by Michael Merker

“’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways,’ says Yahweh. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain comes down and the snow from the sky, and doesn’t return there, but waters the earth, and makes it grow and bud, and gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater; so is my word that goes out of my mouth: it will not return to me void, but it will accomplish that which I please, and it will prosper in the thing I sent it to do.’”

Isaiah 55:8-11

From the time I turned my back on Christianity at 14-years-old, my road to faith in Christ was a long one. I have no doubt that being held captive for nearly a year in the pit band for a touring production of Godspell and subsequently directing a high school production of it was instrumental in my conversion. After all, I had heard the teachings of Jesus from the Gospels nearly every night.

Once I submitted to the Truth, I discovered the incredible depth of discipleship that occurred through performing other books of the Bible, both personally and collectively. Reading, studying and memorizing God’s word has brought untellable richness to my spiritual walk.

My heartfelt desire for my recent release, Depth by Drama is to reach the world for Jesus Christ through marrying the performance of the Word of God with discipleship. If an unconverted reader happens upon the book, I pray there is enough of the Gospel to reach him or her with God’s message of love and mercy.

In short, it was written with three objectives in mind:

• To assist a movement of people dedicated to personal discipleship through the study, memorization, and performance of Bible literature, along with reaching and aiding existing churches, home churches, underground churches, study groups, and the world at large with the soul-saving truths of the Bible.

• To provide a rationale and persuasive testimony from the efforts used to develop this methodology.

• To publish a guide that will provide the reader with the rudiments necessary to carry out this methodology, with references to a wider selection of materials for further information.

But above all else, I hope to inspire group leaders and missionaries to use this book as a field guide for furthering Bible literacy around the world. Be it through the ministry of www.ActingOutHisWord.org or Depth by Drama, my heart longs to bring, “Every ear to hear, every heart to hope!” ^SM