Twitter Breaks the News

So here's a little story that is just a quick and timely reminder about the power of Twitter and other social networking tools.

Most folks know that First Church is about to launch a new outreach into the Old Town and Arena district. The coffee house has been the subject of a great story in the Wichita Eagle, so the general word on the project is out.

Still, a few weeks back there were a bunch of details still up in the air. Still being nailed down. Just little things. Questions like "when are we opening" or "what is the place going to be called." You know. The minor stuff!

There was a lot of discussion around the table about these details. We had a staff member twitter about some of the proposals that have been floated.

Oops!

But really, it shouldn't have been surprising. Social media sites in general, and Twitter in particular is all about life as it is being lived. It's radical transparency. The conversations were happening. They were big stuff in the life of this person. No surprise that they might throw up a tweet!

It just never occurred to me or anyone else around the table to say out loud "don't tweet this stuff."

It should have. Folks who would never dream of picking up a phone and calling the newspaper, or posting something on their blog might, or might not think twice about a tweet. Twitter is different, right?

Well, yes. Except that it's not.

Tweets are showing up in Google searches. Lots of folks have no idea who is following their Twitter feed. Information that might be embarrassing, or confidential, or as in this case, just not ready for prime time in a tweet is out there, for anyone to see and act upon.

You can guess what happened.

Tweet. Response. Another tweet, and another response, this time from @RedRita who is a local newspaper columnist who works for the business page.

All worked out fine in the end. We did a bit of purging of a few tweets. No worries. Good lesson.

And I'm also sure that @RedRita will be all over the story when we are ready to release the details.

Ever Hear the One About the Cat, the Hooker and the Church Tech Director?

I work in a downtown church.  Lots of local color, if you get my  drift, including the occasional "working girl" wondering through our parking lot.  We try to treat everyone with compassion and dignity as human beings. Still, we kind of have to draw a line at soliciting on our parking lot.  Call me inhospitable, I guess.

Anyway, this story starts late on a Friday afternoon, about six years ago.  As usual, the rest of the staff is long gone. I'm alone in the church and hear someone in the hallway downstairs.

"Hello.... is anyone here?  Hello?"

"Great," I think.  I head for the entry, only to see a young lady who I've run off the parking lot at least a half dozen times standing there, holding a very tiny kitten.

"One of those drunks across the street found this kitten in a dumpster," she said. "I wouldn't let him keep it.  He's just a mess."

I wasn't sure whether she was referring to the kitten, or the drunk.

She went on to tell me that she'd taken the cat to her apartment, given it a bath and some food, but that there was no way she could keep it.  Did I know anyone who wanted a cat, she asked?

I will admit that what I really wanted was for her to leave.  Family members would be arriving for a wedding rehearsal in a very few minutes, and she was dressed, well, let's just say her wardrobe choices were not what we usually see in church.

So, in a moment of what I can only assume was some sort of neurological deficit or blackout or something, I ended up agreeing to take the kitten from her.  The cat rescuer made her way out of the building and across the parking lot, and I headed back to the control room.

One thing you have to understand at this point.  My wife and I are not "cat people."  I have nothing in particular against cats. Just not my particular choice of pet.  My wife Linda, on the other hand, does not like cats at all.  She's allergic, to start with.  But it goes a lot deeper than a simple histamine reaction.

She hates cats.  Like with malice in her heart.  She even has the books.  You know, books like "How to Kill Your Girlfriend's Cat," and "The Cat Haters Handbook."

So first, I tried giving the cat to our music guy.  Nope.  I tried to pawn it off on an associate pastor.  No way.

I had to call Linda and have her come pick up the cat, who had already climbed to the top of the audio racks and then into the back of them.

"Don't worry," I told her.  "We'll take him to the pound tomorrow."

"Uh huh," was her only response.

The wedding rehearsal went off without a hitch. On my way home the cell phone rings.

"We're totally screwed."

It was Linda.

"What are you talking about," I asked her.

"We're screwed," she said.  "The boys have already named the cat.  It's Max, and it's your fault."

So, that is the story of how we came to have a cat in our family for the past six years.   And yes, you can make a lot of jokes about it.  I certainly have!

Max was actually a Manx, born without a tail.  As cats go, he was actually pretty cool.  He didn't seek out attention, but he liked to be held and petted.  The funniest part was the fact that he bonded most quickly with Linda, who was somewhat bemused, but mostly disgusted that he wanted to hang around with her.

We lost Max today.  He had a bladder problem that was making him miserable. I'll miss him.  The boys will too.  And, to her credit, Linda will probably miss what will likely be our one and only cat more than any of us.

Killing Powerpoint Overkill

Mark Bennardo recently had some great advice over at Transperia on creating great graphics in support of your next presentation. Here are five questions from Mark that will help you figure out whether a graphic helps or hurts.

1. Is this graphic really necessary?
2. Will it distract from my message?
3. Will it increase or hinder the credibility of my message?
4. If the projector lost power, would my message suffer?
5. Will it take emphasis off of me?

Mark's bottom line is pretty simple:

"You are the story. YOU are the show. You are the star."

Just Call Me "Mr. Conference"

My son Andrew was recently talking with a buddy of mine who commented, "Your Dad really is "Mr. Conference."

It's true.  I have a rather wide portfolio in my current position, and am fortunate to be able to attend a good number of conferences each year. They range from the media and creative, to technical, to the biggies like the annual NAB show in Las Vegas. My recent travels have included the Catalyst event in Atlanta, MinstryCOM in Oklahoma City and the Echo conference put on by Collide magazine in Dallas.

Jim over at Church Tech Matters recently asked about the good and the bad of conferences. Here are my two recommendations!

If you’re looking for a great overview of worship technology and building technology, you can’t beat the Worship Facilities Expo. I’ll be in Houston next week for this year’s version. WFX is a great investment for anyone who is getting ready to build a building. You will have an opportunity to look at all of the worship technology bells and whistles.  They also have a great lineup of educational programs and speakers.

As a bonus, you’ll have people there showing security systems and playground equipment and all kinds of stuff. It’s big enough to have the major vendors represented, but not so huge they don’t have time to meet with you.

That’s also why I like the NRB convention. Even if you are not a broadcaster, consider attending the National Religious Broadcaster convention, if you are planning a major upgrade to your A/V/L systems. The show is pretty big… with ALL of the major vendors there. But… it’s not a monster like NAB. You won’t be able to talk for long with a Sony rep at NAB. They are busy talking with people who buy cameras by the dozen. At NRB, they have time to talk to you.

I would also highly recommend MinistryTECH to you. It’s a small gathering. The content at the first gathering last year was very good. The best part though, is that it is so small you can’t help but network! You will meet peers and that has huge, huge value.

Trade shows and conferences are a big investment. Travel isn’t cheap. But from my perspective, I can’t get where I need to go without making that investment. The ROI from a good conference is just huge.

Three Lessons from Anthony Coppedge

My buddy Anthony Coppedge has a great piece today on the economic uncertainty that we're all facing. He frames it around the budget challenges churches are anticipating, but as someone who may be staring a transition in the face sooner rather than later, it was a God inspired reminder that I needed. Anthony sees three lessons from God's word that apply.

1. God is Jehovah-jireh: We rely on God. Alone. Period.

2. Be wise and conservative in budgeting and spending, but don’t take God out of the equation.

3. Don't worry. To worry goes against the personal directive of Jesus who said "do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Read the rest of Anthony's wise words, right here!

Caring Enough to Commit

"Maybe the problem with today's youth isn't that they aren't committed. Maybe the problem is that we haven't given them anything of value to be committed to."

Go read the rest of this. It's worth your time.

IT from Craig Groeschel

Craig Groeschel, Senior Pastor of LifeChurch.tv has a new book out from Zondervan.  It's called "IT: How Churches and Leaders Can Get It and Keep It."  "It"  is that unquantifiable, largely undefinable quality that organizations and people have, when they are on fire. 

Craig admits he doesn't really know what "it" is.  He can describe "it."  He can recognize "it."  Unfortunately, you can't create "it" and you can't reproduce "it." 

I saw Craig speak on "IT" at Catalyst '08, recently, and the experience, frankly, messed me up.  Still processing everything he brought, but what I needed to hear was reassurance that when you have had "it" in the past, and lost "it," you can find "it" again, seeking after God with your whole heart.

"IT," the book, is a quick read.  I read it on a single flight. It's so quick in fact, that it would easy to blow through and put the book back on the shelf.

Don't. 

Read it again.  Dig into it. Pursue "it" with diligence and passion.  And if you've lost "it," take heart.  You can find "IT," again.

Revenge of the Designer

HT to Michael Buckingham who also has a few tips on things you should never, ever, ever do to you creative department!

The Short List

The Internet Monk is back at it again, this time with a list of the "common" sins.  You know, the ones we don't talk about, have agreed are really OK, and don't like to spend too much sermon time railing against.   Here's his list, with truncated explanations.  You can get the whole story right here.

1. Not keeping promises. Also known as a lack of integrity. You say you’ll do something. You promise to show up and do it, but you don’t.

2. Lying. All shapes. All sizes. All kinds. All the time. Christians are exaggerators, prevaricators and simple liars. They lie and they excuse lying. They fault others for not believing the truth and they readily lie as quickly as anyone I’ve ever seen.

3. A lack of integrity. I’ve written on this before. I came to the point as an adult Christian that I couldn’t stand to look at myself on this issue. My moral character had holes in it.

4. Cruel speech about those with whom we differ. I’ve sat at lunch tables with fellow Christians who suggested we put gays on an island and bomb it. I’ve heard every lie about Obama out there repeated (and forwarded) by Christian people. I’ve heard Democrats called dozens of cruel and ridiculing names.

5. No grace for ordinary failure. Why is it the Christian who will predictably enforce the smallest rule to the nth degree, with no thought of mercy? Why do people who love “Amazing Grace” act as if grace is the opposite of everything we believe in when it comes to dealing with people?

Plenty to think on, for a Saturday. Have a great weekend folks!

A White Space Update

There is a lot of activity these days regarding the use of so-called "white space" device, and their impact of wireless mics. The FCC will consider making rules in this area on November the 4th. The deadline for comments is October 27th.

Curt Taipale is doing a great job of keeping up to date information on the Church Soundcheck site. Shure also has great resources on the topic.

Now is the time to contact your Senators and Representatives on this issue. You should also contact the commissioner of the FCC to make your voice heard. Here is the letter I sent today. Thanks to Bill Thrasher for his work on the issue, and some of the language below!

Dear Sirs,

I am writing to you today as Director of Communications and Technology for the First United Methodist Church in Wichita, Kansas. I want to express concern with the upcoming FCC vote concerning the re-allocation of existing television broadcast spectrum, and the use of new so-called "white space" devices in FCC Docket 04-186.

I am extremely concerned that the proposal now being considered by the FCC will have a significant negative impact on our church and many others across the nation with the technology we use in worship.

Shure Inc. is a leading manufacturer of wireless devices, and has stated the technical issues well. Shure has proposed that the FCC set aside eight 'protected' TV channels (2 in the VHF band and 6 in the UHF band) in each market, in which unlicensed wireless microphones could operate without interference from White Space devices. The devices would check an online database and avoid transmitting on the channels that are 'protected'.

In contrast, the FCC plans to set aside only TWO TV channels for unlicensed wireless mics. Two TV channels, just 12 MHz of spectrum, would likely only be enough for four to ten wireless microphones. That number will be reduced if other wireless microphone users are nearby. In our case, this is insufficient. We regularly use more than a dozen wireless microphones in a service. We are within 200 feet of two other churches that use multiple wireless mics in their services, a situation that already requires coordination between the two organizations. There are literally thousands of other churches in the same situation.

Beyond the use of wireless microphones, many churches also use wireless in-ear monitoring systems in which operate in much the same way as a wireless microphone. Each separate musician might have his or her own mix for monitoring, requiring far more wireless spectrum "real estate" than is available under the FCC proposal.

You should also be aware of the recent requirements of the FCC to vacate the 700 MHz band, which will no longer be allocated for Broadcast Television as primary users, and Wireless Microphone systems as secondary users, after the completion of the DTV transition in February of 2009. Thousands of wireless microphone users have already been required to replace some or all of their wireless microphone systems over the past few years, in order to comply with these new rules. They have done so without much in the way of complaint, primarily because of the adequate lead time provided. Churches and other users were able to plan for an budget these equipment acquisitions.

In most of their cases, these organizations are now the proud owners of thousands of dollars of wireless systems that are unusable and soon to be illegal, with no opportunity to sell or reclaim any of their remaining value. To force another round of similar mandatory frequency reallocation changes onto every owner of wireless systems, over just the next several months, would certainly be unfair, but would very directly and financially double penalize every one of the owners that have already made the long planned reallocation changes, as required by the FCC.

I find it very telling that this entire debate has now moved from the technical and scientific community, whose members were working to provide careful and thoughtful policy that considers all ramifications. It has now entered the domain of big money politics, with huge companies like Google, Motorola and Microsoft leading the charge for these changes. They do so under cover of so-called "grassroots" organizations like the "Wireless Innovation Alliance," which are in reality nothing more than lobbying arms for these corporate giants, pushing an agenda that protects only their profit making agenda, while sacrificing the legitimate business and other interests of hundreds of thousands of existing white space users.

Congregations across the country have literally thousands of dollars invested in wireless techology, all with a goal of communicating the life-changing truth of the gospel. There is enough bandwidth for everyone. It simply must be allocated appropriately. Thank you for your attention to this problem. I ask that you give Shure's proposal serious consideration, and stand ready to assist you with any additional information you might need.

Thank you for your time.

New Creation from Fellowship Church

This is an amazing piece from Fellowship Church. Watch it, and then come back here to discuss for a moment.

New Creation from FC Post on Vimeo.

A couple of thoughts. Fellowship Church is the mother ship for creativity and artistic expression in worship in the US today. Nobody does it any better, in my opinion.

BUT, let's really take a look at this thing.

There is really nothing in this amazing presentation that couldn't be done by many, many churches with just a little bit of work. Let's run them down...

• They are singing a great song, and have a great band. Lots of churches have great bands, and do great music every week. Even if you don't, the music is only the first element here.
• The video elements for IMAG were done with a click track to keep the band synched with the video. Not difficult if you have even minimal video production and in-ear monitors for your band. Honestly... this is the most complicated element of the piece. You could do it much more simply, eliminating the synch issues and simply using abstract motion backgrounds for eye candy.
• Painting the singer to make a new creation. What a great idea! How simple and brilliant a way to visually represent transformation and change. And, it's easy to execute! Thousands of kindergartners do this to each other every day.
• The lighting builds through the piece and drama to the process of "creation." Lots of churches have this capability, but even if you don't, you can start dim and get build in intensity.
• Pace Hartfield gives details here on how they created the lighted drum elements that you see in the auditorium aisles. Not difficult, but a very cool way to bring the whole room into the piece.

My point is this. Fellowship didn't do any one thing here that is all that complex. What they did was to bring all of the elements together. It's all about the IDEA.

Ideas spring from people, who are working in an intentionally creative environment to communicate truth.

Providing that environment, that margin for creative thought, expression and execution requires great commitment a church. That truly is what is extraordinary about this piece.

Leveraging Content and Creativity

I love what Westlink Christian Church did recently. They did a series on sex. If you are a "church insider" you will probably recognize it.

It's Pure Sex, the series originally done back in 2006 by the folks at Granger Community Church that started all of the hyped and over hyped sex sermon series across the country.

What I love about it is the efficiency and leverage they're applying to Kingdom work.

The graphics are world class. I'm sure that Todd Carter made the messages his own. The thing is, there are a ton of dollars and time tied up in the production of a series. Why not leverage great work done elsewhere? It just makes good sense.

Good on you, Westlink for being good stewards. Good on you Granger for making the content available. I'd only love them more if it was all open source, available for free!

Collecting Underpants: When the WHAT Comes Before the WHY

I remembered this great clip from South Park this week while at Catalyst 2008.

Wonder why it is that we so often forget about the WHY of a project, and proceed directly to the WHAT of the project. The conversation in my office usually goes like this.

Ministry Leader: "We need a brochure!"

Me: "Why?"

Things work some much more effectively if we start with defining a goal or outcome you having in mind. Something like, "we need to let people know about the mission teams that we're sending in 2009," or "I need a way to communicate regularly with my middle school kids AND their parents."

Once you nail down your strategic objectives, honing in on the right tactic is a LOT easier. Skip the step, and you may just end up collecting underpants!

Reflections on Catalyst 2008

I've wanted to attend Catalyst for several years.  Until this year, I'd never made it.  Lots of good reasons.  It falls in October, which is arguably the busiest time of the year in my department.

Stewardship campaigns.  Christmas on the way.  Getting support for fall programming into place. Lots of reasons not to go.  God had a different idea this year.

About two months ago, I got an E-mail from my buddy Jim Williams from Church Tech Matters.  He asked if I'd think about coming.  I told him no.  He tried again, this time telling me that I had a ticket, a place to stay and my meals covered.  All I had to do was get there, and if I wanted a ride, they'd make that happen, too.

Shoot... if you put it that way...

So, I went.  I owe so much to Wayne and Elaine James,  two incredible servants of God, for investing in me when I needed it pretty badly.  I will be processing this for weeks, but here are a few surface impressions from a Catalyst first-timer.

Catalyst is, quite simply, a premier event.  The management and production is so good, it's very difficult to describe.  It's so good, in fact, that this tech guy was drawn into the content, and not distracted by the tech. That, my friends, is good. Very, very good.

The content is flat out amazing.  I'm having a hard time picking high points to highlight.  There wasn't a single presenter who was not a home run.

Craig Groeschel and Steven Furtick kicked me in the head.  Dave Ramsey gave one of the most hard hitting and straight on business leadership presentations I've ever seen.  Andy Stanley hit church leadership topics on the head.

In case you can't tell, I'm still pretty overwhelmed... by the circumstances and people that God used to get me there... by the event and how so much was targeted to exactly where I'm living... and by the fact that as much as I've already taken out, knowing that I'm not even started with the job of unpacking and using the insights and tools presented.

Thanks, to Jim and Mary for making me go.  To Wayne and Elaine for making it possible.  To @flowerdust Anne Jackson for helping to cement the decision a few weeks ago.  And to the Catalyst crew for creating a most perfect environment, just for me... and 14,000 other people!

Really Glad to be Back Home

Catalyst 2008 was amazing.  It was good to run into a few old friends, and make some new ones. I chose not to blog the sessions, because I knew some other people would do a better job than I ever could.  I concentrated, instead, on leaning into it and sucking everything out that I could.  Great week.

Now, back to regular programming.

Slick and Glossy Scripture

This is pretty cool. A Swedish ad guy called Dag Soderberg is leading a team called Illuminated World that's reinterpreting the Bible as a magazine. It's simply called.. "Bible Illuminated: The Book" Think King James meets Conde Naste or GQ, complete with headlines, sidebars, and fantastic photography to illustrate. The inspiration for the project is fascinating. Soderberg was simply curious as to why people don't read ancient texts. He wondered what an ancient text would look like if a modern design team took it on.

The Book is is already in print in Sweden, and is coming to the US later this month. Did it work? They say it did! In Sweden, sales of Bibles increased by 50 percent, and it did NOT cannibalize sales of other versions.

FREEBIE: FC Worship Album Preview

The folks at Fellowship have a free download of new song from their new worship recording. It's good.  I'm looking forward to the full album release.  HT to Scott Hodge for the tip!

Dr. Cornell West

"Never forget, justice is what love looks like in public."

Dr. West has a new film called "Call + Response" focusing on the obscenity of human trafficking and slavery in our world today. You can see the trailer for the film right here!

MegaChurch Myths #3,467

So you think BIG churches just hire folks to do everything? Not so, and Pace Hartfield has a great post about how Fellowship Church in Dallas has recently gone 100 percent volunteer in all of their stage and set construction.

"Prior to utilizing volunteers we used a production company to do this, and although they did a good job, our volunteers have taken our stages to the next level."

It is probably worth pointing out that you can't find better production values in a church setting than you will find at Fellowship. They are, quite honestly, the GOLD standard. I think it's amazing that they're doing what they do, using the people in the body.

Someone is also sure to point out that Fellowship has a tremendous base of people in the flock from which to pull. That is true. You can't do everything. But you can do a lot! What that really means is that you have to have a realistic perception of your own church's capabilities, capacity and commitment.

Two Centuries in Two Minutes

Who needs two semesters of church history? I can give it to you in 2 minutes and 34 seconds, courtesy of Paul Aldrich.

Thanks to everyone who has called, texted, tweeted, or E-mailed regarding my silence over the past week or two. I appreciate you guys. I have good friends. HT to Todd Rhodes for the video!