This is a guest post by Greg Gordon.
The internet is a very powerful medium in today’s world. Essentially through computers virtually almost over one half of the world is connected in someway. The Church and Christian ministries have it in their aim and goal to reach people.
Well… welcome to the internet, the place where people are gathering! It can seem quite overwhelming and strange for ministries to find out ways to attempt to reach people on this online medium.
As the founder of a large Christian website (SermonIndex.net), I have gotten hundreds of not thousands of questions asked me over the 10 years of ministry online. The most common question is: “How do we as a Christian ministry effectively reach people online?”
My reply usually has always been the same. My emphasis to state basic spiritual principles for a Church or ministry that they already understand and just need to follow those principles in the a-neutral tool of the internet. Here is the brief list I share of principles to consider:
Labouring with the Lord – “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain” (Psalm 127:1). If the work on the internet is not founded by the Lord the whole endeavour can be in vain. Have the confidence that the Lord called you to do what you are attempting. The internet offers thousands of different ways to convey a message, ensure that message is what the Lord wants you to do.
Committing the work in prayer – “Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will do this” (Psalm 37:5). Prayer is essential for any work that we do in the name of the Lord. Internet work is the same, commit what you are doing to prayer constantly and you will see God’s blessing.
Not seeking to fit in – “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God” (James 4:4). If we seek to do the work of God to fit into the ways of the world then we can start to oppose God’s work. If we have to compromise the message of Jesus Christ and not offend people at times, we might become successful but will end up not doing the will of God. Your message might not be as famous as other messages in the world, but it is more important.
It is all about people – “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms” (1 Peter 4:10). We have to remember that changed lives and serving others is the important aspect of what we do online. It is not about numbers, but changed individual lives. Seek to be happy in a testimony of a changed life and not increased social likes or web traffic.
Glorifying God – “Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1). All the work we do as believers and the Church should be for the glory of God. It is not having great success, traffic, or increased likes but did the work we do glorify God? When we seek to do what we are doing for God’s glory then we have been successful already!
Some practical tips to get started:
1. Social Media – Ensure you are utilizing social media, including, Twitter, Facebook, etc. Even if you do not know what you are doing, start an account and post something consistently.
2. Simplicity – Ensure you get your message across in a simple form at least on the home page. Let people know exactly what you are doing and make it succinct and clear.
3. Video – It is said that over half of the traffic of the entire internet is video now! Do a video explaining what you are doing. Share a simple gospel message on video. Video is a powerful platform and can be done very easily on Facebook or Youtube.
Lastly, simply be diligent and commit time to what you are doing. Consistency, and not giving up early on will ensure your message gets out and reaches more people. I have been running a blog (The Christian Journey) for just over 1 month now and try to as best as I can post something each day if possible. Starting a blog with WordPress can be an excellent way to have a web presence for a Christian ministry.
Add your ideas of some ways you can use the internet for the kingdom of God below in the comment section.
2 Comments
Greg, thanks for writing this post! I love the way you start by addressing the heart issues first and then add some tech tips. So often we get that backwards or neglect the heart issues altogether.
Thanks paul for the encouragement.