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Welcome to a Virtual Community - The New Way of Doing Ministry

Since the dawn of human speech, a key function of leadership has been to speak before an audience.  This is a unidirectional form of communication.  For the most part, church websites operate on this model.  They provide information in a unidirectional format, saying “this is who we are, and if you like what you see, come join us.”  However, the introduction of the Internet and the ability to have what is called “asynchronous communication” in a multidirectional format has revolutionized the way we present the Gospel and how we engage the culture in a conversation about spiritual truth. 

By way of contrast, let me give you an example to help you "see" what I'm talking about.

Think about a typical church service from the perspective of someone who's not used to "doing church".  What happens?  You sit down. One or two people talk, some songs are sung, and then the Preacher gives a sermon.  The people in the pews listen.

That's how communication in a church works.  The "expert" talks, the "non-experts" listen.

Now, go to a website like www.myspace.com On that site, you'll find a group such as "The Christian Teens of Myspace." This group is sponsored by Witness of God Ministries, an online group of (mostly) 2,000 plus young people who share thoughts about God online.  Click on their "forum" button.  If you join the group, what happens?  You get to "talk" to them, and they talk to you.  Each of you shares your experiences about God.  No one person is the expert - the group becomes the expert.

Myspace is a great example of how Secular Culture gets this big time.

Just as the Iron Age introduced a new challenge to God’s people in the days of King David, the advent of the Internet presents us with the modern equivalent of the Iron Age.

Finding Community: Creating Connections in the Frontier of Online Ministry

is about a different way of viewing how we use the internet to facilitate ministry.

This is not about high tech gizmos and gadgets.  Rather, it is how we organize people to use the power of the Internet to reach people for Christ through this medium.  If you are in a position of leadership at your church – a pastor, an elder, a key ministry staff person – don't say “Oh, our church webmaster should read this!”   No.  This is for you – the man or woman whom God has called to help shape a vision for how your ministry uses the Internet to attract, disciple and train people for Christ.  It is NOT about how to revolutionize or “jazz up” your website.

The Four Precepts of Finding Community: In the pages of this e-book, I will argue that what is needed is a new strategy which leverages the power of the Internet.  I believe the key to that strategy can be found in the following four precepts: 1. Church leaders are committed to a “Sage on the Stage” model that views the communication of spiritual truths as unidirectional – I talk, you listen.  This strategy is embodied in the vast majority of church websites.  Our practice is to preach – not facilitate a discussion about - the Gospel. 2. Church leaders will never be able to truly harness the power of the Internet unless they are willing to empower spiritually appraised individuals in the use websites to initiate multi-directional communications strategies as a way to discuss and act upon spiritual truth. 3. Church leaders should help identify and train these individuals in how to use Internet technology to facilitate online learning through a Socratic-style process of group learning in Virtual, Online Communities. While it may be the case that members of these communities will meet face to face, this is not required. 4.  Many churches promote small group ministries led by lay members.  Finding Community takes this model and applies it to the Internet to create small groups in a virtual community setting.