What a great way to start this day…

*Well, it’s not really the “start” of my day. The start of my day was (per usual) wrangling two small children, bundling them in layers and layers of winter clothes, and driving them up to daycare (while singing our ABC’s at the top of our voices).

But once that was all sorted, I settled in in front of my laptop, opened my web stats site (I use GetClicky.com because it shows real time stats) and saw that I someone found Kingdom Strategist by searching Google for:

“ministry opportunities for 59 year olds”

Let it sink in for a minute… ministry opportunities for 59 year olds, how awesome is that?

I’m not talking about the fact that my blog is some what relevant to that search (but I’m glad that it is).

I’m talking about the fact that someone, somewhere is searching for that in the first place! It means that there is a (presumed) 59 year old somewhere who is feeling God’s call to ministry and they are actively looking for opportunities. That makes me smile.

It also brings a few things to mind.

First, why did they find my web site?

If you search for “ministry opportunities for 59 year olds” on Google, you’ll see that most the results are career-related, seeking to help people in this age demographic in their job search. Kingdom Strategist shows up because of one of my posts sharing my Business as Mission research. The specific article looks at the demographic make up of the Business as Mission movement and actually includes the specific phrases “59 year old“, “ministry” and “opportunity” (though not in sequence).

So, it was accidental yet not entirely erroneous that Kingdom Strategist would show up. Business as Mission is a ministry opportunity for 59 year olds. It’s also a ministry opportunity for 63 year olds, 41 year olds, 33 year olds, and 25 year olds. But of all the ministry opportunities out there, Business as Mission is better suited for people in their 50’s and 60’s because Business as Mission leverages an individual’s knowledge, experience, professional network, and net worth… so generally, the older you are, the more of these you have to draw from.

What are the ministry opportunities in Business as Mission?

This particular visitor did spend a good bit of time looking through my site, I hope I inspired some ideas for ministry opportunities. But I want to make sure that I help people to get started in Business as Mission (if that’s where God is calling them).

If you have a business background and are looking to become more involved in advancing God’s kingdom, Business as Mission might be a good fit. Here are some great resources for you to learn more about Business as Mission:

Websites:

• Business as Mission Network
• Business as Mission LinkedIn group
• YWAM Business as Mission resources
• Faith Venture Forum

Books: (affiliate links)

• “God Is at Work: Transforming People and Nations Through Business” by Ken Eldred
• “Business As Mission: A Comprehensive Guide to Theory and Practice” by Neal Johnson
• “Great Commission Companies: The Emerging Role of Business in Missions” by Steve Rundle and Tom Steffen

And of course, I recommend Kingdom Strategist for strategic and practical Business as Mission resources. I also provide Business as Mission consulting services and would be happy to work with you as you get started in Business as Mission. I specialize in market and opportunity assessment, business planning and strategy development, and Business as Mission strategic advisory.

Second, churches, ministries, and missions organizations are missing a HUGE opportunity to connect, care for, and mobilize inspired Christians.

Like it or not (pastors), studies show that search engines are the first place people turn when they need answers or advice (link opens PDF report). The Church needs to recognize this and make sure that they are represented (through search engine optimization) in the search results.

Now I know that churches, ministries, and missions organizations have a hard enough time accomplishing their core objectives, especially given the hardship that the current economic climate creates. Who has the time or the budget to learn about, set up and manage a comprehensive web effort?

That is why I am working with Monk Development to develop strategic web solutions specifically for churches and ministries that:

• are built upon years of experience, thought leadership, and proprietary research;
• that support and strengthen kingdom advancement (while discouraging the negative influence of Internet usage to spiritual growth);
• and that fit constrained budgets.

Sounds like a tall order, right? Let’s just say it hasn’t been easy… but worthwhile ventures seldom are.

If you are a part of church, ministry, or mission organization, I encourage you to check out the following resources:

Solutions:

• Monk Development (www.monkdevelopment.com)
• Ekklesia 360 (www.ekklesia360.com) – Complete web solution for churches.
• Cause 360 (www.cause360.com) – Complete web solution for non-profit organizations.
• Church Web Optimizer (www.churchweboptimizer.com) – Church Web Optimizer is a powerful combination of core services such as: Search Engine Optimization, website content strategies, local search listings, audience research, website analytics and online strategy consultation; designed specifically to help churches in advancing the Gospel.

Resources:

• Church Website Guide (www.churchwebsiteguide.com) – Church Website Guide is an initiative created by Monk Development to evaluate, study and educate churches on how best to use the Internet to further the gospel. We see it as proper stewardship as thousands of churches use our church website content management system.
• Church Tech Review (www.churchtechreview.com) – Church Technology Review is a website for churches and technology enthusiasts to find the latest technology solutions for Christians. Find out the newest Church Web 2.0 companies or read reviews of church-focused technology prior to selection.
• The State of Ministry Online (www.stateofministryonline.org) – State of Ministry Online is a collection of studies, surveys and research to benefit how ministries do ministry online.
• The State of the Church Online – (in development) – State of the Church Online is a collection of studies, surveys and research to benefit how churches can be the church online.
• Goodmanson.com (www.goodmanson.com) – Church and church technology thought leadership from Drew Goodmanson.

And, of course, if you would like to discuss any of the things I’ve talked about here, I’d love to connect with you. Feel free to leave me a comment below, letting me know a little bit about yourself and your interest and indicating the best way to get in touch with you. (This offer is open to people of all ages… not just 59 year olds.)

The devastation of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake on January 12, 2010 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti (and the 49 magnitude 4.5 or greater aftershocks) is heart-wrenching. The pictures of the damage… of the hurt and suffering experienced by the people there… of the chaos of a massive world effort to provide the basics: emergency care and medicine, food, shelter, security… are haunting. (Click the following links to see pictures from January 13th , January 18th, January 22nd, and February 1st. WARNING: the images are graphic.)

According to a Jan 19, 2010 USAID Fact Sheet, at least 65,000 people are estimated to have died. Another 200,000 people have been displaced and the total population who has been significantly affected is approximately 3 million people. The global response to this crisis has been amazing. As of February 3, 2010, $644 million has been contributed to private non-profit organizations from US citizens (source: Washington Post). This is only part of the total world effort. Organizations like the American Red Cross, World Vision, and Compassion International have mobilized their base and are just some of the organizations contributing to the on-the-ground efforts.

Despite the tremendous magnitude of these first-response efforts, the road to recovery is going to be long and difficult. The challenges facing the country prior to the earthquake were great. The country is the only country in the Western Hemisphere (North America, South, Central, and Latin Americas and the Caribbean) on the U.N.’s list of the World’s 50 least developed countries¹ (source: UN-OHRLLS). According the the CIA World Fact Sheet, 80% of the population of Haiti live below the poverty line. Additionally the country is plagued by drug trafficking and human (both forced labor and sex) trafficking.

The need in Haiti is great.

The lives of the men, women and children there were hard before January 12th. They’re even harder now. They face threats and hardships every day that we are isolated from. Things you and I can not even imagine. Hope for progress has suffered a major set back. Before people were struggling to make the most of their existence given how little they had to rely on and work with. Now what little they had has been destroyed.

As I sit and write this I don’t have to think about where my next meal is going to come from or where I’m going to sleep tonight. I do worry about the safety of my family but the threats I imagine are exactly that: imagined. Although it’s tenuous these days, I still am fairly sure the bills will get paid. I’m confident that there is work to be had.

Not only that but I live in a world where the things I need and want, the conveniences of life, are available. To get to work this morning I had a car to drive, roads to drive on, and gas to power the car. My computer is plugged into the wall, I don’t think twice about whether the lights will turn on when I flip the switch. Not only is there going to be plenty of food at the grocery store but there is a store to go to! There is food on the shelves because there is this amazing infrastructure that connects the farms from around the world to processing and packaging facilities to distribution centers to stores. And I don’t see any of it, I just trust that food will be there.

The message of the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37 ESV) is that we are to love our neighbor. Our neighbor is identified any person we meet on our path who is in need. We are to show mercy to those in need.

But what is interesting is that the Samaritan shows mercy in two phases. First he bandages his wound and brings him to shelter — he tends to his most immediate needs with compassion. But what he does next is even more amazing (the importance of this is often lost): he invests in continued care and rehabilitation.

³³But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. ³⁴He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’

See, he doesn’t bring him to the inn and drop him at the door. No, it explicitly states that the Samaritan “took care of him” at the inn. It is after this intense investment of caring for the man himself that the Samaritan make additional provision for continued care, making a down payment with the innkeeper and promising to return and pay for whatever the man needs.

How are we planning to invest in continued care for Haiti?

There are a number of ways to do this, but I want to highlight two in particular that must be a priority.

First, it is important that we build up the Church in Haiti.

Whatever your views on the spiritual history of Haiti, the people of that country are utterly and completely in need of Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord just as you and I are. And it is local churches — proclaiming the Gospel of the kingdom of God, caring for the physical and spiritual needs of the people, and coordinating and leading people to live their lives as children of God — that the love and redemption of Christ will flow through.

I want to draw your attention to Churches Helping Churches, an organization founded by James MacDonald and Mark Driscoll to “address the immediate and long-term needs of churches when disaster befalls a country, region, city, or people in the spirit of Galatians 6:10—“…let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” If you are interested in how you or our church can support local churches in Haiti, I highly recommend you check out Churches Helping Churches.

Second, it is important that we build up infrastructure in Haiti.

This means investing in the physical structures, services, and facilities necessary for the Haitian economy to develop. Recent studies have argued that foreign aid doesn’t work. At the same time, a lot of attention has been given to the role business plays in developing economies. In recent years, Christian business men and women have been leveraging the power of business in order to spread the Gospel in countries whose governments are hostile toward Christian missionaries. The global Business as Mission movement has developed as more and more people are awakening to how God can use their business talents as part of his redemptive plan.

Haiti needs Business as Mission companies now more than ever.

The need and opportunity to develop creative business solutions to many of the problems facing the people of Haiti is great. If you believe that this is a way that you can get involved I want to encourage you to do something. I wish I could point you to specific ways that you could help but I don’t know of any right now. Many organizations are rightfully focused on meeting the immediate needs in Haiti. But as the dust settles our efforts must not lose momentum.

To help spark ideas about potential business opportunities I’ve include some facts about Haiti below. These factors will help identify what opportunities for business exist  in Haiti. Obvious needs are infrastructure and construction. Additionally, the Haitian people will need resources to get back on their feet, so opportunities for micro-finance might exist. I’ve also included quality of life statistics in the hopes it might spark some ideas about opportunities to address some of the less critical issues facing the people there.

If you or your organization are serious about engaging in Business as Mission, I offer a number of services that will help you develop an appropriate Business as Mission strategy and maximize the impact of your efforts. You can contact me through my company website: http://www.unconventionalmethod.com/contact/.

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Facts about Haiti

source: originally published at The Resurgence; Data from the CIA’s World Fact Book

Location and Size

Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic (which is two-thirds of the eastern side of Hispaniola). The terrain is mostly rough and mountainous.

17,243 sq miles (slightly smaller than Maryland).

Natural resources

bauxite, copper, calcium carbonate, gold, marble, hydropower

Agriculture products

coffee, mangoes, sugarcane, rice, corn, sorghum; wood

Industries

sugar refining, flour milling, textiles, cement, light assembly based on imported parts

Labor force

agriculture: 66%
industry: 9%
services: 25% (1995)

shortage of skilled laborers, abundance of unskilled laborers
widespread unemployment and underemployment; more than two-thirds of the labor force do not have formal jobs
80% of the population is below the poverty line

Population

9,035,536

Age structure

0-14 years: 38.1% (male 1,735,917/female 1,704,383)
15-64 years: 58.5% (male 2,621,059/female 2,665,447)
65 years and over: 3.4% (male 120,040/female 188,690) (2009 est.)

Ethnic group

95% black, 5% mulatto and white

Urbanization

urban population: 47% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 4.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 52.9%
male: 54.8%
female: 51.2% (2003 est.)

Government

Type: Republic
Port-au-Prince (capitol)
Independence from French in Jan 1, 1804
Their constitution was approved March 1987

Note: Suspended June 1988 with most articles reinstated March 1989; constitutional government ousted in a military coup in September 1991, although in October 1991 military government claimed to be observing the constitution; returned to constitutional rule in October 1994; constitution, while technically in force between 2004-2006, was not enforced; returned to constitutional rule in May 2006

Infant Mortality

total: 59.69 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 37
male: 66.18 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 53.01 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)

Life Expectancy

total population: 60.78 years
country comparison to the world: 181
male: 59.13 years
female: 62.48 years (2009 est.)

Total Fertility

3.81 children born/woman (2009 est.)

HIV/AIDS-adult prevalence rate

2.2% (country comparison to the world: 28)

Living with AIDS

120,000 (2007 estimates)

HIV/AIDS deaths/year

7,200

Major Infectious Diseases

degree of risk: high food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria water contact disease: leptospirosis (2009)

Natural hazards

lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts

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1. The UN classifies countries as “least developed” based on three criteria: (1) annual gross domestic product (GDP) below $900 per capita; (2) quality of life, based on life expectancy at birth, per capita calorie intake, primary and secondary school enrollment rates, and adult literacy; and (3) economic vulnerability, based on instability of agricultural productions and exports, inadequate diversification, and economic smallness. Half or more of the population in the 50 least developed countries listed above are estimated to live at or below the absolute poverty line of U.S. $1 per day.

You may have thought I was joking when I wrote about the human/squirrel conflicts that defined the last decade. But believe me, this is serious.

News broke today that the conflict in Walnut Creek, CA has escalated to such levels that the local government has resorted to unconventional methods for annihilating the squirrel population. According to East Bay News:

There are squirrels everywhere and doing damage, but the people would rather see them plucked from the sky than be poisoned on the ground. Beth Slate is with Contra Costa County’s Agriculture Department. She says the county is luring birds to come here to help solve what some say is a crisis.

The story has even received national attention and is currently featured on the front page of CNN.com.

You’ve been warned people.

Notes:

• Unconventional Method is in no way affiliated with the development of Contra Costa County’s Agriculture Department’s squirrel “solution”… though we are responsible for helping other organizations develop some amazingly clever solutions to their biggest strategic problems.
• Honestly, when I first read that they were using “raptors” to eradicate the squirrels, I thought they were referring to velociraptors.

As part of the Excellence in Online Ministry research project, I have gotten to speak with a number of thought leaders in the area of online ministry. Recently I spoke with DJ Turner, Director of Communications for Denver Seminary and she shared with me about their challenges and success in leveraging the web to serve their broad audience. DJ provided tremendous insight into how strategically approaching your online activities can help a ministry to be excellent. Here are some highlights from our conversation:

In your experience, how does research contribute to online excellence?
I think research is very important for ministries to be excellent online. I wish I had more time for it because it’s so important. If you don’t know where your audience is, you can’t achieve excellence. Having an understanding of where audience is is very important. You also have to understand how they interact with the different sorts of things that are online and what their goals are. Say we have 900 students who are fans of our Facebook page, but only 200 want to interact with us on it; it isn’t realistic for us to push the other 700 of them to engage more online. In this way, the understanding we develop through research helps us to set realistic goals.

What about the use of analytics?
Where research helps us establish our goals, analytics helps us to determine how we are doing in achieving those goals. In addition, there is research that comes from analytics. If our analytics shows that we have 50 hits a month from South Africa, that tells us maybe there is something going on there we need to pay attention to.

What other factors contribute to excellence?
This may fall under research, but you have to have an awareness of what your peers are doing. Not for comparison, but so you can gauge and have the opportunity to dialog with them and explore other things and stretch your horizons. There are a lot things that can be learned from that.

If we’re continually sharpening each other… but not for comparison, balanced by knowledge of who your audience is and what your mission is – I think that can contribute a great deal to being excellent.

I also think that learning an important part of excellence. If you’re not aware of what’s developing, you’ll find that you’re left behind because your audience will have moved on. Research is not something you do one time, but has to be an ongoing process. Being able to learn and grow and understand and be aware of what’s going on is important so that our priorities shift appropriately.

Online excellence is a process, not something you achieve in a one-time “oh we’ve arrived” sort of thing.

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You can read more of the interview with DJ Turner of Denver Seminary on the State of Ministry Online website.

You can learn more about Denver Seminary and the great work they are doing advancing the kingdom here.

And you should definitely check out DJ Turner, she’s doing great things in online ministry. Find her on Twitter here.

In order to be effective, good strategy must be simple.

Simple to understand.

Simple to communicate.

Simple to execute.

As strategists, our job is to achieve simplicity while not sacrificing the quality in our content or purpose. We are the ones who lead people to the simplicity that exists on the far side of complexity.

Today’s Management Tip of the Day from the Harvard Business Review presents three C’s to help you and your organization eliminate complexity and achieve simplicity:

1. Collaboration. Silos are the enemy of simplicity. Work across the organization to identify where the complexity is and together improve the way business is done.
2. Coordination. Smooth coordination is critical to finding simple solutions to the problems you’re trying to solve.
3. Communication. Once you’ve gotten rid of complexity, you can be sure it will try to find its way back in. Open and regular communication will allow you to identify it before it takes hold.

One thing they point out is that simple doesn’t necessarily mean easy. Our goal as kingdom strategists is to find creative and effective ways to share Christ and advance the kingdom. It is our duty to remove as much friction from the process as possible because we do not want to create any unnecessary obstacles for the people we are serving. We have an obligation make whatever we do as simple as possible, even it doing so makes our situation harder.

You can read the full article here.

Image: http://lawsofsimplicity.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/06/switch_lg.jpg

Gabe Taviano, founder of DigitalDisciples.net and all around good dude, recently posted a few things about his struggles with leadership. I can appreciate where he’s coming from and recommend you check him out. His posts (here and here) have agitated something that’s been brewing inside of me for awhile and instead of hijacking his blog, I thought I’d address it here.

Why Leadership is Not the Same as Kingdom Influence

I personally have never been comfortable when people (especially Christians) emphasize leadership and focus on the discipline of leadership.

To me, when you focus on leadership outside of the context of whatever it is you and your group is trying to achieve, the actual leadership becomes empty. Leadership is only valuable in so much as it is exists within a greater context.

So when I hear “Christian leaders” going on and on about “leading leaders” I often wonder what exactly are they leading them in? Sitting around and talking about leadership? Woo hoo (eye roll).

It seems to me like we become so enamored with becoming leaders that we lose sight of who we really are. Followers. Followers of Jesus Christ.

If you want to be a great leader then I say forget about leadership. Leadership is a byproduct. Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that leadership is a skill set and a necessary component to creating change. But it shouldn’t be exalted over all the other skills that are needed to create something. If you want to be a great leader you need to focus primarily on what you are trying to achieve.

This is especially critical for Christians because what we are trying to achieve is the Kingdom of God. And the Kingdom of God is supremely important. There is nothing greater!

The things that are important in the Kingdom of God is loving and glorifying God. | Seeking him through Jesus Christ as both Lord and Savior.| Dying to ourselves and to this world so that we can live in Christ!| Loving our neighbor as ourselves.| Living in and loving a community of believers.| Being the church!| Feeding the poor!| Caring for the widows and orphans!| Clothing the naked!| Healing the sick!| Making disciples of all the nations!| Driving out demons and fighting to evil forces of this world!| Raising the dead!| Singing with great joy and reckless abandon the praises of our God who lives! These are what are important. Leadership is just a byproduct.

Leadership will happen when we do four things:

1. Start from a place of love;
2. Focus on what we are trying to achieve;
3. Help those around us work together to achieve it; and,
4. Help people work through the change that is happening.

Oh and #5. Don’t worry who takes the role of leader; it might not be you and that’s okay.

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Image: http://www.activeminds.org/storage/activeminds/images/leadership_penguines.jpg

Update: The project has officially been named the Excellence in Online Ministry project. You can follow the progress of the research at the State of Ministry Online website. The results will be presented later this year at the Christian Leadership Alliance’s Ministry Internet and Technology Summit and later at the NRB’s Advanced Research Symposium.

If you are part of a ministry I encourage you to participate in our research by taking the following survey. Click here to launch the “Excellence in Online Ministry” Ministry Leader Survey.

Thanks, Kevin

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Earlier this year I had a number of conversations with Drew Goodmanson of Monk Development about how the Internet is changing the face of the church and ministry. Through our discussions it became apparent that we both recognize the power of the Internet to advance the Kingdom of God. But we also both believe that Christians need to develop strategic approaches for doing so and not get caught up in the ways that the rest of the world is engaging online.

As we discussed different ways to collaborate and help churches and ministries develop web strategies I got an idea that wouldn’t go away. “What if there was a model for ministries engaging online that took exception to the givens of worldly-wisdom? What would that look like?” The answer that I kept coming back to was:

Kingdom Excellence

It was like that thought popped into my head and suddenly by brain exploded with all these ideas about what Kingdom Excellence is, why it’s important, what it looks like, how to define it, how to assess performance against it… It became very clear (in my mind). But unfortunately (or fortunately), by it’s very nature, a definition of Excellence can not be defined by a single point of view. Rather, it is a standard that transcends any individual’s or group’s values, experience, beliefs. So in order that this idea of Kingdom Excellence not be limited by my personal limitations and weaknesses, I have been working with Drew for the past nine or so months to turn this idea into a reality.

And so I am pleased to announce the Online Kingdom Excellence Project, a collaborative research effort to define an approach to Internet strategy and activities for ministries that is centered on Kingdom principles, based on excellence, and aimed at long-term success through Kingdom advancement and benefits to the organization and to society.

The project will consist of three (3) phases:
Phase I - Concept Development: working with leading organizations and thought leaders in the areas of ministry and Internet strategy, we will identify guiding principles, core beliefs, and a strategic framework for evaluating online excellence. We will approach excellence from many different angles including theology, practical experience, best practices, intuition and insight, previous research to identify what constitutes Online Kingdom Excellence.

Phase II - Ministry Evaluation: based on the framework developed in Phase I, we will utilize a variety of research and analytic methodologies to evaluate a broad sample of ministries. We will look at the perceptions, practices and performance of these organizations in order to better understand what impact Online Kingdom Excellence can have for organizations.

Phase III - Publication: in order to help advance the mission of ministries, we plan to use an opportunity available to promote and share the outcomes from this research. The primary opportunity we currently have is to present the findings at the Christian Leadership Alliances 2010 conference which will be held in San Diego, CA in April.

This project is being led by myself, Drew Goodmanson (CEO of Monk Development and cofounder/pastor of Kaleo Church) and Dave Bourgeois, PhD (Associate Professor of Information Systems, Biola University). So far we have had a tremendous response from people about this project and are in talks to collaborate and partner with a number of well respected Christian organizations and leaders. I’m excited to promote these groups as they join the project so look for further announcements.

The primary home for information about this project will be a new site: The State Of Ministry www.stateofministryonline.com. I’ll be posting throughout the project both here and there. So head on over, bookmark it, add it to your RSS reader and stay tuned as we work together to define what Online Kingdom Excellence is.

If you’re interested in more information about the project or if you are with a ministry organization and would like to participate, please email me at research@unconventionalmethod.com.

I’m a collector. I collect ideas.

I love to surround myself with ideas, insights, facts, any bit of knowledge. Because of this, I read a lot. I also buy a lot of books, though I don’t always red them. I just like to have them with me. When my wife and I got married, we combined each of our book collections, the culmination of fifty years combined between us of surrounding ourselves with books. We then packed all those books into boxes to move them across the country.

There were over 35 boxes.

I’ve discovered that I love having these ideas around me because I’m a lateral thinker. I approach things from multiple angles, drawing on insight and examples from different fields and using analogous reasoning to understand a situation or to solve a problem. This is how I think, it’s how God shaped me. For this reason, I need to have a large collection of ideas to draw on for inspiration. Since I never know which thoughts might be applicable or will spark a deeper understanding, I try and expose myself to as broad a spectrum as possible.

Ever since the Gospel gripped me and my life was transformed, I have been ravenously devouring anything that will enrich my faith and expand my understanding of God and His kingdom. I collect Kingdom ideas. Needless to say, my collection of books on Christian thought is overflowing the bookshelf. So I’m pretty psyched to learn about DevotionalChristian.com which describes itself as

Encouragement for your daily walk with God, featuring all the best daily devotionals online. — Devotional Christian makes it easy to read your daily Bible devotional online. We list all the best Christian devotionals on one page to encourage you in your walk with God.

What? Devotionals from some of the greatest Christian minds ever? Get out! Like I said, I’m psyched.

And if that wasn’t enough, they are graciously offering a chance to win 22 top devotional books.

What? Free books? Twenty two books chocked full of Kingdom ideas? Shut up!

Did I mention that I am psyched?

I had the thought the other day that as we endeavor to grow, to learn about our faith and explore the mysteries of our relationship with Jesus Christ, we often become isolated from those who have not or do not study the issues of Christianity as much as we do. Everything from the complexity with which we explore issues to the language that we use separates us from others.

In light of this, I’ve spent a lot of time trying to distill the essence of a life of Christian faith and service in such a way that despite any situation I can know if I am appropriately oriented towards others the way that Christ calls me to. How to express how I am suppose to serve others?
Note: Jesus already answered this when he was asked which was the greatest commandment:

³⁶“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” ³⁷Jesus replied: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ ³⁸This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ⁴⁰All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” –Matthew 22:36-39

What I keep coming back to is:

BE JESUS TO ME

This approach is simple, yet the power and truth in that phrase is amazing.

I am broken. I need a Redeemer. I need Jesus. You are the Body of Christ.

BE JESUS TO ME

On Monday, Molly Piper (who I met at the Christian Web Conference earlier this year) posted a powerful story of how a friend was Jesus to them through the simple act of reading a book before he gave it to them.

It’s not my story to tell so you should definitely read Molly’s post here.

What you see is that this gentleman willingly took on their pain, did not shy away from the unknown, did not avoid their suffering. Because he loves them.

This was no quick-fix, at-arms-length gift from someone who didn’t know how to handle someone like me. He had decided very consciously to enter into our pain, into our hell, even just for 184 pages. But that decision meant more to me than almost anything. It was a decision to love.

You see the power and love in this man’s gesture. Now imagine the love that must have driven Jesus to endure infinitely greater suffering, suffering that was not His to bear. What love must it be that He willingly sacrificed Himself, was tortured and died nailed to a tree — our suffering, our pain.

Do you know that Jesus Christ, God Himself, loves you so much that he entered into your pain, into your hell, and not just for 184 pages but to the extent that He was completely separated from God, so that you might live? Do you know this? Who do you know who needs to know this? To experience this love? Be Jesus to them.

The world is broken.

The world needs Jesus.

We ARE the Body of Christ.

Be Jesus to me.

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Facebook is popular.

Seems rather inane to state it like that, but a lot of people don’t know what to make of Facebook. Some don’t even know what Facebook is. Facebook’s incredible growth over the past year has far reaching implications not only for how people spend time online, but also how people interact in their daily lives. And this, in turn, affects the way we as the church operate. So the question is: how does a church make heads or tails of this bellwether of social media?

Since this article is long (1860 words, at last count), let me tell you where I’m going to go with this.

• First, we’ll try to understand the magnitude of growth that Facebook is experiencing.
• Then we’ll look at the factors that have contributed to this growth.
• I’ll present an interpretation of why Facebook is popular that should change the way churches approach it.
• We’ll conclude with a discussion of major implications for churches and their social media strategy.

So, just how popular is Facebook?

The facts:

• According to comScore data, Facebook reached 200 million unique visitors in November of 2008, reflecting a staggering 116 percent growth over the previous year.  Now 20 percent of everyone on the internet uses Facebook. That’s one out of every five people. (Table source: VentureBeat)

• Facebook is a world wide phenomenon. Here are some facts about Facebook’s global reach:
  • Number of active users : 175 million
  • Percent of Non-English users : 40%
  • Percent of Non-US population : 70%
  • Available number of languages : 43

• Facebook is no longer just for college students. Here’s a look at it’s growth across age groups (Source: Neilsen):

• Though 55 percent of Facebook’s users are under the age of 25, it is seeing the largest growth among people ages 18 to 49.

CNN Money puts Facebook’s size into perspective this way:

If Facebook were a country, it would have a population nearly as large as Brazil’s. It even edges out the U.S. television audience for Super Bowl XLIII, which drew a record-setting 152 million eyeballs.

In this era of online churches, is it too much of a leap to start sending missionaries to serve online?

But what is even more significant to churches is the increase in time people are spending on Facebook.

According to Compete , US residents spent more time last year on Facebook than any other website. According to Neilsen between December 2007 and December 2008, the total amount of time spent:

• online (globally) increased by 18 percent;
• on ‘Member Community’ sites increased by 63 percent;
• on Facebook increased by 566 percent (!!!!!).

More than 3 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day. It also has the highest average time per person (three hours 10 minutes) amongst the most popular online brands. Not only is Facebook reaching more people but it is consuming more and more of their attention.

So what?

Well, there are two ways to respond to the Facebook phenomenon.

1. Me-Too-ism -or- The Relevance Trap

You may be thinking to yourself, “I don’t understand Facebook, but it’s clear that it isn’t going away so it’s something that our church has to do.”

Given that approximately 61 percent of Protestant Senior Pastors are from the Baby Boomer generation (source: Barna research), the increased popularity of Facebook among their age group may make venturing on to the site less daunting. And so someone from the church staff or  congregation volunteers to set up a “fan” page for the church. Local members begin to sign up, proudly displaying their affiliation. Maybe someone posts some pictures or starts a discussion about a sermon. And VIOLA!! your church has a Facebook strategy!

But what’s the benefit?

Increased awareness of your ministry? Yes. A reputation for being tech-savvy? Sure. Enhanced spiritual growth or gospel-centered community living among the body? It is possible. Enhanced teaching/missions/service/pastoral care/worship/evangelism? What about looking after orphans and widows in their distress? And how helping your members keep themselves from being polluted by the world? How do you do that when you’re giving them a tacit endorsement of Facebook and by extenstion MySpace (gasp!) by having an official church page?

The problem is that developing a social media strategy this way is reactionary and is not start with a true understanding of Facebook and why people are attracted to it. Nor does it incorporate ministry goals or define web-relational models and strategies that are appropriate for Facebook. You are so busy getting on Facebook that you’ve never stopped to ask whether or not doing so advances the mission of the church.

This does not mean you can’t have success without a strategy. Like Woody Allen says, “Eighty percent of success is showing up.” Churches can not address the Facebook phenomenon without being on Facebook. And good things are happening as a result. There a many stories of life transformation, online conversions, deepening of relationships with Christ, and increased proclamation of the Gospel that are occurring online through tools like Facebook. The value of these can not be diminished. But the truth is that these are the exception, not the rule.

For your consideration: the percentage of the 50 million active Facebook users in the US that express personal interest or affiliation to the follow is disappointingly small (Source: Unconventional Method):

• The Bible – 2.81%
• Christian – 0.77%
• God – 0.69%
• Church – 0.57%
• Love – 0.45%
• Jesus – 0.19%
• Worship – 0.16%
• Theology – 0.10%
• Missions – 0.07%
• Social Justice – 0.05%
• Praying – 0.04%

Compare that to these other popular interests:

• Barack Obama – 6.38%
• Harry Potter – 3.39%
• Football – 2.20%
• Sleeping – 2.13%
• Gym – 2.08%
• Beer – 1.50%
• Food – 1.49%
• Breathing – 0.21%
• Sex – 0.14%

There are more people in the US who are willing to publicly promote on Facebook their affinity for “breathing” than those who would for “Jesus”. Despite our best efforts, the majority of the Body of Christ is not living out their life for Christ on Facebook. (Disclaimer: I too am guilty of this. My personal Facebook profile only mentions that I am a Christian. Though I am a “fan” of Tim Keller, so that’s got to count for something.)

I believe that we, as the church, can and should do more. I believe that the global Body of Christ has the responsibility to engage Facebook (and other realms of social media) as ambassadors of Christ. I believe  it is the responsibility of churches not only to participate in Facebook (and/or) other social media, but to understand what need individuals are having filled at such sites and be able to minister to those very needs with the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Which brings me to the second approach to Facebook.

2. Understand and Employ

Why is Facebook so popular? From a functionality perspective, Neilsen identifies the following factors that have contributed to Facebook’s rapid growth:

• Design – it has an organized, simple and easy-to-use interface which appeals to a broader audience;
• Broad appeal – Facebook isn’t targeted towards a specific demographic;
• Activity Focus –  it is focused on connecting as opposed to entertaining;
• Architecture – it combines inventive features and open architecture;
• Privacy – it offers high levels of control over who sees content;

Facebook’s creator, Mark Zuckerberg’s vision for Facebook is for it to become the main place people live their digital lives. The strategy for achieving this has three components:

• Facebook as the main tool people use to communicate.
• Facebook as the central place for coordination and digital interaction (event organizing, media storage, entertainment and games, job postings and other classifieds, etc.).
• Facebook as the primary mode of personal identification across the web (Facebook Connect).

Neilsen has measured which aspects of Facebook people mention when writing about the network.

As you can see “Friends” and “Profile” received the most mentions while other features d0 not receive as much attention. At it’s very core, Facebook is designed to facilitate interpersonal connections (friends) and online expression of self (profile). And it does so in a way that is accomodating to the preferences of the greatest number of people (simple design, customizable control, variety of features).

When you look at it like that, Facebook isn’t that different from the church. Fundamentally, the church exists to facilitate connections (with God and with others) and to facilitate expression of self (living life centered in Christ).

The difference is that with Facebook, there is very little accountability other than the self-policing that occurs within any group. There are no standards or requirements for participation. There is no commitment involved. There is nothing to promote progress or personal movement. There is no greater theme connecting it all together. It’s just people existing and interacting with others, just at a magnitude far greater than what is possible in real life. But unlike the church, Facebook itself has no meaning.

I was speaking with Tony Ferraro the other day and he believes there is a deeper, more spiritual reason Facebook is so popular. He said that because we are built in God’s image and He exists in relationship, we are compelled to live in relationship. Facebook has simply (and unknowingly) tapped into man’s need to be deeply known.

I think there is great wisdom in that. Sure, you can make the argument that the benefit of social media is how it facilitates interaction, engagement and participation among an audience. But deep down, at the root of the issue is our human need to be known. And in the absence of Jesus Christ, nothing (even Facebook) will meet that need.

So the question the church must ask itself is: are you engaging Facebook for your own good or for the good of others?

Don’t get me wrong, a social media strategy is a great way to address many of the growth, marketing, and financial challenges facing churches today. According to social media marketers, the top benefits of a social media strategy are (Source: Social Media Marketing Industry Report):

• generating exposure for the organization (81%)
• increasing traffic and growing lists (61%)
• forming new business partnerships (56%)
• increasing search rankings (52%)
• generating qualified leads (48%)
• reducing marketing expenses (45%)
• closing business (35%)

So how do we add “introducing people to Jesus Christ” to the top of that list?

Despite the plethora of research out there about the Facebook phenomenon, ministry groups are only in the early stages of adapting their traditional evangelistic and ministry models to work within this context.

How can we promote activities on Facebook that we believe are central to being Christian and being the church? How do we lead others to use their self-expression and connection with others on Facebook to glorify God and serve His Kingdom?

Unconventional Method is embarking on a project that seeks to answer these questions. We seek forward-thinking churches who would like to participate in a study that examines the effectiveness of social media. We would love to work with your church (leadership, members, and community) in our efforts. In the next few months, we will be distributing an online survey that explores these issues in depth and seeking participants.

If you would like to participate, please email us at research@unconventionalmethod.com. Also, I’d love to hear your comments on how your church is approaching Facebook and what you believe is effective.

Thank you for reading.