ALWAYS A POTENTIAL DANGER

IT’S POSSIBLE TO FOCUS ON REFINEMENT OF

“MEANS” & LOSE SIGHT OF THE “ENDS”

MY ASSUMPTION“Media” are not the end game. In FEBC International, the point of our efforts is to see people come to a full, personal

relationship with Christ & be in relationship with other believers in some type of local fellowship – demonstrating the transformational power of Christ at

every level of the community

WHAT’S THE TEMPTATION?

“OUR ENTIRE FOCUS IS ON RECORDED DECISIONS BECAUSE THAT WHAT OUR DONORS WANT TO HEAR ABOUT…”

MAJOR INTERNET MINISTRY LEADER

THE MEDIA WORLD IS INTENSELY

COMPETITIVE

“We write the equivalent of some 520 million books every day on social media and email.”

Clive ThompsonThinking Out LoudWIRED Magazine09/2013

EXAMPLE OF THE NEW MEDIATHE MOBILE WEB

2008 figures

2013 figures

80 per cent of the world’s mobile handsets will be smartphones by 2015*

EXAMPLE: THE DIGITAL MIDDLE EASTOver the last three years 200,000 Bibles have been downloaded to the Arabian Peninsula (AP). The Arab world is booming in websites – with nearly 15 million hits per month.

Christian chat rooms aimed at the AP are visited by 50,000 people/day. Satellite TV, radio, Bluetooth – a whole new generation is being exposed to the gospel as never before.

Cited by Arabian Peninsula Network

THE BIG PICTURE – IN BUSINESS TERMS:

Christian media have often developed a spectacularly successful customer lead/prospect generation system

But, they have effectively little or no intentional customer and/or sales follow-up!

THE OBVIOUS CHALLENGE: WHAT TO DO?Electronic/Digital Media – Provides “Personal Proximity” That Is Part Of A Distant, Massive Footprint

Christian Fellowship –Provides “Personal Proximity” That Is Highly Local & Face to Face

Do we need a new basis for measuring media effectiveness – how about an “engagement index”?

Consider the full challenge -- indices for Getting the audience? Holding the audience? Engaging the audience? Connecting the audience?

QUESTIONS

JOURNEY TO BELIEF: IMPLICATIONS FOR THE MEDIA

LUKE 8:40-56/ HOLY SPIRIT PROCESS

Communications is a process not an event.

Decision to follow & grow in Christ is a process not an event.

All decisions have contexts – the audience is always changing.

Beginning the journey with Christ is just that – a beginning.

EVERYONE: JOURNEY TO BELIEF

KNOWLEDGE

(+)

(-)

MOTIVATION &ATTITUDE

(-) (+)

Adoption of New Ideas/Practices & Risk/Reward Considerations

Innovators Resistant

Early LateAdopters Adopters

General Public

AUDIENCE JOURNEY TO BELIEFBartemaeus, Nicodemus, & the Pharisees

With thanks to Everett Rogers, Diffusion of Innovation

High Motivation: High/Acceptable Risk

Low Motivation: Low/Acceptable Risk

BUILDING THE CHURCH -- TOGETHERMatthew 13, John 4:35-39, I Corinthians 1:4-9

Growth of Church Active in Evangelism/ Faithful Life Bearing Fruit Growing Maturity Babe on MilkDiscipling

Point of Commitment Reaping Watering Sowing Stone clearing General Revelation Does Not Know Christ

Mature Believer

Early Believer

Decision Seeker Indifferent Antagonist

JOURNEY TO BELIEF: DECISION MAKINGLUKE 8:40-50 / HOLY SPIRIT PROCESS

INFORMATION

REFLECTION

REINFORCEMENT

MOTIVATIONCONVICTION

DECISION

ACTION

COMMITMENT

EVERYONE’S JOURNEY TO BELIEFKnowledge

(+)

(-)

Motivation &Attitude

(-) (+)

Stone

Clearing

SowingWaterin

g

ReapingDisc

ipling

GENERAL REVELATION

MEDIARADIO/TVINTERNET

LARGE GROUP EVENTS

INTER-PERSONAL

PRAYER &FAITHFULNESS

ANTAGONISTS

INDIFFERENT

SEEKERS

BELIEVERS

IMPLICIT MSG EXPLICIT MSG

ALL MEDIA HAVE A PART: “MASS MEDIA” FACE TO FACE

ROMANS 12, I CORINTHIANS 12, EPHESIANS 4

STONE CLEARING

SOWING/ WATERING

REAPING DISCIPLING

HIGHMEDIAIMPACT

LOWMEDIAIMPACT

PARTNERSHIP?IMPERATIVE FOR THE

MEDIA & THE CHURCH

EFFECTIVENESS A FUNCTION OF SPECIFICITY: CONTEXT IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE SYSTEM

1. Nature of the Audience2. Socio/Religious History of Reception

Area3. Hostility/Risk Index4. Security5. Status & Nature of the Church in the

Reception Area

TYPICAL F-U & “INTEGRATION” MODELS

Audience relation response (auto reply) Send evangelistic/discipleship materials Refer to online discipleship course such as

www.LooktoJesus.com, www.alpha.com, www.ichristianlife.com

E-coaching conversation/chat Pair e-coaching with discipleship site Point them to start simple house church Invite to an online church/virtual church Refer to OTG one-to-one follow-up

E-COACHES/ONLINE MISSIONARIESWhy.Jesus.net has over 1000 “e-coaches”BCC has 60 chat operatorsGMO has over 8,000 “online missionaries;” demand is there for 10,000 now

Even the largest follow-up system cannot stay ahead of the numbers

PARTNERSHIP: ACTION STEPS? Awareness about,

acknowledgement of the problem: Media & Investors

Motivation/Commitment to Change Agreed “Industry” Standards &

Metrics: Media & Investors Regional/Local Church Engaged

(FEBC Regions?) Build Effective Case Histories

Will It Be Easy? No Will It Happen Quickly? No Will It Take Vision and

Tenacity? Yes Will It Take The Sustained

Backing of A Few Major Influentials? Yes!

Will It Take The Blessing of God? Yes!

http://www.slideshare.com/visionsynergy

http://conversation.lausanne.org/en/resources/detail/13351