Media, missional lifestyle - by Jeff - March 31, 2008 - 19:37 Etc/GMT+5 - 2 Comments
Effectively sharing the Gospel
I was listening to some teachings recently about being effective in evangelism and the need for todays church to renew their vision for evangelism when I started to think about the connection between evangelism and the media ministry.
One of the primary reasons we have a ministry based on using media is simple to be more effective in how we share the gospel. That can be as simple as sound reinforcement so that the masses can hear the word of God preached on Sunday morning, projecting sermon notes on the screen so that those who are more visual learners register the main points of the sermon clearer or even as simplistic as with out light it is extremely hard to read the scriptures. On the other hand, the desire to share the Gospel and spread the word of God runs hand in hand with our push for new technology implementation, more types of media, in the reach of more people. This includes webcasting in multiple formats, both on demand and live streams, print media, CDs, DVDs, radio broadcast and any other media we can find a way to use to spread the Word. This reaching out to people using their preferred form of media is one type of contextualizing the gospel (a physical contextualization) – that is putting the gospel message into a physical format (context) that works better for today’s culture.
Contextualization is often seen as a bad thing, especially as some people feel it waters down the gospel (more speaking of cultural context of scripture than the physical medium). I heard Mark Dever (Capital Hill Baptist Church) make a statement recently on contextualization of scripture that should apply to our media ministry as to any other ministry. Paraphrased here, he states any contextualization of the gospel must make the offense of the gospel clearer, not obscure the offensiveness of the gospel. The gospel needs to be provocative.
I am still chewing on this and what it all means to our ministry, so expect more thoughts on this in upcoming weeks.
missional lifestyle, the City, thinking green - by Jeff - March 8, 2008 - 03:30 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
This is an extension of the “Going Green with your green” post
The federal government is getting ready to dump billions of dollars into the economy to help stimulate the economy and help American families. The idea is that each of us tax payers, and those working families who don’t make enough to pay taxes, each will get a tax rebate (not sure how you can call it a rebate if you don’t pay anything in, but that argument is for another time), the amount based upon the number of people in the household. The checks are suppose to start mailing in May, then we will each turn around, spend that money on things we need and get some cash flowing in the economy.
A lot of folks will spend as if it were lottery winnings or an inheritance from a long lost uncle, purchasing things one would not otherwise buy for oneself when inflation is as high as 18% (look at your receipts… groceries alone have gone up 18-22% in the last 18 months). Some have already spent the money buying things they want and will use the check to pay off (or down) credit card debt. While this is spending the money and getting it into the economy, it is very short-sighted.
First, we are turning around and giving our cash into the big corporations that are already reporting record profits and don’t need help with an economic stimulus. Exxon Mobil (see here (and here)), Walmart (see here), etc (here, here, here). The impact on the economy will be short-lived if the rebates are poured right into the overflowing hands of Big Oil and Big Box Retailers. They are not hurting, despite the increases in prices (inflation) and the freeze on hiring and pay raises, and in some cases lay-offs (automaker with profit let go 8100 people), they do have profits, and even record profits.
Second- environmental impact. The environmental impact of the consumerist, materialistic lifestyle will cost even more down the road. Any economic upturn will be followed by an equal or deeper downturn. Dependence on oil is rooted in the dependence on modern luxury goods such as tv, radio, prepackaged food, eating out. Look at the “carbon footprint” left behind — miles goods travel, the amount of packaging required, and the landfill holding all the trashed stuff. [carbon footprint calculator]
Third – social impact. World magazine [Vol. 23, No.4, p 10] puts it this way:
“Not all taxpayers are created equal in the eyes of Congress. The economic stimulus effort signed into law Feb. 13 will mean different things to different Americans… but [the money] is only for taxpayers who made up to $75,000 last year and married taxpaying couples who made up to $150,000. Individuals who made between $75,000 and $87,000, and married couples who made between $150,000 and $174,000, will receive only partial rebates.” The implication is that the very hardworking middle class is being, once again, left out. When exactly did that income level become middle class? I’ve always thought I was middle class, and once again (the Federal School Lunch program gave me my first blow) I’m knocked over with a fiscal feather. I thought people who made that much money were well off and already spending a fair amount of disposable income. The average income of a single person in Austin is $42,689. The per capita income in Austin is about $24,000. Then I found this graph.
The number of Austin families making less than $50,000 a year decreased, and the numbers making over $50,000 increased in the last decade of the 20th century. And the percentage of single taxpayers or families earning between $75,000 and $100,000 was about 12.5%. The number of families earning between $150,000 and $200,000 is less than 4%. Now it’s been a long time since I sat in an economics class, but including the families making $200,000+, that is fewer than 9% of Austin families. That’s not middle class. That’s the wealthiest 10% of our society. The folks that may worry me are those who make so little money that they don’t always file taxes at all. We need to make sure folks know to file their taxes– and low income folks can file for free with Turbo Tax online. It’s accessible from any public library for free.
So what are we to do?
1. See Amy’s post on Going green with your green – we could make a huge difference if we all used our economic and tax rebates in a social and ecologically sound way, such as green initiatives. Use your rebate to purchase a Hybrid vehicle, solar panels, or a more efficient furnace, water heater or other appliance that you depend on daily. Make your money an investment that will give you a return. Double the money with the government’s incentives and rebates for “going green.” There’s a place to check off on your tax forms next year that could give you $3000 back on the purchase of a Hybrid. Your city utility may give rebates on the purchase of front loading washers, solar panels, or new toilets. Check it out.
2. Spend your check locally. Think Globally, Act Locally. Keep that money in your own community. Spend your check directly with small businesses or individuals. This will in-turn allow them to spend the money again, truly getting the cash flowing and stimulating the economy instead of increasing the coffers and profits of the big business while they lay off more workers to keep their profits growing by the right percentage year after year. Go by the Whip-In, Austin Baby and share this green love around. Let’s don’t give the money straight to Walmart. Make them work for it.
jeff & amy jones
Media, missional lifestyle, thinking green - by Jeff - February 25, 2008 - 21:28 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
Media Ministry and the Environment
I have been thinking a lot lately about “Going Green” and what I, my family and even our team can do to reduce our negative impact on the 
environment. I believe that we are to take care of what our God gives us, using it wisely, managing and maintaining it for His glory, and that includes this planet we are living on. While higher gas and electricity prices make it easier and practical to think green, I have been more and more convicted to personally be more responsible.
On the home front we are making strides in a variety of ways (you can read more about them on my blog and my wife’s blog) but now I turn towards the church building, and especially the realm the media team can impact. We have already made some good improvements such as the paper recycling, switching to LCD and other lower power devices and turning off the lights during the service (see, there is a good reason!), but how could we easily do more?
Recycling. Always and easy and good way to start. We already make sure all of our paper “trash” goes in the recycle bin, but there is still a lot that gets thrown away that can be easily recycled. Cardboard: if we start breaking down the cardboard boxes, Amy will help us get them to the recycler. Plastic: we have started collecting plastic water bottles and other recyclable plastic, we just need to start a box in the media room for easy collection. Batteries: There is a box behind the monitor console to collect used batteries in.
Reduce. Reducing the amount of materials we use saves energy and raw resources and is a good next step. In the media ministry, this might include being careful not to print “extra” copies of notes / websites / etc or even consider if you need to print that page at all?
Energy Efficiency. In the media ministry we use a lot of electricity, no question about it. We can watch our energy usage, being careful to turn off equipment that is not being used or when we leave, turning up the thermostat when we lock up and being careful about leaving doors open unnecessarily (especially since our area is air-conditioned heavily because of the equipment). Obviously we can’t turn on and off the servers all the time, but we can think thru what equipment will be needed and what will just be sitting there till next week. The A4V audio mixer comes to mind – we have left this turned on 24/7 in the past for several reasons, but we need to evaluate if it would be better to go ahead and turn it off during the week.
Just a few thoughts to ponder, I am sure there is so much more we could do if we put our minds to the task. I would love to hear your thoughts, so comment away.
missional lifestyle, the City - by Jeff - September 26, 2007 - 01:25 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
Listening to a Tim Keller teaching I was struck by an illustration he gave.
Jeremiah 29 – the captives who were carried away to Babylon wanted to remain separate, stay outside of Babylon and remain pure. The Babylonians wanted the exiles to come into the city, to assimilate, lose their cultural identity and become like the Babylonians.
But God told them thru Jeremiah that He wanted them to do the hardest thing possible. Don’t stay out and be different, don’t go in and become like them, but go deeply in and stay very different.
This is exactly what we are told in 1 Peter chapter 2. Seek the welfare of the city, pray for peace, submit to the governors, but remain different. Abstain from fleshly lust… having your conduct honorable, that God may be Glorified.
We need to follow these principle, as even Christ was our example. Loving even our enemies, serving, giving and at the same time preaching and teaching the Gospel. Loving our neighbors, pouring ourselves out for them, but also telling them they are going to hell without Christ because of their sin and God’s wrath. How can I do a better job being both prophetic and priestly?
Excellence in the Arts, missional lifestyle - by Jeff - July 31, 2007 - 15:41 Etc/GMT+5 - Be first to Comment!
Shaping your audience’s experience
POV or Point of View – the way or direction that something is seen. We often refer to POV as a camera shot or the way something is written, but have you ever considered the way you present our services effect the way people see our church, our media, and even the way people see God?
So how do we shape our audience’s experience?
Video (web/dvd): What do we show? What don’t we show? If all we show is a closeup picture of our pastor, what does the viewer know about the atmosphere or setting? How many people are there – is the room empty? Is it all fake and green screen on a soundstage?
Sunday Services: What areas of the room should have light? What areas should be dark? What should be show on the screen so you can see better? When should the media be a distraction? When should there be no media?
Website: How many times have you visited a businesses website and found out their website is nothing like their business? Maybe they look like a huge company on the web, but then when you call to talk to them you find out it is really some 18yo kid in his bedroom running this thing?
As the media team, it is our goal to accurately portray our church, our services and our God as we help distribute His Word to as many people as possible.
missional lifestyle, the City - by Jeff - July 2, 2007 - 19:57 Etc/GMT+5 - 2 Comments
My wife recently blogged about loving her city. We have been considering moving because we could use a little more space, but as we considered our options we realized we would have to move away from the city (austin) and into the suburbs to get more space (that we could afford anyway.) So what’s the problem with this?
We both have a heart for ministering to the city, and reaching the city for Christ. How can we do that if we don’t live in the city? Why the city? Well, that is where the PEOPLE live… after all, it is the people we are trying to minister to, right? There are more people per square mile in the city than in the ‘burbs.
Look at the political, social, spiritual aspects of people living in the city verse in the suburbs. Most people would agree that the urban areas tend to be more “unGodly” than the suburbs. Alternative lifestyles flourish in the city. The percentage of those who attend church is lower and the churches that many people attend tend to be un-biblical pagan churches! Yet urban dwellers tend to seek community more than those in the suburbs. They gather for arts and culture events, night clubs and coffee houses become that “third place” for the city dweller. They spend less time in their cars and more time being social. The city needs more people who love Jesus to be apart of this culture of the city.
Not sure what my final point is, other than wanting to put some of my thoughts on this to paper (or pixels) – but then again, that is the point of this blog.
