THE BEST OF CHURCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA 2019

Can you believe the last week of 2019 is here already? Time really does fly like a jet plane! As the year draws rapidly to a close, it’s time to take a look back at this year’s best and most impactful developments in #churchtech, faith, and social media.

To celebrate this amazing year, I’m happy to share my favorite picks for the ‘Best of 2019,’ in Church, Tech and Social Media news, events, and trends!

3 Best Bible Apps for Maximum Personal Growth – churchtechtoday.com

5 Biggest Online Churches – Capterra

6 Social Media Predictions for 2020 [Infographic] – SocialMedia Today

10 Reasons to be Optimistic About Churches in 2019 – LifeWay Facts & Trends

2019 Podcast Stats & Facts – Podcast Insights

Apple Publishes Listing of Most Popular Apps for 2019 – SocialMedia Today

Church Juice Resources – Church digital communications tools – churchjuice.reframemedia.com

Church Online – Solutions for Church online technology needs – thechurchonline.com

daily_bibleverses – Daily scriptures on Instagram

Daily E-Book Deals – gospelebooks.net

Died: Cain Hope Felder, Scholar Who lifted Up Black People In The Bible – Christianity Today

Digital Pulpit: A Nationwide Analysis of Online Sermons – Pew Research Center

Facebook Publishes New Listing of Key Trends Set to Gain Momentum in 2020 – SocialMedia Today

First Baptist Church of Glenarden, MD – fbcglenarden.org

How to Create a Church Facebook Page – wikiHow

iChurch Method – Digital solutions to help ministries connect with people – ichurchmethod.com

Instagram Year in Review: The Biggest Moments from 2019 – later.com

Instapray – Spreading the Gospel and sharing prayer and encouragement on Instagram

New Birth’s Jamal H. Bryant Reflects on First Year – AJC

Pastor Jamal Bryant Plans to Take New Birth to the Community – AJC

Pastor Jamal Bryant Talks New Birth… YouTube – OficialSoulSisters

Podcast Statistics: Growth and Demographic Data for 2019 – Buzzsprout

Sermon Graphics For All 66 Books Of The Bible – churchtechtoday.com

Six Things Your Church Needs to Know About TikTok – TheChurch.Digital

T.D. Jakes Iconic Conference Takes Its Curtain Call – CISION PR Newswire

TD Jakes Ministries – tdjakes.com

The Potter’s House Church – thepottershouse.org

The Top 25 Best Church Websites of 2019 – Pro Church Tools

Trump Should Be Removed From Office – Christianity Today

Twitter Shares the Top Tweet Trends of 2019 – SocialMedia Today

Well, there you have it – my Best of Church and Social Media 2019! Hoping you enjoyed it as much as I did following #churchtech, social media and faith trends over the past year.

What are your favorite Church and Social Media stories of 2019?

Be sure to stay on top of all things #churchtech, faith, and social media at SOCIAL MEDIA and MINISTRY NEWS.

Finally, while online connections offer many benefits, they are only a supplement to, and not a substitute for, in-person involvement and church attendance for those physically able to do so.

Praying you have a “Happy & Blessed New Year 2020,” my Friends!

~ Kenneth Lillard, Author of the book, SOCIAL MEDIA and MINISTRY Sharing the Gospel In the Digital Age (available on Amazon and iTunes). Much Appreciation!

You can connect with me at kennethlillard.com. Be Blessed!

 

 

THE BEST OF CHURCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA 2018, PT. 2

Welcome to Part 2 of  ‘The Best of Church and Social Media 2018.’ Picking up where we left off in Part 1, here are my top choices for the very best #churchtech and social media stories and sites of 2018.

Biola Media Conference – Biola University

Checklist For Your Ministry’s Online Strategy in 2019 – Church Juice

Christian Bestsellers, December 2018 – ChristianBookExpo

Christianity Today 2019 Book Awards – Christianity Today

Church Juice – churchjuice/ free resources to help churches communicate better

Daily eBook Deals – Gospel eBooks

Devon Franklin – DevonFranklin.com

Devon Franklin and Chad Johnson Discuss Relationships – DevonFranklin.com

D J Chuang -djChuang.com

How to Express Your God Given Talent on Any Job – Devon Franklin

How Religious Is Your State – Pew Research Center

How to Get Funded As a Female Minority-led Tech Startup – Entrepreneur

iChurch Method – Jason Caston

In-ear Monitor System Guide Options For Every Church From Small to Mega – Church Tech Today

An Interview with Faith Based Film Producer Devon Franklin – Slate/ Aisha Harris/ Represent

Millenial Mindset eBook – Church Tech Today

Ministry Brands Launches New Mobile Church App – Church Tech Today

Mobilize Disciples Like the Early Church – VisionRoom

New Year and New You – Christian Leadership Alliance

Pastor Jamal Bryant Appointed As New Birth’s Senior Pastor – YouTube

Pastor’s Mobile Office – Church Tech Today

Pastor’s Pay in 2019 – Christianity Today

Rainer Report – Best of 2018 – Thom Rainer

Seeking Peace of Christ This Christmastime – Ed Stetzer/ Christianity Today

Social Media That Worked: Videos and Connection – ChurchMarketing

Start a Free Church Podcast with Anchor – ChurchMag

U S Class Divide Extends to Searching for a Religious Congregation – Pew Research Center

The Virtual Church Office – Church Tech Today

YouVersion – Bible App/ Online Bible Experience – Life Church

Well, that completes my ‘Best of Church and Social Media 2018, Pt. 2’. Hope you enjoyed it.

What are your favorite Church Social Media stories of 2018?

Stay on top of the all the latest in #churchtech, faith, and socialmedia at Social Media and Ministry News.

Praying you have a Happy & Blessed New Year 2019! ~ Kenneth Lillard

 

 

 

THE BEST OF CHURCH AND SOCIAL MEDIA 2018, PT. 1

Can you believe we’re actually in the very last week of 2018? Where has the time gone? What better time, though, to look back at the year’s most interesting developments in the ChurchTech, Faith, and Social Media space!

To celebrate this exciting year, I’m happy to spotlight my favorite picks for the very best ChurchTech and Social Media news, views, and trends of 2018.

Congratulations to all of this year’s truly remarkable church social media innovators, contributors, and colleagues.

And, of course, a big “Thank You” goes out to all my amazing social media family,  friends, and readers for all your great suggestions, support and encouragement throughout the year. Much Love & Appreciation.

Here are my ‘Best of 2018 ChurchTech and Social Media’ stories and sites, Part 1:

Bishop T. D. Jakes – TD Jakes Ministries

4 Done For You Church Social Media Solutions – Church Tech Today

Set These Four Goals to Grow More like Jesus – PastorRick.com

Four Ways Every Youth Pastor Can Bring Out the Best in Students – Pastors.com

Four Ways Your Church Can Care for the Poor – Pastors.com

5 Helpful Church Volunteer Resources –  Church Tech Today

5 Ideas for Your New Year’s Sermon – Pastors.com

7 Tips for Successful Fall Events – Church Tech Today

Top 7 Church Website Companies – Church Tech Today

Top 8 Church App Providers Church Tech Today

10 Suggestions for Your Personal Devotions in 2019 – Challies.com

Top 10 Ways Thriving Churches Communicate – Church Tech Today

25 Of the Best Christian Nonfiction Books – Bookhub.com

100 Fastest Growing Churches in America – Outreach Magazine

Well, that concludes Part 1 of my “Best of Church and Social Media 2018.” Stay tuned for Part 2. What are your favorite Church Social Media stories of 2018? Would love to hear from you!

Btw, stay on top of the latest ChurchTech and Social Media news, stories, and trends at SOCIAL MEDIA and MINISTRY NEWS.

May God Bless You Richly! ~ Kenneth Lillard

 

 

 

 

Church and Social Media 2017, Part 2

Welcome to Part 2 of “CHURCH and SOCIAL MEDIA 2017 – The Year in Review!”
Picking up where we left off in Part 1, here are my top choices for 2017’s Best Church and Social Media stories:

Be Wildly Successful Without Losing Your Faith – DevonFranklin.org

Christianity Today’s 2017 Book Awards – Christianity Today

Collected Best Christian Books of 2017 – Tim Challies

Designing An Inspiring Church Logo – Church Tech Today

Digital Mixing Top 4 Future-Shaping Trends – Church Production

How to Create Social Media Content From Your Pastor’s Sermon – Carrie Evans

How to Improve Your Church Website’s ‘About Us’ Page – Church Tech Today

How The Faithful Voted: A Preliminary 2016 Analysis – Pew Research Center

How We Could Better Leverage Social Media During Disasters Like Harvey – HuffPost

The Influence of Instagram – Church Tech Today

The Internet of Things Connectivity Binge: What Are the Implications? – Pew Research Center

Museum of the Bible – museumofthebible.org

Net Neutrality Repeal Means Your Internet May Never Be the Same – CNET

New Church App From TouchPoint – Church Tech Today

Planning a Successful Christmas Service – ChurchJuice

TD Jakes Ministries Mobile App – TDJakes.org

The Potter’s House Live Streaming – TDJakes.org

Ten Killer Apps for Church Video Producers and Filmmakers – Church Production

Thom S. Rainer’s Top Ten Posts of 2017 – Thom S. Rainer

Top 10 Posts of 2017 – ChurchMarketing

Top 17 Books of 2017/ The Best New Christian Non-Fiction – DesiringGod.org

Top 25 Best Church Websites of 2017 – Pro Church Tools

Top 300 Christian Blogs – Church Relevance

Using Social Media for Ministry – CRU.org

YouVersion Bible App Nears 300 Million Downloads – Church Tech Today

Well, that completes our ‘CHURCH and SOCIAL MEDIA 2017 – The Year in Review, Part 2.’ Hope you enjoyed it.

What are your favorite Church Social Media stories of 2017?

Stay on top of the latest Church Social Media news at SOCIAL MEDIA and MINISTRY NEWS. See you in 2018!

 

 

 

CHURCH and SOCIAL MEDIA 2017, Part 1

2017 has, most definitely, been a year of creative innovation and unexpected change in the ChurchTech, Faith, and Social Media space!

To celebrate this exciting year, I’m happy to spotlight my favorite picks for the very best ChurchTech and Social Media news, views, and trends of 2017.
Congratulations to all of this year’s truly remarkable church social media innovators, contributors, and colleagues.

And, of course, a big “Thank You” goes out to all my amazing social media family, followers, and friends for all your fantastic suggestions, support and encouragement throughout the year. Much Love & Appreciation!

Here are my ‘Best of 2017 ChurchTech and Social Media’ stories:

3 Qualities of a Great Church Domain Name – Church Tech Today

4-Point Checklist for Live Streaming Church Events – Church Tech Today

4 Steps to Scheduling Rest for the Church Tech – Church Tech Today

5 Reasons Why Teenagers Need Theology – The Gospel Coalition

5 Ways to Communicate Thankfulness at Thanksgiving – Church Tech Today

5 Ways to Leverage Your Holiday Church Services for Growth – Church Tech Today

6 Questions Every Church Social Media Policy Should Answer – United Methodist Communications

7 Imbalances to Watch Out for in Church Leadership Teams – CommunicateJesus

7 Keys to an Effective Church Social Media Strategy – Lifeway

7 Tips for Going to the Museum of the Bible – djChuang

7 Ways Churches Can Use Twitter’s 280 Characters (Don’t Tweet Sermons) – ChurchMarketing

9 Awesome Black Women Tech Founders to Watch – Inc.

9 Ways Technology Can Help Spread the Gospel – Church Tech Today

10 Quick Things You Can Do to Improve Your Church Website – CommunicateJesus

10 Ways to Intentionally Thank Your Church Volunteers – ChurchJuice

27 Places to Download Free Images for Websites and Blogs – Vista Print

31 Ways to Become a Thought Leader – Jill Celeste

100 Fastest Growing Churches in America 2017 – Outreach Magazine

100 Largest Churches 2017 – Outreach Magazine

What favorite Church Social Media stories of 2016 would you like to share with our readers? Would love to hear from you!

Btw, stay on top of the latest ChurchTech and Social Media news, stories, and trends at SOCIAL MEDIA and MINISTRY NEWS.

 

 

Leveraging Online Church Resources

The principle of leverage allows one to lift objects that would otherwise  be too heavy to move. Leverage is a force multiplier.  Archimedes famously proclaimed, “Give me a place to stand and I can move the Earth.”

Digital technology and social media enable us to share incredible church resources online almost instantly. By leveraging these online resources ministries can multiply their impact in their local church communities and far beyond.

The following is a list of easily accessible church resources which can be leveraged to greatly increase your ministry’s impact and influence:

• Open Resources.org – Free church media, graphics, and videos
• SermonCentral.com – Resources for preaching and teaching
• Free Church Graphics and Resources Toolbox
• Ministry Toolbox Upgrade for 2011
• Collide Magazine Free Online Media Resources – Church related media, art, images and videos
• Church & Worship Resources For Pastors And Church Ministries
• Church Resources For Children
• Children’s Ministry Resources
• Church Planter’s Guide to Social Media
• Free Guest Guide Template
• Free Discussion Guide: Discovering Jesus
• Church Office Online – Free Church Resources
• Facebook Pages – New and Improved

All of the above resources are true force multipliers and incredible tools to help ministries fulfill Jesus’ Great Commission in the Digital Age!

What online resources can you recommend to provide additional leverage? 

Until next time, remember, you can do all things thru Christ Jesus!

Stay Blessed!

Kenneth Lillard

Faith Based Media (FBM)

“The just shall live by faith.” Romans 1:17

Media. noun, plural of medium, (usually used with a plural verb) the means of communication, traditionally used to refer to radio and television, newspapers, and magazines, that reach or influence people widely: The media are covering the speech tonight.

Twitter,  Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube. It seems everyone is on them today. What do they all have in common? They are all part of what we call the new social media. We are entering an era of what some call the Attention Age where social networking employing social media is taking over. The old era of industial media or traditional broadcast and mass media  is declining. The faith community is becoming  more aware of this media transformation. It is beginning to understand its tremendous implications.  And it  is making serious efforts to comes to grips with it. 

The next several blog postings will deal with the basics of this rapidly evolving social media. What are they? How do they work? And how do they relate to the Christian community today?

Social media are media designed to be shared or spread through social interaction or social networking. One of social media’s earliest associations was with LinkedIn, which applied it as a business tool in 2004. When faith-based social interaction or networking occurs between Chistians it is called fellowship. When it is from Christian to the unchurched it is called evangelism. For Christians social media should always be employed in love, and used to the glory of God. It should never be used for harmful,  hurtful or ungodly purposes. 

One of the basic characteristics of social media is they are created using highly accessible and scalable publishing techniques. Generally, social media tools are available to anyone at little or no cost. Currently, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube accounts are all free. You can use them to reach one person, a small group, or a global audience. Christians can use these social media tools to share information about events, ministries, scriptures, affirmations, sevices, Bible Study, conferences, evangelism, etc. In a word, social media can be effectively used to fulfill the Great Commission of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with the world. (See Matthew 28:19-20).

Social Media use internet and web based technologies to transform social networking from a broadcast (one to many) format into a social networking (many to many) format. So this allows for not only sharing information and messages, but also for interactive social dialogue. Instead of preaching at people, social media allows for dialogue between people to allow for more understanding, creative collaboration, and elaboration on specific topics,  situations, and solutions.

With social media communication can be instantaneous without any lag or delay. It can be via many forms including internet forums, weblogs, social blogs, wikis, podcasts, pictures, video, rating, and bookmarking. Technologies include blogs, picture-sharing, vlogs, wall-postings, email, instant messaging, music-sharing, crowdsourcing, and voice over IP.

Social media transform people from consumers of content to producers of content. It supports democratization of knowledge and information.

Business refers to social media as User Generated Content (UGC), or Consumer Generated Media (CGM). The faith community refers to it as Faith Generated Media (FGM) or Faith Based Media (FBM). Without question, the potential for using FBM as a tool to spread the gospel, love our neighbors, and glorify God is virtually unlimited. This blog explores some of the many, exciting ways that Web 2.0 tools are creatively applied to ministry and the community of faith. (For more on Web 2.0 check out the excellent wikipedia article at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0 .)

Know who you are and whose you are. You were born for greatness. There is no limit to what you can do through Christ Jesus!

God Bless,

Kenneth Lillard