Is Technology a Ministry?
Posted on April 25, 2005
I’m sure there are differing views on whether integrating technology into various areas of the church should be considered a ministry or simply a necessity or even not necessary. It might almost be a non-issue in your mind. My intention is not to try to convince you to change your thinking on this but rather to show where I find myself and the way God is using my abilities to do His work.
The first point to establish is that every church is different so there is no formula or cut and dry method to say here is the way to do this or that to use technology effectively in your church. We can establish a general foundation to start from but beyond that, it really depends on each situation. Through this blog, I will share my successes as well as my failures and I hope we can all learn from each other along the way.
I am doing this, not only this blog, but the work in my church and with many other people who cross my path, simply because this is a burden the Lord has put on my heart. He has given me a desire to do this and is equipping me to do it well. In the past, I have pursued my career, climbed the corporate ladder and pretty much done it on my own. God has been important in my life but now, looking back, it’s clear to me that He was not the focus of my life. My career path in the past has been an endless pursuit. I climbed the corporate ladder, did fairly well for myself, in many ways and achieved many goals. My family and I had a comfortable life, pretty much acquired anything we wanted and did the things we wanted. Then September 11 happened, I was laid off a month later and after almost a year of unemployment, finally found a job that would allow me to support my family but much had changed in me.
Throughout this time, the Lord has been leading me and forming a vision in me for what He wants me to do. He has opened some doors for me and in His timing, more things are happening. I say all of this to just give a better idea of how I arrived at this place in my walk with such a passion for this type of ministry. Looking back, I see the Lord’s hand leading me to this place long before my unemployment.
* I see an unsettledness.
* I see a longing for satisfaction in what I am doing with my life.
* I see diving into many different areas of service and ministry in my church, to the point of burnout on church all together.
* I see God leading my wife and I from the only church family we had known for 7 or 8 years to a new church simply because it was God’s will for us, not because we were mad at anyone or upset at the direction the church was heading.
* I see nearly a year of unemployment, a time when God changed me and showed me it was all about Him, not about me.
* I see God growing me in the year we were at our new church before I found employment in another state.
* I see the most difficult part of moving away was leaving our church home. This is the church that gave me a better idea of what God intended His church to be. I learned what it’s like to feel the presence of God and to feel Him move me to a closer walk with Him..
* I see myself not being content with any church we visited in our new town simply because it wasn’t our old church. It took several months at our current church home for me to realize that the Lord had me their for a reason, to continue the work He began in me. It’s not about the “church”, it’s about my relationship with the Lord and pursuing God’s will for my life.
This literally could go on and on. Through many little steps, the Lord has brought me to this place. At this point, all I can do is trust Him to lead me and continue to show me His will. His will is not some big revelation, like I think I have a tendency to look for, but His will is what He wants me to do at this moment on this day. Being in His will each moment of each day leads me down the path He intends me to go.
Technology touches nearly every aspect of ministry in the church and it will continue to play a greater role in all areas of the church. When I ensure that a staff member’s computer is running smoothly, I am allowing them to focus more on their ministry and not worry about computer problems. I am also able to suggest new tools or train someone how to use a specific piece of software better. By doing this, they are better able to focus on their ministry. That is a very cool thing! It takes time to keep up with security threats, like viruses and spyware, and also keep up with Microsoft updates, but when things are running smoothly, then technology is actually helping people do the work of their ministry
So, is technology a ministry? For me, it is. This is the place God has me right now and there is a lot of work to do. Through this blog, I will post ideas, tips and techniques on ways to use technology in your church and I look forward to hearing feedback from you as well as suggestions on topics to address.
Next topic: spyware
Posted by: Jim / 10/30/2004 08:00:27 AM
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