« June 2009 | Main | August 2009 »
When you combine 2 very different ideas, you can come up with either innovation or disaster, something that's great or something not so good. Sorta a flashback to that old ad exclaiming, "You've put chocolate in my peanut butter!" or "You've put peanut butter in my chocolate!"
One of the fabulous hybrid ideas I heard last week in Dallas was how a random combination turned out something valuable. In a collaborative exercise, several church leaders were given 2 random disparate ideas: a gumball machine and a list of ministry opportunities. What could you do with that?
That group created a gumball machine that would dispense ministry opportunities. Each of the church's ministry opportunities could be written on a sheet of paper and put into one of those clear plastic containers. And someone looking to serve can turn the knob on the gumball machine, and get a ministry opportunity!
The other day, I came across this website for the Urbana tri-ennial student conference hosted by InterVarsity. On its volunteer site, they've combined their database of volunteer service opportunities with an online shopping cart. After a volunteer browses the many service opportunities based on her/his interest and availability, that'd be placed into the service opportunity cart. Great way to put the itinerary together for the volunteer, and a great way for Urbana to track who is doing what when! Brilliant!
What's a creative combo idea that you've seen implemented? Would love to hear it! Add a comment below.
// DJ CHUANG, DIrector at Leadership Network
Now here is something that's looks more than evolutionary, this is revolutionary! I know in my years of attending worship services, there are occasional guest preachers in the pulpit. Now, with this brand new free resource, you can have guest preachers who are very accomplished communicators on the big screen of your own church. And spare no expense, it won't cost your church an honorarium and travel expenses.
Mary Beth Stockdale reports:
You may have never heard the term (I haven’t and neither has Wikipedia), but I’d like to introduce you to it: digital real estate. It’s a term that I use often and think more people ought to be talking about.
To me, digital real estate is when you (as an individual) or your church or ministry claims your name on the web. A long time ago I went through all the social media and social networking sites and grabbed up the name “Greg Atkinson”. My blog is GregAtkinson.com, my Twitter is @GregAtkinson, etc.
Get this: when Facebook started offering vanity names I was on vacation and missed grabbing my name by 2 days. On Facebook, my personal web address iswww.facebook.com/greg.atkinson1, instead ofwww.facebook.com/gregatkinson. Another Greg Atkinson beat me to it!
Do you have your name reserved on various websites? Have you claimed your church’s name? There can only be one Grace Community and one Hope _______ and one Calvary _______. Whatever your church’s or organization’s name is, it’s important to grab it before someone else does.
Hear me, I don’t mean this in a vicious, beat out another Grace Baptist way. I mean someone else (not a church) could grab that name and do horrible things with it – really misrepresenting you and your church. Earlier this week I was speaking at the Bug Conference in Birmingham and heard horror stories from Maurilio Amorim, owner and president of The A Group in Nashville.
That’s why you see LifeChurch.tv (above) and Willow Creek (below) have already grabbed up their Twitter names, though they are not yet using them.
Did you know Rick Warren had 5000 followers before his first tweet? Someone on his staff (or him) grabbed the name and held it in-case Rick wanted to start twittering. Rick is now twittering and is quickly approaching 10,000 followers. His first tweet is below:
@RickWarren – 2 tweet or not 2 tweet? I fear the narcissistic possibility, but can’t pass up any tool to encourage you! Jumping in! .
And so he dove in. At the time of this writing, Rick has 14 tweets. The point is all the people you see above, including worship leader Matt Redman, grabbed their name – they, whether they realized it or not, practiced the rule of digital real estate and claimed their territory.
Maybe you, your pastor or your church isn’t into all this social media and social networking stuff. Who’s to say that you won’t be in a year or six months? Why not go ahead and grab your space now, so as to reserve it in-case you change your mind?
BONUS: In the resource section of my blog, I offer a FREE downloadable zip package of social media buttons to just about everything you could think of. Feel free to take and use them on your own website.
Greg Atkinson - www.GregAtkinson.com
This weekend marks the first weekend of church worship services that will be live-streamed onto iPhones. Assuming all 5 services would be live-streamed, services at New Hope Christian Fellowship will be live-streaming on Saturday 7/4 at 5 & 7pm and Sunday 7/5 at 7, 9 & 11am, Hawaii Time. Being translated, that would be in Pacific Time: Saturday 8pm + 10pm, Sunday 10am + 12pm + 2pm. New Hope also has an internet campus with streaming video and an interactive online community.
Here's the press release, Hawaii Church Becomes First to Stream Live Video to iPhone:
Less than two weeks after the release of Apple's iPhone 3GS and iPhone 3.0 update, Honolulu-based New Hope Christian Fellowship (http://www.enewhope.org) has announced that it will begin streaming its weekend worship services live to iPhone and iPod touch users.
Live streaming to the iPhone was one of the most requested features from church attendees, and is now possible with the inclusion of HTTP live streaming in Apple's iPhone 3.0 software. New Hope's addition of live streaming to the iPhone is significant in that it is the first non-profit organization to offer this type of service. "Typically, churches are years behind other organizations when it comes to technology and innovation. We have tried to reverse that trend and pioneer new ways to spread the Gospel using the most current tools available," explains New Hope's Technology and Innovations Director, Michael Sharpe. "We don't mind the long hours and stress that comes with innovating because we know that if we can come up with something useful, it can be used by other churches around the world."
Leveraging standards-based HTTP streaming technology, New Hope will deliver high quality video over either a Wi-Fi connection or other carrier network, providing for a truly portable experience.
After successfully testing the service this past weekend with hundreds of users, the church is now planning to offer the live streaming video of its services to all iPhone and iPod Touch users starting July 4th.
The church currently streams all five weekend services live on its website for computer users and created the streaming for the iPhone as a free service for those who may not have access to a computer.
"We are always looking for ways that we can leverage technology to reach people where they are at," said New Hope's Interactive Developer Peter Thourson, "through live streaming video on iPhone and iPod touch, users across the globe will be able to continue to attend church regardless of where they are."
Availability
The live stream of New Hope's Services will be available on their website at http://www.enewhope.org beginning July 4th. The live stream requires an iPhone or iPod touch with the 3.0 software update and an active Internet connection.
About New Hope Christian Fellowship
Started in 1995, New Hope Christian Fellowship Oahu is one of the fastest-growing churches in the nation according to "Outreach Magazine," with over 12,000 people in regular attendance at 6 locations. "Outreach Magazine" also named New Hope as one of the most influential and innovative churches in the United States.
