I remember the first time I saw a data projector used in a church service.  The unit was the size of a carry-on piece of luggage and it also acted as a convergence device with a built in VCR!  Today, you would be hard pressed to find a church without some integration of a data projector into the worship or teaching time.

Here are some suggestions for data projection software in church:

1. Powerpoint/Keynote – Both Microsoft and Apple have presentation software that can be adapted for church use.   They have the best feature set and graphic options for presentations.  You can create video announcements and dynamic slides if you combine iMovie (live motion) and Keynote (still frames).  You’re looking at $100 for the Apple iWork suite or $150+ for different versions of Microsoft Office.   Ultimately, you trade the flexibility of creating anything you want with a custom-designed workflow that is better suited to a church service.  For example, how do you manage a large library of songs for weekly services?  Copy and paste?  I don’t think so.
2. Open LP – Open LP is a free cross-platform tool specifically designed for church services.  There is a passionate community behind Open LP with a track record of adding features and support.  You’ll find library management , integration of CCLI licensing and savable service orders.  As a Mac user, the Mac version isn’t as mature as the PC version but it all works.  Also, it’s hard to argue with free.
3. ProPresenter – The team at Renewed Vision have taken presentation software to the next level with lots of features aimed at a large congregation.  You’ll find things like DVD pre-syncing (so there isn’t any lag), centralised song management on a web server (so you can have one database with multiple users), and a wireless monitor tool that lets you broadcast the presentation to an iPad on the lectern.   Here’s the catch – it costs $400 for a non-concurrent license and the most mature feature set is only available for the Mac version.

Our church uses ProPresenter (after two years of Keynote) and I can definitely say that dedicated church presentation software is better than the standard office programs in a church context.  I would love to hear about any other programs that I’ve missed and the combo that you use for your church.

~ JK

My goal in today’s post is twofold. First, I want to explain some of the issues that I wrestle with in handling such discussions. Second, I would like to get your feedback on how things are handled so I can deal with these sorts of situations more effectively in the future.

The goal of this post is not to chastise anyone, to bring up personal criticisms, or necessarily to discuss the particular conversations we had last week.

I’ll bring up these issues under three major headings. Each section will end with a question.

THE ECONOMICS OF TRUTH

This might seem a strange expression, but it is fundamental to why InFocus exists. It comes from something my brother-in-law, Lawrence Lantz, said to me many years ago. Roughly put, he said “Truth can stand on its own in the marketplace.”

That single statement worked its way into my soul and completely changed my life.

Now that I’m an academic in the field of business, the language of market economics is familiar to me. Free market economics holds that markets are self-regulating. That is, that a free market, with only very limited outside regulation, will accurately determine the appropriate value of items in that market at any given level of supply and demand. Adam Smith referred to this idea as “the invisible hand” which works for the good of society.

The alternative to a free market is a controlled market where an outside influence sets prices and regulates who may buy and sell, to/from whom they may buy and sell, and how and what they may buy and sell. Many are familiar with the Communist expressions of controlled markets in the previous century and continuing to today in some places.

The point here is that in much of Fundamentalism, there is a controlled market for truth. Truth is highly valued, but it is also highly regulated. And as in any market, such an approach leads inevitably to shortages and distortions in the market.

As a younger man, I believed that such an approach to truth was neither healthy nor biblical, and it was out of that conviction, primarily, that InFocus came to be.

I believe that truth can stand on its own in the marketplace. I believe that a free market for truth, with only very limited outside regulation, will accurately determine the appropriate value of items in that market.

This is the rationale for allowing a variety of views to be argued in the comments section. Views which are poorly supported will  eventually be recognised for their bankruptcy in the open market of ideas.

But even the freest of free market economists recognise that some level of regulation must occur (e.g. taxation, anti-monopoly laws, laws against extortion, etc.). And this raises the question, in the free market of ideas, how much regulation is necessary? Where do we draw the lines?

GRACE

It goes without saying that the discussion of Christian truth should be done in a Christ-like way. At least it should go without saying.

The basis of Christian grace towards others is rooted in our experience of God’s grace towards us (1 John 4:7-11). Scripture teaches that those who show no grace towards others, have no basis on which to argue that they have experienced God’s grace themselves (v. 20). Yet we all live at times as if we needed no grace.

So here’s the question. Can we “regulate” grace? Should we try?

I have typically drawn the line at personal attacks. Is this too early to draw the line? Too late?

REASON

I’ve suggested that open discussion, and that done graciously, should be the normal modus operandi for the Christian comment thread. But if that is true, it is no less worth suggesting that sound reason should be the norm. To draw on the economics parallel, to argue through fallacies is to create counterfeit money, or to hold a monopoly, or to price gouge, or any number of other economically dysfunctional activities. This holds even if the arguer is unable to see that his argument is a non sequitur.

This is one of the key values of discussion. It is through the free market of ideas that logical weaknesses or fallacies are exposed in order to reveal the true value of an idea. Still, in the short term, people are likely to differ on the value of various ideas and permission to do this is inherent in the idea of free market.

So the problem is not logical fallacies per se. The problem is stubborn persistence in logical fallacies after they have been pointed out. But for those who have not made it a practice to study logic and who have not grasped it well yet, how much allowance should be made? If someone’s arguments are riddled with logical fallacies, is there a point at which their contribution should be excluded? If so, when?

I would value your input on these issues and others and your ideas on how best to answer the questions raised.

Grace to you.

Is there a time in your day/week when I can’t reach you? A time that you’ve set aside exclusively for other priorities? There is nothing about our culture that will encourage you to do so. In fact, the marketers still assume we’re just sitting around wishing we had some way to be even more connected (if that’s even possible).

I’m not just talking about time with God. I’m talking about other times as well. Time to think. Time to work. Time to rest. Time to focus on a particular relationship.

Let me propose a simple test to help you discern whether you may be too connected. For one week, do not answer any piece of communication any sooner than the following guidelines:

• Phone/text – 8 hours.
• All other (including facebook, email, etc.) – 48 hours.

If this exercise makes you panic, or if when you try it, your friends start asking what happened to you, you may need to consider the possibility that you are too connected.

We all need times when the phone is turned off, the email is shut down, and we’re logged off of facebook. Perhaps we could use some of those times to reflect on the fact that, for many of us,¹ not one single form of communication we’re attached to was commonly available 20 years ago.

Grace to you.

We browsed profile pages, catching up on people’s careers, family situations, and personal interests.  Their photos showed the progress of life: a new child, a new home, wrinkles, and so on.  At first, I had wondered how many thirty-somethings would be into an online social network.  Now it seems like everyone we know is there.  We’re Friends again, thanks to Facebook.

I think many users are at the stage where they cannot imagine life without Facebook.  I check it daily, like email.  In a way, Facebook has superseded email.  Remember when you used to email friends with photos and news?  We still do that, but not as often now.  Facebook is ubiquitous (until the next network!) and the idea of online social networking is now a way of life.

How should we then live on Facebook?

1.  Just ten more minutes. Most people agree that Facebook can be a time waster, through playing trivial games (Farmville etc.) or mindless browsing through others’ pages.  I don’t think this is much different from wasting time in other ways, such as excessive TV watching.  But Facebook increases the shame of time wasting, by announcing to the world that you spent the evening accumulating useless scores or “achievements.”  The point is not to hide your time wasting, but to keep asking yourself, “Am I really making the best use of the time God has given me?” *

As John Piper has observed, “TV still reigns as the great life-waster.  The main problem with TV is not how much smut is available, though that is a problem…  The greater problem is banality.  A mind fed daily on TV diminishes.  Your mind was made to know and love God. Its facility for this great calling is ruined by excessive TV.” *

The same can be said of Facebook.  It can be a G-rated way to waste life.

2.  Here’s my heart, everyone. Facebook is a platform for declaring your thoughts and feelings publicly.  It’s so easy to type a status update about your tiredness, frustration, and aspirations.  I think we sometimes express feelings to everyone on Facebook, when we would do better to pour our hearts out to God first.  Yes, God hears us on Facebook, but there’s something more efficient than Facebook for communicating to God.  It’s called prayer!

3.  Edify, edify, edify. It’s great to receive an encouraging message or wall post from someone who cares about you.  Why not take a minute to encourage a friend?  A brief message that says “I’ve prayed for you today” will have far more eternal value than a link to a funny video.  And along with encouragement:

4.  More Bible, please. Sure, tell us about your plans for the day or a random observation.  Everyone else is doing the same thing.  But when you simply mention a Bible verse which has spoken to you, that is not trivia — it’s your testimony of God at work in your life.

See you on Facebook!

* Ephesians 5:15-17; Don’t Waste Your Life

The iPad makes your research tools more accessible. Logos has a version for the iPad which gives you access to your books in the iPad form factor.  This is one step closer to the resolution of the debate between paper vs. digital commentaries.  PDF documents are common in pastoral libraries.  Many of the original sources have been converted to PDF thanks the ceaseless work of the people at Ages Digital Library and other groups such as CCEL.  I like to print out my PDFs and mark them up with a yellow highlighter and red pen.  iAnnotate for the iPad gives you the same functionality with the ability to correlate your annotations for easy reference when you’re trying to remember where you got that incredible quote or illustration from.   Another neat feature in iAnnotate is the ability to open multiple PDFs in a tabbed interface allowing for cross referencing.  The convergence of Apple iBooks, Amazon Kindle, B&N eReader, and free programs like Stanza onto one device is a great benefit for book lovers.  I’m reading Os Guiness’ The Call through Kindle and a book on the history of China through B&N.

The iPad can change the context of your working environment.  The evangelists of the Great Awakening used to study and pray on horseback.  Ministers now have the opportunity with a form factor that fits somewhere between a traditional notepad and a smart phone.  I see a lot of benefit in the prepaid 3G plans for Australian readers.  It allows you to use the Internet and email in the native form factor when you are out of the office.

Taking notes on the iPad produces mixed results. As a touch typist, I find that if I trust the flat interface it produces excellent results.  At this point I am still double guessing myself as my hammer-fingers look for some form of tacticity on the glass screen.  I might get used to it – but the Bluetooth keyboard is a great addition.

Most of the ministers that I know adopted some form of PDA (palm, pocket pc, etc) prior to the adoption of smartphones.  I don’t think that you can classify the iPad in the same category.  Give it a try and let’s get some more ministry-related feedback on its potential.  I’ll be happy to answer your specific questions as well.  By the way – don’t think that the iPad will magically cure daydreaming, tiredness or difficult textual problems.  It’s only a tool.

Matthias Media is a local evangelical publisher with a distinct focus:

“We’re not the slightest bit interested in adding to the already monumental pile of Christian books churned out each year by the Christian publishing industry. The world needs more Christian books like it needs more websites.

However, we are passionate about publishing resources that fuel, promote and support gospel growth. So our publishing criteria for any project is threefold:

» Does it meet a gospel ministry need?

» Is the content faithful to the Bible?

» Is the quality of a high standard?”

At church, we’ve found much of their material meets those criteria, including the well-known Two Ways To Live gospel tract / training course and small group Bible studies.  I appreciate that the contents are written by locals, as it can be difficult to adapt overseas material for local use.  Matthias Media also produces The Briefing, a leading Australian evangelical publication.

The Geneva Push is a new Australian church planting network, with the aim to “raise up a new generation of church planters dedicated to evangelising churches into existence across this great nation.”  They are a non-denominational support organisation, offering information to update pastors and leaders on church planting news and issues.  They also provide assessments and coaching for potential church planters.

I’ve learned that the ministry and mindset of church planting is very different to ministry in an established church.  Church planters need the kind of support which The Geneva Push is offering.  If you are interested in planting a church, bookmark this site.

This well-produced site is very informative, collecting Australian religious news and providing viewpoints on ministry and social issues.  It’s Anglican-centric, but you don’t have to be Anglican to benefit from it!

Wellsprings

Each quarter, north Queensland pastors Wally Jaworski and Tracy Minnick  publish a helpful collection of articles for pastors, for free.  Produced with independent Baptists in mind, Wellsprings usually includes biblical, theological or pastoral topics by various writers, as well as book reviews.

Have you found a helpful ministry site?  Share it with us!

Now go to your church website.  Are you embarrassed by poor web design, stale content, and the promise of new features in 2006?  Here are some suggestions to be the change for a vital element of your church’s public ministry:

1. Be gracious. Most church websites are designed and maintained by volunteers.  You need to treat their time and effort sincerely.  Offer to work alongside them if there is someone who is currently maintaining the website.
2. Use established technologies. For small to medium-sized churches, I believe that a church website maintained through Facebook or WordPress is more appropriate than a church website built from the ground up.  If you are a large community, pay a development team to design and implement your website.  Budget for $5000-$10,000 (that’s the price of a church sign and you’ll get much greater exposure from the website).
3. Build the website for the people you are trying to communicate with. I like dividing the church website into 1) a site that explains faith and the mission of the church for all visitors and 2) a site that informs people in the church community.
4. It’s time to use video. In the Youtube era, using video to communicate the message of the church is a great way to consolidate your information and to emphasize relationships.   Here’s a thought – in addition to your statement of faith – why don’t you produce a podcast with the minister talking through the statement and its relevance to daily faith and practice?
5. Quality over Quantity. Not introducing a new feature on your website is better than promising and not delivering.  One quality web page is better than several mediocre pages.  Death to the animated gif!
6. Explain the terms. Christianity is full of words that only Christians understand.  A glossary (or wiki) would be helpful for the unchurched looking for a church and for Christians looking for a new church.
7. Understand and implement major trends. You would create quite a stir if you came into church wearing polyester bell-bottoms and lamb-chop sideburns.  An aesthetically pleasing website informs visitors that you care about communicating clearly with them without distraction.
8. Keep the “basics” prominent. Visitors need to know the basics.  What’s the contact phone number & email address?  When are your services?  What time are you meeting?  This information should be current and prominent on your website.
9. How do I find you on Google? Make sure your website is optimised for search engines.  If Google & Bing can’t find you – your visitors won’t be able to either.

There are many reasons why the church website can be neglected.  Don’t be another reason why it hasn’t been updated.

First and foremost, you are investing in a workflow or a process for studying the Bible.  I strongly encourage you to test drive the software prior to making a decision.  Are you comfortable with the search process?  Are you willing to get more training on the advanced features and syntax?  Have you asked other users about the weaknesses in the software?  How will this software specifically enhance your study of the Bible?  Choosing software with the wrong workflow is like driving a Ferrari on the M2 during peak hour… you will get there – slowly.  Now let’s talk about some of your options:

Both the ESV Study Bible website and Biblegateway.com provide a simple searching interface and basic textual and commentary helps.  E-Sword is a robust tool for studying the Bible.  You owe it to yourself to download E-Sword to see if it suits your needs (and it’s free).

Bibleworks is the tool of choice for the ninja exegete.  The software specialises in the close study of the text with excellent lexical tools.  You need to be comfortable with the original languages to use this product.  There is a significant learning curve for the advanced syntax (is there any other way to become a ninja)?

Logos is more accessible for people without experience in the original languages and for accessing the wealth of theological resources in Christendom.  You should consider the Silver Scholar package or the Platinum package.  Without the NAC, the cheaper packages don’t have enough real-use value.  The Platinum package adds the NIGTC, the PNTC, and the excellent BECNT.  If you are considering Logos, also save some shekels for the MacArthur commentaries, the pricey NICOT/NICNT set, and the theological journals.

We’ve only had these tools for the past 15-20 years of human history.  Most of our favourite authors could only dream of having access to our wealth of resources.  If you’re going to buy it – use it!

Does anyone know a good way to keep up with responses without having to remember to check back every couple of hours?

I usually spend a few minutes explaining how these three mediums work and then I look for an illustration of how they function from the “old world.” Of course by “old world,” I mean the world that existed several years back before all of these mediums became so big and powerful.

So here are three analogies for three key types of websites.

1) The blog

The blog (or web log) is analogous to a devotional or lecture. The speaker stands up and gives his thoughts. After the session is over, he may interact with a number of people regarding what he just said, but the primary focus is on what he said from the front. Everyone will have their opinions. Some will disagree. Some will make it known. Some will be blessed or helped. Some will not understand. Some won’t care.

The blog is very much like that. The poster makes his point in his post. He generally presents it as a complete thought. Then people respond. Some of that response may occur in the comments section. Some through other blog posts.

2) The forum

The forum is analogous to a university residence hall where theology students sit around debating the issues. There’s lots of give and take. No one person in the room has the final word unless of course he is able to command the respect of the others by his evident knowledge or wisdom. In the dorm room, no one’s ideas go unchallenged.

The forum is similar because the members come together as peers. The very medium tends to elevate ideas over personalities. There is no authoritative voice but rather the give and take of peer debate.

3) The social networking site

If I had to draw an analogy for a social networking site, it might be the fellowship time following a public service where everyone stands around chatting and drinking coffee. There is no referee and the setting is only as formal as the relationship demands.

In such a gathering you may meet some people for the first time and have a polite but surface conversation. You might also speak with several close friends on a very personal level regarding various things that are happening in your life. You wouldn’t consider it a forum for extremely serious discussion, but any number of meaningful and significant interactions might take place.

Meeting objections

I suspect that much of the criticism that comes toward internet ministry is due to a poor understanding of how each medium is best suited to function.

A devotional/lecture is an appropriate method of communicating ideas, but it was never intended to exist outside of accountability. It’s important that those who listen in give a speaker feedback and challenge him in areas where he may be missing the mark.

Dorm room discussions serve an important purpose in the development of young theologians as they develop personal convictions and sharpen each other in the things of the Word. But there are certainly dangers in the setting that need to be kept in mind.

The fellowship after a service is helpful and appropriate, but it is not intended to be anyone’s primary source of relationship and interaction. It’s just a starting point.

A summary

The problem with these analogies is that these mediums are fulfilling these roles in a very literal sense. There are two extremes:

1. We can use these mediums to the exclusion of the traditional  mediums for accomplishing these ends.
2. We can reject these mediums altogether as means to accomplishing these ends.

How much better to find a balance where we use technology as a tool to help us do more effectively the things we were already doing, but without falling into the traps these mediums present.

Our generation must learn to be very wise and very discerning because the changes are coming fast and there isn’t time to consider a new medium for ten years before deciding how best to utilise it. By that time, it’s obsolete. We’ve got to be wise and courageous if we’re going to take the opportunities the Lord has dumped in our laps.

I recognise that these analogies could open up significant discussion on how best to use these mediums. The meta is there to be used.

Links

• Want to see just how deluded a man can be? Check out Blagojevich’s defense.
• “I am heartily sick of reading ethical arguments based on statistics.” A good point over at The Sola Panel.
• A thirteen year old dad. You can’t sustain a society on this kind of rubbish… *sigh*
• BJU dorm windows + mattresses = too tempting.