06 Oct

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Steve Jobs: Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, but Nobody Wants to Die.

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As we remember Steve Jobs for his contributions to the world I can’t help but feel that something huge is missing.  Did Jobs waste his life?  Now, this question might seem tasteless and completely absurd in light of his accomplishments.  I use and love many of the gadgets Apple created and am not trying to say they aren’t important or valuable to society as a whole.  What I am trying to say is that in the Kingdom-minded perspective of eternity my iPhone & Macbook Pro mean absolutely nothing.

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Filed Under: Article, Culture

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23 Sep

2 Comments

What the new Facebook changes mean for churches

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It hasn’t even been 24 hours since Mark Zuckerberg (or Zucky as I call him) announced some big changes coming to Facebook. For the church that uses Facebook, wants to use Facebook or better its use of Facebook there is a new conversation we must be having and questions we need to be asking to make our story worth seeing.

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Filed Under: Article, Be Inspired, Church 2.0, Featured

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13 Sep

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A Successful Facebook Exchange

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I wanted to briefly share an exchange I saw this morning with my local church supporting a new family to the church.  This successful exchange demonstrates just 1 way you can use Facebook to better support and connect your online audience.  Because this exchange is made public (on their Facebook page) the church is also demonstrating that their page is not only active but also a resource for those that would like to take advantage of it.

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Filed Under: Be Inspired, Church 2.0, Strategy

26 Jul

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10 Reasons Why Volunteers Quit: Part 2

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This is part 2 of a two-part post by Dave Shrein. To read the opening post, click here. Enjoy!

5) Only communicate with your volunteer when something goes wrong.

We all know what happens on a Sunday when a mic doesn’t come on at the right time, or the video freezes, or the system starts to feedback… everyone looks to the back. Sadly, this is usually the only time tech volunteers get recognition. I’d rather them get noticed for the 50 weeks of flawless service prior, but instead, this 30 second blunder is their moment in the spotlight. All the heads turn back and your team starts scrambling to fix the issue is, which, let’s face it, probably isn’t entirely their fault. It could also be a volunteer who misspells a ministry name tag, or someone who updates your Facebook or Twitter streams. Somehow we don’t remember they are there until they mess up and we are quick to give them our full attention.

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Filed Under: Strategy

13 Jul

2 Comments

10 Reasons Why Volunteers: Part 1

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In ministry having the right volunteer for the right job is paramount. We look for individuals who have enthusiasm for the the vision of the ministry, who have time to invest and who possess the skills to actually perform the duties required. You will come across “turn-key” volunteers who are immediately ready to run with their responsibility. But most of time we find volunteers who are willing to do whatever we ask but they require substantial equipping from leadership in order to succeed.

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Filed Under: Strategy

14 Jun

4 Comments

Do you remember my name?

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I will be the first to admit that I am not perfect at remembering people’s names when I meet them for the first time. Sometimes I even forget their name right after they introduce themselves. This was a big wake-up call that I need to strive towards remembering people’s names when I meet them. It is something that I have been actively practicing for the past 6 months or so and I can already see improvement.

But why is remembering someone’s name important?

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Filed Under: Strategy

31 May

6 Comments

10 Ways To Use Facebook In Your Ministry

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I am a huge fan of social media. I often say, if there were something I were to ever write a doctoral paper on, it would probably be on something in the world of social media, marketing, and ministry. I’m not sure how that would work, but I love all three, and they all relate on some level.

Does your ministry use Facebook? On a scale of 1 to 10, what would you give your ministry or church as a rating in how much leverage Facebook gives you in marketing your church brand and communicating to your people? Is your rating number a little low? Here are 10 easy ways to use Facebook for ministry that may kick you up a notch.

1. Create a Page, Not A Group

The biggest difference between pages and groups is the “fan” element. When a person clicks like on your ministry fan page, they get the updates in their news feed. Also, pages are open to the public: you don’t need to be a fan to see the page. Groups offer similar features, but people are in general more reluctant to join a group if they are fringe attenders, or just part of the “crowd” your ministry has influence over. But people are far more willing to “like” a ministry because it shows less commitment. The point of Ministry and Facebook is to be as inclusive as possible.  Also, this allows you, as the page admin, to post things NOT as your own personal Facebook profile, which helps to make the ministry more generic, and not dependent on your individual presence if you change churches or ministries.

2. Create Groups For Small Groups & Leadership Teams

My small group of high school guys recently determined that they wanted to create a private and locked group on Facebook where they can talk about “stuff.” It has been a great tool for reminding them of meetings, events, and having discussions. It has also led to some students who would rather not associate with the group, but who are friends with guys in the group, have gotten our brand in their face again.

3. Post Pictures Quick

Don’t wait a week to get your event pictures up on Facebook. Ride the buzz of your last event and get them posted as soon as the event is over! The name of the game is momentum! I know you just got home from a week of camp and haven’t slept in days, but this needs to happen before you take your comp-time vacation. Always tag at least one student in every picture. They will take it from there and the memories from your event will live in internet history forever!

4. Always Create Events For Your Special Events

Flyers are on their way out. No matter how cool and sexy I make my ministry flyers, students just don’t take them and pass them out to their friends and an acceptable rate.  Plus they can get expensive to print if you want them to look trendy and do full-bleed stuff.  Everything is virtual now. So create a slick image for your special event, upload it to Facebook, create an event with it, and then encourage your students to “share” the event, or to invite their friends. It literally is a click of the button way of them inviting their friends.

5. Have Facebook On Your Mobile Phone

Many have seen the stat that has anticipated by 2012, 80% of all cell phones in use will be internet ready – which means tons of your students are going to have Facebook in their pockets all of the time. That means you should have it in your pocket as well. Create boundaries by logging out on your weekend or Sabbath, but during your “ministry” hours, be ready to make quick replies and wall postings while on the go.

6. Tie Your Facebook Fan Page to Your Twitter Feed

For your students who don’t have Facebook Mobile, they can receive tweets from your ministry sent to their cell phones as text messages by texting “follow @myhypotheticalministry” to 40404 without quotes. You can tie your Facebook to Twitter so that when your fan page posts a status, it automatically tweets it out. Students can get “Youth Group starts in 20 minutes!” sent straight to their phones. If you pay for a ministry text messaging service, dump it now.

7. Check Your Personal Facebook and Ministry Facebook Daily

Social Media is only a positive force if you use it. If a student or parent doesn’t need an instant answer, they can leave a voicemail or email. But most students expect that Facebook is the fastest way to get a hold of a person if they don’t have your personal mobile number. Don’t write dissertations in reply, but acknowledge everything. The “like” button is your friend!

8. Never Miss A Birthday

Always post on your student’s wall on their birthday. It reminds them you exist and makes you seem more accessible.

9. Use the @ Sign To Link People To Your Fan Page

When you type a status update about your ministry, use the @ sign and then type your fan page name in, and it will create a link in your update. This is just another open door that can allow for click-through to your fan page. It’s also easy for students to share that link with their friends if it is in their news feeds.

10. Post Video Announcements On Your Fan Page

If you have a webcam, you can upload easy and quick announcement videos with literally two clicks of the mouse to your fan page wall where students will have the video pop up in their news feed. Videos are eye candy. Students will watch them just to see what the video is of. And try to come up with creative titles too.

Filed Under: Church 2.0, Resources

24 May

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Don’t Let the Rapture Not Happen Again

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This last Saturday, like every other day, came and went without a Rapture.

There were no reports of nude Christians flying in the air and there were no piles of clothing left behind on sidewalks and street corners. No unmanned airplanes fell from the sky and cars devoid of operators were not turned into bombs on wheels. As far as I know, Kirk Cameron was not running around with that trademarked, dumbfounded look on his face.

Despite the agonizing pleas of a handful of Christ followers in California, none of these things happened.

What did happen in the days, weeks and months leading up to this weekends anti-climactics, was the result of decades of bad theology, improper use of Scripture and broken eschatology. For Christianity, it was a massive public relations gaffe that would have made Charlie Sheen wince.

How did we let this happen?

Towards the end of last week, there was no shortage of mocking directed at the Church.  By proxy, Jesus Christ and the Gospel were turned into a laughing stock. People were creating “end of the world” checklists and playlists to accompany being raptured or left behind. Most of it was hilarious. Unfortunately for the Christian Church, a handful of attention-starved believers were allowed to speak for the whole group.

If this were an isolated incident it would be funny.

Every week, it seems like some fringe element of Protestantism is grabbing the spotlight and using it to do damage to the message of peace, forgiveness and love that is the Gospel. Somehow, the likes of Jim Jones, Harold Camping and Westboro Baptist Church have become the spokespeople for Christianity.

The cast majority of Christians are stunned when these people open their mouths and we deny them emphatically to anyone who will listen to us. In our attempt to show the unbelieving world that they are not us, we also participate in the mockery and humor. The silent majority of true Christianity is only reactive to public relations issues and most of the time it is too late.

How can we be proactive? What can be done to prevent the crazy guy in the mailroom from being the voice of the corporation (forgive the big business analogy)? Talk to an Imam in your community and you will find the same frustration in his heart. Christianity’s problem is much like that of Islam: fringe radicals represent the middle in the minds of Western culture. It should go without saying that this is not helping the Gospel message and we need to find a solution.

One idea that is not original, needs some work and is a little bit idealistic is unity. Yeah I know, you’re thinking “fat chance” right? But any conversation about the Christian voice in the mainstream needs to include some discussion about unity. The Catholic church sends out its press releases through the Holy See but the Protestant faith has no official voice that a majority of its elements agree on. Instead, hundreds of denominations speak for themselves and many cite petty theological issues as reason for not working with their brothers more closely. To an outsider, the church looks like a splintered group of bickering children who let their minor differences define them instead of their major similarities. Protestant Christianity needs unity.

I have no idea what this unity would look like, maybe like the United Nations, but its functions would include public relations, joint missions initiatives and pleading the case of the poor, the fatherless and widow worldwide. The hope is that over time, this unified group of the world’s Christian denominations will come to accurately portray Christ and represent the Gospel to mankind. It should not be a political organization, and its only vision should be the full Gospel for the whole world. Within it’s members, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Methodists, Baptists and Baptists disguised as community mega churches all get along.

Maybe this is asking too much or maybe it is discussion for another time and place. But time is running out, according to a man who knows his Bible and speaks for Jesus, the world is ending on October 21 of this year.

Filed Under: Advocacy, Culture, Strategy