The use of technology can be seen everywhere: people walking on the road using their cell phones; banks using technology to make transaction much easier and allowing consumers to spend less time in the bank; technology in the homes changing how we do things and spend time with each other and so forth, and these are just few of the ways in which technology is changing our lives.
Although many persons misused technology, or use it in a negative way, there is no doubt that technology is making our lives much easier while allowing us to do much more than we could 20-50 years ago. The use of technology in advancing the gospel of Jesus is no exemption to this as the use of technology is seen as a resource the church can, and has been using, to help us to carry out the work of the Lord in winning souls for the Kingdom of God.
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Due to the fact that technology can help us to do more in less time and help us to reach more people than we could, and also for the fact that the use of technology can enhance learning of the Word of God, I strongly believe that churches must take advantage of new technologies, and to upgrade existing technological equipment’s, to equip members, and to gain new members in the church.
For this reason, I have come up with 5 ways on how we can start using technology in the church.
The Use Of Technology In The Church Today
- Post sermons and videos on Social Media Networks and YouTube. Millions of people gather on Social Media such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram each today to watch videos, look at photos, to like and share stuff, and to communicate with each other, thereby creating a medium in which churches can spread the gospel through videos and other means. Gone are the days when if you miss a preaching sermon that was it for you, there was no more opportunity for you to see it again. Today, almost everyone has a Social Media Profile and if they don’t, they watch videos on YouTube, this therefore create an opportunity for churches to get the gospel outside of the four walls of the church. Everyday thousands of people share and like videos on these mediums; yours could be one of them.
The church that I attend, Remnant of Jesus Christ, regularly post preaching sermons on Facebook which is watched, like, share and commented on by a lot of people. With the use of technology, churches can post preaching sermons/messages on relevant mediums like Twitter, Facebook and YouTube and have these watch and share by millions of people around the world.
People have become accustomed to watching videos on YouTube and on social media platform and so they will be more than willing to check out your video and if they like it they will either subscribe or share it or do a number of different things depending on which platform they are on. I cannot imagine what my life would be like now if I didn’t have access to messages on YouTube as these preaching or teaching sermons have really be of great help to my spiritual and personal growth.
Every church therefore should have a profile on one, or all of these platforms so that they can engage people around the world. Your videos will not only be seen by people in your community or area of influence, but it can be seen by people around the world, people you normally would not have reached without the use of your videos on Social Media and YouTube.
- Churches and or pastors can create a blog. I have seen enough websites/blogs by pastors and churches to know that having a website is a great way to spread the gospel. For example Joel Osteen each day shares devotionals for people to read and update his website with things happening in the ministry. With a webpage, churches and pastors are able to write articles that will be of great help to readers, and they can also post regular updates on activities happening in their respectful ministry.
And starting a website is not really expensive as you can start one for less than $200. After you have started your website you can have a dedicated team to regular update your website with articles, news, products, videos and so forth. You can also invite persons to post questions they have or to request prayer.
See also: 10 Statistics on how churches have been using technology
- With the use of technology such as video camera, churches are able to video their services. You would not be able to post videos of your services without the use of a video camera. You can find quality cameras with stand on Amazon for reasonable prices, for example $400.
If you want to create professional videos, you can get really good cameras from $500 upwards. If you are going to create video series for sale, I would recommend you invest in a really great camera that has good lens.
I have seen church leaders having their services on different media, and this could not have been possible without the use of a video camera.
Digital cameras are also great to have as you can take pictures of events and have them posted on your website and also on social media pages. Or just have them for viewing by members and friends.
- Technology can be used to enhance music or media ministry. Let me ask you a question, can you imagine what church would be like today without musical instruments, sound system and other equipment’s in the church? Technology has greatly enhanced how churches function in the media or musical ministry. In fact technology is what creates this ministry as without technology such as Mics, keyboards, lighting equipment’s, sound system and so forth there would be no music/media ministry.
Technology has greatly affected how churches operate in terms of music as now we have different equipment’s that can greatly enhance worship sessions and even preaching sessions. On top of this, some churches have personnel’s that creates flyers, brochures, learning materials and also handle commercials or other video aspects of the church.
- Create presentations on a Bible topic or on any topics. I was a part of a church ministry that has a projector and what would happen is that in Sunday school, persons would be able to see the lesson on the screen as the Pastor or teacher discusses the lesson. There were also times when we had special teaching sessions where someone would do a presentation on a topic of importance, for example depression, how Satan is infiltrating the different sectors in the world and so forth. These sessions were well attended and enjoyed by those who were in attendance.
Technology allows Bible Teachers to create presentations that they can be shown to the congregation and by doing so enhance the learning experience as the congregation is able to see what the person is talking about and take better notes at the same time.
Kingdom.com has a lot of technology that can be use in the church. Check them out
Which Technology Should I Use In My Church?
Now that you have seen 5 things technology can be used for in the church, you may now be wondering what equipment’s you can start using in your church. But guess what, I am sure that you have already started to use technology in your ministry, but again you could do more with the use of new technologies, right?
I am not able to tell you which technology you should be using as this will be a decision you and your team will have to make base on the need of your respective church. What may be a good fit for the church I attend may not be a good fit for your church and vice versa.
For example, Remnant of Jesus Christ is a new ministry and so special effects technologies, and techs to do commercials and video trailers will not be a good fit at this moment. What would be a good fit is projector and screen to show visuals and presentations, equipment’s for media ministry (and even this have to be limited as it is a growing ministry and so is not ready for certain equipment’s) and so forth.
To decide on what would be a good fit for your respective congregation sit down with your team and both of you come up with a technology plan. In this plan you will have to look at the present state of the church and what it needs, what the growth rate now is and what it could be in probably 2-5 years’ time. Why you have to think about the future is that if you are able to get the funds, it doesn’t make much sense you spend money on a piece of equipment you will outgrow in 1 year time as then you will have to find money to buy new equipment’s and a way to get rid of your current one.
Conclusion
I am convinced that technology is changing how we do things in the church today and we haven’t seen anything yet as I know that knew technologies will be coming on the scene that will allow us to do much more than what we are doing now.
Whatever you are going to allow or use in your ministry, it is best to seek the Lord for guidance as technology can be good and at the same time harmful to your ministry. For example having an open WIFI access in your church can be very good as it will allow persons to download songs for example at choir rehearsals as we did at a church I use to attend, or persons can quickly access videos on so forth for preaching/sermons or other forms of learning. However, this same technology can be very harmful as instead of listening to what is being preached on the pulpit, or participating in worship sessions, persons can be distracted accessing Social Media, or chatting away, or surfing the internet, this is what I have personal experience with.
What are your thoughts on the use of technology in the church today?
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