Archive for Apps & Tools
When I hear the term ‘social network’, I immediately think about Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. In reality, these websites are just modern day expressions of real life networks of interconnected relationships between individuals. These networks of relationships are usually centered around a common interest, belief, or activity. Social networks go as far back as the first family—Adam, Eve, Cain and Abel. However, I believe the most sanctified example of a social network, this side of Heaven, is clearly described in Acts 2:42-46.
42 And ?they devoted themselves to the apostles’ ?teaching and the ?fellowship, to ?the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe? came upon every soul, and ?many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and ?had all things in common. 45 And ?they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, ?attending the temple ?together and ?breaking bread in their homes, they received their food ?with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and ?having favor with all the people. And the Lord ?added to their number ?day by day those who ?were being saved.[1]
Luke describes the first church as, “all who believed were together and had all things in common.” Wow! I don’t know about you, but this sounds like the perfect social network. Can you imagine the deep interconnected community of this first church…to the extent of voluntarily selling their possessions to ensure that everyone was without need? Do you think the 21st century church could once again experience this type of interconnectedness? I do and I think technology will be a key accelerant in making this a reality.
Acts 2 is a product road map for social media and technology in the church. As we seek to extend the functions of the church online, I believe a holistic approach would encompass the following:
- Spiritual Formation (Learning God’s Word) (v. 42)
- Community (v. 42, 46)
- Prayer and Care (v. 43, 45)]
- Worship (v. 46)
- Evangelism (v. 47)
Though many internet campuses incorporate one or more of these elements, most only do one of them really well. I agree with Greg Atkinson’s assessment, that if you are going online with these functions of your church, don’t do it unless the technology fits within the vision, mission, and church growth model of your church. Don’t do it for the sake of doing something really cool.
Several churches and organizations are already making great strides using technology to extend and facilitate these ecclesiastical functions online. Here are a few that I believe are doing it well:
Learning God’s Word (Spiritual Formation)
Worship
Church Online at LifeChurch.tv
Northland, A Church Distributed
Community
I know there are others, so feel free to add comments below to add the list of those who are using technology and social media to fulfill these ecclesiastical functions with excellence.
As for sharing and evangelism, these are indeed the fruits of many of the technologies listed above (in addition to others), but I have not seen any applications designed with these specific functions for the use in the local church. If you do, please educate me!
If your church is pursuing a holistic approach, drop a comment below. I would love to hear both your strategy and the technologies you are using.
[1]The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Ac 2:42-47). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
Have you ever stopped to consider the global presence and use of online social networks? Most of us have heard of the large number of users on Facebook and MySpace, but the map below will tell a bigger story. Social networks are not mere fads, but a new era in communication and community. It’s the new email. In fact, I agree with Jeremiah Owyang that email is is the first and largest social network. While email will remain, social networks will continue to grow and evolve.
[Note: Sometimes map will take a moment to load, if at all. Map Source: http://manyeyes.alphaworks.ibm.com]
The question now is how will the church leverage social networks to further its mission of changed lives for Jesus Christ? For certain, I am not the first to ask this question, but I am amazed at the number of church leaders who are still hesitant and skeptical of embracing these technologies for ministry purposes. Perhaps there remains a shortage of good examples of how social networks contribute to the bottom line. Sure, we can certainly talk about fan pages, groups, etc, but I would argue that much of what can be gained by their use in not in their native features, but what can be developed or extended using their APIs. So this leaves me to wonder who is doing it? Who (whether churches or ChMS providers) are using these social networks ‘strategically’?
um….no. It doesn’t exist yet, at least to my knowledge. If you find such a solution, please let me know. However, there are some solutions that come close. After a little research, the following apps appear to be the best of breed for apps that manage your twitter and facebook feeds (but not RSS, at least not yet):
1. TweetDeck: Packed full of features…it supports multiple twitter accounts and your Facebook profile so you can view and update both accounts with one post. It also supports groups and saved searches.
2. Seesmic: Similar to TweetDeck but you have the option of using a web based version or installing it on your personal computer. Both Seesmic and TweetDeck have companion apps for your iPhone to keep everything in synch. They will soon allow you to record video and drop it into a tweet….very nice!
3. HootSuite: HootSuite is superior to TweetDeck and Seesmic in Twitter management features, but it does not include the Facebook integration. It does have stat tracking all the way down at a tweet level. It also supports groups and even allows you to embed columns or groups right into your blog or other website. Moreover, it also supports team workflow allowing you to give permissions to other people. This is more useful for organizations or corporate entities rather than individual personal twitter accounts.
4. Twinbox: This did not make the top of my list, but is certainly worthy of honorable mention. Twinbox is an Outlook plugin that allows you to view and send tweets straight from Outlook. So in some sense, you could get partial functionality of all three since Office 2007 has a built in RSS reader and is capable of receiving Facebook email notifications for comments or messages made on your Facebook profile. These features are all good, but it lacks the intuitive design and social DNA of HootSuite or TweetDeck.
After playing with all four…I vote HootSuite and hope Facebook integration isn’t far behind.
