Airing on 1,034 TV stations throughout Latin America and the U.S., the Nazarene program, Mujer Valiosa, is experiencing runaway success in just its seventh month, exposing potentially 150 million viewers to messages of hope in Jesus Christ.
The 30-minute Spanish-language program is based on World Mission Broadcast South America's equally popular radio program by the same name. It has caught on with TV stations because it combines spiritual truth with an informative and entertaining format, all at no cost to the stations, said executive producer Brian Utter.
The show aims to raise up families and communities by demonstrating how women can value themselves and improve their families and relationships.
The show's radio predecessor, The Nazarene Hour, ended in 2000 and cost $16,000 to air on two radio networks. Mujer Valiosa broadcasts on more than 1,000 television stations for free.
"They don't (usually) get quality programs at no cost to them," Utter said. "We researched what radio stations and television channels want, and we give that to them."
Most secular stations are open to airing the show because, although the Church of the Nazarene is mentioned as the producer, it doesn't push a particular denomination, he said.
"We're not here to promote a specific church; we're here to help promote Jesus Christ. We're not blatantly saying we're the Church of the Nazarene because that doesn't get our programs through the door of a secular station."
Mujer Valiosa, meaning "The Valued Woman," offers segments on cooking, handcrafts and home décor, wrapping up with a spiritual message.
Three women of different ages and life experiences host the program, which also includes interviews with experts offering a Christian perspective on subjects ranging from eating disorders to finances. The segments take place on sets designed to look like different rooms of a house.
Mujer Valiosa isn't just about entertainment, however. It's part of a broad strategy to draw interested viewers to salvation and discipleship through the ministry of local Nazarene churches.
"As a young girl members of my family abused me," wrote Lidia, a 52-year-old mother from Colombia. "There were consequences that remained hidden in my guarded emotions. I tuned into your program, and it impacted my life. My emotional state was healed."
WMB South America developed a three-pronged strategy for reaching and following up with viewers: digital, paper and personal, Utter said.
The radio and television programs are the digital prong, which reaches women where they are, then gets them thinking about their spiritual needs.
Paper refers to Mujer Valiosa literature, which is being developed through the Church of the Nazarene's Sunday School and Discipleship Ministries International (SDMI) and will be offered throughout Latin American Nazarene churches as a basis for women's ministries.
For the personal prong, viewers who write to the program are contacted by their nearest Nazarene church for counseling, spiritual help and, if they choose, discipleship and church involvement.
For example, Utter mentioned an e-mail from a 27-year-old woman in Venezuela who asked for tips on the best way to lose weight after she viewed the show's segment on the spiritual and physical consequences of bulimia and anorexia.
Another viewer e-mailed: "I want to find out what God's plan is for me."
WMB South America passes these e-mails along to the follow-up coordinator in each nation where the show airs. That coordinator will connect these viewers to designated counselors and ministers in their nearest Nazarene churches.
"By making contact through a local church, the listener is shown God's mercy," said Colombian national WMB coordinator, Juan Jose Soto. "We can make this person feel important."
WMB South America has delivered 26 episodes and in October starts production on 27 more that will be expanded to one hour each, with more room for content.
Watch video segments at MujerValiosa.com or read more at Esperanza.net.
Fast Facts
The radio program, Mujer Valiosa, debuted in 2003 and airs on 1,400 radio stations in 24 countries.
Listeners to Mujer Valiosa on the Internet have written to the program from England, France, Germany, Israel and Italy.
The TV program, Mujer Valiosa, debuted in April 2007 and airs on more than 1,000 stations in 20 countries
The TV program airs in the following nations: Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, United States, Uruguay and Venezuela.
The hosts are Mrs. Liliana Radi, Mrs. Marcela Favatier, and Mrs. Robin Brunson.
--- Gina Pottenger, Coordinator of Global Research and E.Communications
