Faith & Tech Blog

In an age of technology, the General Conference has incorporated more and more technology to assist the conference. As four years pass between each General Conference, new technologies become available. What worked at the last General Conference may now be outdated and in need of new resources.

More video is the most obvious change for 2012.

A blog from GC2012.

One of the best resources for people in your church to grow spiritually can be found on your church website. Pages can be built that guide individuals to practical ways of practicing the “means of grace,” which will enhance individual spirituality, as well as the spirituality of the whole church. Wesley understood the means of grace as two categories: works of piety and works of mercy. Learn more about the “means of grace.”

Reposted from umcom.org 

Entire article is found here…

I just came back from a very relaxing week in the mountains. The weather was beautiful, the rental house was quaint (in a good way), and we had a great and restful time.
Except for one thing.
No internet access, and poor cellular service.
In 2012, it’s hard to imagine that there are still places just a few hours from Raleigh where we can get disconnected, but it happens. I couldn’t check email, received texts sporadically, and had to leave the house to drive to a local coffee shop to connect.
I learned a few things:
First, I don’t need the internet to be happy. I was surprised by how anxious I was, and how irresponsible I felt not being as accessible as I usually am. But realistically, I left a perfectly capable senior pastor in charge (just don’t tell him I said that) and a church full of active, caring lay people that could handle anything that came up.
Second, I learned that unplugging from time to time is good for me. With Elvis (my dear spouse)’s mother in poor health, we tend to stay close to our phones. We’ve created this co-dependent relationship with my communications devices. It’s good to shut them off every now and then, especially when there is the afore-mentioned very capable coverage at home and siblings to handle any parent issues.
Third, I learned that it’s okay to let the fish die. Not real fish of course, because that would be cruel, but I’ve been playing Tap Fish on the iPad. and my clown fish did not survive the first few days of vacation. Oh well. Poor virtual fish. I could hear Bill Cosby in my head: “Lamont was a good fish, happy and brave.”
Thirdly, I learned that it’s okay to quell the angst of feeling disconnected by checking every now and then. Vacations are not the time to stress ourselves out by being virtuous and weaning ourselves from our beloved tech. If that’s what we need to relax, so be it. I found a local wifi connection where the phone had a good signal, the brownies were exceptional, and I could get a proper pot of tea. That was pretty good living, as far as I’m concerned.
So with half of Facebook announcing that accounts have been suspended for Lent, maybe there’s a little grace for us. At least I’m claiming that for myself.
I’m also glad to be at home, where I know the local hotspots and can keep my virtual fish alive!

The Google Apps Learning Center at learn.googleapps.com is an
excellent resource for information about every Google application.
Some interesting topics for newer users include: an introduction for
new users, how to transition from corresponding Microsoft programs,
configuring how applications look, setting up smartphones and tablets
for use with Google Apps.

More advanced topics include: canned responses for email templates,
creating a web form and saving the data into a spreadsheet, using
Google Calendar to schedule meetings and manage attendees, video chat
for virtual meetings, and using Google+ for social media.

The Learning Center is continually updated as new services/features
are added. Watch “how to” videos that can be stopped or replayed while
following the step by step instructions.  Get answers to questions not
addressed in the documentation on forums for each service.

I came across a heart-wrenching story today, one that is spreading quickly across cyberspace. But this is much more than a report on a viral phenomena- it is a plea to save a pastor’s life.

At the heart of the story is an Iranian Christian pastor, Youcef Nadarkhani, who has been sentenced to death in Iran for becoming a Christian after having been born into a Muslim family. You can read some news articles about this at Fox News, CNN, and about the Twitter campaign to bring world-wide attention to his plight at ACLJ.org/Nadarkhani .

When asked to renounce Jesus Christ or die, Pastor Youcef replied, “I cannot”.
Let that sink in for a moment… When asked to renounce Jesus Christ or die, Pastor Youcef replied, “I cannot”.
After you say a prayer for Youcef, for his wife and 2 sons, and for a regime that would sentence someone to death for claiming Christ, go through and read about the twitter campaign and the rising call for a reversal in this judgement. I thought I was a news junkie, and yet this story escaped my attention until now. I added my voice to those who are calling out on his behalf.

I also pray for those I do not know to name. Maybe during Lent, I need to take the time each day to find the name and story of people I should name in prayer. I know a great source is “Voice of the Martyrs” at Persecution.com. This story simply reminds me- convicts me- to pray for those who have a much more difficult time as they live out the calling.

Praying for the Faithful…

I confess, I didn’t pay much attention to these when they first came out. The format looks like everything else on the umc.org website, and it just doesn’t really capture my attention–I’m an very visual person, and I need graphics and fonts and black text on a white background (but that’s another post).

I really started paying attention, and resubscribed, when the church’s children and youth ministry director pointed out something on the Facebook page.

The content is much better now, or at least better presented, and I find myself clicking through much more often. This week’s items of interest for me:

5 Ways your church can benefit from cloud computing

6 reasons churches don’t use projection in worship

Add sizzle to your church’s Facebook page

Of course, there’s also something on couples and Valentine’s Day, which doesn’t interest me, but it might someone else.

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