When Mark Batterson (the pastor of National Community Church in Washington, DC) talks about podcasting, he never fails to stretch my mind and make me think in new ways.
If you’ve read what I’ve had to say about podcasting before, you know that in the past, I have had some reservations about how podcasting is typically used by churches (because I believe that everything we do in the digital realm should be actively encouraging face-to-face community and podcasting sermons may not, it has seemed to me, facilitate that process). But everytime I read an article by Mark, he tweaks my thinking a little bit more.
Leadership Journal recently published an article, written by Mark, called Godcasting. In the article, one paragraph in particular struck me:
How many people last month visited National Community Church? 12,771. I couldn’t see them. I didn’t shake any of their hands. Truth be told, they didn’t really visit us. National Community Church visited them.
That resonated with me so much, I believe, because it brought to mind one of my favorite passages of Scripture regarding evangelism — Luke 14:16-23:
And the master said to the slave, “Go out into the highways and along the hdeges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled. (verse 23)”
I like that because it shifts the emphasis from how many of us seem to think evangelism should be done (bring people to church) to a more natural, more authentic approach (go live your lives among the people).
Mark’s thoughts about podcasting mirror that philosophy in many ways. First it was his comparison of podcasting to the field preaching of Wesley. Now he makes me think about one of my favorite passages in relation to podcasting.
I would encourage you to read Mark’s article in its entirety. No matter what your opinion about podcasting, he will make you think!
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.
