“The Internet is showing us what it thinks we want to see but not necessarily what we need to see” - Eli Pariser

If you haven’t spent time on the network of resources that are available over there I would encourage you to.  Every week I learn something new through that blog and it is a great way to stay informed on technology and media that are relevant to church ministry.

Read John’s post here…

Let me know what you think about it!

As you watch it, reflect on what some of these statistics may imply for your church, for us as Christians.  If we have the greatest story on the planet to tell, what is your church doing to leverage tools and technology to reach people and make a difference in your community or through missions efforts globally to meet the needs of a growing population?  Before we can share our story of hope, we must show the love of Jesus.

In 2011, I encourage you to thing about a church marketing strategy that can hep you build trust and then share your ministry story with people who desperately want and need the hope that Jesus offers.

In our conversation, I asked Phil to define branding – this is his response:

“Branding is about telling your story well.  Branding is simply a compelling story about a product, a person, or an organization.

In other words, what do people think of when they think of you.

That perception is critical before people will ever visit your church, before they will listen to your message, or before they will buy your product.  If that perception is not a good positive perception – then they are never going to step through your doorway.  So, I think that branding is absolutely critical particularly for churches today.”

I would encourage your to take 20 minutes and listen in to the insights he shares – your church will benefit from his wisdom.

You can listen or subscribe to the podcast here…

I would love to hear your thoughts on Phil’s definition…especially “what do people think of when they think of you“.

• Viber lets you make free phone calls to other Viber users
• It’s just like Skype, but with no need to add contacts or ask for ID’s
• With Viber, everyone’s phone number is their ID

So, when you setup the app, it asks for your cell number and then sends you an activation access code by SMS Text Message. You enter the code and presto – it is installed. It asks to access your address book just so that it can pair up (on your phone) the people in your contacts list that also have Viber.  Then you can call them or they can call you (via VOIP – Internet phone) at any time. The other advantage is that anyone who has your number and has an iPhone can call you – so you could use it for business tool free.  Again, the current restriction is that it is iPhone to iPhone but apparently, they are working on an Android version.

Here is their promo video below.  If you have an iPhone, call me and we’ll test it out – my cell – 902.878.0030!

This trip, because we are staying in a Honduran home that has decent internet access, we are including video posts as well so that we can bring the experience to life!

If you are interested, please follow the blog of our adventures this week here…

Have you ever used a blog in your church on a mission trip?

I personally think that using technology in creative ways to reach people who are not going to church is an exciting way to leverage new media for greater impact.  Hunter says in the interview “a building means nothing – people can worship anywhere“.  While that is true, in the CNN story, they also interviewed John Acuff who challenges that online church is no substitute for genuine church community.

This of course is an emerging great debate.  Many churches are now using technology to broadcast their church services and message live online.  Watch the short piece CNN did, and please feel free to share your thoughts on the impact this has on a new generation of people who may choose to substitute “physical church” with the experience of an online church community.  In your opinion what are the pros and cons of “church” this way?