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Being in and around the Internet opened a wonderful international opportunity for me. Here’s some background: When I started working with OurChurch.Com in April 2003, my main role was assisting with the Help Desk fielding questions from webmasters, many of whom were using our BEACON Web Builder. It was a wonderful job because it meant working with Christians from all over the world. There were challenges, too, especially when a customer was feeling frustrated over an issue that I was trying my best to solve. Sounds typical of most jobs, right?

I found the most fulfillment at work not only when I could help someone with a problem, but also when I could establish a dialog with them and get to know them as people. For example, one of our customers from Ireland would report a technical difficulty, I’d write back, and in the course of our brief discussions we wound up talking about all the exciting things the Lord was doing in our lives. The joy of being a Christian would just spill over into my workday in marvelous and unexpected ways, leaving my spirit uplifted no matter how the rest of my day had gone.

Internet connects two countries.
One day our Irish customer and brother in Christ, Harry Toye of Five Fold Ministry Ireland, told me about an outreach he and his team would be hosting in America. “That’s great,� I told him almost absently. When I learned they were coming to New Hampshire, I immediately dismissed the idea of meeting the team. Airfare from my home in Florida to New England was beyond my budget. I wished him well and put the thought out of my mind.

Up to this point I hadn’t spent more than a few moments on Harry’s website, not because I didn’t care, but because with more than 7,000 OurChurch.Com sites there isn’t time to fully visit each one while responding efficiently to support issues. I didn’t know much about his team.

But God had other plans for me. (more…)

Thanks to all of you who provided feedback in our first Web Trends Blog opinion survey. The results were very encouraging and seem to indicate that we’re on the right track. Here are some of the highlights:

• More than 80% of people said the articles are well or very well written.
• More than 70% of respondents said the topics have been mostly or extremely relevant.
• 60% of those surveyed said the technical level of the articles is just about right, with about an equal minority saying it was above or below their level.
• 62% of people said the frequency of about once a week is just about right while 26% want more frequent articles and 10% want less frequent articles.

One number I found concerning is that 21% of the people said they didn’t post a comment because they didn’t know how, and those are the people who responded to the survey. It’s probably safe to say that the percentage is even greater among those who did not respond. It’s really quite simple:

• Go to http://blog.ourchurch.com. If you receive the blog articles by email, just click the link at the top of the email.
• At the bottom of every article is a “Comments” link. Click it.
• Type in your comment and click the “Submit Comment” button.

If you’ve never posted a comment before, give it a try. Your comments are very important because they give added perspective to the articles. The more comments the better. Remember to keep them on topic, though.

We received a number of good ideas for future blog articles. I want to remind you that you can post topic suggestions or even start your own discussion on a particular topic any time you like in our forums.

The full results of the poll are available at:
http://www.opinionpower.com/results.cgi?id=663038142

Got any thoughts about the poll? Any additional comments or suggestions regarding the Christian Web Trends blog?

In His Service,
Paul Steinbrueck
OurChurch.Com

Thursday, I blogged about two articles – one in the L.A. Times the other in the Wall Street Journal – that took a look at how churches are using the latest technology to reach people. It caused me to ponder the question, “How does a church decide what technology to embrace?”

Generally speaking, I am of the philosophy that Christians ought to use whatever means necessary to best communicate the Gospel. Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 9:22 come to mind: “I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some.” We’ve advocated all sorts of innovative uses of technology here in the Christian Web Trends Blog. But there are some things to be wary of when it comes to technology. Here are three dangers to consider.

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There has been quite a bit in the media recently about church communications. Here are a few excerpts from articles you may find interesting.

George Barna published a study last month that has rocked many Christian leaders’ worlds. “More than seven out of ten Americans (72%) claim they have made a personal commitment to Jesus Christ that is important in their life today.� However… “Only 17% of adults said that ‘a person’s faith is meant to be developed mainly by involvement in a local church.’ In other words, while there appears to be an increase in spirituality, fewer people are finding the local church important to their spiritual development.

The L.A. Times published an article yesterday entitled “God’s Call Comes by Cellphone.” It cites examples of how Christian churches are using the latest technology to connect with people. “Nearly 60% of Protestant churches have websites now, up from 35% in 2000. More than half use e-mail blasts to communicate with their congregation — and 12% let the faithful tithe online, according to the Barna Group, which conducts research for Christian ministries. In the sanctuary itself, more than 60% of Protestant churches spice up their services with video clips shown on oversize screens.” There has also been an explosion in churches that podcast the audio of their sermons, utilize text messaging, and even do video broadcasting of their services online.

Even the Wall Street Journal got into the act with an article called “Churches Embrace the Web In Bid to Attract Members.” It describes an Episcopal priest who has used MySpace to draw people to his church as well as a youth ministry that is using MySpace to connect with teens. “‘MySpace is a great tool for creating buzz,’ he said, ‘The trick is, how do you create buzz without endorsing something that can be potentially harmful?’”

It leads me to two questions…

1. How does a church decide what technology to embrace?
2. By providing podcasts and video services, is the church actually contributing to the problem that only 17% of Americans believe a person’s faith is meant to be developed in the context of the local church?

By the way, if you haven’t already done so, please give us your feedback in our online survey.

In His Service,
Paul Steinbrueck
OurChurch.Com

It’s hard to believe but next week will mark 4 months since we launched the Christian Web Trends Blog. Thanks to all of you who have been reading our blog articles, and special thanks to those of you who have posted comments and linked to this blog on your own blogs and websites.

I’m a firm believer that objective feedback and constructive criticism are essential for excellence. This week I’ve created an online survey. I would greatly appreciate your feedback, comments, and suggestions.

http://www.opinionpower.com/Surveys/663038142.html

We’ll publish the results next week. Many thanks! Of course, we’d also appreciate your comments here in the blog.

In His Service,
Paul Steinbrueck
OurChurch.Com

If you’ve read the Christian Web Trends Blog the last couple of weeks, you know Sunday, May 7th, was the second annual Internet Evangelism Day.  IED is a day to focus and attention to using the Internet to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

I was curious to learn about our OurChurch.Com webmasters’ thoughts and experiences with regards to web evangelism and so included a couple of questions about that in our monthly webmaster survey.  Of course this is not a scientific sample, but here are some preliminary figures.

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Only five days remain until Internet Evangelism Day, May 7, 2006!  Internet Evangelism Day (IED) is a day for Christians educate themselves and strategize within their organizations about how they can better share their faith online throughout the year.  The hope is to raise awareness among Christians of the potential for sharing the Gospel online and dramatically increase the number of Christian organizations actively involved in evangelism online.

Last week I wrote about the general purpose of IED, this week I’m going to write about some specific action steps individuals and organizations can discuss and consider when planning their Internet evangelism strategies.  Remember, IED, is not a single day where we go online to talk about God; it’s a day to make decisions about how we will use the Internet to share God’s amazing grace with others throughout the next year. (more…)