Reaching Guatemala #Christian

V leaned toward me, her phone in the palm of her hand, showing me pictures and videos of her recent church short term missions trip to Guatemala. She shared deeply what God had done in her through the trip and how her team members were right by her side at a crisis moment. It so reminded me of Honduras.

Short term trips do as much for the people of the country as they do for the team. When you go on a short term trip, you return home different. The people leave footprints in your life that never go away. V wanted to keep in touch with some of the leadership and team, and had collected a few email addresses while in Guatemala. At this point, the conversation went from friend-to-friend to a social media class to learn how to use her seldom-used Facebook in a global way.

Privacy is an issue for V for reasons I won’t go into, and as the afternoon sunshine gave way to monsoonal wind, rain, and lightening, we nearly closed down Starbucks. V had both her tablet and phone as I taught her how to copy and paste links, create statuses, edit photos, and share her faith without revealing personal information. She even shared her story in a Facebook Live video, being okay with it being public.

The next step was walking her through inviting her Guatemalan friends to “friend” her on Facebook. She used Google translate to type out her message to them and copied and pasted the Spanish text into the body of the email. While Google translate is wonderful, it is always best to learn the language of the culture you wish to reach.

V is not just a dear friend, but an avid prayer support. You read my story about P, and now you are learning about V. Both attend the same church. Imagine if every church member shared their faith with their “Oikos” online, took the time to mentor people online, and shared statuses that reflect their face-to-face personality, inviting further conversation? The church would be powerful, indeed. This is partly what I do. I am a trainer of those who wish to be more than spectator Christians.

Would you consider supporting this work? Click here. 

I Cause Discomfort

Image may contain: 1 person
(P Created This on My Tablet)

We gather around our devices. P has both her laptop and phone, ready to learn. We drink lattes and talk about our memories and life lessons learned.

She laughs when she talks about graduating in 1968. “You weren’t even born yet!”

I listen. That’s perhaps the most important tool in a Social Media Consultant. 

As she shares about her life, I am making mental notes. How can she share her faith? How can her personality shine online? What is her learning curve? How can I help her succeed? What obstacles do we need to overcome? This is how ministry works–I meet with people and have a conversation. Sometimes, the conversations happen online via Zoom or Skype, but like today, it is face-to-face over lattes away from the craziness of downtown Prescott and the Fourth of July activities.

We cover topics such as photo editing, linking the photo to the micro-story she is telling, and teach how to do certain things on the phone and laptop.

“You’ve got to make it a habit.” I can’t say this enough. “You’ve got to work on this an hour a day until it’s like second nature.” The biggest problem with people learning how to use social media isn’t always the technology; it’s creating a new habit. When the habit is created, you can choose when to use social media and when to abstain. You have control over how much time you spend on social media; the device doesn’t control you.

My husband and I talked later and we both agreed that people find it easier to share negative stories about social media rather than get involved. The church is changing. The message isn’t changing, but can if good people do nothing to correct the misinformation online. As I sat typing this blog, scrambling for more inspiration, Seth Godin once again becomes an influence:

He wrote in Creating Discomfort that even projects you launch that should be welcoming are often missing an important point: “…this is going to make (some) people uncomfortable.”

What I do with WorldVenture is still new to a lot of people. Yet, I join with a few hundred others to pioneer a new movement. I’m determined to close the gap between young and old, to mobilize the church to get online, and to show that the Bible is good enough even if the context in which we share the message is re-framed.

Next Facebook Class for #Christians #SocialMedia

The next Facebook class will be on Saturday, July 22.

Here are some details:

  • Come at 10 a.m. sharp to get help to set up your first Facebook Account.
  • We’ll teach on communication, segmenting, and ministry from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
  • RSVP required. Because this is a FREE class, it is only open to Christians. I ask that you take some of my prayer cards and hand them out to your friends in exchange for this free class.
  • To RSVP, leave a comment, and I will connect with you.

Those who sign up for the free class are automatically added to two newsletter lists–one for my prayer updates and another to help you succeed in using social media to reach people online. 

Lamenting and Wrestling

When I run, all I can hear is the pounding of my feet on the trail nearly in sync with the rhythm of my heart. I feel the heaviness of the sun on my skin and the sweat dripping into my eyes. I do not wear ear buds on the trail for safety reasons so I am aware of every snap of a twig. Running is more than just healthy exercise.

It’s my time with God.

It’s where I wrestle with my emotions; even lament.

Lamenting is a new word learned from a book I finished reading this year called, No More Faking Fine by Esther Fleece.

She says about Lamenting, “Lament is defined as an expression of grief. As I take a look at Scripture, I see that God seeks out those of us who are in need of him. He meets people with his comfort, and with his peace. So for the purposes of this book, and this movement, we’re defining lament as an expression of grief that God meets us in.” 

Samuel Gill, a former worker with WorldVenture and now Life Coach in the Prescott area says this on his blog, “Most of us know that each snowflake has its own unique pattern. But do you know why? Each crystal acquires its unique pattern in its flight from the clouds down to earth. It is the result of a battle. As snow flakes pass through the atmosphere in their flight down to earth they encounter particles of dust and dirt. Thus the beauty of each snow flake is the result of conflict and pain.” 

Have you ever pined for something? Have you ever pursued that something in spite of “conflict and pain?” God is the King of patience–the long-suffering kind of patience. It’s about the journey.

The journey is one where Seth Godin says in No Way Out, “The best long-term approach might be to learn something, to tough it out, to engage with the challenge. Because once you get through this, you’ll be different. Better. We always have a choice, but often, it’s a good idea to act as if we don’t.”

When I run, I don’t see the curving trail, hugged by scrub oak and trees. I see my support journey, and the distant mountain peak as the end of one journey to begin another–reaching those online who, unlike Esther Fleece, may not share in the comfort of knowing our Lord.

Thank you, friends and supporters. Your gifts and support are, “…a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. (click here to read full verse).”

Creating a Place For Ideas

Ideas are like embers that spark in a fire and fling off into the cold night only to fade in the sand. I’ve known people who have great ideas, but manpower or leadership become a problem. Without a leader, an idea doesn’t have a chance to flame. Without the flame, volunteers aren’t attracted to it enough to commit to its long-term goals. In response to people who have great ideas, and understanding they need a place to share ideas, I created a site where people can use the teaching blog to share great ministry plans.

My goal is to gather all those creative people together to inspire the church body to serve online. We like to look at serving as only in the face-to-face world, but serving happens online, too. People are already online at church. They need only direction, urging, and patience to teach them how to use the social media they already have to reach their circle of unbelievers. Sometimes, it’s not the lack of knowledge of technology, but only the missing creative flair that comes from creative people.

This is all very time consuming though. It’s a joy to do this, but without the church helping to financially partner with me, my time available is restricted to Saturdays and Sundays because of the need to have a day job.

On Saturday, June 24 at 10 a.m. MST, I invite you to a Zoom meeting where I will walk you through what I do with WorldVenture. To get the Zoom address, please leave a comment and I will email you. 

 

Meet TRC Magazine’s Intern!

 

TRC Magazine began in 2012 over a bowl of salsa and chips. Originally, it was created to give me a publishing option while I waited for traditional publishing to accept my submissions. Little did I know that God would have better ideas.

The magazine grew thanks to the enthusiasm and passion of our volunteers, but it didn’t happen without encountering obstacles, like issues of pride, lack of responsibility, and a difference of opinion on direction. Our founding editors were a blessing to our magazine. One left because his church was growing and he had to focus on this. When you manage and lead a group of volunteers, you must understand volunteers are always temporary. Life happens and people move forward.  They are gifting you with their time. God brings them where He needs them to serve. When that is done, they move on.

Our original founding editor remains today. I am grateful for her guidance and assistance. She is not in an editor position, but now serving as part of the management team, writing when she has the time or jumping in to save the day. It has also been nice to see how WorldVenture has accepted this ezine as one of my responsibilities. The vision of TRC Magazine is changing though, and I am very excited about its future.

It is about:

  • Mentoring a new generation of writers and leaders.
  • Partnering with the church through internships via WorldVenture.
  • Becoming a voice for the voiceless and picking up stories from people who aren’t writers or stories that larger publications won’t publish.
  • Engaging our readership rather than just preaching. We are training our volunteers and interns to engage. In some ways, publishing articles online are just that–preaching. No different than showing up at church on Sunday and sitting quietly to listen. We want to be different and make a difference.
  • Working to change church culture. Sharing the Gospel doesn’t just happen in the face-to-face world. It happens in the online community all the time. If the church would embrace this, imagine how much faster we could share the Gospel worldwide?

Because of this, TRC Magazine will become an LLC. The operating agreement will be written up to include the possibility of a board. A new volunteer/intern handbook will be written to make things clearer. In the beginning of the magazine’s publication, we needed better communication. This is what I have learned since publishing in 2012:

  • Having clearly written guidelines is important. This brings less confusion.
  • Empowering writers, but not enabling them, keeps the work running smoothly. Occasionally stepping in to assist a writer does happen, but more often than not, I try to encourage independent thinking and work.
  • Keeping deadlines is important. You can tell a reliable worker from their posts on social media. Prioritizing the work you need to do and meeting deadlines are a constant challenge with writers who work day jobs, serve in ministry, and yet want to make a difference online.
  • Wording communications in ways that encourage the writer into a leader or the leader into producing great work.
  • Giving people a voice to share their story is important even if the writing is terrible and needs re-working.
  • A difference exists between blogging and article writing. This has always been a tricky line to keep.

TRC Magazine introduced internships to partner with churches worldwide to broadcast what God is doing in the world. Our first internship is working out beautifully. Meet Ross Harris here and listen to his Facebook live devotional here. Goals for him will include:

  • Social media training.
  • cross-cultural training.

Will you pray for our volunteers and interns? 

Different and Better

Appointed by WorldVenture in 2015, I wasn’t actually released to raise funds until March, 2016. Necessary training is what prevented me from sending out those emails and making those phone calls. This probably confused many as people expected to hear from me, but God was wiser. Developing as a worker in the field of social media and technology means I am developing as a person, too, and taking the scenic route to my goals.

In fact, the NIV Stewardship Bible I bought early on has been comforting. Living on the thin ice of faith means I am forcing myself to trust God to deliver on His promises and putting our lives and our finances on His altar. Stewardship principles are misunderstood, maybe even poorly worded when brought up at the pulpit on occasion. People immediately assume you or the organization needs money rather than giving as an act of worship and faith.

Seth Godin wrote “No Way Out” in this blog:

The thing is, though, that the long-term strategy might be the opposite. The best long-term approach might be to learn something, to tough it out, to engage with the challenge. Because once you get through this, you’ll be different. Better.

Engaging with this challenge means spending much more time on my knees in prayer, trusting my finances and my future with the Lord. I have no idea if our future will mean a comfortable retirement, but I do know our future won’t look like our grandparent’s future. This is okay. God will give me a place to lay my head even if it is a stone. At least, He has redeemed me from my past and His relationship is the only thing I need no matter what the future becomes. I know one thing though.

This new career path is the only way I want to go and I never want to retire. Social media and technology will change. But if we, as Christians, do not choose to change, our places of worship will become irrelevant and we will become irrelevant.

What could that look like?

  • Musicians have taken old hymns and put a new twist on them. The message didn’t change. The music was re-framed.
  • Remember that we do not have the right to shove our beliefs on someone else or judge them online. Re-frame your online responses to encourage a closer relationship with the Lord. Don’t be the crazy religious nut that screams at the person posting, thereby alienating them from God.
  • Trust the Holy Spirit more and stop taking steps that rob God of getting the glory. Meaning, we think we have to do something to make something else happen as if God didn’t do the things He said He did; as if God needs our help somehow. Prayer is about trust, stepping back, and waiting.

Once I get through this, I’ll be different, better.

 

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