march 2012

Technology

MINISTRY
an ebook by joey sparks and scott bond
find us on twitter - @joeysparks and @scott_bondjr

IN Youth+Family

...a wide door for effective work has opened to me...

1 Corinthians 16:9

THEOLOGY BEHIND THE TECHNOLOGY

Before we get into specifics of what technology to use and how to use it, lets talk about Gods glory. Simply put, the driving force in church work is not technology. Computers, websites, graphics, and applications are not the main thing. They really arent even secondary in importance and value to Gods kingdom.

The main thing in ministry is the glory of God.

He predestined us for His glory (Eph. 1:5-6) He created us for His glory (Isa. 43:7) He elected Israel for His glory (Jer. 13:11) He saved His people from Egypt for His glory (Ps. 106:8) He rescued them from exile for His glory (Is. 48:9-11) He sent Christ into the world so Gentiles would praise God for His glory. (Rom 15:9) He commands His people, whether they eat or drink, to do all things for His glory (1 Cor 10:31) He will send Jesus a second time so that all the redeemed will marvel at His glory (2 Thess 1:9-10) Therefore, the mission of the church is: Declare His glory among the nations, his marvelous works among the peoples (Ps 96:3)
By the Gods mercy, He has saves us and sends us on mission to declare His glory to the world. It is our joy and delight to participate in that mission.
On Mt. Sinai, God Himself carved commandments on stone tablets. His laws and promises have been written down for generations to believe, hope and remember their covenant with Jehovah God. From cave walls, to city streets, to door frames, to the parchments and books used by Paul, Gods word has been written down for remembrance and extension of Gods glory to the world. Over time, weve been blessed with scientific knowledge applied for this practical purpose of declaring His glory.

Think of all the tools that Gods people have used through the course of history to explore and explain Gods glory to the world. What tools have we used to preach Gods mercy, carrying out the mission to spread the message of salvation to all the world?

Stone Tools, Clothing, Ceramics, the Wheel, Chariot, Sundial, Horseshoe, Matches, Paper, the Plough, the Compass, Water Pump, Amphitheaters, Printing Press, Electricity, Automobiles, Airplanes, Water Supply & Distribution, Radio, Television, Computers, Telephone, Air Conditioning, Refrigeration, Highways, Headphones, Spacecraft, Internet, Laptops, Cellular Devices, Touch Screen Tablets
All these technologies are tools, instruments and gadgets. Gods people, as vessels, can use these gadgets as vehicles to usher Gods glory into our living rooms, vehicles, and ear buds. These vehicles of technology help carry out the mission of the church, and the ministry of the gospel. The opportunity to put the work of the church in front of members is more real than ever. Were able to put evangelism, service, fellowship and ministry on our fingertips. The availability is of teaching, preaching, sharing the gospel is more free than ever. With technology as a force to drive momentum of the kingdom forward, we have more strength and speed and functionality than ever before. We have more resources and capacities to equip saints with the knowledge and passion for ministry. We have access to a mission field that includes people online and across the globe.

In short, we now have some of the easiest, fastest, loudest, biggest, and clearest ways to Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among the peoples (Ps 96:3)

A platform is any kind of raised flooring, such as a stage for a public speakers and performers. The platform or stage elevates the actor, artist, entertainer, musician, singer, dancer, politician, and preacher. We place these individuals on a platform to spotlight and emphasize their production. The stage makes it easy for the audience to see, hear, and get the message. If you want to reach your community with your message, youll need a platform. This platform isnt one you build out of wood or metal, but made out of web pages, multimedia, text, images, and videos.

Online blogs/websites/pages allow churches and ministries to clearly present their message to the families in every home in their community.
Like the actors platform, yourministrysite.com can draw attention to the main characters/ministers in your ministry. Like the artists platform, yourministrysite.com can paint the colors of passion that drive your ministry. Like the entertainers platform, yourministrysite.com can attract participation and enjoyment of your ministry. Like the musicians platform, yourministrysite.com can sing the lyrics/words of the Book, the gospel, the teachings of your ministry. Like the dancers platform, yourministrysite.com can display the footwork of good news and good works in the community of your ministry. Like the politicians platform, yourministrysite.com can share the King and overarching Kingdom vision of your ministry. Like the preachers platform, yourministrysite.com can place a pulpit to proclaim Christ in every living room of every house in the community of your ministry.

So have you built your platform? What type of stage/site do you have to be heard and seen by thousands of students and families in your community? Is it a platform worthy of the gospel (Phil 1:27) ?

Were living at a time when attention is the new currency. Those who insert themselves into as many channels as possible look set to capture the most value.
- Pete Cashmore, Founder of mashable.com

Your ministry website is not a billboard on the side of the interstate. In 2020, no one wants to see the site you designed in 2012. Building an online presence is a long-term commitment to making consistent contact with the people in your community. As the gospel bears fruit in our lives, we Christians are to be a fresh and sweet aroma. A lovely perfume to the world. We are to spread the sweet fragrance of the knowledge of Him in every place. (2 Cor 2:15) Social media can be a tremendous blessing in the way we direct the worlds attention to the good news of Christ, and the good works of the church. It allows us to... Share quick links to useful resources like articles, videos, websites and free files. Share your most recent presence and activity in the community where you minister Link members/visitors/seekers to yourministrysite.com where they can find teaching, podcasts, articles, videos, and other resources for spiritual growth.

How can you squander even one more day not taking advantage of the greatest shifts of our generation? How dare you settle for less when the world has made it so easy for you to be remarkable? Seth Godin

The rapid increase of the internet and social media has not only increased the efficiency of communication, but it also allows for collaboration traditionally only available through in-person meetings.

Facebook Pages & Groups allow for easily answering questions, commenting with one another, and posting pictures of events and memories. Twitter's ability to search for #hashtags creates an opportunity to have your specific voice heard and to hear others. Sharable Pinterest boards allow you to share and preserve viral ideas all in one location. Share Evernote notebooks with fellow ministers, board members, elders and deacons to allow for deep and ongoing brainstorming and record-keeping. Evernote is not only available for your desktop or laptop, but also in-browser and on your mobile and tablet devices. Your collaborative efforts are with you where ever you go. Evernote is available for free and additional features can be purchased for a small fee. Dropbox allows you to share files with yourself and others instead of uploading them as e-mail attachments. Create an account and download the software, which essentially establishes an internetbased hard drive. Dropbox gives you 2GB of storage for free and you can buy additional space if you need it. You can hold live online meetings with applications like Fuze Meeting or GoToMeeting. Don't let geography keep you from planning projects, retreats, and events. Share your screens with these helpful programs and brainstorm at a personal level from a distance.

The internet is one of God's greatest blessings in world history. It can be used to spread his glory in unimaginable ways. But like all good things, it is used for evil. Internet pornography is the most dangerous of the internet's potential pitfalls. It is both highly addictive and highly secretive. Ministers need personal accountability to guard their minds and souls and to protect themselves in light of potential accusations. Paul says in Ephesians 5:3, "But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints." Covenant Eyes (covenanteyes.com) provides affordable protection through both accountability and filtering software.

Accountability software sends weekly or monthly email reports to accountability partners rating the content of the user's web browsing. Filtering software blocks inappropriate sites and lists attempts to access them. Covenant Eyes charges a monthly fee per username. After you create a username, install the software on as many platforms as needed (mobile devices, tablets, multiple computers) for no additional charge. The price per username decreases for multiple usernames per account. Weigh your family's needs to determine the number of usernames you need. Churches can serve their families through a service like Covenant Eyes, as well. Allow members to sign up for usernames under the church's account. These fellowship-building and cost-cutting benefits may encourage families who ordinarily wouldn't sign up for such a service. SafeEyes (internetsafety.com) also provides similar services.

We have to read the Bible in one hand, and the newspaper in the other.

We live in a time when the visual impact of everything we do matters more than it ever has before. Expensive programs, few skilled designers, and limited graphic resources used to limit the visual output of churches' efforts. Those barriers now no longer exist in this digital age. You may not have the funds to throw at premium applications, images, or fonts, but you can still produce respectable and effective media.

If you have the desire to learn how to design from scratch, but can't afford programs like Adobe's Photoshop and Illustrator, start out by trying GIMP (photo-based images) and Inkscape (logos, t-shirt designs, text manipulation). There are plenty of tutorials on the internet to help you learn. If you get the hang of it with these programs, you may then feel comfortable investing in professional level applications.

If you would just rather use your standard Desktop Publishing applications (Pages for Mac, Publisher for PC), you can still create attractive documents. Be conscientious of how you preserve your files when you're finished with them. Since MS Publisher files aren't compatible with any other programs, it's best if you'll export them to a .pdf so you'll always have access to them. If you use standard Desktop Publishing programs, you're also best to steer away from their pre-made templates. If you make sure you keep things readable and simple, you'll accomplish your purposes. "The Non-Designer's Design Book" by Robin Williams (not that one) is a great place to start if you'd like to learn basic principles to make things look good. Whether you're designing in-depth designs in professional programs or basic documents in a Desktop Publishing program, it's important you use images you are legally permitted to use. If anyone is expected to follow Copyright Laws, it should be Christians. With the helpfulness of the internet, we have access to quality images that are either free or can be bought for low prices. Start with Flickr's Creative Commons section, Wiki Commons, or free stock image sites like Stock Xchng (sxc.hu), RGBStock.com, or MorgueFile.com. Before downloading images, be sure you've read the Terms of Use. If you are required to attribute an image to its author, find a creative way such as using a final slide with an attributions list. Free, professional fonts are also widely available to keep your designs looking current and fresh. Be picky when selecting a font. Don't use a font just because you think it's neat. Use fonts that best fit the purposes of your designs. Just because you can use a font doesn't mean you should use it. Start looking for classy fonts at places like losttype.com and fontsquirrel.com.

Design is not just what it looks like. Design is how it works. - Steve Jobs

A Tech In Ministry Podcast WEdnesdays at 9:30am CST

With Caleb OHara, Michael Hite, and Dale Jenkins

THE PERSON AND WORK OF JESUS CHRIST

CREATING CONVERSATION AROUND

#hashtag

The 2012 ONLINE Summer youth

Series

75 Technology Tips to IMPROVE YOUR MINISTRY TODAY

1. Get started with a Google Account. Google is a minister's dream world of simple applications and solutions for every day ministry tasks. Get your own custom email address, tools for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, a shared calendar system, so many other practical tools. 2. Skype with a missionary that your congregation supports. If they have a computer with reliable internet access, you can host an interview for the young people to ask questions about life and work as a missionary. You can let the missionary's children/family be part of your devotional or worship time. 3. Download the Postagram app to send a postcard picture and a short note to someone needing encouragement. All from your phone, you can take a picture of you with one of your teenagers, write a message, and then mail it to their house for around $1. 4. Send a weekly parent information and involvement email. Every Thursday, we send out an email to the church with news, happenings, upcoming events, calendar changes, prayer requests, culture trends, involvement opportunities that we offer to youth and families. 5. Set up a Facebook group for your ministry. Add members to it, and then begin posting updates, prayer requests, pictures, and details about upcoming events. 6. Start keeping track of your expenses and receipts with the Expensify app. Take a picture of your receipt the second you get it. This will help you keep a perfect record of what money you spent, and why you spent it. And you don't have to keep up with all that paper. 7. Share an Evernote folder with one or all of your ministry staff. Or share one with another minister. This will allow you to collaborate and organize content for curriculum, projects, and other events you want to make happen. 8. Discipline yourself into productive mode with ActionMethod. Arrange your projects and to-do lists in order of focus and intensity, then knock them out. It

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comes in print, online, mobile, and tablet formats. Use apps like Chrome's StayFocusd to block distracting sites during important study and planning sessions. Share your events on YouTube and harness the power of video. Create short videos (using your Smartphone camera or Flip-style camera) to communicate big announcements about special days so your congregation is inspired to get connected. Video is also a tremendous way to follow-up important events. Interview students during the event itself and edit immediately afterward. Get creative and produce videos to illustrate important principles in your messages. Create a Google form/survey to get feedback from parents or students. An easy, quick, free way for you to create and share forms Register your students and volunteers to sign up and pay for trips online via Eventbrite. For a small fee, Eventbrite will collect your registration information, payments, and help you promote your event/retreat/trip until the day it arrives. Post a photo essay on your ministry blog/website of a recent event. Take pictures and briefly describe what happened, who was involved, and why it was important. This is a powerful way to give outsiders an inside look of what's happening in your ministry. Create an infographic showing statistics of recent visitors to your ministry/ church website. Use Google Analytics to include the most popular posts, most listened to sermons, locations of visitors, what search terms brought them to your site, and so on. Create and share a Google calendar to streamline the events of your congregation with other members and staff. Control settings will let other staff members manage and edit event details on the calendar. Get your RSS Reader going. Open up Google Reader and start adding the URL's of the blogs you read to keep all your favorite content in one place. You can also add podcasts to your RSS Reader and listen to them in browser. Find your favorite blogs about preaching, Bible study, technology, leadership, finances, Youth Ministry, Bible Classes, marketing/advertisement, etc.

16. Set up a Twitter account for your ministry. Send out short updates for students and families to follow what's happening. Additionally, you can use your ministry's Twitter account to send out text messages. All they have to do to receive them is send a text message saying FOLLOW USERNAME to 40404. They don't even need a Twitter account to receive them. 17. Use a Social Media Dashboard Client (Hootsuite, TweetDeck, TweetCaster) to organize multiple accounts into one location. Connect your Twitter accounts and Facebook pages and avoid the "login shuffle" that happens using multiple accounts. A single post can go everywhere at once. 18. Schedule posts ahead of time using your Dashboard Client. Save yourself the anxiety of remembering to send out updates at specific times. Program messages to post before worship services, and before or after school. 19. Download some iTunes podcasts to your iPod/iPhone/mp3 player. While you're driving down the road, listen to your favorite speakers on your favorite subjects. 20. Use The Church App to develop an app for your ministry. For an upfront cost, and a small monthly fee, you can keep up a great looking application for your students and families to put on their smartphones and tablets. 21. Start setting up your own ministry website at wordpress.com. Catalog the life, events, teaching, and goals of your ministry. 22. Check out losttype.com or fontsquirrel.com and download some new professional free fonts. Whether you're doing signup sheets or new presentations, new fonts always keep things looking fresh. 23. Create an information eBook by formatting in your word processor (Pages), and exporting it as a PDF file. Share it with your members for information on an event or an introduction to a new class. 24. Head over to VistaPrint.com (or PrintRunner.com) and promote your ministry like never before. Order affordable and professional printed business cards, postcards, flyers, banners, magnets, and so on. Once you place an order, you'll receive e-mail specials to help you make affordable purchases in the future. 25. Use Queensboro.com (or LogoUp.com) to wear your ministry logo(s) everywhere you go. Order stylish and quality shirts, hats, bags, jackets, and more

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to display your church or ministry logos. If you create an account, they'll send you daily e-mail specials, some of which are outstanding. Start speaking your message thoughts into the Dragon Dictation app. As you speak, it transcribes your notes for you to organize for a message or devotional. Speak clearly or your "Acts 2:38" becomes "ax tooth dirty eight". Work up your appetite for reading on the newest Kindle or Kindle app. Find your favorite books, titles, and authors on Amazon.com and start reading in seconds. You don't even have to have a Kindle...the Kindle App is available for iPad/ iPhone, Android devices, and your computer desktop. Search daily free Kindle books for resources related to your ministry. You can often find great books related to leadership, marriage, parenting, theology, and communication. And you can't beat free. Start taking attendance at your classes or events. The Attendance app allows you to check students in, text missing students, and email a spreadsheet report to elders/deacons/staff. Keeping track of attendance through a spreadsheet application enables you to see the big picture of attendance trends. Examine a verse through the Treasury Scripture of Knowledge on the BlueLetterBible app. Available in online, mobile and tablet versions. Keep up to date on current events using The Daily or USA Today app. Online versions are graphically stunning and suitable for the iPad. Set up an all church email address (ex: members@smcoc.net) Make the group email address to forward to all members email accounts. All members will be able to send and receive emails to and from that address. Use it as a primary means of communicating events, sick updates, and happenings within your congregation. Send out a daily text message to students or members. Choose short verses, inspirational quotes, or important points from recent Bible Class lessons. Download free or affordable movie clips from WingClips.com. A legal way to show powerful and familiar clips to students. They organize their broad collection by Biblical topics.

35. Assign a specific #hashtag for your messages or events. Challenge your students to use the hashtag when they post about it on Twitter. Search for the hashtag and display some of the best posts on screen. 36. Send a private message in Facebook or Twitter to every student or church member. Thank them for their strengths and encourage them in their walks with Christ. 37. Challenge students to make events "viral." Assign an event or class series to a student. Have them write a small description and invitation. Then send that post to every student and challenge them to copy and paste it as their status. Think about how many eyeballs that message can reach! 38. Give away exciting prizes through Social Media or text messaging. Give away small prizes like books, t-shirts, gift cards or bigger prizes like iPods pre-loaded with sermons or an audio Bible. Use these giveaways as motivational tools to get people to follow your ministry's accounts. Ask questions from Bible Classes, recent trips, your congregation's history, or use tools like random.com to choose a random submission. 39. Start 'pinning' helpful and creative ideas through a shared board on Pinterest.com. Share the board with all your Bible Class teachers and use the "viral" aspect of Pinterest to generate and then share ideas with one another about specific crafts and teaching methods. It's a super-easy way to share coloring pages, puzzles, and other helpful resources. 40. Go to openbible.info and download pictures of Bible locations as they are today. Use them in your presentations or pull them up on your smartphone or tablet in Bible Classes. 41. Use goo.gle to shorten links for Social Media posts. Don't let lengthy links distract from your message. 42. Use a Bible link-shortener like ref.ly to share Bible passages via Twitter and Facebook. Post the most helpful parts of the passage and link to the entire passage to encourage students and members to explore the text of God's Word.

43. Create a "digital comic strip" using an iPad or smartphone. Assign students to draw a specific verse (or verses) and snap a photo of each, in order. Load the pictures and view them through as presentation in class. 44. Search Flickr Creative Commons, Wiki Commons, or Stock Xchng (sxc.hu). Find helpful, quality, and legal images for your presentations and promotional materials. 45. Download tunes from ccmixter.org, incompetech.com, jewelbeat.com, or friendlymusic.com. Legally use free or affordable engaging music for promotional videos. 46. Use Grooveshark, Rdio, or Spotify to appeal to your students' love of music. Create custom playlists (of a cappella worship music, positive/inspirational popular music, etc.) to share with your students via Twitter and Facebook. 47. Print catchy business cards highlighting your ministry's online presence to give to guests. Tell them where to find you online, how to sign-up to receive updates, and how to contact you with questions about the church and the Bible. 48. Create an online presence for missionaries your congregation supports (if they don't have one already). Buy a new domain name for them or create a page within your church's (ie, churchname.com/missionwork). Use photos and information from their newsletters to make regular updates. This is a great project for your tech-saavy students to use their skills and serve your missionaries. 49. Create a Google Voice number. Publicize that students and guests can easily send text messages to your ministry or congregation. 50. Sign up for helpful e-mail newsletters from preachers or places like sermoncentral.com, simplyyouthministry.com, Group Magazine, or Relevant Magazine. Receive daily or weekly devotionals, ideas, encouragement, and resources in your inbox. 51. Spend an entire day watching TED Talks at ted.com. Take notes on the most impressive presentations you watch. Brainstorm how you can improve your speaking skills.

52. Surprise students with a barrage of text messages on important days. Secretly arrange for fellow students and adults to text message prayers and encouragement to students on big days (college interviews, surgeries, standardized tests, etc.) 53. Archive important memories with Facebook's new Timeline feature. Create a visual timeline of your congregation's history or your ministry's past year. Post pictures of important moments and have students collaborate with their own memories as comments. 54. Create a "flash mob" for something good via text messaging. Give a bunch of hugs to an elderly member on his or her birthday, double/triple (or more) a small congregation's worship attendance one Sunday night, support a random community sporting event, etc. 55. Send personalized video messages to guests. Video a welcome message to worship guests mentioning them by name and send via e-mail or Facebook. Mention things you talked about over lunch and invite them back for classes and worship. Use a group of students to film a brief message to their children. 56. Interview individuals before and after them being baptized. Combine the footage with video of their baptism and post to your website or Facebook. This allows them to share "their story" and spreads the truth about the necessity of baptism. 57. Wish students a "Happy Birthday" via their Facebook walls on their baptism anniversary date. Make them feel special, remind them of their commitment to Christ, and allow others to see the importance of their "new birth." 58. Host an online meeting with Fuze Meeting or GoToMeeting. If you're planning a retreat, camp or rally, you can talk over plans, sharing your ideas by sharing your screens. 59. Use Talkshoe to start a podcast for the students and/or families and parents in your congregation. Provide informative content, interviews, and Christ-centered inspiration.

60. Stream some great ministry related podcasts from The Equip Network. The Ministry Geek, Behind the Pulpit, Equipped Today, and iPreach are consistent weekly podcasts with great content related to ministry and technology. 61. Order some "outside-the-box" business cards from moo.com. Print things like business cards, postcards, and mini cards, making it easy for you to share information about your ministry. Beautiful, high-quality print. 62. Get things done with Dial2Do. Just use your voice to create reminders, send texts, listen to and send email. All while keeping your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road. 63. Download the Starbucks app and start paying for coffee with your smartphone. It may not make you a better minister, but easier access to caffeine is never a bad thing. 64. Archive and search old emails with Gmail. The ability to find older lessons, attachments, reservations and miscellaneous details is priceless. Archive and search options at their best in Gmail. 65. Get familiar with YouVersion and teach your students/families how to use it too. Show them how to easily and responsibly read, understand, and share scripture. 66. Get "walkie-talkie" like communication with your deacons, elders, and other staff members with HeyTell or Voxer. Speak a 15 second message and send it directly as a audio snippet of information. Great for avoiding text messages while going down the road. 67. Get reviews and previews of what's showing at the local theater with the Flixter Movie app. Chances are your students and families will be there. Use a family review site like kidsinmind.com to read content reviews on potentially inappropriate subjects. 68. Purchase the latest edition of Paperless Hymnal for projecting praise songs during your devotionals together. Paperless Hymnal features an extensive catalog of old classic songs and new praise and worship songs. Seeing the music while learning new-er songs is the best way to learn them.

69. Find out the "reach" of your Facebook Page through Insights in the Admin Panel. Look up the number of unique friends of fans, views/interactions per post, and so on. Use this as motivation for students and members as well as to determine what, how, and when to post. 70. Use popular or viral YouTube videos from the current week as discussion starters. Talk about the spiritual and cultural significance of what the world views as popular, funny, meaningful, etc. 71. Download Faith Comes By Hearing's free audio of the Bible in iTunes. Search for their podcasts in the iTunes store. Burn them onto a CD to distribute to families for ride-time listening. Download into a missionary's language and send a bunch of copies to them in the mail. 72. Search Google during Bible Class to generate the interest of students. Connect your computer to your projector, and then search Google as students watch. Briefly discuss the most popular results, or randomly choose a site further down the screen. Let the anticipation of the results and the flexibility of your discussion fuel their excitement. 73. Interview and publish (in your bulletin, on your website) various families about technology. Do a Q&A about how parents protect their children from technology's dangers, how they use technology to manage their family time, what the church can do with technology to effectively reach more people, and so on. Interview multiple families and compare and contrast their answers. 74. Read through the archives at Covenant Eyes' blog "Breaking Free" (covenanteyes.com/blog). Use their statistics, free resources, and stories to make your students and families aware of the the internet's dangers and to offer them hope in their struggles. 75. Pray. Seek the Lord's guidance, wisdom, and strength to help you be the best steward of technology you can be. Tell us what we missed! Submit your technology tip For the next edition of Technology in Ministry
joey.sparks @Gmail.com

scott@edge.net