OUTREACH UPDATE.
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WHAT OUR WEB ADMIN NEEDS FROM YOU!!!!
- POEMS!
- Shareable JOKES!
- ARTICLES!
- HOUSEGROUP STUDIES!
- BIBLE-STUDIES!
- BOOK REVIEWS!
- WITNESS of the LORD in your Life!
- Evangelism tracts!
- Lists of favourite Christian musicians, hymns, songs etc
- Recipes
- Photos of activities, arts, crafts
- Puzzles & Quizzes
- Anything which adds to the body of Christ, builds Faith, glorifies Our Lord, or is lead by the Holy Spirit
- Prayer examples
**INTERNATIONAL INTERNET OUTREACH DAY is JUNE 1st**
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It has been over year designing the infrastructure of our internet outreach, and networking to widen our potential output.
Success so far, by The Lord’s Blessing
Our main blog has been followed by 770+ people;
Last year, our poems on slideshare hit the top 5% of looked at content globally… which is an incredible achievement only attributable to our Lord’s blessing.
Through connections on a professional site, we potentially may be read by over 11 million professionals, most of whom are scattered around the globe; through another site, potential reach of a figure of a good 5 million .
Over 60 % of the interest in what we are doing stems from America, East and West Coast, and particularly California.
Despite reducing hours, the Lord’s blessing remains; on average we hold a position globally among a group of online marketers and business folk of between approx 9TH and 16th place, and about ON AVERAGE BETWEEN 7th to 2nd place in the UK among the same group. These people are leading business start up advisors, marketers, social media moguls and influencers (!)
It has taken about a year to understand the internet and how it operates; how best to maintain visibility, and how social sites operate.
We have a large presence now on the internet for such a small church… this is needed ready for outreach to the world and every nation.
We must be ready for revival
If we believe truly that we will see revival…then we must prepare ourselves for what that revival will bring, and also be ready to be amenable to hearing the Word of the Lord and moving in the flow of the Holy Spirit.
Over the last year there has been considerable confirmation in the Word and scripture given in our Sunday sermons, from speakers, through prayer and through waiting on the Lord.
Noah was told to build an Ark… in a land that had not seen rain. Similarly, our outreach seems a large task, which would easily become discarded through discouragement – however, whenever such threatened, the Gracious Lord gave encouragement, a Word given, or, as has happened on many occasions, we have had some submissions for us to post. To walk in faith does not mean that we know what lies ahead…it means we trust the Lord to guide us- with milestones and illumination along the road we travel, such are the blessing of encouragements and confirmations which the Holy Spirit has given us in our outreach.
Soon (in a few months time) we will be utilising the full potential of the computer gifted us; this means eventually video; graphics; art; slideshows , digital news/ezines and much more… Roly, impassioned in preaching, Spoke over our congregation and gave a Word instructing us to use the computer for the Work of the Lord that he has set before us; others too.
Progress through prayer
Our webdesigner, Jim, has had to seek vision and advice, through prayer. In fact… if the prayer is not maintained, the computer goes down, fails to work or other glitches occur: this, the unexpected success online, and confirmation given in inspired sermons, has proven that indeed there is God’s purpose in the outreach- we have learnt a lot in but one year alone; and thanks be to God for the wonderful support, trust and love within the Fellowship.
Our fellowship has been growing and making progress for the Lord- it has not been easy, nor without major challenges, as one might expect. We have ‘claimed’ a large amount of ‘ground’ for Jesus on the internet, which will get used, for His glory and to enlarge His Kingdom.
Effectively, we are only online twice a week; which is a minimal time considering the amount of time most people spend online. It has however slowed the rate of completion.
Our Audio facilities
During the last year we have had our speakers sorted, and Tony has helped to balance out our audio (an answer to prayer, and another blessing!)… we will eventually be recording sermons and editing for the internet. Look out Dave, Peter and (“New”) Dave (!)
We are NOT Hollywood (!) … it will take time, but we will discover our own style and pitch online for audio, podcasts etc. More and more churches are putting their sermons online for those who miss a Sunday, or are housebound, for study, or to outreach. We will go ahead through prayer, and seeking the Lord’s will on each thing…at His pace.
Our Main site
Our main site continues to output posters, our church events and dnotices as directed by our eldership; our facebook page for the church as a whole is quieter;
The Children’s ministry/Tiny Toes and the Childrens’ monthly service is more active as the parents are more internet aware
Building for The Kingdom, embracing Ministries and change
There are several different ministries within our Fellowship, and it has been necessary to compartmentalise different internet resources for those ministries, and to embrace the move of the Holy Spirit and giftings within the fellowship, while remaining flexible enough to adapt sites to where we are lead(!)
We are blessed by having strong links to IBTI and of course Mattersley, through the AOG, and also personal links within the fellowship. In outreaching and designing a learning resource platform [the suite of websites necessary to promote learning], we are NOT trying to be a college, nor are we going into formal tuition (as tutors) across the internet – we are building a body of knowledge as a learning resource.
Should the Lord lead, and gift one of our congregation with the specific gifts of internet teaching/ youth ministry, then we may expand in that direction
Why our internet presence covers many online areas
… in order to source up-to-date information and relevant materials, we have had to join online a number of different communities; thus we have sites to do with education, technical sites, sites specifically on marketing and internet reach, Journalism or E-zine publication, Music sites ( to embrace the music ministry which is building), Art sites (as our webdesigner is also a graphic artist…) Craft sites, to promote banner making…and of course those sites necessary for maintainence of the web, and knowledge/information ‘curation’, storage and archiving…
In short a complete system and infrastructure.
A global move of the Spirit, stirring?
Online, we have connected to many pastors globally; some of whom are beginning ministries and gospel outreach to India, Pakistan, Iran, central and southern Africa, Burma … thereseems to be a GLOBAL move of the Holy Spirit to spread the WORD to all nations. Our web admin Jim, was given a vision of bikers with bibles travelling to the Eastern European and African states- and spoke of it to one of the admins on Faithful Earth, only to be told that that admin was discussing –and planning that day-that very mission with associates . It is truly humbling to be used by the Lord to give simple encouragement, witness and confirmation.
As Peter our Pastor said- if God puts something on your heart- listen to it, and don’t give up on it, see it through!
We might truly believe we may be seeing the start of breath of God on the embers that will flare into full, Global Revival…and probably something even more exciting than we can imagine; and yet on the converse we are seeing such things in the world as are spoken of in the last chapters of the bible.
Why create an online resource?
Other than the obvious- that in the course of building the website for our fellowship, it evolved through prayer and obedience to the preached Word- should our online resource become completed, then we will have built an ongoing scriptural knowledge base for the whole of Christendom, globally, world wide, at a basic introductory level, and also another at a level for more mature, progressed, Christians, which is totally free, and accessable by all.
We only need to write and produce simple, down to earth, grounded and scripturally correct media and materials – nothing too fancy… as there is a definite need globally for the 13 to Adult range of online internet users to be able to access easily understandable Christian materials. This does involve (however) writing lesson plans and developing good filing and information/ data handling skills.
“My people perish for a lack of Knowledge”… It is not a question of regurgitating scripture; of learning Victorian parrot-fashion; but of providing the milk, meat and fruit of scripture and sharing the wealth of Knowledge of the Lord in one’s own life… people need to find how to have relationship with God; to be born again, filled with the Spirit, on Fire for the Lord. In short: share what Jesus has done for us, and what He means to us, and WHY He is important to know, and know about.
forthcoming
As our community poets submit work; we will upload and illustrate poems and articles. We are building an online poetry/Art community.
We will be outputting reading plans weekly, to encourage reading the scriptures; we may follow the church of England Lectionary for suggestions of daily readings to provide a basic ground of output material. In addition we will output those texts and scriptures we are moved to share by the Holy Spirit. We hope to post daily meditations, prayers, thoughts for the day, daily scriptures, in addition to educational posts, worship related items and more.
We will also soon be putting online a series of scriptures detailing the blessings of God of various types, on permanent roll-over every 26 weeks, and looking to create permanent roll-out media/courses that may be followed by anyone globally.
Work , ongoing, so far
Working out scheduling has been a nightmare. Adapting ready for global scheduling for across 38 Time Zones and over 200 nations has been brain-boiling… Digesting the national curriculum keystage 3 & 4 guidelines, FENTO standards [further ed. Teaching] and more, working out templates for each digital media, and the skeleton framework of a basic curriculum has been challenging… we are NOW writing it up, for submission to the elders over the next few weeks.
Our web admin is partway through collating concordances to aide production of digital media with correct scripture references.A thankless task, but vital.
We have a number of websites for listening to online praise and worship, and are developing a youtube channel to that same end, along with other youtube channels dedicated to streaming information.
As yet we are not in a position to run the internet radio sites we have laid up for later development, yet in time they will become used. We have started to network and make contact with Christian broadcasters across the globe.
Worldwide outreach:
VERY literally, on the internet, we will be preaching the Gospel to all nations (over 220 according to the Philip’s Atlas) and going into ALL the world (across approx.38 or so TimeZones). Through various sites we have facility for podcasts and audio posts…which can be linked to through our blog and other main sites.
Claiming ground back for Christ!
Our outreach has also created bulkheads into other areas, claiming ground for Christ Jesus: we have a page on the main ‘spiritual sites’ network in India, to continue the outreach and connection of our senior, retired Pastor, Peter saunders to India, through which we shall spread the Gospel message, bolstered by prayer; and another on a western ‘spiritual networks’ site, will spread the Gospel message among “New-Agers”.
Recent internet security instabilities have slowed the development of a page in Japan, as the host site is not seen as secure enough…advice is being sought, as it would be good to outreach into the Orient. We have also opend a page in Russia, ready to encourage evangelism in the Soviet States, undaunted by recent politics.
Outreach building
Through contacts in Africa, we may be able to outreach to Malawi, South Africa, Kenya, and surrounding states; and possibly Sierra Leone and the East African coast.
It is quite likely that some Churches, study groups and orphanages in Africa and the Middle East/ Indies may use our media.
Although this outreach may sound daunting; it is simply a matter of gradually building content online, and using the internet as an effective tool – to be ‘as wise as serpents, as gentle as doves’ IN the World, but not OF it.
Equally, our outreach is only possible through a stable base of prayer within our Fellowship and Church, through seeking the Lord, and the guidance and overview of our Eldership. Your prayers are truly needed.
Keeping up with old friends
Through the internet we have kept in touch with Harry and Lesley, who are currently in USA for YWAM teaching the “Mission As Business” course, and who are active in mission work in the Philippines.
Our OWN forthcoming article, digital media and course content will be driven through prayer, using resources and books we have to write from, including topical concordances, the Thompson chain reference system and a number of other reference texts and commentaries, checked over by our leadership. We do not need to worry about running out of subjects; we have a list of over 2000(!) which have to fitted into the overall curriculum framework, which is as like to develop and change as we go along as the guidance of the Holy Spirit leads.
Yours in Faith,
and Christ,
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Main Sites
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BIBLE READING PLAN through the bible ESV
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Bethel Christian Fellowship 
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