Exponential Communication & Technology Track Sessions

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Oct 29, 2010 in Church, Church Technology, Featured Articles | 1 comment

Just finalized the Communication & Technology Track Sessions for Exponential 2011. If you do anything at a church, this is one conference you won’t want to miss!

Preconference Session: OUTSPOKEN: Conversations on Church Communications
Session facilitators include: Kem Meyer, Tim Schraeder, Justin Wise, and others.
The church has the greatest story ever told, unfortunately we don’t always do a great job of sharing it with others. In today’s hyper-connected world we need to know how to use mediums of today to communicate the timeless message of the Gospel in way that’s relevant to reach our culture. This prelab will bring together some of the leading voices that are shaping and influencing the ways churches communicate and give you the opportunity to discuss and dialogue how we can steward the opportunity we have to share the greatest story ever told with clarity.

These proven practitioners will share their insight, share how they’ve implemented significant change in their unique contexts and give you next steps to create a communications strategy for your church. All in attendance will receive a free copy of the forthcoming ebook OUTSPOKEN: Conversations on Church Communications, a collaborative ebook bringing together over 60 different voices to talk about the topic of church communications.

Breakout: The Story-formed Way: Making Disciples with Biblical Narrative and Dialogue
Speaker: Caesar Kalinowski
Is the Church speaking the language of the culture we find ourselves in? 2/3 of our planet is still illiterate, and a growing percentage of North Americans are becoming less literate. God’s story, and his interaction with man, was originally given as an oral document—a story. The Bible we have today is approximately 75% narrative. God has given us a way, for all generations, to communicate his great gospel—through story.

In this breakout we will look at the missional imperative of speaking the language of the culture and how this is being done through the use of biblical narrative to create, encourage and equip gospel communities on mission.

Breakout: Social Media for the Rest of Us
Speaker: Justin Wise
Author Clay Shirky says that we are a people “looking for a mouse.” As a society, we’ve come to expect interactivity in all that we do. What, then, do we do with a culture that expects interaction even while at church?

In this session, we’ll look at the “why?” and the “how?” of the social web. We’ll look at how you can build interactive communal experiences into the lifeblood of your church. We’ll demystify social media and see how we can harness the power of these new communication tools for the sake of the gospel. It’s social media for the rest of us.

Breakout: Reworking Church Communications
Speaker: Tim Schraeder
One of the challenges of managing church communications is knowing when you need to change. With the fast-paced culture of change we live in, being able, willing and knowing when to change is vital in staying connected with your audience. Oftentimes, conventional wisdom won’t work. Sometimes you need to REWORK how you’re communicating. Using principles and ideas adapted from the New York Times Best-Seller REWORK (Jason Fried, David Heinemeier Hansson), this session will challenge you to rework your church communications to effectively adapt your message to reach your audience

Breakout: Everything a Pastor needs to know about the Web
Speaker: Drew Goodmanson
We have all heard about the importance of a church website, social media and mobile. But how effective are these strategies really in being missional and gathering people? Learn from a 2010 study on “The State of the Church Online” involving numerous church websites & strategies where we learn what really is happening. Answer questions such as: What is an effective church website? Who is visiting your website? Where do these visitors coming from? What are best practices in design and outreach? Learn how to enhance your web ministry and impact hundreds, if not thousands of people. This valuable session will equip you with practical strategies that your church can implement whether you are an online expert or a beginner.

Breakout: Preaching on the Power and Peril of Social Media & Technology
Speaker: John Dyer
In a sermon on conflict, would you talk about email vs. face-to-face? In a sermon on giving, would you discuss the significance of writing a check vs. automatic draft? We don’t normally think about addressing technology like texting or social media in our sermons, but the people in our churches use these tools every day and they have a profound influence on everything from relationships to devotions. This session will give you a basic overview of media ecology (the study of how technology influences culture) and then use that knowledge to surface important issues you can address with your church to help them live God-honoring lives in our technological world.

The Future Church influenced by Technology

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Aug 9, 2010 in Church Technology, Featured Articles | 6 comments

Technology is a powerful agent that shapes those who use it in ways that are often unintended. For example, Air Conditioning has been credited with being one of the most culture-altering technologies because people tend to stay inside more- isolated from the community around them. As the Church we can see this unintended technological consequences as well. Consider the printing press, something we celebrate as believers who are now better able to study God’s Word. One of the unintended consequences of the printing press is the growth of individual interpretation over a communal interpretation. This has led to denominationalism and the elevation of personal interpretation. Add to this a Bible where the chapter and verse were printed, it influences a move from seeing the Bible in it’s whole as a story, to approaching it as a dictionary or encyclopedia of facts and trivia. (Concepts presented at my session at Echo: A Look into the Near & Distant Future of Online Ministry)

As we are in another significant technological revolution it is important to consider how technology may influence the church, and what unintended consequences could impact future generations. Here are three I’ve been thinking about:

1. Sickly Online Christianity – With the increased access online to preachers, teachers and resources many Christians may try to self-select their own content rather than participating in the life of a community. One unintended consequence is people will only seek out the things that interest them, therefore they will avoid the whole counsel of God’s Word.

2. Homogeneous Digitized Churches – With technology, more churches will find ways to automate and/or systematize their discipleship programs. These programs will tend to be one-size-fits-all with a small variation. These Christians may develop homogeneous traits thereby trending toward an inability to use the diversity of the body to ward of heresy and/or be equipped to be healthy replicating community.

3. Internet Generation: Bible Illiterate – Recently a speaker at a church conference said 85% of content will be video in 2015 (if I recall or some date thereafter). Video is a powerful tool that brings many benefits but an unintended consequences could be more Christians relying on and learning through this video teaching rather than studying God’s Word on their own, becoming increasingly Bible illiterate.

As someone who is involved in serving thousands of churches with websites, technology and media I don’t want to appear an alarmist as I’m thankful for many of the blessings the Internet and technology has brought to the greater Church. My desire is that more thoughtful theological consideration and prayer will continue to surround the websites, applications and technologies we endeavor toward as they do impact the user in ways we may not have considered or intend.

Echo Church Media Conference

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Jul 13, 2010 in Church Technology | 0 comments

I’ll be returning to the Echo Church Media Conference this year to present.

A Look into the Near & Distant Future of Online Ministry – In this session learn what is next on the horizon and how this impacts the local church. This session is designed for strategic leaders regardless of their technological level of understanding.

Church Web Stories: Learning from others’ successes and struggles – In this session you will get behind the scene access to the real world results of several church web strategies. We’ll look at the church website, social media involvement, mobile, content creation and more to see what is really happening. How effective are they? How much time and energy is required to implement their plans? What are the best practices or common mistakes a church makes? This valuable session will equip you with practical insight, best practices & strategies that your church can implement whether you are an online expert or a beginner.

Join us July 28-30, 2010 in Dallas, TX.

Project Coordinator – Position Open

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Jul 10, 2010 in Monk Dev | 0 comments

MonkDev (Monk Development, Inc.) – an industry leading, innovative web development and software as a service company based in San Diego, CA – seeks a Admin/Project Coordinator to perform general administrative tasks and manage and distribute incoming projects and monitor client progress accordingly. MonkDev is one of the largest web developers and fastest growing private companies in San Diego. We provide web solutions across all industries but we are thought leaders in the non-profit space, where thousands of churches, ministries and other non-profits use our services and technology.

Learn more here: San Diego – Administrator/Project Coordinator

Customer Evangelist – Position Open

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Jul 9, 2010 in Monk Dev | 0 comments

MonkDev (Monk Development, Inc.) – an industry leading, innovative web development and software as a service company based in San Diego, CA – seeks a Customer Evangelist to lead our marketing/communications efforts. MonkDev is one of the largest web developers and fastest growing private companies in San Diego. We provide web solutions across all industries but we are thought leaders in the non-profit space, where thousands of churches, ministries and other non-profits use our services and technology. This person will be responsible for positioning MonkDev in our markets by developing and implementing strategic marketing, messaging and public relations initiatives. We seek a highly creative, entrepreneurial marketing/communication professional with an understanding of the non-profit market.

Learn more here: San Diego – Customer Evangelist

Graphic Designer – Position Open

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Jul 9, 2010 in Featured Articles, Monk Dev | 0 comments

MonkDev (Monk Development, Inc.) – an industry leading, innovative web development and software as a service company based in San Diego, CA – seeks a graphic/web designer to be the visual lead behind our design projects and brand. MonkDev is one of the largest web developers and fastest growing private companies in San Diego. We provide web solutions across all industries but we are thought leaders in the non-profit space, where thousands of churches, ministries and other non-profits use our services and technology. The designer will be responsible for creating our corporate website, re-designing our web applications (eg. our Content Management System), mobile apps, product websites and many other projects.

Learn more here: San Diego – Graphic Designer