Techvangelism Conference: Walt Wilson’s Keynote Address
Walt Wilson is the Founder and Chairman of Global Media Outreach, an internet evangelism ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. The following are my notes from his keynote address at yesterday’s Techvangelism ‘06 conference (whether or not I specifically attribute something to Walt, they are still his thoughts — what follows is largely a straight transcription of my notes without any added thoughts from me, except where specifically noted).
Walt began his speech with a reference to Matthew 24, especially verses 3 and 14. In verse 3, Jesus’ disciples ask Him what the world will be like in the end time: “As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?’” In verse 14, Jesus gives part of His answer to that question: “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.”
Walt believes that Jesus was speaking to a future generation when He said these words — He saw the digital generation.
Colossians 1:16 says that Jesus created all things, including invisible things like bits. We are the first generation to hold in our hands the technology to reach the world. But does the church have the strategy to use the technology effectively? We tend to hold on to old models.
83 countries (46% of all the countries in the world) do not currently allow Christian missionaries from America (largely because of politics), but others can.
Everyone is now our neighbor - geography has been eliminated. (Note from Frank: Is this true? If face-to-face community is still important, it requires geographical proximity).
The new generation gets messages in images, not words. (Note from Frank: what about the claims of Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg about the importance of words in persuasion, though?)
According to George Barna, 67% of Americans are conducting spiritual searches on the internet. And 1/3 of every community in America is in crisis. The market comes to us because of crisis. People put aside their intellectual arguments and look for relationship in the privacy of their home. The internet is amazingly intimate and amazingly anonymous. (Note from Frank: Is this a good thing? Does it encourage a shallow evaluation of the claims of Christ?)
Walt referred to a time frame (which unfortunately I didn’t catch) in which Barna says the U.S. population grew by 25 million, but the Protestant church in America declined by 4 million. There are 200 million unchurched in America - now the largest post-Christian nation in the world.
Walt went on to talk about one of their websites: StaciStory.com. Staci was a 16-year-old vibrant believer who died in 2005 from Viral Myocarditis. The website is a story of her life and a compelling presentation of the gospel. Word about the website has been spread almost entirely through social networking (blogging).
Future communication will be much less text-based and more more story-based.
Posted by on 03/19/06 at 07:32 AM
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You may be interested in reading these articles which enumerate core principles of the strategy we advocate:
Effective Church Websites For Emerging Generations
Investigating the various ways in which a church's website can be targeted toward unbelievers in a church's local community.
A Strategy For Local Internet Outreach
How can the internet be used for evangelism and outreach while maintaining an environment of authentic Christian community?
Flawed Follow Up Or A Flawed Philosophy of Evangelism?
The ease with which we can “share the gospel” online can actually short-circuit the God-ordained process by which unbelievers are brought to faith.
Should We Include A Gospel Presentation On Our Websites?
Should conversion be our immediate goal in our internet evangelism efforts?
A Strategic Opportunity For The Church
A proposed strategy in which a church would use short video profiles of members of their congregation to entice unbelievers in their local area to consider the value of a local congregation’s ministry in their own lives.
2 John 12
Is there something incomplete about digital communication?
Fri, October 10, 2008 at 06:19 pm
Frank : savoring the start of a four-day weekend, looking forward to a great Time Out
Tue, October 07, 2008 at 08:13 pm
Frank : wishing that the spin doctors would have an ounce of honesty and integrity.
Sat, October 04, 2008 at 10:08 pm
Frank : winding down after a long Saturday's work on things of eternal value.
Sun, September 28, 2008 at 11:44 am
Frank @GregAtkinson my daughter is a goalkeeper - nothing quite like being a goalkeeper's parent!
Wed, September 24, 2008 at 09:55 pm
Frank : back home after a high school back-to-school night, evaluating high schools for next year
When the Luis Palau Evangelistic Association wanted to use the internet to promote their city festivals, they turned to Strategic Digital Outreach. Read more ....
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Turtle Interactive
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We work with several different organizations in exploring ways in which digital means can be used to reach an increasingly digital world. Some of these organizations are more traditional clients. Some are friends. All are our partners in the gospel (1 Corinthians 3:9). Invariably, we learn as much from them as they do from us. Here is a sampling:
David & Linda Arzouni
Assemblies of God missionaries to West Africa, based in Mali (the land of Timbuktu).
Assemblies of God
The Northern California and Nevada District, based in Sacramento, California.
India Prayer Drive
A 21-day prayer drive through the nation of India.
IreneDias.com
Although the suffering they face is severe, this is not a story of despair, but of an incredible faith and even more of an incredible God who sustains His followers with lavish grace, extravagant kindness, and unrelenting love.
Luis Palau Evangelistic Association
Proclaiming the Lord's Good News to the millions of people who have yet to respond to the Gospel.
Sacred Ink
Joyfully declaring the gospel to the tattoo subculture.
Santa Cruz Bible Church
Their evangelism department focuses on marketplace ministries.
ShareFest Santa Cruz County
Churches in Santa Cruz County, California join together to become a bridge from the church to the community through work projects designed to bless the community.
TimeOut Conference
Enabling a deeper relationship with God and more effective relationships with people.
Wake Up! Santa Cruz
Presenting the claims of Christ to the business community in Santa Cruz, California.
These are projects which we have initiated (either individually or as members of a team) in our efforts to use digital means to spread the gospel:
MissionEquip
MissionEquip.com was established to provide resources to missionaries and short-term missions teams traveling worldwide.
ChristianCruz
ChristianCruz.com is a localized portal for believers living in Santa Cruz County, California.
Prodigal God
ProdigalGod.com, a work in progress, is designed to provide biblical instruction to the wider body of Christ through the use of video teaching segments and written articles.
Christian Screen Savers
ChristianScreenSavers.com offers a selection of high-quality, inexpensive Christian screen savers which reflect biblical themes. Proceeds from the sale of these screen savers are used to support the work of Strategic Digital Outreach.
Blogs I Read
Adventures Of A Web Evangelist
The Appian Way
BetaChurch.org
BlogMinistry
BlogRodent
Boyink Interactive
Carpe' Digital
Christian Web Trends
Church Beauty
Church Communications Pro
Church Marketing Sucks
ChurchTechToday
Church Website & Blog Ideas
digital.leadnet.org
Digital Ministry
The Digital Sanctuary
e-vangelism.com
Effective Church Web Sites
Effective Web Ministry Notes
Equip Blog
Evotional
GodBit
Goodmanson
Gospelcon
Heal Your Church Website
If Jesus Had A Website
Leave It Behind
MicroExplosion
Outside The Box Ministry
Sacred Digital
So You Want A Church Website?
The Ultimate Issue
Web Evangelism Issues
More Blogs & Sites
The Grace Place
Life's Eye View
MetroReach
Media Ministry
Missionary-Blogs
Mobile Ministry Magazine
Conquering Nonprofit Chaos
Palms For Pastors
St. George the Dragonslayer
© 2004-2007,
Frank N. Johnson.
All rights reserved, except as otherwise noted.
I believe that the internet provides today's church with a historic opportunity .... to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love in ways which could only have been imagined in times past. The objective of this website is to explore the various ways in which today's technology can be used to spread the gospel around the world.
