Mobile Ministry Magazine

Its Halloween and for many Christians, this is NOT the time when they want to go out and do much of anything. Understandable, there are some not-so-Christian aspects to the day that could discourage some.

That being said, I'm going out. Actually, I'll be driving to PA. Not for candy and treats (though there is a possiblity of a real treat this weekend), but to connect with various folks. Mobile is taking a signifiant piece of my trip as well, and it should be fun. Here's a breakdown of some of what I'll be using:

• Down to two mobiles, I'll be using the N95 and N96 to take pictures during homecoming and a parade.
• I'll be doing some troubleshooting to a few PCs using my N95
• The N800 will be my music player in the car when I'm tired of the 100+ CDs I have
• I'll be using both the N95 and N96 as wireless hotspots for the week as I'll be working out of office the entire week. Also, they will serve as a conference call center for me
• I hope to get some use out of Nokia Maps 2.0 as well, though I'll be largely in areas that I am very familiar with

It should be pretty fun. I only hope that Philly is still intact considering the World Series parties that have been happening. Hehehe

What about yourself, are there ways you are looking to get out and use tech to connect and share life with others this weekend?

Labels: mobility, multimedia, music, N800, N95, N96, navigation, Nokia, Nokia Maps, travel, wireless application

This weekend I had the opportunity to attend two of three concerts which are part of a show called MixxMaster's Studio Lounge. Both nights saw a ton of youth and mobile action, and the picture in this post is just one of the really neat scenes from the night.

This scene was probably the most awesome of the night as young and old, people from various races and areas of the US, all came together to just put Jesus in the front of all that was going on that night. Lecrae in particular leading this was an impressive act of humbliness and maturity. A Christian hiphop artist who has recently broken the secular Billboard Top 10 with his latest release, he pointed folks to Jesus. This moment captured in a picture, a moment of utter agreement by all in the room (400+ people), was just awesome.

At the same time, that venue also added to my fustrations with the Body and mobile technology. Let me preface in saying that I am very clear on issues of artists, images, video, and rights. What I want to point out is the missed opportunity to involve youth with a media company, and the ability to literally change how concerts are done - with just a simple mobile phone.

On the third night of Mixx Master's, it was asked of all those in the audience with cameras and camera phones to only take stills and not video of the night. Now understand, most of those with a mobile in the audience were youth. And that video was going to go right to their MySpace (or other) pages before they left the building. But due to legalities, the security in the audience constantly told people throughout the night that moving pics could not be taken.

For me, for this mobilists who started MMM with the idea that the Body should be innovators of mobile tech and its use, I was fustrated.

Its Sunday night when I am writing this, and I am still fustrated. This was an opportunity to do the best of mashups, and include mobile and youth in the telling of a story about an artist that many of them identified with. It didn't happen - again.

A ton of youth with a mobile phone, a free SMS/MMM shortcode to upload videos, utilzie the abiltiies of the audio/video team to mashup the content, publish the viewpoints of those in the audience beside the professional footage = end up with a story that cannot be repeated, but can be shared and told over and over. For all those hands that were raised, especially the one teen girl who gave her life to Christ, this was a story that was missed. An opportunity to do a concert and TV show in a way that had not been done before. It was missed.

For my part, I've got a problem in seeing these opportunities and then putting Jesus in front of them. Its really an issue of knowing that the Body has the best story to tell, but will not take advantage of it with what is available either because of ignorance or refusal. I really don't know what I'll do at this point except to point this post to a few there, and hope that people can start to use their means to see all points of our lives as vantage points where Christ's story can be told so that others come to see Him just as Lecrae presented - the man who wasn't afraid to be a rebel to show us how much the Father loved us. Because to me, people getting together to exhalt the Lord is fun, but when we keep our own slience, the fustration just weighs on me.

Labels: community, innovation, mobility, music, teens. youth

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending a few of the live concerts put on by MixxMaster's Studio Lounge. On Thursday night I went to see JR (who is on the Cross Movement label) and on Saturday there was Edward Long II and a group named M2B (Made to Believe). One of the things I noticed though was that there were a lot of teens and young adults, but not as much focus after the show towards keeping them enaged beyond giving them a MySpace page link.

So, par the course of my normal way of thinking, I started wondering how an event like that, plus the churches that were involved, can utilize mobile devices and services to not just enhance participation, but also make a way to connect with the youth in ways that lead to discipliship.

One idea that came to mind was to simply make available ringtones of those who were performing. To work with MediaComm (the parent company to Steelroots and MixxMaster's) to secure that licensed content where youth can type a text message to a shortcode and then get the ringtone. But instead of stopping there, reply with the ringtone that someone is on the other end to pray for them if they have a prayer request. That other end would be made up of leaders and volunteers from local churches who would pray for those youth.

I also had the idea of sitting down with the youth before the show in small groups asking them about what they listen to and how they respond to what they hear. Give them a place to be open whether they get music legally or not, and then at the end of the talk give them music, electronic bibles, etc. that would enable them to have a healthy view of using mobile devices for those things they enjoy.

These are just ideas though; Saturday night I took advantage to diffuse a situation by speaking to one of the youth leaders. We exchanged informatoin via mobile and I showed up at his church this Sunday. Nothing special, but making connections so that folks in the Body know that whether via mobile tech, or just footwork, we are connected and tilling this ground together.

Labels: communication, community, mobiles, music, outreach, teens

Interesting story in USAToday (via Switched), speaking about the popularity of religious podcasts. Here's a snippet:

Podcasting also is an inexpensive way for pastors to extend the reach of their teaching beyond the walls of their own place of worship.

Walker pays $29.99 a month to a company called SermonAudio.com, which allows him to upload as much audio for podcasts as he wants.

More than 1 million sermons are accessed each month from the site. It's owned and operated by Steven Lee, a Korean-born graduate of Bob Jones University.

"We definitely try to bill ourselves as an economical way to reach a large number of people," says Lee, a computer programmer and graphic designer who runs his site from an upstairs room in his home in Simpsonville, S.C.

Read the rest at USAToday.

What are some of the podcasts that you listen to in order to continue to engage God or the community of believers? And if you are a pastor or layperson who podcasts, how do you get the word out about your offerings? How can MMM help you in that endavor?

Labels: music, news, podcast

Given that I am at a place where I can finally compose my thoughts, I want to share some more about the N800 and why I think its a nearly perfect device for the connected, believing set of folks.

First of all, the N800 assumes nothing but that you will be connected. Sure, you can get things done offline like a few games and the occasional note. But this device is really intent on being used online. The connection settings are so easy to set up and use its pleasing to go online. The Wi-Fi is absoutely fabulous and finds connections that other devices have no clue about. I frequently connect it to my Treo 680 via Bluetooth and Dial Up Networking (DUN) and have nothing but a pleasing browsing experience.

I've gotten used to using a combination of finger tapping on the screen, stylus tapping, and button pressing to get things done or viewed just right. It really neat how you can hit a button to zoom in and out of a screen. However, those settings for zoom are only for tht window and not the entire device (unline a few tablet pc devices I know of).

I haven't downloaded any software, but I did add my (prevously unused) 2GB SD card. I place a boatload of music and docs on there and those read nicely. And the fact that it will connect to a computer to put files on the SD card without extra software needed is also great.

I am not running the latest update (Internet Tablet 2007) and so I am on some occasions experiences some issues with freezing and rebooting. Nevertheless, it reboots extremely fast (10-15 sec), and so no complaints when it does happen.

I really wish that there were some sort of hybrid bible app for the N800. One that worked online and offline would be perfect for this device. The screen is excellent for reading, and the usablilty of the device is perfect for both casual reading and studying.

I like it. A lot. Now I just need to figure out how to type better on it, so that I can post to MMM from there since the browser likes the MMM design so :)

Labels: internet tablet, mobiles, music, N800, Nokia, usability

Just a few notes as we are entering the top of the hump (EST time anyways).

The ESV Blog reported about the podBible, a ESV downloadable reading Bible for your iPod. Very neat.

In using the N800 and Treo 680, I am having similar thoughts to others of whether the laptop needs a revolution. But if you look at another story, it just might be that the revolution has happened already (it's just not priced right everywhere yet).

One thing is for sure, if we do see that revolution continue towards mobile tech, the change to how we approach community and worship cannot be far behind.

Which, if you think about it, would be neat. especially if we can have praise and worship parties regardless of location.

That's all for now, but isn't it neat to have a though of how God can and will influence tech at this point of the week?

Labels: Bible, church, community, ESV, mobile, mobiles, music, Nokia, praise, Treo 680, worship