Online Journal - Page 12 of 45

How to Make Healthy Habits Online

Strategy, marketing, and all the ugly words we associate with the secular world make it difficult for the church body to embrace media. How do we turn our online habits into healthy habits and use strategy? Tony Whittaker wrote, Why Bother with Strategies for Lausanne Media Engagement Network, and he says,

“Some people might ask, “Why do we need evangelistic strategies at all? Surely we are just called on to preach the gospel, plain and straight, and leave God to do the rest?” Even the words ‘communication strategies’ may seem to imply worldly marketing methods rather than a dependence on the power of the gospel through the Holy Spirit. There are a number of answers to this very reasonable question. The Word ‘preach’ does not just mean ‘one-way verbal communication’ – as in a sermon or evangelistic address. It has a much broader sense – ‘to effectively communicate’. If the receivers have not understood the message, real communication has probably not occurred. The word ‘communicate’ also has a root meaning that helps us: that of ‘communing’ or interacting over ‘common’ ground.”

This article effectively outlines what that strategy should look like and gives ideas. All strategy employed must begin with prayer. My prayer has always come from Matthew 4:19 of the CEB when Jesus promises to show us how to reach people. Marketing or strategy are simply methods used to get information in front of people in a format they can understand so a conversation can happen. Social Media is built around relationships. How can we build relationships with people if we don’t show them some common ground? People in ministry aren’t the only ones who should pay attention to strategy. Everyone is capable of learning new things and should seek to understand the communication tools marketers and ministry partners use. Because each person has a social media profile, each person can prayerfully determine the audience they wish to reach, but don’t be a preacher.

Communicate. Talk to people. Converse.

An article about Google search terms years ago reminds me daily that God is asking us to serve outside the walls of the church. In that article, the writer said suicide was a term searched from midnight on. Maybe some of us ought to take the night shift on social media and learn to listen, armed with resources to give when the moment calls for it?

Sometimes, I think the church needs to re-learn how to make a conversation. Like in church when someone asks in passing, “How are you?” to which “fine” is the expected answer, a reaction or like shouldn’t be the only responses online. How you converse or respond to someone is up to you, but social media allows us to have conversations at any time of day or night.

In either case, you are online whether by boredom or just to see the grandkids’ photo. You’ve developed a habit with your phone. Let’s make your online habits healthy:

Are you talking or preaching? Are you listening?
Are you preaching to the choir or are you making a difference?
Is your social media a pulpit for your favorite political party?
Are you aware of trigger words with people you are friends with? How are you using your words online? Do you know the people you friend?
Do you pray for a people group? Is your social media friendly to that people group or religion? Your social media can connect with them personally.

If communication shuts down because of a disagreement, your opportunity is lost. Do everything possible to keep that line open. How you post online is really determined by who you have friended, where they are from, and what they believe. Social Media is known for its dark side. Ask the Lord to show you HOW to follow Him and HOW to build good friendships online so we allow God to shine a light through it.

Thoughts on Church Trends

In 7 Trends Impacting the Church by Chris Railey, he says,

“We never compromise the centrality of our Gospel message, but we are always on the lookout for ways to preach it to more people.”

As a Digital Engagement and Disciple-Making Coordinator with WorldVenture, currently an appointee, that quote sums up my feelings about the church and missions. The article talks about 7 trends currently impacting the church.

We should be flexible and be ready to adapt.
Being aware of trends helps us better serve a broken world.

The article goes over church planting trends, evolving consumer trends, etc. What I focused on was how other generations are focused on the quality of discipleship. They don’t care who writes the discipleship material, but what’s in it. One part talked about the church as an investment for a generation. Church shouldn’t be treated as an investment. Then, the article explores immigration.

Young professionals and immigrants are moving into the cities.
Gentrification of urban areas or urban renewal brings more expensive housing, forcing other diverse peoples to move into suburban areas. Suburban areas are now flavored by diverse points of view and other cultures.
Urban areas face income inequality, open hostility to Christianity, and people who are more alone, detached, and divided.

Major concerns were:

Not many Christians sharing their faith. The article says, “People are afraid of not being able to answer questions and are afraid of arguments.” With the support of our church and international workers and the internet, we can get comfortable saying, “Let me get back to you.” It’s okay not to have all the answers.
Over-politization of everything. I loved what the article said, “Christianity’s cause is the Gospel, not a political party’s platform.”
Our young people live in a global community with the onset of the internet.
Is our church prepared to serve cross-culturally? We should partner with our missionary organizations to learn how. Even non-urban areas are experiencing cross-cultural ministry. It’s an ever-increasing reality.

The article gives a lot of good insight. The church can adapt without compromising the Gospel and do whatever it takes to share their faith with others. Sometimes, it just means learning new disciplines or new habits, like utilizing their smartphones and tablets for more intentional usage.

Wordless Groans

I took a run yesterday after work around the lake. Runs help me cope with this journey. I pray and my heart expresses what it cannot verbalize. It reminded me of Romans 8:26-27,

“In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.”

I spend a lot of time in prayer these days. God has gifted me with this sense of powerlessness and acceptance. This morning I am struggling to put into words what is on my heart. There is so much work to be done to help the church understand online discipleship, accept it, use it well, and reach across the age and cultural divide that I feel overwhelmed. What is obvious is how this journey is not one to be done independently of the church or missionary organization.

In reflecting on this, I came to WorldVenture, not to start my own thing, but to partner with them to work with already established ministries/churches/workers and empower them to use social media, VR, and any other new technology that appears on the technological radar to share Christ through the friendships they discover, often cross-culturally and to unreached people groups. Being authentic, real, is important as online marketing tends to put the goal ahead of the person. To make disciples online is to think outside the box and get out of your comfort zone, investing your dollars and time in people online and face-to-face, not simply hitting the like button as if that’s enough. Likes are like a “How are you” as the person is heading out the door. I think we have a lot of great jump-offs from traditional ministries and churches that are doing great things with online discipleship.

Imagine how powerful the stories will be when we engage the traditional church in non-traditional ministry, especially cross-culturally? Change doesn’t come overnight. It comes with the blood and sweat of extreme effort and time. It takes education, allaying unfounded fears, and empowering people with knowledge to serve. Before one jumps to conclusions about a technology, we need to get to know it, how it works, and the positive and negative of it in order to use it well. Meanwhile, I embrace this powerlessness because I anticipate what God will do through me, through others, and definitely what He is already doing through technology.

**Learn more by clicking here***

New Book: Digital Diasporas

Reading: Digital Diasporas by Jennifer M. Brinkerhoff

“Conventional wisdom holds that IT (information technologies), especially as it is applied transnationally, poses a threat to nation-states, sovereignty and capacity to govern. IT has “exposed the porosity of geographic and political borders and limited extent of any national jurisdiction” (Montgomery 2002, 26), Wilson’s (1998) literature review found a significant degree of agreement that state sovereignty–and, arguably, capacity–eroded by IT, as a result of state’s increasing inability to control information both within their borders, as well as at the supranational level. (pg. 5-6)”

Social media is like its own nation-state, populated by multiple diasporas and cultures. The internet is a threat, but only because it is a free state allowing for the exchange of cultures and ideas. Depending upon how a person uses this tool, it can bring either peace or conflict. I pulled this quote from The Atlantic when I wrote “How Facebook’s Big Announcement Can Help Missions“:

“… [O]n a pure population count [Facebook is] bigger than many countries, including the U.S. (323.1 million people as of 2016) Also like a country… [M]any web-watchers do detect country-like features in Facebook. “[It] is a device that allows people to get together and control their own destiny, much like a nation-state,” says David Post, a law professor at Temple University. If that sounds like a flattering description of Facebook’s “groups” (often rallying people with whimsical fads and aversions), then it is worth recalling a classic definition of the modern nation-state. As Benedict Anderson, a political scientist, put it, such polities are “imagined communities” in which each person feels a bond with millions of anonymous fellow-citizens. In centuries past, people looked up to kings or bishops; but in an age of mass literacy and printing in vernacular languages, so Mr Anderson argued, horizontal ties matter more.” From Here

Likewise, we will need people who understand language demographics, provide training to local churches on cross-cultural communication, people in the church willing to use their social media to reach across social media borders, and technology people to help those that struggle with it to grasp simple concepts. This means it will take all of us to work together to accomplish the Great Commission from the church level to the mission organization level.

**Learn more about what I do with WorldVenture by clicking here**

New Online Bible Study Begins Monday

Gaye Austin Study

Nehemiah: Teamwork Starts With One

Come join us for 6 weeks as we walk, work and worship with Nehemiah from Susa to Jerusalem. We will see the present reality of how the armor of God prepares us to help others rebuild, restore, rejuvenate those who are fainthearted, weak and discouraged both spiritually and physically. We can learn much from his life about diligence, details and dogged determination. He is a living example of Hebrews 5:14 “solid food is for the mature, whose perceptions are trained by practice to discern both good and evil.” He also was a disciple who counted the cost before embarking on any project just as Jesus said to do.

Are there others around you who are failing in their walk due to extraordinary circumstances? Is God calling you to be a Nehemiah to them? Have you counted the cost of the task before you? Have you bathed it in prayer as Nehemiah did not just once but over and over? How do you handle the thorns and thistles that creep into your life both outside and inside your community? Are you a team builder or just a spectator? Do you know and believe the Prayer of Jabez from 1Chron 4:10? These are some of the questions we will seek to answer.

We begin July 9th 7pm CST, 5pm MST, 8pm EST. Set your calendar! Set your alarm! Come join us on zoom: Join URL: https://zoom.us/j/686341609

Find Information Here

Why Words Matter

“People are so angry.” My husband said.

A man was blocking the milk section at the grocery store. Another man wanted to get a gallon. Instead of waiting or gently asking the man blocking the milk to move back a little, the man needing the gallon of milk said very loudly and rudely, “EXCUSE ME!”

My husband met that angry man at the checkout station where the machine wasn’t working for him because he couldn’t wait. All I could think of as my husband shared his experience at the store with me was how words matter.

Memes, politics, words that joke about wishing people would die, etc aren’t powerless. It feeds a greater movement towards violence and hate. As a Digital Engagement and Disciple-Making Coordinator with WorldVenture, I wince when I see words and posts from people that divide rather than unite, and feel like our country is like our Arizona’s forests–a tinderbox due to drought ready to ignite with one careless spark. The drought, of course, is the lack of compassion, love, and self-control online combined with bible illiteracy.

Recently, I was watching Paul Apostle of Christ movie. The group in the Christian encampment wanted to take up their swords and storm the prison to free Luke and Paul. Paul said in the movie we must love, not retaliate. No matter how we feel politically, how we grieve for the state of our country on this fourth of July, we must remember that we are citizens of Heaven first and we are charged to love our enemies, our friends, and our neighbors. But, ultimately, words matter.

The angry man at the milk display, the impatience of the driver at the mall, and the fiery posts witnessed online are examples of the power of ideas and words. The world needs more Jesus and less anger. More importantly, we need to focus on exercising self-control online and have more conversations. Foster trust, not hate one post at a time. Learn to wait. Learn to stand in line. Learn to be helpful. Those are my thoughts today on this Fourth of July.

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” – John 13:34-35

Book Review: Hope of Nations

Hope of Nations by John S. Dickerson is a strong call to the church to awake from their bed of apathy and rise up with a newly focused call to missions. It describes the hostile land in which we live, the stark reality of our Post-Christian, Post-Truth society. The book also shares the hope we have for the future with a caveat that the responsibility for that future lies in how we move forward. Will we continue unchanged or move with the fervor and boldness of missionaries past?

Several points I have already blogged about here and here. Here are some more thoughts from my reading:

“Following World War II, some 93 percent of Americans identified as Christian—either Protestant or Catholic. That was only seven decades ago. On today’s trajectory, it is almost certain that fewer than half of Americans will identify as Christian by 2048 (that figure includes very nominal and casual Christians). In a time of unprecedented peace and prosperity compared to historical averages, one of the most Christianized nations in history has steadily turned away from its faith. (pg. 140)” Coincidentally, an increase in mental health diagnoses has occurred. Violence has increased. Addictions are on the rise. Suicides appear up. Mental health is a 203.6 billion dollar industry.
“Enjoying the fruits while neglecting the roots. (Pg. 161)” A lack of historical knowledge of our country’s Christian roots and institutions and a lack of knowledge of history, in general, is hurting our nation. Hope of Nations talks about Germany and how Nazism began. The book reminds us to care for the country our grandparents and ancestors worked to maintain so that we might enjoy its prosperity.
Hope of Nations goes over several probable endings for America. All are terrifying. One particular scenario will only continue this sense of apathy in the church while others may bring about revival as we lose the possessions and comforts we presently value over God’s desire for our obedience.
The growth of the unchurched. It is mostly the older generation that gives to missions and its causes. The unchurched didn’t grow up steeped in church tradition and may be unfamiliar with the Great Commission and how to exercise their faith. In fact, when a church begins a series on stewardship, I often hear people refer to it as the church asking for more money. Without a theological understanding of stewardship, America may not long enjoy having the richest churches around the globe.
Manifesto gives us guidelines on how to navigate this new world. Hope of Nations calls all of us to recognize that we need to learn from our missionaries how to act and share our faith in an increasingly hostile culture.

Let me remind you of the stats cementing why it is important for churches and individuals to support what I am doing with WorldVenture:

1 missionary for every 200,000 to 400,000 people (depending on whom you ask).
1 pastor for an average 300-person church. Or a staff for a 4,000 person church that is often over-worked.

We expect a level of sacrifice from our missionaries and pastors, but not from ourselves. Hope of Nations reaffirms for me the importance of my calling in social media to mobilize the church and strategically design partnerships for a global revival. Hope of Nations prepares us for moving into a future as people with purpose and a hope. Let’s put to the cross our fears, our prejudices, our politics, and our offenses and realize that we are all image-bearers of God. Let’s share that gift of hope with others through good works, compassion, and truth.

**Book given by publisher to review**