A Sunday Sermonette on Gimmicks, Gizmos And Animated GIFS

I don’t know about you, but to me the Cross is an 'emblem suffering and shame.' Which probably explains why I tend to have a visceral reaction to church websites junked-up with an animated .GIF of a gold lamé spinning cross. To me, it not only trivializes what happened to our Lord on that painful day, but it also makes your church website look cheap.

So do most ’special effects’ such as cursor trailers, pop-up windows, scrolling marquees and Flash-intros.

Yea sure, they may look slick the first time someone visits site - and I'm sure all your geek fans from your youth group will think you’re cool, but such contrivances quickly become annoying hindrances to individuals who are actually in need of some compelling content ... or seeking a new church home.

So remember boys and girls ... just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. That is, don’t be afraid to use various technologies, just make sure there is a legitimate need.

 And as always, you can click on the small image above to get a big 'printable' version you can anonymously slip into your youth pastor's mailbox.

-- visit me at Dean Peters, HealYourChurchWebSite.com