Could more change be in store for Christian media in 2012?

Here are six trends that take a look at:

Where we are. Where we might be going. And why it’s important.

Looking ahead is always a fun tradition.

In 2012 Christian Media 2.0 will:

1. Embrace transformative technologies

It is just over three years since LifeChurch.tv launched YouVersion in the iTunes App store, transforming the way people access and engage with the Bible online. The free Bible App is downloaded every 1.1 seconds. The YouVersion community has spent 7 billion minutes engaging in Scripture with the Bible App.

From here almost everything related to reaching the world with the gospel will be amplified through digital media and social technologies. The continued growth in digital missions will create a divide. At one end will be those who see technology as a cornerstone to 21st century mission. At the other end will be those who see it as a tool for doing things, mostly inside, and not in ways that transform lives outside, missing unique evangelistic opportunities.

2. Innovate to survive

New knowledge and technology is driving forces of change in religious broadcasting and Christian music and publishing at an unprecedented rate.

Look for an increase in those unable to adapt to the monumental shifts in technology and consumer behavior. At the same time, look for an increase in those willing to break the rules and seize opportunities created by the shifts. Expect to see more losses, more wins, and a big edge to those willing to serve their constituencies by innovating “fast.”

3. Collaborate to thrive

The good news: Ministries have realized they can own the media channel and engage with their target audiences rather than leasing space on other media channels.

The bad news: Ministries have realized they can own the media channel and engage with their target audiences rather than leasing space on other media channels.

Independently operated church and ministry media channels are being filled with rich content that provides personal, meaningful, spiritual experiences. That’s positive. This strategy increases competition for audience and resources between local media organizations. That’s not so good.

The strength of Christian Media has always been in partnerships between ministries and local broadcasters.

Ministry impact will be multiplied by partnerships designed to accelerate promotion of digital content and the ministries creating it. Traditional media companies will create digital networks and channels. They will focus on forming mutually beneficial relationships with national and local publishers through creative content arrangements.

4. Build a bridge to the future with livestream

Content creation is exploding and live streaming is an emerging viable platform. The Super Bowl will be streamed live online by NBC for the first time ever. Apple is moving ahead with plans to build its own television in 2012 that would feature wireless streaming to access content. With these elements coming together, there are fewer reasons not to take advantage of distributing Christian media in a live stream.

I am taking a risk with this one by saying, audiences for Christian content will want high-quality live streaming to any screen.  The gospel is preached in live settings. Providing the Word via live streaming playback extends that engagement to new audiences and will not (or should not) be excluded from the media mix. That’s more opinion than prediction.

5. Curate and aggregate to promote biblical fidelity

There is an ocean of “spiritual” content online but too much of it has little value to the seeker. Some of it is harmful.

We will see more curators and aggregators assembling content from teachers, preachers and the next generation of storytellers. Seekers will be directed to the most useful, theologically sound content in missional efforts to make sure no one is left behind.

6. Renew mandate to establish global witness of Christ through media

2012 is going to be a good year for those who use media to help seekers find their place in God’s Story.

It is being called the 2012 phenomenon. Some suggest that Earth and its inhabitants may undergo a positive physical or spiritual transformation on December 21,2012. Others believe that date signals a cataclysmic event or the end of the world. Many, especially in secular media will ridicule, scoff at, and parody the prophecies.

Spiritual discussions will be popping up everywhere in 2012, an opportunity not to be missed by the Christian Media 2.0 community. They will rise to the occasion in unity and work long and hard to make sure the whole world hears…

No one knows about that day or hour but God, and He loved the world so much that He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

It was Oswald Chambers that said, “Simplicity is the secret of seeing things clearly.”

For saints that means the capacity to see things the way God sees them and to respond according to His principles.

The problem is, we often try to think our way through spiritual things.

In spiritual matters, Chambers says we will just “think ourselves into cotton wool.”

Have you ever experienced that?

Sometimes a difficult situation or even the smallest thing can throw us off track. Instead of viewing the circumstances from God’s perspective, we often try to reason our way through it.

Spiritual muddle

When we expend energies not under the direction of the Spirit, our peace is replaced by stress and anxiety. We can think ourselves into a spiritual muddle.

That happened to me while working on a big technology project. I was eager to wrap up a particularly important detail and was doing everything I could to make it happen. The reality was, I just needed to wait for some more pieces to fall into place.

Have I mentioned that waiting is not exactly a strong suit?

Seeing with the eyes of God, I would have known to “be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act.” Psalm 37:7

Instead, I churned through logic trying to think of ways to bring the matter to conclusion. That just led to frustration and eventually to a prayer…

“Lord, unwrap me from this cotton wool.”

A spiritual concern

A shift in attention was needed. That’s when an email notification caught my eye.

It was a notice from the digital missions ministry I work with indicating that a seeker had reached out to connect. I usually open those emails at another time, but was prompted to read this one right away.

It was from Rebecca, a young Australian girl who had recently recommitted her life to Christ. She had written several times during the last year asking for prayer.

This time her words struck a chord in my heart.

I feel as though my friend just keeps being mean to me and hitting me and stuff. It upsets me because even though she is my friend she won’t stop. When I tried to tell her I didn’t like it she got offended. Today she “denounced Jesus” and said she didn’t believe he was her Saviour. She never really had any faith before, but I don’t know what to do or how to act.

None of my friends are Christian and they don’t know I am. They keep swearing and acting like it doesn’t matter. I don’t like it but I feel I can’t tell them to stop because they will think I’m weird and will overrule me. I’ve thought about sitting with another group that are more Christian, but it wouldn’t be the same because I have known my friends for so long. Not being with them would just be so different. 

I was once kicked out of my group so I don’t want to leave again. I don’t want to cause any arguments or problems between my group but I don’t know what to do.

Please give me some advice on what I could do.

But I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve in his craftiness, so your minds might be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
2 Corinthians 11:3

Spiritual clarity

As I was praying for Rebecca, instantly, there was clarity. My spiritual muddle was made plain.

My own thinking and impatience had caused my stress. Rebecca was facing bullies, peer pressure, put-downs and loneliness. Not because of anything she had done, but because of her love for Jesus.

With daylight clarity, the simplicity that is in digital missions broke out into the open. The absolutely wonderful opportunity to focus on the spiritual needs of others, rather than on our own circumstances. Maybe the waiting was necessary to help me see that. God knows what’s best, even when it doesn’t make sense.

The digital tools have made online ministry simple and easy. The power and authority, the humility and simplicity – for everything in life – is in Christ.

“Lord, thank you for sending Rebecca to remind us of the simplicity of your preeminence in all situations. Be her strength and shield. Enable her, and each of us, to be a shining light of your love to those not yet your followers.”

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Almighty God, our heavenly Father,

Jesus said, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full.’

In this time, the one being called the Digital Age, we are mindful of all those who have gone out to the online mission field – a network of highways, freeways and country lanes – to declare the Good News.

We pray that You will enable Your Church online to continue using technology and media to bring people to Christ; to build them in their faith; and to connect them to Christ centered movements everywhere.

We pray for all the individuals we are seeking to reach – in 195 countries. Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, and those in the least reached, most inaccessible countries. We pray that many will hear and respond to the gospel being shared in their language online.

We pray for those in our own country, especially our youth, searching the Internet for meaning and hope. We pray many more digital pioneers will develop online outreach ministries and innovative media to help the next generation find Jesus, the only One who can fill their emptiness inside.

We thank You for the thousands of online workers already in the field and boldly ask You to increase their numbers.

We pray that You will raise up an army of prayer warriors to support the work of the Church online.

We thank you for all communication technologies, and the ones to come, that enable us to carry out the Great Commission and the Great Commandment.

We pray that better relationship building tools will be developed so that we can engage in gut-level ministry with people in all countries, anywhere, anytime.

We thank You for blessing churches, ministries, and organizations that have become leaders in using digital media for local, regional and worldwide missions.

We pray that these leaders will use their God-given platforms to experiment in new initiatives and will share their knowledge with others.

We pray that You will move across Your followers to undertake unprecedented levels of collaboration in preparation for the time when everyone on earth will be connected.

We pray that the Church will understand the significance of being the first generation in history to hold in our hands the technologies capable of giving every man, woman and child on earth multiple opportunities to come to Jesus.

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord. Psalm 22:27

We pray for Big Faith, seeking You to do the impossible through the Church online in 2012.

As we celebrate this most holy season of Christmas online, we pray that “The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the Lord will praise him—may your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.”

We ask all these things in the name of Your Son, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

It was a headline with all the right stuff. Need for Online Missionaries Rises as Web Outreach Booms.

A passion for the Great Commission.

The sizzle of global media.

An urgent need.

The article was a call to make believers aware of the astounding number of people searching for God online, 80 to 90 percent outside the U.S.

Through the power of Internet technology, search-engine optimization techniques, and chiefly, the working of the Holy Spirit, online spiritual seekers are flocking to the ‘electronic’ front door of the church in unprecedented numbers.

Who will answer the call?

25 reasons to help you consider getting involved in online missions

1. Two million people are going online every day to seek help with spiritual issues like loneliness, addictions, suicide, abuse, divorce, hopelessness. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” (Matthew 9:37)

2. God has created a network to reach these searching hearts that are saying, “Please tell me about Jesus.” The Apostle Paul said, “By all possible means (the Internet) I might save some.” (1 Corinthians 9:22)

3. Technology has made it possible to travel anywhere in the world without ever leaving home, even to the 64 countries, or about one-third of all nations, with “high or very high restrictions on religion.” (2009 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life) “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” (Mark 16:15)

4. You have a love for the lost and have always wanted to become more active in personal evangelism.

5. You don’t have to leave your job, take a vacation, go to seminary or raise thousands of dollars to share the Bible, pray, or conduct personal ministry with real people.

6. Any Christian using the Internet can do it — students, teachers, stay at home moms, pastors, business executives, farmers, doctors, soldiers.

7. Training is not difficult and can be done online from home on your own schedule.

8. You don’t have to know who is open to the gospel. Discipleship websites such as LookToJesus and iChristianLife.com and mobile sites share the basics of Christian growth, in multiple languages and then these new believers and seekers come to you ready to take the next step or with questions.

9. The ministry is personal and can go “very deep,” as evidenced by these actual responses:

• “How can I know that God loves us?” M., Philippines
• “I need Jesus so desperately. Indian hemp has taken over my life and I don’t know what to do. I believe it is only God that can rescue me from this bondage. I hope to hear some advice from you.” E., Nigeria

10. You don’t have to be quick on your feet or an expert in evangelism. You will have access to outstanding resources to help you respond like 226,018 Bible Questions Answered! and Search the Bible.

11. You will guide new believers into doing online Bible studies individually or encourage them to join a weekly online small group Bible study. When possible you will get them connected to other Christians and local churches.

12. You will have the privilege of praying for those who are struggling and others who haven’t yet learned how to pray.

13. In your lifetime you would never be able to physically impact the amount of people you can reach online. (submitted by Amanda Sims from LifeChurch.tv)

14. You will join a community of workers doing online ministry from all over the U.S. and world…exchange online evangelism techniques, share stories of God at work and pray for one another.

15. You will be encouraged by personal testimonies from fellow online workers:

• “We see bits and pieces of struggles that people are going through and then think, “Wow this is who God is entrusting to me.” It has really helped me to see a bigger picture in life and do more in other ministries also.” Fred
• “I really feel so blessed to have this tool every day. What could I do that’s more important than this? And I do it while eating raspberries in the comfort of my kitchen while a load of laundry is drying. Amazing, so amazing.” Margaret

16. It’s a way to balance out recreational uses of technology with redemptive ones.

17. It’s safe! No one sees your e-mail address and no one can send you spam. It only takes a few minutes a day to respond to an email inquiry.

18. It’s one of the most cost effective evangelism approaches ever developed. It will enable you to help churches that have been forced to reduce giving to missions and missionaries due to the current economic crisis. (See the Barna Group report.)

19. You will deepen your own understanding of foundational truths and strengthen your confidence for talking about your faith with others.

20. The world is increasingly online and you believe the future of ministry must include some form of digital missions to stay relevant.

21. You could be the catalyst for getting an online missions program started in your church.

22. Your pulse quickens at the idea of partnering with media ministries using cutting-edge technology to share the gospel worldwide through video, text, and mobile phones, in multiple languages.

23. It concerns you to know that if Christians aren’t online to answer the questions of spiritual seekers and to tell them about Jesus, they are vulnerable to false teachings and other destructive forces.

24. The digital “Roman road” has been built and will soon connect everyone on earth, making it conceivable that you are in the generation that will complete the Great Commission.

25. The Matthew 28 mandate, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,” doesn’t leave anyone out.

All nations must certainly include the nations and people that can be reached online.

Internet evangelism doesn’t replace other methods of sharing the gospel. But, let me assure you of four things as you pray and consider online missions. (1) If you have a heart for the Lord and use the Internet, you can be an online missionary. (2) You will touch real lives. (3) The Spirit will help you respond. (4) God will bless you.

Question: How are you using the Internet for ministry?

This is the story of how God gave one man a vision for partnering with local churches to make Internet Evangelism a core ministry option.

A longtime resident of Houston, TX, businessman Ed Thomas was invited by a friend to attend a workshop in Dallas to learn more about Internet evangelism and Global Media Outreach (GMO). According to Thomas, his ministry plate was full, but he went along to support his friend.

At the event, Thomas learned that in 2009, 125,000 people a day visited GMO’s 100+ websites. Of that number, 20,000 made decisions for Christ. About 4,000 asked for follow-up. And since its inception in 2004, GMO had been tripling in size every year.

“Those numbers, occurring day in and day out, made the tool the best I had seen since the ‘JESUS’ film,” marveled Thomas.

Partnership of stewardship

Thomas uses two filters to determine if he should get personally involved in a new ministry work. The first filter, leverage, represents maximum utilization of resources for the kingdom. The second, legacy, represents maximum return from those resources.

“I had never seen anything like the leverage and legacy that GMO was experiencing,” said Thomas. “I knew that God was putting it on my heart to get involved. God found a way to put sideboards on my plate.”

To minister to the number of seekers responding to the outreach, Thomas concluded more online missionaries were needed in the digital mission field. He believed the solution was to partner with the local church.

I am certain that GMO is a tool to be used for the local church.

“I had never seen a paradigm like this,” Thomas exclaimed. “We’ve all been trained in the Evangelism Explosion, The Four Spiritual Laws, The Roman Road or whatever evangelism track is preferred. We’ve always knocked on other people’s doors to see if we could tell them about Jesus.”

Thomas said church leaders needed to understand that online seekers are literally knocking on the door of churches wanting to be told about God. “ I want to them to know this has never happened before in the history of the Church,” he said.

Partnership of faith

At the end of May 2009, Thomas scheduled meetings with pastors and business people in Houston to tell the GMO story. GMO Founder and Chairman Walt Wilson joined Thomas to talk about what God was doing through online evangelism.

“We had nearly a hundred leaders fill out comment cards when we were done,” Thomas explained, “and 100% of those in attendance wanted to help in some way. I wasn’t used to seeing immediate commitment like that. That was a large confirmation by God.”

A pastor in his 70’s involved with a church heavily engaged in evangelism said, “This is the cutting-edge of evangelism. This tool is God’s gift to the body of Christ.”

The ball was rolling. Thomas next asked God to bring the people forward needed to operate GMO Houston. One of the attendees at the early meetings was Cindy Brannon, a former executive with Compaq Computers who had been involved in building a large team there.

Brannon felt like God had called her to volunteer with GMO a couple days a week. “I never thought it would be full-time,” she said. “God committed me really quickly.”

Partnership of creativity

Churches have adapted the tool to ministry programs in creative ways.

One church uses it in their school. Another uses it for discipleship training. GMO’s tool is one of the steps people go through to learn how to share their faith. And it’s a step toward church members becoming an online missionary.

Today, God has increased the number of church partnerships and online missionaries allowing GMO to triple the number of people visiting its websites to over 350-400,000 daily. In 2010, almost 15 million people indicated a decision for Christ.

This is a brand new paradigm. God has given the local church a tool to help complete the Great Commission. Ed Thomas

Partnership of prayer

Prayer is an integral part of GMO’s work with churches. God has put it on the heart of Colin Millar, a prayer strategist in Houston, to be the CPO – Chief Prayer Officer – of GMO. ”We have to start talking with God about how He’s going to get even more churches involved globally,” Millar believes.

When asked what has created the most momentum for the church strategy, Brannon doesn’t hesitate, “Honestly, prayer!”

“We have to be in the throne room on a regular basis asking God to overcome obstacles through His power,” added Thomas.