Like many little brown girls growing up on the Southside of Chicago, I was raised in the church. While my family and I didn’t go every single Sunday, we went enough for me to remember it vividly.
I recall being bored and passing the time by counting down the minutes until the service was over. Now that I’m an adult with an attention span that can withstand a lengthy sermon, I actually enjoy going to church.
The beautiful exterior of a Baptist church in my Park Slope (Brooklyn) neighborhood.
Church is no longer that boring, hours-long event I recall enduring as a child. It’s now an energetic, interactive spiritual soul fest! Thanks to technology, many places of worship are making it easier for its members to receive and partake in the ministry.
For example, gone are the days of not knowing a song and sheepishly humming along (I was guilty of that many Sundays). Now, many churches have song lyrics conveniently displayed on projector screens for the entire congregation to see and sing in unison. And, the technological advances don’t end there. In recent years, it’s not uncommon for large mega-churches to use social media and mobile technology as an extension of the service, but the education is still needed for smaller congregations.
“As we move toward a more digital age, I noticed that smaller and medium size churches just weren’t catching on and needed education on these technological solutions,” says Jason Caston, the Digital Platforms and Innovations Specialist at the Potter’s House/T.D. Jakes Ministries, and the creator of the iChurch Method.
In many cases, it’s not just the lack of education that’s hindering churches’ social media and mobile prowess, but the manpower. “There’s a lack of staff. There’s just not enough staff to work with social media, mobile, different technology, so they do what they can,” suggests Caston.
Since research suggests that we BGs and guys use micro-blogging sites like Twitter more than our counterparts, it’s not hard to understand why some of our churches are starting to embrace mobile and social media outreach. However, not all churches have been as receptive to the concept of implementing mobile technology and social media into their congregations.
“I worked with a large ministry and one of the church leaders thought that my iChurch method of implementing social media, mobile technology, online experience, etc. was trying to replace the church,” recalls Caston.
“There was a huge generational gap and disconnect because they had been doing things their way for 30-40 years. But, I had to explain that technology is there to enhance the church, expand the reach and connect with more people, not replace it.”
As most of us become even more connected to our mobile devices, coupled with our insatiable social media appetite, it’s only logical that our spirituality will reflect that cultural shift. But, let’s just hope that posting selfies from the pulpit won’t get in the way of actual preaching!
Here are four easy ways to incorporate mobile technology into your church’s program:
– Create a hashtag for your church to make it easy for followers to find all scriptures, updates, pictures and other information pertaining to your place of worship.
– To increase engagement, ask questions such as: “What’s your favorite book of the Bible?”
– Tweet stand-out scriptures from sermons.
– Download apps for daily inspiration.
Does your church utilize social media as an extension of the service? How do you use technology to enhance your spiritual life?
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