Skunks TV Targets Youth With Relevant Gospel
It smells like teen gospel.
Skunks TV is reaching out to a generation of youth that needs to know more about the love, grace and power of God. Just rolling into its sixth season, the fast-paced 30-minute program aims to simultaneously entertain and change the lives of youth.
“Being youth ministers, we’re around youth most of the time so we get to know what moves them,” says Alyssa Shull, co-founder of Shull Ministries International and the co-host of Skunks TV with her husband, Matt.
“They are always into the latest music so we use music as a major thrust. Our guests also share their testimonies about how they came to know the Lord,” says Alyssa, who graduated from Oral Roberts University with a degree in Multimedia Productions. “And, of course, youth love to laugh.”
Skunks TV programming has all those bases covered. The show includes music videos from top Christian bands and artists and offers compelling testimonies from inspiring figures that clearly lay out the gospel. Then there’s “The Dudes of Skunks TV,” a group of hilarious guys who attempt insane stunts, like playing hot potato with balls of fire, jumping off cliffs, and eating 100-year-old duck eggs. (Don’t try this at home!)
The first episode of the sixth season features Bianca Olthoff, chief storyteller for The A21 Campaign, an organization on a mission to abolish injustice in the 21st century by putting an end to human trafficking. Of all the episodes in the past six seasons, this is the one that had the greatest impact on Alyssa.
“Today we are faced with a staggering statistic. There are 27 million men, women and children in slavery in today’s culture,” Alyssa says. “Having the opportunity to raise awareness about human trafficking among today’s youth made an impact on me.”
Matt still thinks about last year’s episode featuring Christian rock band Hawk Nelson. Matt was behind the camera on the day then-frontman Jason Dunn shared his testimony. Dunn’s dad used to deal drugs and his little brother was sick. Somehow, God intervened with a miracle.
“Both of Jason’s parents got saved, his little brother gets healed—it’s supernatural from God,” Matt recalls. “ABC or NBC or MTV wouldn’t have given him a chance to say that but we gave him chance to talk about who God is. God gets such a bad rap in the media. That show made me feel like we were changing lives.”
Season six marks Skunks TV’s Miami debut. The show was filmed out of Tulsa until the Shulls relocated to Miami to serve as youth pastors at Words of Life Fellowship Church. The Miami location gives the show a new look feel. Instead of taping in a studio, the programs are filmed against a backdrop of cityscapes, beaches and palm trees.
Beyond Skunks TV and youth pastoring, the Shulls preach the message of Christ and demonstrate the power of the Holy Spirit to today’s youth generation through healing and youth services and evangelistic outreaches. Their services are designed to teach believers about: the Spirit-filled life, divine healing and the love walk.
Skunks TV is on JCTV, TBN’s youth network, as well as several other stations in the U.S., India and China. The broadcast is also available online at SkunksTV.com.