Three Years!

January 19, 2012 1 Comment

Today is an exciting day for me.  Three years ago, January 19 fell on a Monday.  It was Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.  The next day was the Presidential Inauguration.  As you can see, a lot of historic things were going on around that time.

It was also a day where I decided to start a new venture.  After really enjoying my college years of blogging on the one-time coolest kid in school, MySpace, I found out that starting a “big boy” blog can be tough.  People don’t comment as much.  People don’t see what you wrote as often without steady promotion.  This, along with some serious writer’s block, discouraged me into closing the doors of several blogs.

But I knew I wasn’t finished writing online.  Every time I saw one of my friends had a new blog, it made me miss having my own hunk of space on the Internet.

I began 2009 with a goal in mind to do one thing new every day.  I’m honestly not sure how far along I got on that goal, but some cool things did happen that year–I gave Twitter a second chance; I got interactive with Scripture reading on YouVersion; I got back into the awesome life-changing experience that is small group Bible study; and I also started this blog.

Although there have bee large gaps between postings at times, I have enjoyed being able to come here and write what I’m feeling.  And knowing I’d probably just start another blog if I shut this one down over being in a dry season, I decided to keep it going!

It is truly great to see people some and comment, follow this blog, and have my friends write about and like posts on Facebook, as well as give me some retweet love.  It’s very encouraging.

I’ve been able to do some great things on here, too.  Highlights include my first book giveaway (ever!) with Granger Community Church’s Communications Director and author of Less Clutter. Less Noise: Beyond Bulletins, Brochures and Bake Sales, Kem Meyer!  Not to mention my second book giveaway with pastor/author/my small group leader, Gene Jennings for his book Laughing with Sarah (see outtakes here).

My goal for this blog has remained the same, and that is, in addition for the random stuff that pops out of my head, to bring forth inspiration, thought and further action.  To that extent, it’s been great to share what God has put on my heart, my reflections of what I’ve experienced, and ways people can get involved in changing the world.

Thank you for letting this be a place you’ve visited over the past three years.  I look forward to continue sharing things that I hope serve as motivation.

P.S. If you’re thinking about starting/shutting down a blog of your own, I hope this serves as a nudge to keep at it.  Your thoughts can and will impact somebody.

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Connecting Deeper with Facebook Friends

August 15, 2009 Leave a Comment

Brilliant! Take some time to watch this:

People aren’t a series of updates and bits of information on a computer. They’re actually people living their lives.

How close are you to having something to talk about with the people who pop up in your Facebook chat list?

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Look Who’s on Facebook

May 25, 2009 Leave a Comment

popeonfb

I read last week on Mashable where Pope Benedict XVI has apps on Facebook and iPhone, in addition to his YouTube channel and other forms of social media.

Here’s a line from the front page of the Facebook application:

Spread friendship with the Pope and become a witness of Christ in the world through the web.

The Pope.  On Facebook.  To connect with millions via social networking.  All for the cause of Christ.

Amazing!

The initiative the Vatican is taking here is a reminder to engage with the world around us by the means the world is using to engage with each other.

How are you implementing this in your personal ministry?  How can you be?

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Things I’ve Enjoyed Lately

May 16, 2009 Leave a Comment

People say I’m easily amused.  I agree with them.  Maybe that will come out in a few of these.

Here are some things I’ve enjoyed lately:

  • Watching TrueNorth’s Facebook Public Profile reach the 400 mark earlier this week.  That’s 1/3 of our congregation connected, if not a little more.
  • Seeing a local radio ministry engaging with their audience using social media.
  • Reading Kem Meyer’s book Less Clutter. Less Noise.
  • Recently realizing that it may be possible to make every car wash I get in the summer to be at a fundraiser.
  • Just realizing I had planned to be on the other side of town getting my car washed to help out a ministry at 9:00 AM when it is now 11:50 AM.
  • Seesmic Desktop.  I’ve never been down with updating Twitter from other places besides the official website and my phone, but this one finally sold me.  I like the look, user-friendly feel and being able to update multiple accounts.
  • Hearing people say they don’t get Twitter, and seeing those same people update a Facebook status.
  • Seeing that Creed is back on tour, although I don’t plan on caving to ridiculous service fees to get my hands on some $30 seats.
  • Long weekends.  Memorial Day will be my first non-sick day off since New Year’s.  Following that, I have a mini-vacation in mid-June.  I hope Charlotte wears something nice for me.  (Charlotte, NC, that is.)
  • Posting on a Saturday.  I’ve been thinking about it just about every week, and must say that it feels so right.

That’s all for now.  Go outside.

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That’s How I Poll

May 14, 2009 Leave a Comment

Since Facebook gets a lot of response when features are added or updated, I wonder what you think.

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Friend Lists Now a Big Part of Facebook

May 13, 2009 Leave a Comment

Facebook introduced friend lists almost two years ago, but not until this week have they been a central part of the experience.  When users signed on to Facebook earlier this week, they were greeted with some changes in their chat window.  Now, the people you chat with appear in lists. 

Most likely, you’ve had some lists automatically created for you.  Maybe based on the details you filled out on how you know your friends (an older Facebook feature that used to be something you did when you added someone new).  Maybe based on previous lists you’ve made.  Who knows the reason?  Well…maybe you do.

Here are three uses for friend lists on Facebook:

  • Chat  Your friends are listed based on categories of how you know them.  If you don’t like this, then uncheck the friend lists in the chat window.  Keep as many lists in chat as you want.  Your friends will still show up.  However, now you can appear offline to certain lists.  Create a list of people you don’t mind seeing you all the time.  Create a list of people you never want to see you online.  You name it, and you can do it with lists.  Be careful with option B though; especially if you have a habit of leaving your Facebook up.  You don’t want one of your friends to find out they made your list of people you don’t want to chat with. 

    Note: Before I continue, I want to pass along a tip a friend showed me about using Facebook chat the old way.  If you don’t want to see your friends in lists, then uncheck all of them in the chat window, and there you go.

  • Messaging  If you go to your Inbox on Facebook, you can compose a message to a list of up to 20 people?  Have a book club you want to let know a movie based on the book is coming out, or a small group Bible study that meets at a home of a member who will be out of town and need to get the word out quick?  Then, just type in the name of the list you created containing those people, type your message and send away.  When I was on a leadership team in college, this was a great way for us to review the schedule of our weekly meetings and discuss it among each other.
  • Studying Trends  Maybe “studying trends” isn’t the correct phrase here, but this is what officially closed the deal of me being sold on friend lists.  When you log in to Facebook, your news feed shows you what all your friends are up to.  You can also view strictly their status updates, links, etc.  Now, say you have a friend list full of members of your church or co-workers.  Maybe something’s happened that has everyone reacting.  You can click on that list from your home page and see the response of those specific people. 

With most things Facebook creates, they have a lot of great uses and are usually based on mass suggestions sent to them by users.  Most of the frustration seems to lie within the frequency of changes.  That’s another post for another day (maybe tomorrow even).  I think one of my friends also plans on writing about how Facebook should keep it simple.  If that happens, I’ll be sure to link you.

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Find Your Place in Social Media

May 5, 2009 Leave a Comment

There’s a ton of Internet out there, and with it comes a ton of social media.  A daily visit to Mashable will show you that the possibilities are virtually limitless, and still growing.  Maybe you’ve find yourself faced with dilemma as to where to spend your time.  You might also be wondering if joining social networks is a step worth taking for your organization.  Even if you’ve decided to dive in, where should you go?

While I was in the hot seat last week, I made the statement that just because something is the hot new thing doesn’t mean it’s your recipe for success.  On a personal level, I recommend trying out social networks you may be interested in (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, etc.)  They may or may not work for you, and that’s the beauty in the option to deactivate an account.  With your organization, you may be spending a lot of time researching where people are.  Instead, ask how your product can benefit from it.  For example, you may decide to create Facebook and Twitter accounts for your organization because the communities on them are thriving.  They are also buzzworthy these days; feautred on commercials and news reports on a frequent basis.  For now, it seems like a given to be on them.

When it comes to social media, be ready for change.  Over the years, I watched my friends migrate from MySpace to Facebook, and then I saw Facebook bring in people I NEVER thought I would be able to communicate with outside of a telephone call and a Christmas card.  Now, I’m watching the Twitter community grow with one of the main reasons being people liking how simple it is and it being something very easily handled from a mobile device… even if your phone is a dinosaur. 

You have to know that people will migrate again.  There will be something else coming along that peaks the interest of a mass audience.  These are places to be.  However, always ask yourself how you will benefit.  There’s no sense in you or your organization having a YouTube channel if it’s just going to sit there.  If you already have an effective way of reaching your core audience, keep it.  If you’re reaching out to new people, be ready to look for new ways to connect. 

Whatever you do, don’t forget to keep it simple in the process (more on this in a future post.)

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Facebook and Twitter: Allowance of Activity

April 1, 2009 Leave a Comment

One of the things I’ve come to appreciate about Facebook’s Public Profiles (formerly known as Pages) and Twitter accounts are the amount of information the audience allows you to send them.

I currently update Facebook and Twitter accounts for an organization, and I am able to post several times a day if I need to without getting on people’s nerves.  That’s a blessing for ministries, businesses, public figures, products, etc.

When I was in college, I handled communications for a ministry.  One of the biggest pieces of negative feedback I received dealt with the amount of email sent out.  I tried to limit emails to weekly newsletters, but things happened between or before those updates which needed to be said.  Let’s face it: from your favorite store to your best friend–anytime you open your inbox and see a ton of stuff from the same person, it feels kind of like spam.  Okay, maybe not always spam, but you tend to not read it all.

Facebook status updates and Tweets are the opposite.  Although you can go overboard with these, people almost expect to see something posted at least once a day.  And unlike emails from organizations, people interact with these updates.  They can comment back and/or acknowledge they like what you’re sharing.

When I first started operating a Facebook Public Profile, I was curious as to how many people would become fans and then later remove themselves.  With email lists, in addition to hearing about people being annoyed by the amount of messages sent, there would be someone once every couple of months replying to ask to be taken off the distribution list.  With Facebook, I think there’s been handful of people in the past seven months or so (and that hand may not even have all its fingers) who have decided to opt out, but that’s about it.  People are able to join Facebook Public Profiles and Twitter accounts knowing what they’re all about versus signing up for an email list and having no clue what to expect. 

(Additionally, the integration of Facebook Public Profiles with the news feed on people’s home pages has increased engagement.  I’ve even found them to get more activity since the news feed integration than creating a bogus account for your organization by signing it up like it’s a person.)

If you’re not doing so, I recommend trying this means of communication with your audience.  It’s a good fix to the problem of asking your communications person to send out an announcement and having to look at him/her funny when you’re told in a hesitant voice that it will be the third email this week and people may not like that.

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Online Community: It’s What You Make of It

March 23, 2009 Leave a Comment

Lately, I’ve been enjoying an incredible since of community online.  I’ve had hour-long conversations with people I hardly get to see anymore.  I’ve seen more family and friends join Facebook and Twitter.  I’ve even been able to use this medium as a means of praying for others and submitting my own requests.  From which, I have given and received much encouragement and inspiration.  The power of prayer is one of the best things we can give to each other, and is something I can be in community about with people hundreds of miles away.

At the same time, there is something to be said about what the nay-sayers say (if you want to stop right here and attempt to recite this sentence 10 times fast, be my guest):  Online community can be rather surface and fake. 

However, I believe it to be true that online community is what you make of it.  Even posting a status update or a blog post asking a question, I’ve been able to generate great and authentic dialogue.  More and more people are embracing this form of communication, and I believe there is a ton of benefit in it.  There’s not always time for face-to-face meetings or a phone call, but we can still be together; connecting, encouraging and growing.

I’m looking forward to seeing how the growth of online community continues to impact our lives; especially with ministering to others.

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Is This My Pack a Day?

March 9, 2009 Leave a Comment

In the middle of solving the problems of the world, I often find myself logging on to  Facebook.  It’s an old college habit, I suppose.  There have been times where I’ve struggled to write a paper but managed to crank out a blog post in the process. 

The last time I caught myself surfing the net while figuring things out, it made me wonder if I was taking my interests in the Internet, social networking and online communication too far.  Not only do I need my fixes several times a day, I think I turn to it when I need an instant break.  Yikes!

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