract attention. Best Seller illustrations are of the same professional caliber as the com mercial products with which they compete fo r‘ the public’s notice. And no wonder, for they are designed by some of the very men who design posters for Wrigley’s, Lifebuoy, Sun- kist, and other famous brand names. These top. notch commercial artists are Christians arid they donate to Best Seller the talents which com mand their own price in the commer cial field., A distinctive feature of Best Seller is p®tt all workers voluntarily contribute their time. The only ex penses of the work are the costs of the posters, mailing, and display space. À new ¡poster is published each month, so that a fresh Scripture mes sage is kept before the public all the time. Often current events, such as the dramatic Rickenbacker sea rescue, offer an Unusual opportunity to cap italize oni an item of public interest. Each poster includes an attractive and appropriate artistic illustration in addition to the verse of Scripture.
The Gospel-preaching Billboard
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