Harvest Crusade, Promise Keepers on Center Stage

That's a sampling of the lineup this weekend as a trio of large-scale Christian events descends upon Anaheim and Los Angeles.

The harmonic convergence of rallies -- the three-day Harvest Crusade at Angel Stadium, a two-day Promise Keepers conference at Arrowhead Pond and the daylong Festival Bajo el Sol at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum -- will showcase some of Christianity's top preachers and musicians.

The gatherings also highlight a gnawing problem for modern evangelists: how to keep things fresh and relevant in the face of shrinking attention spans and competition from secular entertainment.

At Saturday's Latino-oriented Festival Bajo el Sol, teens and young adults can enter break-dancing contests, fling themselves against a Velcro wall, wrestle with friends wearing inflatable sumo costumes and respond to an altar call profession of faith led by a minister named T-Bone.

Other headliners at the event include evangelist Luis Palau and singers Marcos Witt, El Trio de Hoy, Annette Moreno and Funky.

Organizers say they expect about 25,000 for the festival.

Meanwhile, in Orange County, the 16th annual Harvest Crusade kicks off with Christian concerts and motorcycle daredevils as the lead-in to Riverside Pastor Greg Laurie's 25-minute sermons and altar calls.

Musicians will include Jars of Clay, Steven Curtis Chapman, Crystal Lewis and Toby Mac.

The use of motocross riders and sumo wrestling as ministry tools doesn't surprise Ron Kernaghan, who teaches pastoral theology at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena.

The idea is to "think outside the box and try to reach people who wouldn't ordinarily go to church," said Kernaghan, who has also heard of tattoo parlors and skateboard demonstrations at evangelism events. Such tactics also signal that Christians "are not a bunch of uptight folks; we can have fun too," he said.

John Collins, director of planning for the Harvest Crusade, said his team is constantly tinkering with formats, technology and staging to keep the crusades from getting stale.

"It's a challenge," he said. "We attempt to mix it up every year."

Laurie, 52, also sprinkles his sermons with pop culture references, news stories and celebrity quotes.