Useful Church Web Sites

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 20, 2005 in Church, Church Technology, Ekklesia, Monk Dev | 2 comments

An interesting article about how useful people consider their church website. Poll question, How Useful is your Church Website?

12% say they use their church web site every day
12% ask “What church web site?”
35% say their church’s web site is as current as a 1980 hymnal.

Another reason we create a web-based church content management system (and assimiliation, contact mgmt, event mgmt, etc…)

National Outreach Convention

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 20, 2005 in Church | 0 comments

I’ve been given a pass to attend the National Outreach Convention. I listened to the promo video, it says:

Every day in America, 6 new churches are born but 8 close their doors.
Only 6% of churches are growing at the pace of their community.
95% of Christians have never led a person to Christ.

Their conclusion, Churches are not effective ambassadors for Jesus. It will be interesting to see all the outreach ‘technology & techniques’ and see what they are all about….these include:

Youth Outreach – How to better reach youth and empower Christian youth to reach their peers and the local community.
Children’s Outreach – How to create empowering ministry that reaches children and families in your community.
Postmodern Outreach – How to better reach the postmodern generation and identify the trends and issues that impact your current ministry.
Targeted Outreach – Proven strategies and “how to‚Äôs” for specific target groups and niche audiences.
Outreach Events – The best outreach event ideas from churches and ministries across the country.
Outreach Technology – How to use technology to expand your outreach effectiveness.
Outreach Marketing – Successfully implementing the 4 laws of effective outreach in your church. (Coordinated by Outreach Marketing)
Outreach Assimilation – Great solutions for churches seeking to improve their assimilation and “front door” ministries.
Creative Outreach – Using multimedia, worship, creativity and innovation to engage unbelievers through your church.
Outreach Strategies – Practical and proven strategies to equip leaders for effective outreach.
Community Outreach – Best practice models of spiritual bridge-building through innovative, authentic, community-based ministry.

Business Writings through the lense of the Gospel

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 19, 2005 in Church | 0 comments

Here are some drive-by observations from a sort of Harvard Business Review (HBR) Jesus Business Review (JBR) perspetive:

How Companies Turn Buzz Into Sales

In recent years, firms have turned to nontraditional marketing campaigns to generate buzz about their products and services. Indeed, positive word-of-mouth is anecdotally cited as the secret behind such successes as Chrysler’s PT Cruiser and the revival of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer. Knowing that the average consumer often listens to what trendsetters say, marketers go after specific groups of influential consumers.

But they may be missing the mark. Recent research reveals that the most obvious targets for a marketing campaign — loyal customers and tastemakers — may not create the best buzz for the marketing buck. (Source: MIT Sloan Management Review )

Kaleo’s Experience: Our ‘loyal customers’ (those who’ve attended 6-months or more) typically lag behind newer converts or attenders to Kaleo in actively inviting others to participate in Kaleo’s community.

The Art of Making Change Initiatives Stick

Many organizations regress after major change efforts because they lack a foundation that enables initiatives to stick. Through a detailed study of a major clothing retailer, the authors demonstrate the importance of starting early, having the right processes and avoiding top-down directives. The four critical processes they describe rely on understanding emotions and behavior, not just numbers. Giving employees a visceral sense of the need for change motivates them to maintain their efforts long after management attention has turned elsewhere. (Source: MIT Sloan Management Review )

Kaleo’s Experience: To quote Rick McKinley, “Sometimes your feel like you are yelling at dirt waiting for the plant to grow.” Meaning, often the leadership of the church feels a distinct message and direction the church goes in and it can take months before this is translated into the live’s of the congregation. The important thing is A Long Obedience in the Same Direction (to quote a book by Eugene H. Peterson) where a vision is cast and consistently re-enforced in messages, communication and teaching.

All Souls Episcopal Church

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 19, 2005 in Church Technology, Sheep&Goats | 1 comment

“The Episcopal denomination has always been one of the most inclusive denominations. We don’t fight over doctrine. For example, in my church we have pro-life and pro-choice congregants. My preferences are for life, but the decision needs to be based on the circumstances,” said Reverend Michael Russell of All Souls. Russell declined to provide circumstances in which he would endorse abortion. “Regardless of the circumstances, we wouldn’t expel someone from our church for having an abortion. My job is to teach people how to think as Christians, not what to think.” Russell said All Souls falls on the progressive end of Protestant churches. He summarized his church’s stance on divisive issues, “In any gray area, we would rather include people than exclude them. We are not agents of God’s judgment.” Russell said that many All Souls congregants left Roman Catholic and Protestant churches where they were judged for their behavior. “People come to our church because we allow for divorce. Sometimes a marriage is causing so much damage to the people involved that it’s best to get divorced. We are very welcoming to gays and lesbians. When looking at scripture on this issue, we believe the historical circumstances have changed. Tradition, current culture, what scripture says and whether it is still applicable as it was when it was first written are elements to consider on these matters,” said Russell

Full Article: All Souls

Domino

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 19, 2005 in Culture | 0 comments

I went and saw Domino last night. It follows a long-line of Pulp Fiction/Guy Ritchie style knock-offs. The film was mildly entertaining (the first half dragged a bit) but all-in-all I’d give it a thumbs down. Just not enough there to make a good film. They incorporated a mild level of Christian Spirituality in the main character Domino (Keira Knightley). But, while her belief in God existed, in no way did it interfere with her decisions in life. God was a good-luck charm or talisman that protected her. (WARNING: It seemed like the producer or whoever convinced Keira Knightly that in order to get this lead role, she would have to go topless. So there are two scenes with nudity for those who would prefer to avoid these things. One of the scenes seemed guided by a contract with how much and in what context they could show Knightley’s body, so it felt forced and mechanical. I wish they would have left the scene out…)