Yesterday I wrote about how the Internet is changing the way we do ministry. Derek Taylor wrote a thoughtful follow-up that deserves a wide reading. Here is the heart of what he wrote:
I want to echo what you said on today's post about technology. Yesterday at Cars.com, we had a very interesting speaker who is on the cutting edge of online video. Long story short, this is an area of web technology that is about to boom exponentially (actually, the revolution already started). The increasing ease/ability to create video, coupled with more powerful delivery mechanisms (broadband Internet, next generation cable, TiVo, video/audio enabled handheld devices) is quickly making rich media a critical means of communicating to your audience, clients, etc. Reliance on text, static pictures and data alone will not cut it. I think that churches and ministries have to quickly recognize that if they want to have a viable Internet ministry, portable audio and instant video, for example, will be "ante on the table". Search engine marketing and search engine engineering will also be essential. In some cases, big building construction plans might need to be put on hold until the ministry is communicating effectively via technology. It's that simple.I walked away from this presentation convinced the rocket ship is about to blast off, and the time for early adoption may have already been yesterday. I was thinking the other day that we really need a Christian version of Silicon Valley, where talented believers come together to develop visionary, creative and transformational technology solutions that help churches, parachurch ministries and even individuals communicate the Gospel more effectively in our world. While we have some fairly sophisticated publishing and music industry enterprises out there, most of what is happening on the technology front is piecemeal and ad hoc, from my perspective.
What do you think? Click here to add your comments.
You can reach the author at ray@keepbelieving.com. Click here to sign up for the free weekly email sermon.