Digital @ Leadership Network

Church IT Resource List

In thinking about this week's Church IT Roundtable, I started to list all the various resources many of us church IT folks are using to stay informed and connected ... and wow the list kept going and going!  This is both great and challenging :-)

It's great in that our grassroots movement is growing rapidly and jumping on any technology that could benefit the greater good.  The challenge is that these resources are scattered ALL over the place making them often hard to find and easy to forget about.  So I'm making this list mainly for myself at this point, but assume it will be helpful for some of you as well.

AND I've recommitted myself to help lead the charge in creating an easy to use one-stop-shop portal for all our resources.  So far google apps and ning.com would be great possible tools to make this happen.  Let me know if you're interested in helping.

So here's the list I've compiled so far in the order they popped into my head ... what have I forgotten?

CITRT.org - We're planning to continue to make this THE FUNNEL for all things Church IT related (see CITRT Summary and Vision). A place to capture everything from events to resources to prayer requests to stuff to buy/sell.  As mentioned above, an extreme site makeover is coming in the near future. [site hosted/maintained by Jeffrey Thompson]

Church IT Podcast - www.churchITpodcast.com Twice a month CITRT folks "meet" online and via phone to discuss all manner of IT topics.  The call is recorded and then made available as a podcast.  We even have transcriptions of each call to aid in searching for something in particular.  [maintained by Jason Powell]

Twitter - There are a number of Church IT peeps on Twitter. I've not yet found a good way to "group" us together, but you can search for CITRT to find some.  During the roundtable this week I'm sure #CITRT will be hoppin'

Facebook - We have over 200 people in our CITRT group on facebook. It's a place to find other facebook CITRT peeps and get occasional CITRT news updates.  [maintained by Jason Powell]

Linkedin - We have almost 200 people in our Linkedin CITRT group. Recommend you join it to find other CITRT peeps. Linkedin now has discussion threads which could be useful to gather feedback.  [Created by Ian Beyer]

Blog Aggregator - We have aggregated a number of church IT related blogs.  Here's how to add yours to the list.  [maintained by Jeffrey Thompson?]

Blog Search Engine - Andrew Mitry made a handy google search that searches through the blogs listed in the above blog aggregator. It's found at the top of the CITRT.org main page or hit Andrew's link above to use the code on your own site.

Blogroll - Clif Guy maintains a large blogroll of church technology related blogs

Roundtable Guidelines - Thinking about starting your own local roundtable meetings?  You should!  Here's the basic guidelines we work from for each roundtable.

Discussion Topics - Here's a large list of all the different topics that have been discussed at our prior events.

IT Discuss Forum - Ministry IT focused forum that's been around several years.  [site hosted/maintained by Jeffrey Thompson]

IT Discuss Email List - Ministry IT focused email list that's been around several years with fully searchable archives.  [site hosted/maintained by Jeffrey Thompson]

Church IT Survey - Ever wonder what churches similar to you are doing IT wise?  How many computers do they support?  What's their IT staff size? Do they support multi-site, etc?  Or what about those churches several steps ahead of you - what's their IT makeup look like?  How should you plan now to be at that size in the future?  What about trying to find churches around you with experience in VoIP, Virtualization, etc?  Wouldn't it be sweet to have a resource that helped shed some light on these questions? That's what this is for. (note to self to get more current data into the survey and find a better way to manage end user updates)  [created/maintained by Jason Powell]

Church IT Survey Google Map - Derek Berg made a nice mashup between the above survey data and google maps.  See where other churches that have survey data are in relationship to you. (Derek's working on a newer mashup version)

ChMS Google Group - Discussion of needs and ideas for Church Management Systems.  [maintained by Tony Dye]

Flickr Group - We even have a group on Flickr where you can browse Church IT related photos and pics from our actual Roundtable events.  [created/maintained by Justin Moore]

IRC / Chat Room - If you hadn't heard ... we have a 24/7 Church IT chat room you're invited to  join.   You'll find IT geeks hangin' out in there all hours of the day and into the midnight hours.  It's a place to ask questions, blow off some steam, and get to know other IT peers  [created by Jeffrey Thompson]

Instant IRC / Chat Room - This link takes you directly into the Church IT chat room ... nothing but a web browser required.

Webcam Aggregator - Every so often some of us will fire up our webcams for your voyeuristic pleasure :-)  [created/maintained by Justin Moore]

MinistryIT Yahoo Group - Another Church IT discussion group that's relatively new.  [created/maintained by Nick Nicholaou]

Texas Ministry Tech - From the site: Texas Ministry Tech is dedicated to creating and growing relationships and cooperation between ministry-minded IT folks in Texas.  [created by Scott Miller]

Ministry Tech - From the site: MinistryTECH is a new national conference dedicated to church information technology professionals. Come join some of the leading church tech professionals to learn how they are using technology in their ministries.

I'm sure there's more ... as you think of other church IT related resources please leave a comment and I'll add it to the list.

Jason Powell
IT Director
Granger Community Church
http://jpowell.blogs.com - yup, I've got a blog

http://twitter.com/JasonPowell - My twitter feed

and I'm on Facebook

Dallas Hosts ECHO Church Media Conference

A conference for church leaders that love using media, technology, and the internet to be more effective in sharing God's story.   

This Thursday through Saturday, Dallas will host the ECHO Conference.  If you have interest in using media, technology and the internet to be more effective in ministry, then Echo is for you.

Hosted by Watermark Church (I blogged Watermark here) it promises to be an inspiring and creative gathering of church innovators.  Authors, pastors and media-savvy experts will explore the dynamic opportunities available for churches & individuals and sponsors will provide the means to do so.

There are ample breakout sessions and keynotes that include these speakers:

Donald Miller, Matthew Paul Turner, Mark Batterson, Todd Wagner, Mark Steele, Brad Abare

Echo is brought to you by the team at Igniter Media, WorshipHouse Media, and Collide Magazine       

Want more information?  Check out the Echo Blog, watch this Teaser Video, or use this Conference Quick Look

If you're in Dallas, stop by and check out Greg Atkinson's Church 2.0 breakout session.  Meet Greg, Tony Steward and myself - all contributors to the upcoming Church 2.0 book.

-- Cynthia Ware, The Digital Sanctuary

MinistryCOM and Innovate '08 Conferences

Last year, I blogged Innovate '07 podcasts had been put up.  This year, I've been looking forward to Innovate 2008 podcasts. Since conference goers have to be choosy, podcasts are a vital resource.  And they may become all the more desirable as conferences collide.

Some Christian leaders have a hard decision to make between these two upcoming events being held at the same time.   On Thursday & Friday, September 18 & 19, Oklahoma City will host Ministry COM, a National Church Communications Conference.

"If you're crazy enough to love working in a church, make plans to give yourself a mental break at MinistryCOM. This two-day experience brings together experts and leaders who are balancing the chaos while on the brink of innovation. Their level-headed guidance provides you with realistic solutions. Hands on workshops offer therapeutic interaction. Time away from the office mentally invigorates... and just might keep you from going over the edge."

Keynote Speakers include:

Mike Foster - Founder, XXX Church

Scott Hodge - Senior Pastor, The Orchard

Dawn Nicole Baldwin - Founder, Aspire!One

Jon Acuff - Blogger, Stuffchristianslike.net

Also on Thursday & Friday, September 18 & 19, 2008 in Granger, Indiana, Granger Community Church will host Innovate 2008:

"Nobody wants to be all talk and no action. Jesus certainly wasn’t. But sometimes it’s hard to know where to begin. We think that whether you have a church gathering of 100 or 10,000 you can begin making innovative, strategic moves that will impact your community. Start at Innovate 2008.  You’ll experience a multisensory showcase of proven, real-life examples from Granger Community Church and other churches doing innovative ministry around the country. Gain perspective and practical steps to take your capacity as a leader, a practitioner and a church to an unexpected level. Get started. Save the talking for later."

You'll also hear from a combination of innovators outside of Granger.

Here's the complete speaker list.

To prevent conferences from 2009 collisions in your schedule start keeping a list of Church Communication Conferences like this one. 

Or, if you're just interested in a media/tech conference list try this one. In fact add to these two and I'll re-publish them with updates. Obviously, 2009 dates will change, but if a conference is good enough, the targeted date usually falls close to the year before.

-- Cynthia Ware, The Digital Sanctuary

 

statistics on technology use among Christians

New report sent out this week by Barna Research Group -- Barna Technology Study: Social Networking, Online Entertainment and Church Podcasts. Some excerpts that caught my attention:

• ... text messaging and instant messaging (IM) ... One-third of computer users (33%) have used IM in the past week, while 30% of Americans have sent someone a text message via a mobile telephone.
• Searching for information or content is easily the most common online activity of the 15 assessed in the study. In all, more than eight out of 10 computer users had snapped up information via the Web in the last week (84%).
• ... one-quarter of computer users (26%) reported watching a video via the Internet in the previous seven days.
• ... matters of faith played very little role in differentiating people’s technological habits.
• The study found that 38% of evangelicals and 31% of other born again Christians had listened to a sermon or church teaching via digital recordings available on the Internet (often called a "podcast"), compared with 17% of other adults.

Read the full report at barna.org . That's the data, but what does it mean?

A couple things come to mind: 1. If Christians and non-Christians use web technologies similarly, a church has to use web technologies in similar ways to stay connected and relevant for its "in-reach" and outreach; 2. podcasts help your church members get spiritual nourishment more than reaching non-Christians; 3. instant communications will continue to rise in usage-- via text messaging, instant messaging, and live streaming videos (my speculation.) Seeing Ustream.tv being used at 2 recent conferences (PDSummit and WiBo) hinted to me that the very same technology could be used at the local church level too.

What could it mean for you? For your church?

-- DJ Chuang, Leadership Network Director

Audio/Visual & Computing Resources For Church Leadership

The March issue of Christian Computing Magazine just came out.   Good reminder for me that both CCMag, as well as it's sister publication Christian Audio/Visual, are great resources for those of us who enjoy whole publications dedicated to our favorite topic - the use of technology by the Church. 

Christian Computing Magazine, published since 1989, is now available exclusively through digital distribution.  I get it via monthly email so all of the articles are provided in PDF format and are ready to read online or print out for hard copy archiving.  The articles cover everything from ChMS evaluations to social bookmarking services, from podcasting to congregational messaging systems .

Most importantly, the magazines are FREE thanks to many sponsors including:

ACS Technologies, Shelby Systems, Arena, Advanced Ministry, WordSearch Media, Connection Power.com, LOGOS Management Software, Fellowship  Technologies, Icon Systems, Power Church Software, Sermon Companion.com, Church Community Builder, PhoneTree, NuVerb, RDS Advantage, ParishSOFT,  Vian Corporation, MyFlock.com, Covenant Eyes, Power Notebooks.com

- Cynthia Ware, The Digital Sanctuary

Subscribe to the new Audio Advance

Audio Advance is a new, monthly podcast that will highlight what's new in church innovations at Leadership Network. Each episode will feature an interview with a ministry specialist, and will be different from content you're now reading in the e-newsletter Advance. (Both resources are FREE!)

The inaugural March 2008 episode features Reggie McNeal, author of The Present Future, talking about the Missional Renaissance that is sweeping the nation as churches partner with other organizations to bless the community. This episode is just under 8 minutes long. I just listened to this episode, and the energetic banter makes it fun to listen to, in addition to being informative.

As a special bonus to celebrate the release of the new podcast, when you download or subscribe to Audio Advance, you will receive a $50 discount off the purchase of the DVD collection The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church. (Use promo code: W888W)

-- DJ Chuang, Director of Digital Initiatives & more, Leadership Network

Media & Tech Conferences for Churches & Ministries

What was I thinking? 

Last week at The Digital Sanctuary, I posted a list of Media / Tech related conferences that are happening around the US in 2008.  It's not a complete list.  I just highlighted some of the more well-known (usually annual) conferences that happen throughout the year.  I also planned to follow-up post some Media / Tech related conferences that are specifically designed to support churches & ministries in their use of technology. 

As I began to compile my list, it hit me - what am I doing?  I don't have time to compile an adequate list.  I should crowdsource this project. 

So, here's a first pass at a list of conferences I'm aware of.  If you know of a conference that fits the Media / Technology / Church criteria, I'll add it to the list.   

• MinistryTECH  April 3 - 4, Oklahoma City, OK

• Technologies for Worship (NAB) April 13 - 17, Las Vegas, NV

• WFX  April 29 - May 1, Indianapolis, IN

• Biola Media Conference  May 3, Studio City, CA

• Dynamic Church Conference  May 15 - 17, Dallas, TX

• ICCM  June 6 - 10, Upland IN

• Church Media.net   June 24 - 27, Dallas, TX

• ICVM Catalyst Conference  July 8 - 11, Orlando, FL

• Echo  August 14 - 16, Dallas, TX

• GodblogCon Sept. 20 - 21, Las Vegas, NV (website not updated)

• Fusion '08  October 9 - 10, Dallas, TX

• Internet Ministry Conference  October 20-23, Grand Rapids, MI

-- Cynthia Ware, The Digital Sanctuary

 

3 conferences for technology and ministry

MinistryTECH is a new national conference all about church information technology, audio-visual, and production. MinistryTECH is this April 3-4, 2008 in Oklahoma City. I think the best part, besides Terry Storch live, is the pre-conference behind-the-scenes tours with staff meet-and-greets at four OKC megachurches, including LifeChurch.tv, Henderson Hills Baptist, Crossings Community Church and Church of the Servant. Yes, you can see the LifeChurch.tv broadcast studio and satellite uplink center in person.

2ndly, just found out about this church media conference, the Echo Conference, anticipated to gather 500 people "for church leaders who love using media, technology, and the Internet to be more effective in sharing God'€™s story." It'll be in Dallas, Texas, on August 14-16, 2008.

Quite a lineup for keynotes and breakouts. Super early bird discount before May 25th. Echo conference blog has latest updates. [via: shawnsblogspot.com]

3rdly, MinistryCOM will have its 4th annual conference on church communications on September 18-19 in Oklahoma City. Workshops will be announced in mid-March.

It looks like these conferences will cover a lot of things related to this Digital blog. I've already got something scheduled these weeks, so I can't get there, but maybe you can.

-- DJ Chuang, Director of Digital Initiatives & more, Leadership Network