by Clarence E. Stowers | May 9, 2011 | Apple/Mac, Christian, Christianity, Prayer, Preaching, Technology, Tools
I finished last week’s post mentioning how how I used my iPhone, Cloud Storage, and a few Apps to prepare messages in 10 minutes or less. Let’s face it – there’s no way we can escape technology. It’s here to stay and we may as well leverage it for the glory of God. Furthermore, given the consumerist mindset of most church goers, presenting a real and relevant word (grounded in biblical truth) remains challenging. Communicators must learn to quickly “size” up their audience and adjust their message for maximum impact. I had to do this this earlier this year while preaching at another church.
As a pastor, I’m invited to preach at other churches during their pastoral or church anniversaries. While worshiping, God begin to impress upon my heart that the message I prepared wasn’t quite right for the occasion. I quickly discerned the room was filled with broken people who had looks of despair in their eyes. I came to encourage the pastor, but discerned that the people needed a Word from the Lord. I prayed and God revealed they need encouragement, healing, and empowerment. I opened my Bible, pulled out my iPhone 4, placed it in my Bible (to hide it), and began crafting a “NEW” message.
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by Clarence E. Stowers | May 2, 2011 | Christian, Christianity, Church Issues, Family, Relationships, Technology, Worship
Quick! How do you keep the attention of a generation of church goers eternally distracted by the internet, cellphones, and technology. You make technology your friend – you leverage it for the Glory of God.
Mars Hill – TWO Churches in ONE Location
As much as I hate to admit it, in reality, I pastor TWO distinct congregations. Since we began offering additional worship experiences, I’ve noticed they’ve morphed into two very distinct, different, and unique congregations. We’re still Mars Hill – now we’re TWO churches in ONE location. How did that happen?
8AM Classic Worship Experience
Older church goers, business-types, and families with older/adult children mainly attend our Our 8AM Worship Experience. It’s early, convenient, and 60-90 minutes long. They enjoy softer music and love to reflect on the music and message. It fits their lifestyle and they primarily want worship and the Word! Period! However, it’s quite different during our 10:30AM experience.
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Feb 24, 2011 | Bible Journey, Christian, Christianity, Digging Deeper, Technology
Two weeks ago I beta tested Digging Deeper ONLINE featuring The Book of Nehemiah for over 150 people from six different states – what an exciting time! I conducted a survey to see how we could make the experience more engaging and life-changing. If you’d like to review the survey, you can click HERE.
Judging from the result of the surveys, many desire a more interactive Bible study experience. In other words, be able to engage in active participation, discussion, and ask questions (I don’t blame you one bit). In order to do this and make Digging Deeper ONLINE more meaningful, we decided to reduce the class sizes (25 or less), offer multiple sessions, and focus on quality teaching and personal interaction.
For the past two weeks, I’ve been praying about how to make our online learning experiences more meaningful. Although online learning, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites cannot and will not replace actual face-to-face gatherings, technology is a tool to support, strengthen, and enhance live gatherings.
Therefore, I’d like to introduce our proposed schedule…
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Feb 12, 2011 | Bible Journey, Christian, Christianity, Digging Deeper, Technology, Vision, Web/Tech
Wednesday, February 9, 2011 was the first day of many FUTURE online Bible studies. In my humble opinion and judging from the opinions of others, Digging Deeper Online was a HUGE SUCCESS. Of course not everyone will embrace the concept of “Digital Discipleship” but, I’ve decided to leverage technology to help people take their next steps towards maturity.
Thank you for taking time to take the survey. I sincerely appreciate the time you spent answering the questions and recommending strategies for improvement. Your advice was very helpful and gave me a new perspective on how to make Digging Deeper Online better.
I especially appreciate your offer to help spread the word and invite others to attend. I promise I will follow up with contacts you email to me right away (pastorstowers@marshillchgo.org). Any additional suggestions you may have would be welcomed and I will keep you posted on future online Webinars/Training.
HERE ARE THE SURVEY RESULTS:
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by Clarence E. Stowers | Feb 10, 2011 | Christian, Christianity, Digging Deeper, Technology, Vision
I am literally AMAZED at what happened last night during Digging Deeper Online. The Lord met us online and we ALMOST went to church. I want to thank everyone who attended…WE MADE HISTORY together! In my humble opinion and judging from the comments of those who attended, Digging Deeper Online was a HUGE success. So, how did it all begin?
Last week the City of Chicago (and many other states) experienced heavy snowfall. When the snow settled, Chicago received 21″ of snow which almost broke an all-time record. Consequently, many were snowed in and began conversing via Facebook and Twitter. Darius Williams suggested I host an online Bible Study and I accepted his challenge. I’m grateful for the Blizzard of 2011 and this week’s EXTREMELY cold temperatures. Why? Thanks to Darius’ suggestion, Digging Deeper ONLINE was birthed!
To Help Us Plan Effectively – Please Complete This QUICK Survey:
It is my prayer that you enjoyed Digging Deeper ONLINE. To help us plan effectively and improve the process, please complete this BRIEF survey:
If you have additional questions, please send your questions, comments and feedback to: pastorstowers@marshillchgo.org.
Onward and Upward,
-Pastor Clarence Stowers
“Leveraging Technology For The Glory Of God“
by Clarence E. Stowers | Jan 13, 2011 | Decisions, Excellence, Goals, Leadership, Resolutions, Success, Technology, Vision
Consider this statement:
It doesn’t have to be perfect for God to bless it.
As I read Scripture, I can’t find any instance where conditions were perfect before God blessed it. Abraham didn’t have all the answers when asked to sacrifice his son Isaac…he proceeded anyway. Moses had a speech problem and was insecure about his leadership abilities…he proceeded anyway. Nehemiah certainly didn’t know how the building project would turn out, but he proceeded anyway. Are you noticing a pattern here?
Why The Big Push For Excellence?
Every generation is quick to point out the hypocrisy of the one that preceded it. The generation born just after WWII began rejecting the values of their parents during the ’60s. Now it’s their kids’ turn. Today’s young adults see a generation of baby-boomer Christians that has striven for “excellence” in every part of church life. Boomers proclaimed in the 1980s that image is everything, and their churches have reflected that cultural trend.
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