Digital Evangelism Issues

Is ‘change’ the same as ‘ruin’, as the infographic below might suggest? It is certainly the contention of Nicholas Carr in his book The Shallows, and some other commentators, that our brains are being rewired by the Web and social media, and not always in a good way.

However, as Len Sweet points out in his forthcoming (and excellent) new book Viral: How Social Networking Is Poised to Ignite Revival – when the printing press first came in, some Christians opposed it because they felt it would inhibit people from memorizing stuff.

In any case, we are where we are. Older people will recall similar concerns two generations ago about the insidious effects of TV. Our task is to manage our media, not let it control us. And more than that, realise its huge potential for the Kingdom. Check our page about using Facebook, and our other blog posts about social networking.

Distractions

There are strategies we can use to reduce distraction so we can stay focused on one thing at a time. See How to Deal with Distractions in a Web Worker’s World. Leave Skype switched off if you have not pre-arranged a call. Disable instant messengers including Facebook. Disable any audible alerts of new emails. Hey, even switch your wifi/network connection off for writing projects. There are even software solutions and browser add-ons that you can set to prevent access to certain time-wasting sites (eg. Farmville, or Facebook entirely) within your choice of time limits. You can also use software to limit children’s time online (or on the computer at all) within preset limits, so they can do other things vital to their development. Like playing, sport, reading.

Please add your thoughts in the comment section below.

Thanks to AssistedLivingToday.com for this graphic

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

Spielberg’s latest movie is getting rave reviews. And rightly so. The popular children’s book by Michael Morpurgo has been faithfully adapted: read story of the film and its making. (Trailer below.)

And there are many redemptive echoes embedded in it. Here are a few (spoiler warnings):

• Joey the horse is sold into, essentially, slavery on the Western Front, for the biblically-resonant 30 currency units (Zechariah 11:12-13), having already been bought – extravagantly – for that price by Devon farmer Ted. This brings huge pain to the farmer’s son Albert, who has trained the horse and has a deep master/horse relationship with him.
• Joey’s desire for home and his master survives ‘slavery’ on both sides of the war. His escape across no-mans land is stirring. By now, Albert has volunteered for the army and is being treated for temporary blindness from a gas attack in the trenches. Joey’s ability to respond to his master’s call (a simulated owl call) saves his life, and hastens Albert’s healing.
• Albert then attempts to buy him back at the end of the war for the same 30 pounds, but is outbid at 100 pounds by the French farmer whose now-deceased grand-daughter had previously found and cared for Joey and stablemate Topthorn when they escaped from the German lines. In a gesture of extravagant grace, after learning of Albert’s deeper claim, he gifts Joey to him.
• In different ways, the horse also brings bravery, reconciliation, healing and resolution to other characters in the story.

Damaris study guides

Culturewatch ministry Damaris has produced a study guide and analysis of the film. Join to subscribe to their email newsletter and receive regular commentary on movies and other resources, eg. Iron Lady. (Advance notice: they will soon be publishing free resources for the February release of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, starring Judy Dench, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, Penelope Wilton, Celia Imrie and Ronald Pickup.)

Using movies as a ‘good-news discussion starter’

Movie themes are a great way to start conversations, whether on Facebook or face-to-face. They also work very well in a planned group situation, as Krish Kandiah (UK Evangelical Alliance) recounts in relation to a recent student discussion of Shawshank Redemption. This approach works equally effectively in a poor inner-city area of London, where Pastor Michael Kosmas has made a film discussion club integral to his church-planting strategy.

Check Tony Watkins’ excellent guide on running a film discussion evening.

And see our other posts on movies.

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

It’s amazing what a difference 60 seconds make.

Go-Gulf.com has a range of infographics on web facts and trends, here are just two of them:

Infographic by- Shanghai Web Designers View graphic fullsize

Infographic by- GO-Gulf.com Web Design Company View graphic fullsize

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

Dizzying stats about the extent of social media usage. And a few figures are already out of date: YouTube now uploads 48 hours of video per minute, and delivers 3.5 billion daily views!

Video can be easily downloaded for seminars etc.

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

Many people spend the majority of their online time within Facebook. It is truly a ‘web within the web’. as this short story illustrates. But how do they precisely use their time on Facebook?

Jess3 Media has created this infographic to draw it all together and Mashable has commented on these figures:

Facebook has become THE way to sensitively share the good news in a conversational dialogue with those who want to opt-in and engage, across pre-existing relationships. This includes using the ready-made one-click links to post video shorts from YesHEIs.com in multiple languages.

Check our other blog posts about Facebook.

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

Probably the most strategic element of digital evangelism, including cross-culturally, is the video visual story, allied with relational sharing on Facebook and mobile phones.

CALL2ALL is a missions/ministry digital media consultation in LA, 29 November to 3 December. Read more and watch the video:

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

Where did Twitter come from? Where are they going? Mashable’s infographic takes us there:

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

“If you’re not paying for it, you’re not a customer. You’re the product being sold.”

So says the Consumerist Blog, in relation to Facebook, Google, or any other “free” online service.

How could it be otherwise? Add comments below.

Cartoon by Geek & Poke, Creative Commons

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

The acceleration of worldwide church growth and the Great Commission among increasing numbers of unreached people groups has been remarkable, especially in the last century. Books such as The Church Is Bigger Than You Think: The Unfinished Work of World Evangelismand Operation World: The Definitive Prayer Guide to Every Nationdocument these advances.

Digital media will play an increasing part of this advance, including the interconnected triplets: Facebook, video shorts and mobile phones, both in the West and the Majority World.

See also mission-related study courses plus other training; and the Guide Network for digital evangelism.

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook:

There are multiple ways that different people use social media and the Web in general. Be aware that people are very different in their personality types, needs, demographic and online behavior. Never assume ‘one size fits all’ for online interaction, or indeed in any sort of evangelistic ministry.

Read Forrester’s analysis and background to the ladder concept. Check too our book recommendations (including free ebooks) on social media, and other recent insights into social networking.

How does your web activity align with these categories? How can we broaden our reach to engage with these different groups?

Interactive map and real-time tickers

For more understanding on how different demographics and countries use the Web, view the detailed interactive map based on the comprehensive Digital Life research study. See also real-time world web stat stickers | social networking ticker.

	Please also share this post on Facebook, Twitter and Google +1 using the one-click links below. You can also automatically syndicate our blog posts to your Facebook Wall (and/or your Twitter stream) in three easy steps.
	You are welcome to use this item on your own blog as a guest blog post, or republish in any online or print newsletter. We also offer other free articles.
GET UPDATES BY EMAIL	Get our blog posts by email, two or three times a week: subscribe here or on Twitter
LATEST BULLETIN	Latest issue of Web Evangelism Bulletin is now online.
	FREE e-book downloads – a range of free PDF books and other downloadable resources.

Please CLICK BELOW NOW to like THIS post, on Google +1 and Facebook: