What is eReformation?

eReformation, is defined as an intensificaton, amplication, and re-direction of our existing eMinistry Strategies to induce a Spiritaul shift towards the Kingdom of God in the realms entreated by Electronic Media.

In plain English, eReformation is about moving to a greater dimension of Internet and Mobile Ministry.

How does this differ from eMinistry?

eMinistry is the use of Electronic Media for Ministry. eReformation deals with the mindset that there is a greater Dimension of Ministry required to win Souls for the Kingdom of God in the Territories covered by Electronic Media due to the Spiritual Warfare that will be encountered.

Notice that I used the words ‘Electronic Media’. eMinistry in my opinion for the majority of Ministries have been confined to the Church website. eReformation expands the mindset of the Ministry possibilites to another level by incorporating social Networking, Blogging and Mobile Content into our ongoing eMinistry Strategies.

The bible says, ‘be you transformed by the renewing of your mind’. eReformation requires a change or re-thinking of how we Minister in the Eletronic Age. As eMinisters, we have to embrace this change in our eMinistry Strategies.

There are three (3) areas of eMinistry where an eReformation is needed:

• Christian Blogging

• Social Networking (Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, Discussion Boards)

• Mobile Ministry (PodCasting, WAP/Cell Phone Content)

At eReformation Notes, our goal is educate and equip eMinisters for this new Dimension of Electronic Age Ministry.

eMinistry IS about Relationships

eMinistry for most Ministries, is a Church Website with some flash elements that contains Ministry information, Prayer Request, etc. and allows access to audio and video sermon archives. These items are great and I commend you if you ministry is involved with the use of of these items. But that is where eMinistry ends for at least 95% of all Ministries functioning in this Age of Information. The other 5% of eMinistries are ususally involved with some type of Social Networking such as MySpace, FaceBook, MyChurch in an attempt to build virtual communities.

Ministry is about Relationships. Our walk with Jesus Christ is ALL about our Relationship with him.

So the question I ask is this, ‘What have we as eMinisters done to foster online Relationships with not just our Christian Brothers & Sisters but more importantly non-Believers that do not know Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour?’

Jesus said in Matthew 19:10, ‘For the Son of Man came to find and restore the lost’. That is one of the main reasons that we are in Ministry: to let the lost/unsaved know about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It takes relationships with people to Minister to them.

As we continue to Minister on the Internet, we can save souls by becoming eMinisters that build relationships that will allow us to speak a word of Salvation to those looking for Jesus Christ online. Once they receive salvation, we need to continue to build our relationship with the newly saved to build the community and Kingdom of God.

When we use Internet Tools such as Facebook and MySpace, a focus can be the Christian community because Christians continually need to grow and receive a Word from the Lord. But our main focus in these areas are to build relationships with the non-believer. Some of you may ask how do we accomplish this on secular sites?

Remember, everyone at some point in time needs someone to talk to, ask questions about God, or advice. You would be surprised at the number of people looking for God online. We need to provide a place of Refuge, Healing and Deliverance in these social networking territories. And how do we do that, by remembering that Ministry is about Relationships.

The New Harvest: Cell Phone Ministry

by: eMinister

Luke 10:2 (NKJV) Then He said to them, “The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.

According to Wikipedia, in 2007 over 798 million people around the world accessed the internet or equivalent mobile internet services such as WAP and i-Mode at least occasionally using a mobile phone rather than a personal computer.

Image having a room of over 798 million people available to receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If only a small portion of these cell phone users receive the Gospel of Jesus Christ, say 5%, that would be approx. 39.9 million new believers. Talk about ministering to the masses!!

But ‘how can they hear without a preacher’?

As Ministry Leaders and Evangelist, we must begin to develop eMinistry strategies for Cell Phone Ministry. Development of Cell Phone content to educate, encourage, and minister to users about the Kingdom of God and the goodness of Jesus Christ as our Savior will be the key to a successful Cell Phone Ministry.

With today’s technology, the same content that is displayed on Church Websites, Ministry Blogs, Sermon Audio and Video can now be accessed via a Cell Phone.

Whether its via a Cell Phone that has Internet access or basic SMS text, there is a message from the Church that can be communicated.

SideNote: I use my Blackberry Curve to access the Internet when I am away from my computer. I read scripture using YouVersion and watch videos on Godtube.com. I even access my blog via my cell phone (see image above).

There are a number of tools which I will discuss in future blogs that will assist in creating Cell Phone Ministry content. Some of these tools include converting your existing website to a .mobi or Cell Phone compatible format and creating your own site specifically for Cell Phones.

There is a Harvest to be reached.

Please, please do not ignore this Harvest. As eMinisters, will be accountable for their Salvation and must make use of the eMinistry tools that God has equipped us with to Minister to this New Harvest.

5 More Reasons I Love Doing Businesss, No, Ministry, Online: from Church Communications Pro

5 More Reasons I Love Doing Businesss, No, Ministry, Online

Over on my blog design site, I just posted 5 Reasons Why I Love Doing Business Online … but after reflecting on a couple of incredible months of business online and a year of blogging here), I thought I’d give 5 More Reasons Why I Love Doing Ministry Online …

Here they are:

1. I’VE MADE SOME INCREDIBLE, AMAZING FRIENDSHIPS

I count some of my closest friends to be “virtual” friendships … all of whom I’ve never had the privilege of shaking their hands. Read more..

Online Ministry : Church Communications Pro | Church Website Design | Church Marketing.

‘eMinistry’ (A Short Definition)

Posted by the eMinister

Today, we live in a society full of acronyms and labels. Everything has a term or definition that uniquely describes and distinguishes itself from the next thing. With the expansion of the Internet and Web 2.0, a lot of non-technical terms have re-invented themselves in Cyberspace. The latest term that I have personally embraced is ‘eMinistry’.

What is eMinistry?

eMinistry, in my own terms is ‘the use of the Internet and other Electronic Media as an Evangelistic and Ministry tool with the sole purpose of interactively communicating the Gospel of Jesus Christ and expanding the Kingdom of God globally’.

According to Rev. Dr. W. Davies, ACS Technologies, ‘note in the definition of eMinistry’, the focus isn’t simply on the tools but on meeting the wide-ranging needs of the people. Too often, churches focus on the “E” that is “Electronics,” rather than on the “Ministry”.

I stand in total agreement with this definition.

When creating Web and Media Strategies for our Ministries, we must not lose sight of the fact that our main purpose is to Minister to the people and create RELATIONSHIPS. The tools are just the vehicle to reach the people. We must learn how to effectively incorporate both the tools of eMinistry and the work of the Ministry into a single entity that will go forth in the Power and Authority of the Holy Spirit and accomplish the purpose of winning Souls for the Kingdom of God and expanding the Kingdom of God globally.

The thing to remember is that eMinistry is not limited to the Internet. eMinistry involves all forms of Electronic Media that includes computers, cell phones, MP3 players, and other devices. As the church embraces the idea that these products can be used to send and receive the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, more souls will be won for the Kingdom of God.

A Vision of Internet Ministry

Check out “My Vision of Internet Ministry” by Andrew Fish, from Global OutReach Mnistries.

This video gives a good background and history of Internet Ministry. It can also be used as a great starting point for new eMinisters.

Launch & Manage a Mobile version of your Church Blog or Website

MoFuse is short for Mobile Fusion.

MoFuse gives content publishers, like bloggers, the ability to publish their content to the mobile web. You don’t have to be a content publisher to use MoFuse though, anyone can create a mobile website in just a few minutes using the intuitive MoFuse platform.

Why Mobilize Your Blog?

Have you ever seen what your blog looks like on a mobile device? It’s an unnavigable, garbled mess of text and images that nobody finds enjoyable to read. That’s one reason, and it’s probably your biggest reason for finding MoFuse. However we offer a lot more than just presenting your blog on mobile devices, here are some other reasons to mobilize with MoFuse:

Make your readers happy… People want to read your blog on the go!

Get new readers… MoFuse will help to promote your mobile blog which will increase traffic.

Get going… More and more of your readers will want your content on their mobile devices!

Ministry Use

Name one person that you know that ‘doesn’t have a cell phone’. As cell phone technology continues to develop, users want access to information via their cell phones. By providing access to your Ministry Blog or Website via a cell phone, members and visitors will have 24/7 access to your Ministry.

Check out our Mofuse site: http://ereformation.mofuse.mobi

An IPOD Generation Church

Posted by the ‘eMinister’

The following quote is a statement that should be embraced by every Ministry.

“We must recognize that this generation is no longer the generation of the 8-Track, but of the IPod. So we must provide relevant ministry that meets the needs of our congregation.” – Dr. Walker.

As Dr. Walker’s statement suggest, the church must continue to use Ministry to meet the needs of the people.

OVerall, the Church has consistently failed to keep up with the pace of Technology as a Ministry tool. As the needs of the Church changes, the strategies used in Ministry must also change. A church that uses old methods of Ministry cannot be effective in today’s society and fails to meet the needs of this generation. Some ‘church’ folks would say, “it’s not about keeping their attention; it’s about spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ”. My point exactly!! Meeting the needs of the people is Ministry which in turns nurtures their spirit for the Word of God and allows the Church to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Picture this: we have the Church standing on one river bank preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We have the people of this generation on the other river bank attempting to listen to, hear, and understand the message. But its one-way. The Church preaches, they listen.

Technology is the tool that can bridge the gap between today’s generation and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It allows the message to be two-way; interactive where the listener can become part of the message.

In the Bible, Jesus journeyed to various places of Ministry and met the people where they lived. He in a sense, carried the gospel to a place where the people could be exposed to the Truth and interact with Jesus. People want to be involved with the message.

Our Youth, Young Adults, and Older Adults have incorporated Cell Phones, the Internet, IPods, MP3 players, Video Players, E-mail, RSS Feeds, Blogs, Social Networking and other technology tools into their everyday living. As we minister to the world, we need to reach them through these present communication avenues.

This generation is looking for something more than a Sunday Morning experience. How can we, the Church, give it to them?

By embracing the devices and tools used on a daily basis by this generation and developing Ministry strategies to incorporate these devices. Making the ‘Word’ available 24 hours a day / 7 days a week will have more impact than a once a week Sunday morning experience. We live in a mobile society. Access to the Word is a crucial element in any Ministry. Being able to discuss, reply to, and interact with the Ministry is also important to this generation.

Your Ministries eStrategy should include some of the following ‘ipod’ techniques: 1) Online Audio Sermons 2) Online Video Sermons 3) PodCasting 4) RSS Feeds 5) Blogs 6) Mobi 7) Online Donations and 8) Social Networking (Twitter, MySpace, Facebook).

Each of these techniques will be address individually in future blogs.