I’m working on a book called “Church 2.0″ (at least that’s the title for now). It’s a collaborative conversation with several great Church leaders and thinkers. You can check out the book’s Facebook group HERE and join the conversation. I’ll be posting more info in the near future.
Speaking of collaboration: How many of you have checked out YouVersion?
EXTRA:
How ’bout them Cowboys? Watch out!
I’m always on the look out for good resources. Videomaker might be of help to you and your work. Check out their FREE tip sheet HERE.
A while back I mentioned that I’m a member of a blogger network that reviews new products for companies. Last time I reviewed a new LifeWay product. Today I’m reviewing the Chip Ingram DVD series “Five Lies That Ruin Relationships - Wrong Beliefs Produce Wrong Behavior”.
The “Five Lies” resource provides insight from James 4 & 5 that addresses five lies that can hurt relationships with people we love:
Lie 1: Sensual pleasure will satisfy my inner longings for happiness.
Lie 2: If other people would shape up, my life would work out.
Lie 3: Upwardly mobile work opportunities are automatically the will of God.
Lie 4: My significance and value are measured by the quality and quantity of the things I possess.
Lie 5: The grass is greener on the other side of the fence.
In this 10-part DVD series centered in the book of James, Chip defines the 5 most common lies that have the potential to ruin relationships with those we love. He uncovers the source of quarreling, how our words wound, how not to make decisions, and why better things don’t always make things better.
POSITIVES:
Chip Ingram is a great communicator. I always enjoy sitting under his teaching. This study is powerful and could be life-changing. The DVDs give a good visual support to a solid Bible study - they also include small group curriculum samples. The workbook is very well put together, looks sharp and has some nice features such as “Video Notes” and “Discussion Questions”.
NEGATIVE:
I think Chip’s messages could have been filmed better and more professionally. They aren’t horrible, but I would have liked to see them be a little better quality.
OVERALL:
This product is insightful, solid and a great choice for your small group or Bible study to study together.
EXTRA:
Tonight we have the 2nd installment of Tech team training. Tonight we’ll be training our camera operators (current and new ones).
In meeting with the folks at MediaShout the other week, they mentioned that out of the list of the Top 25 Most Innovative Churches in the US, 19 of them used MediaShout. I found that interesting. I’m a regular user of EasyWorship, but also have a great respect for ProPresenter and MediaShout. I’m curious as to what you use at your church…SO, I created a Squidoo poll where you can vote. Please go HERE to place your vote or.
EXTRA:
Have you heard of Sermon Cinema? Might be worth checking out.
PERSONAL:
Yesterday was a great day. We did a funny drama, great music, our pastor was back from his sabbatical and we played an in-house video we did that was hilarious. Also, we had 4 people shadowing people on the Tech Arts team and watching what was going on behind the scenes. We just did a volunteer campaign called “iServe” and it produced some great new contacts.
Also, after our last service last night, I got to sneak over to Denton Bible and catch one of my favorite artists in concert: Shawn McDonald! I love him, his music and his testimony. Wow!
Last night we had our Video Director training. I really appreciate so many of you posting tips for Video Directors. I met with 2 of our video team leaders the night before and read them your comments. That then gave us a launching pad to come up with our own, unique dos and don’ts, etc. I put together a notebook with 3 different handouts in it. I gave each Video Director a Blockbuster gift card and a notebook.
We sat in a circle and discussed the main handout that I created, which covered basic tips, guidelines and standards. This apparently had never been done, so it was cool to get everyone on the same page. We had a great discussion then went upstairs for our hands-on portion of the training, which was to make sure that all of our Video Directors know how to key. From here on out we’ll be keying names every week, as well as occasional specials that are done in lower thirds.
I know many of you may already be keying every week, but for my church (I’m still fairly new there), this was new and something that I’ve been wanting us to add consistently for a while. Now, moving forward, all Video Directors will be required to be able to key. It was disappointing to have 2 Video Directors that didn’t make it out to the training session. This was the first training session for Video Directors held at my church in years (if ever). I’ll have to catch up the 2 that missed on all we covered last night.
All in all, it was a great and fruitful night and I’m pleased with the outcome of it. Everyone seemed to appreciate being given set guidelines, dos, don’ts, procedures, etc. I’m happy that our crew will be functioning in more of a professional manner and maintain a level of quality each week.
***Thanks for those of you that emailed me your Video Request Forms. If you have one and haven’t emailed it to me, please do. I’m taking ideas from several to create our own. Once I finish our form, I’ll make it available to anyone that wants it.
EXTRA:
2 days ago I attended a luncheon of local tech and media directors. It was fun to meet guys from different churches around Dallas. Those that know me, know I’m a big networker. I’m actually in 2 groups like this. This one was a “ya’ll come-type group” for many churches of all sizes. I’m also a part of a smaller group of 5 guys from similar churches that get together regularly. Do any of you have a local tech director meeting in your city?
As I mentioned before, I’m holding several training sessions at my church this summer. The first one is for video directors/switchers and is this Thursday night. I have some “in-house” things that I’m going to talk about as well as some skills we’ll seek to learn/improve. I’m curious, though, if any of you have 3 tips or guidelines that you would share in general with video directors. I’d love to hear them.
EXTRA:
Simpsons fans will dig this cool interactive promotion for the upcoming film based on the animated family. You can go HERE to get “Simpsonized.” Basically, you just need to upload a photo of yourself to get transformed into a character.
BONUS:
“Five Storytelling Secrets for Pastors and Teachers” by Steven James:
To read the entire article click HERE.