Each week at church we produce a weekly newsletter – a double-sided A4 sheet with news, prayer points, giving (financial) details and a ‘letter’ from one of the ministry staff. This week was my turn to write, and the topic was technology. I decided to use this opportunity to explain why we use technology at Church by the Bridge, and some of the ways members of church can use it to serve God and each other. Here goes…
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Dear friends
Technology’ and ‘Christianity’ are two words that don’t commonly appear together. Christianity is more synonymous with ancient buildings, traditional practices and archaic language. Yet technology has made and continues to make an essential contribution to our faith – from the Bible printed for the masses (thanks to the printing press) to the digital Bible, available for free on the iphone or online! Technologies such as the internet have made it possible for people in countries hostile to Christianity to hear about Jesus in their own language and discover the gospel, in the safety of their own home. Praise God for the ways technology is used to make his name known!
At Church by the Bridge, we want to use whatever means possible to share the life-saving news about Jesus; and to encourage his followers (that’s us!) in their walk with him, and service of him. Some of these you may be familiar with, others might be completely foreign to you. Feel free to test them out, and discover how you can stay connected with your family here at church.
Website – our church website (www.cbtb.org.au) is home to an ever-expanding collection of resources, news and events. You’ll find helpful resources relating to the current sermon series, details on the ministries that you can get involved in, photo galleries, Bible talks to download or listen to, and lots more! Some exciting plans are afoot for the next stage of our website – stay tuned!
Twitter – earlier this year we launched a Twitter account. In short (140 character) snippets we are using Twitter to share prayer points, provide event updates and reminders, to let you know when Bible talks are ready to download, to call for volunteers, and more. You can follow us on Twitter – our username is ‘cbtbkirribilli’.
E-Newsletter – each and every week, a newsletter is emailed out with the latest news and events at church, plus a collection of random items for sale, rooms to rent, and more. If you are new to church, or are just not receiving e-news, complete a response slip and request to be added to the list.
Podcast – each week the Bible talks from our services are recorded, ready for you to download if you missed church, or would like to listen again. The Bible talks are available on our website, and also as a podcast on iTunes – simply search for ‘Church by the Bridge’ and subscribe to our podcast to automatically download the Bible talks as they become available.
Facebook – at least two groups exist on Facebook for our church – search for ‘CBTB Social Scene’ and ‘Church by the Bridge’ for two groups that exist to help us keep in touch with one another, and hear about social activities that take place throughout the year.
Have you got an idea for how we could be using technology better? Have you got skills you’d like to put to use to make Jesus known and to encourage his followers? Let me know! My contact details are provided on the back of this newsletter.
If you’re interested in how technology can be used for ministry and Christian living, you might like to check out my website too – www.communicatejesus.com.
For the honour of Jesus
Steve Kryger
