I have shared about OpenDNS before, but I wanted to let you know about a new free service they are now offering. FamilyShield is a web filter that blocks out inappropriate sites on your home or business computers. I have used OpenDNS to protect my home network and our church network for the past two years and it has worked great.

FamilyShield is a stripped down version of OpenDNS basic that requires very little setup and no configuration.  It works by simply changing a few settings in your wireless router. They keep a constantly updated list of inappropriate sites and there is no software to install on your computer.  Since it works through your router, it also protects all computers on your network including any iPods, gaming systems, or other home devices. Check out their site for more information. I highly recommend it.

Over the past few years, I have looked into several different options for integrating audio and video sermons into church websites. Many churches are using websites that don’t have this functionality built in, and they need a quick and easy way to get audio and video uploaded each week. I wanted to share a little about the different options out there, and share what our church has chosen to use.  Here are a few options to checkout.

• Sermon.net – This seems to be the biggest service out there, but it can be a little confusing to get started. Their website is tough to navigate, and their basic player is very dated. They offer the ability to share both audio and video, and I would definitely go with the premium account if you choose them.  The pricing info can be found here.
• Sermoncloud – This is another good service focused on audio podcasting.  The service is easy to use, but they have just started charging if you want to archive more than 1 year of audio sermons. Our church has used this for several years, but we decided to find something new because of the cost. We also wanted to start sharing video as well. Sermoncloud is also tougher to integrate into an existing church website since they don’t offer a custom player.
• SermonDrop – Another service for audio podcasts. The player is adequate, but the service becomes a little pricey for only hosting audio files.
• BuzzSprout – Although not designed for sermons, this is a slick podcasting service for audio that would work well. The player is very sleek and contemporary, and I could see this working with most church websites. The pricing is reasonable as well.
• MediaRush - This is one of my favorites. It is a player for audio and video sermons. You can categorize your sermons and integrate this player easily into most websites.  It is by far one of the best looking solutions, but it has two big drawbacks.  One is the cost.  At $30 per month, it can be expensive for smaller churches.  The other is that you have to host your audio and video files somewhere else. For less experienced computer users, this adds another step to the process.

So that brings me to the solution we are currently using, MediaFusion.

MediaFusion

MediaFusion is a new service that does several things right. For only $10 per month (or $99 per year) they offer a sleek player for both audio and video.  They host all your audio files and you can even include sermon notes or powerpoint files.  For video, they have chosen to integrate video from other sources. By not reinventing the wheel, they can keep their cost low by working with other video services. We are using Vimeo Plus which costs $60 per year for the ability to store and stream large video files. The sermons can be organized by series, and you can also link directly to the RSS feed and iTunes podcast.  If you want to see it in action, click the above photo to see what we have uploaded so far for Cornerstone. We plan on going back and adding older series as we get time.  So far, I’m impressed. It seems like a good service for smaller churches who want great results. They are still adding features and updating the service, so I’m hoping to see more statistics available, and there are a few quirks to the RSS feed, but I’m confident those things will be addressed soon.

I really like the current trend of offering web services that integrate and play nicely with existing websites. I hope we see more vendors taking this approach.

Online Video Audio and Podcasting – Media Fusion

If you have never tried using Google Docs, now is the time to jump in and try it out. Essentially it is an online version of Office. You can create and edit documents, spreadsheets, drawings, and presentations online. The files are stored on Google’s servers so you can access them from any computer with internet access.  It also allows you to share files with others, even accessing the documents at the same time.

Yesterday, Google announced several great new features for Google Docs.  Real-time collaboration, new spreadsheet enhancements, a new drawing tool, and more control over document formatting were all added features. They also allow you to upload any files to their server for online storage.

You can combine this with Google apps for your domain and have the ability to provide email and calendar scheduling, all for free for churches and non-profits. If you are a church, this is a great service to use for sharing important information. For more reasons why you should consider using Google apps, check out this post over at ChurchCrunch.

I am a big Google fan and this just reinforces the fact that you don’t have to charge high prices to offer a great service. Between Google Docs and the free OpenOffice suite, I really don’t see myself spending any money for Microsoft Office in the future. Check out the video below for more info on Google Docs.

A great use of a church website is for sharing prayer requests. PrayerEngine is a new web service that looks promising. It allows you to embed a prayer wall directly into your existing website. Anyone can submit a prayer request, which is then posted to your website as soon as it is approved. You can share those prayer requests through email, twitter, facebook, and RSS. People visiting your website can click on a counter that shows how many time each request is prayed for. This is such a great use of social media for the church. If you are interested, check out the demo on youtube. I think you will see more services like this in the future that embed directly into your existing website.

The service costs a one-time fee of $99. Since there is no monthly fee, it’s a great bargain. As an added bonus, you can head over to MediaSalt and pickup an additional 15% discount for today only!

The Prayer Engine – The Best Way to Share Prayer Requests Online

Have you ever wished that you could access your home computer from work? Have you forgotten a much needed file? Do your parents need help with their computer, but you’re miles away and can’t work on it? Need to print something at church?  I’ve experienced all of these situations many times and I have tried several different solutions. But I have finally found a free software solution that lets you login and work on a computer from anywhere in the world via the internet.  I’ve been using it for a few months and it works great.

LogMeIn Free is a software application that you can install on any PC or Mac computer.  Once installed, you can access that computer from any computer with an internet connection and web browser. I can even use my Window mobile phone or iPod to access and control the computers.  I have installed this on my home computer, the church computer, and my parent’s computer. Now if I need to login and check something or email a file, I can do that quickly and easily. Everything is password protected, so choose a strong password and you’ll be safe. This is much simpler to use than VNC or remote desktop connection, and it’s a lot cheaper than MobileMe’s back to my mac.

Here’s more info from their site.

LogMeIn Free gives you remote control of your PC or Mac from any other computer with an Internet connection.

Simply install LogMeIn on the computer you want to access (it takes about 2 minutes), log into your account from another computer and click the computer you want to control. You’ll see its desktop and be able to use all the applications on your remote computer as if you were sitting in front of it -- even if you’re across town, across the country, or across the world.

• Works with Windows PCs and Mac OS X
• Two-minute set-up

They do offer a paid version that adds the ability to share files and print, but I can get around needing that by using the free Dropbox utility to move and sync files between computers.

I finally got around to setting up a good backup strategy for our church computers. Over the Christmas holiday I found a great deal on the Netgear ReadyNAS Duo file server.  I got one for the church for only $239, and it has worked flawlessly. This is a dual drive 1TB network storage device and works great for homes or small businesses. You simply plug it into your network and access it from any computer on the network. I’m using it with Apple time machine to backup my mac, and I’m also backing up our windows computers to it.  It also functions as a great media server and file server.

Let me urge you to think through your backup plan. Eventually you will have a hard drive crash, so what will happen to your data?  By having a regular plan in place, you can save yourself from all the despair of losing important files. I recommend having a network storage drive or an external hard drive as your primary backup, and also using an online backup service to protect your most important files. If something happens to your building or home, it is great to have a backup that is not at the same location.

At home, I’m using MozyPro, which is an online backup solution.  My computer uploads any changes to their offsite servers during the night. It has worked great and is only $4.95 per month.  Other good online solutions are BackBlaze and Carbonite.

Dropbox is also another great way to backup important files. It synchronizes files between different computers. It has been a great way to backup some important files and transfer files from my home computer and my laptop to the church computer.

Whatever you do, DO SOMETHING. Don’t wait until a failure, develop a plan and start backing up. You’ll thank me later.

If you’re interested in the Netgear ReadyNAS Duo, here is some more info.

One of the most used apps on my iPod is the YouVersion Bible app by Lifechurch.tv. I have blogged about YouVersion numerous times in the past (see the posts here), and I am excited about the continual updates that the digerati team at Lifechurch keep pushing out. Last week they announced a new milestone. YouVersion users have spent one billion minutes reading the Bible on mobile devices! But they didn’t stop long to celebrate and now they have added the ability to track a personalized Bible reading plan on your mobile device. The feature came out today for the Blackberry application and is coming out soon on the iPod/iPhone. It is also available on their website.

I have kept a little printout in my Bible for a long time that I use to track my reading progress. It works great until you lose the sheet, which I have done several times in the past year.  I’m planning on switching over and using this to track and guide my reading starting January 1st. There are multiple reading plans to choose from, so what’s holding you back? Will you join me in reading through your Bible in the upcoming year?

If you want to find out more about how this works, check out the video below.

ChurchCrunch had the news about this yesterday.  If you want to utilize technology for ministry, then definitely check this website out. It is a great blog with an active forum of church tech users. Definitely one of my favorite ministry websites. Check it out at www.churchcrunch.com.

For a long time, I have had a passion for helping smaller churches utilize technology. From assisting them with their websites, to setting up podcasts, to helping plan audio and video systems, I have gained much experience over the last 15 years.  So today, I’m making it official, I am offering my services to other churches as a consultant and web designer.

My goal is to help churches develop an overall technology and web strategy.  If we’re not careful, technology can consume huge amounts of money and distract us from our main mission of making disciples. I want to help churches realize how it can create connections between the people inside your church and the community. Technology is an incredible tool to advance the Kingdom when used properly.  Since I am a pastor, I will only have limited time available for consulting and web design.  My focus will be on smaller churches with smaller budgets.  Click on the Design and Consulting Link from my website to find out more about how we can partner together.

I’ve been playing a little with Google Wave.  It could really become a useful tool for ministry in the future.  But it is not there yet.  Google is trying to invent a better way to communicate with groups of people.  If you have ever been in a long email conversation between multiple people, you can understand the potential benefit that Google Wave will provide. I think this will be a great tool for leadership teams to collaborate and share info throughout the day, even if you are in different locations.  The main drawback is that there are not many people currently using it. If your friends and colleagues aren’t on it, then it doesn’t provide much benefit.  It is also complicated to use in it’s present form.

Since the service is still in Beta, you have to be invited to use it.  I have several invites that I can share, so leave me a comment if you are interested in trying this service out.

Here’s a simple description of how Google Wave works

If you want a more detailed understanding of Google Wave, check this video out.

I have been asked several times recently about incorporating text messaging and twitter comments into church events.  Audience participation can be fun and it can provide a way to get feedback during an event or service. Here are several services that I am familiar with that use text messaging and twitter.

YouVersion Live:

This is a new free service that lets you share notes, Bible passages, prayer requests and polls for anyone using a web-enabled mobile device.  I’ll share a little about this service in a future post, but this is an awesome way to interact with your congregation.  The only drawback is that it does require a web-enabled phone or ipod to use.

Poll Everywhere:

This is a text messaging service that lets you take real time polls of your audience.  You can embed the results in a powerpoint file or just view the website in full screen mode to see the results as they come in.  We have used this several times with good results for youth and for some of our special services.  Your audience can send in their answers through SMS text messaging, through the web, or through twitter.

Jarbyco:

This is another text messaging service that many churches have used.  It is powerful and easy to configure.  They also do custom work for clients

Paratweet:

This has been used at the Catalyst Conference and is a great way to create interaction with the audience using twitter.  Paratweet offers powerful moderation features as well to keep unwanted comments from showing up.

Wiffiti:

Wiffiti is like a whiteboard that shows incoming messages.  It can be embedded in a website and you can customize the background images.  This is a very graphical solution that would be great to share prayer requests for a large group.  I think it works best for a younger audience, but I really like the potential.   There are several moderation options and the best part is that it’s free!   (thanks to studentministry.org for introducing this service to me)

Now for the disclaimer, just because the tools are available to interact with audience doesn’t mean that you should use them.  Technology is a tool that can help connect us or it can become a distraction that divides us.  You will need to think through the appropriate use of these services. Some of the free versions lack the ability to moderate the comments, so you can very easily end up with something inappropriate on the screen. You also have to take into account how much time you will have to devote to explaining the use of these services.  Unless you are dealing with teens or a tech-savvy crowd, you will have to walk people through how to use each service.