Early findings for Vanco`s Churchgoer Giving Study featured in

Transcription

MinistryTech.com | December 2015
1
CONTENTS
December 2015
FOUNDER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Steve Hewitt
shewitt@ministrytech.com
COVER STORY
4
EDITOR
Kevin Cross
kcross@ministrytech.com
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
THE e-GIVING GAP
Yvon Prehn
Nick Nicholaou
Kevin A. Purcell
Russ McGuire
A Comprehensive New Churchgoer Survey
COPY EDITOR
By Steve Hewitt
OUTREACH INC.
Rachael Mitchell
5550 Tech Center Dr.
Colorado Springs, CO
80919
Phone: (800)-991-6011
3EDITORIAL
24STARTUP
16FEATURE
27 MINISTRY COMMUNICATION
19 HIGHER POWER WITH KEVIN
29 NICK AT CHURCH
Do young people understand how the Internet works?
Technology, Christmas gifts, and keeping kids safe
Best tablet and smartphone for Bible study
Ethos
6 Communication strategies for Christmas
Serpents & doves
PARTNER ARTICLES
7
MINISTRY LEADERSHIP
How do you know you are really making disciples
that last?
14 DEEPER IMPACT
The difference between an opinion and knowledge
10 PROTECTED WITH PURPOSE
Keeping your battery charged
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© Copyright 2015 Outreach, Inc. All Rights Reserved
FROM THE
EDITOR
Do young people really understand
how the Internet works?
Financial Times released a study that revealed that young people may know
less than we think about how the Internet works. Granted, the Internet was created
as a way of accessing information. However, things have changed, and it seems that
most information posted online is designed to generate revenue. This revenue is not
even about selling a product for a price, but in many cases it is about gathering any
information about you that can be obtained, and then selling this to someone to help
them to market even more things. They no longer want to know your name and address,
but rather where you go every day, what you look at, what you eat, what you think, etc.
Most young people today don’t realize the deceptive nature of things on the Internet.
The study released shows that only 1/3 of those between the ages of 12-25 could show
you which of the results from a Google search were adverts and not really legitimate
results of their search. One in five stated that all information returned by search engines
must be true. You would think that this should be true, but, again, the Internet is no
longer about providing, retrieving and finding information, it is about money, sales,
spying and marketing.
Almost half of young people surveyed in the study did not know that YouTube was
now advertisement based, yet most young people said that YouTube is their number
one source for information. Overall, young people between the ages of 12-15 now spend
almost 3 hours a day online, which is more time than they spend watching TV. There is
a lot of government oversight to patrol how television is allowed to market to our young
people, but laws and regulations are very behind when it comes to the Internet.
And, of course, most young people are not aware of how recurring billing works.
To read the article on Financial Times, I had to pay $1, plus I had to give out a lot of
personal information as well as a credit card. The fine print states that if I don’t log back
in after I finish writing this editorial, after three days Financial Times will charge my
account for a full subscription. Few things are sold on the Internet without a lot of fine
print. I hope our young people figure all of this out soon!
Together We Serve Him,
Steve Hewitt
shewitt@ministrytech.com
3
4
THE e-GIVING GAP
A Comprehensive New Churchgoer Sur vey
COVER STORY
D
By Steve Hewitt
ecember is the most giving time of the year
for churches, so we were interested in learning
about comprehensive new churchgoer research
conducted by Vanco Payment Solutions — a leader
in the electronic giving market since 1998. The
research shows a significant giving gap between
churches and their members who would prefer to
support the church through online, smartphone and
other electronic payment options. We sat down with
CEO Kevin Lee to discuss the early findings and key
takeaways of the survey.
How and when was this survey
conducted?
We surveyed 1,002 U.S. Christian
churchgoers online over two weeks in
August, focusing on their attitudes,
preferences and behaviors toward
giving. Participants were picked from
a national panel of adults over 18
years old. To make the pool representative of the overall U.S. population, it
was controlled for age, gender, household income and religious denomination. Qualifying participants said
they had attended church at least
once, and had contributed money to
their church at least once, in the past
12 months.
Why undertake a survey this large?
We saw a need for authoritative
and comprehensive research on how
churchgoers view electronic giving
methods. We could see in our own
data, as well as data from our partners, that e-Giving was growing, but
we wanted to understand the drivers
behind that growth.
Churches need to know how their
members feel about giving so they
can offer the methods that will best
support their mission. We’re always
working to provide churches with the
most updated strategies, tools and
data so they can make informed decisions about their stewardship.
We released an Early Findings Report to the marketplace in
early November. We wanted to let
churches know in time for their biggest giving season that they could
better connect with members by
providing them the giving methods
they want.
What was your key takeaway?
Many churches are not keeping
up with how their members want to
fulfill pledges or make payments for
other activities, events and school
tuition. The survey revealed a significant giving gap between how members want to give and the methods
their churches offer.
Overall, two to four times as
many churchgoers would give electronically if they could. Only 25 percent of churchgoers in the survey
reported that their churches offered
electronic giving options, but 60
percent either are using e-Giving
now or would use it if it were offered.
The rest preferred traditional
giving methods, which include giving in person by cash or check, or
mailing in a check to their church.
And while some church members
may always want to give through
traditional means, more and more
churchgoers no longer carry cash or
checkbooks and are asking for other
avenues to give.
Churches have been passing
the plate during services since the
1800s, but the plate or basket is becoming a symbol of giving instead
of the way members prefer to give.
Our research indicates that many
churchgoers are eagerly waiting for
their churches to catch up technologically and add more electronic
options so they can donate to their
churches the same way they pay for
bills and services or donate to other
organizations.
What does the survey say about
specific giving methods?
The churchgoers surveyed were
asked to rank the top three ways
they would most like to give, regardless of the options their church
offers today. They were also asked,
“What options does your church
have for you to make monetary contributions?” The survey responses
are from churchgoers, not churches, so these findings represent the
percentage of churchgoers who say
their church provides each option.
Seventeen percent of churchgoers said they have the option to
make a recurring donation through
a credit card, but twice as many (34
percent) said they would give with a
credit card if they could.
While only 7 percent listed text
giving as an option provided by
their church, 29 percent listed it as
a preferred giving method, so demand is high.
Churchgoers listed kiosk giving
as the option least offered by their
churches (6 percent), but 22 percent
in the survey listed it as a preferred
option.
Almost twice as many (or 22
percent) would prefer to give by
smartphone — by text, mobile app
or mobile web browser — but only
12 percent say they have the option.
5
“Overall, two
to four times
as many
churchgoers
would give
electronically
if they could.”
This counters the perception many
churches have that e-Giving is not
important to core members, but
a tool to help occasional or absent
members give more conveniently.
Active members who attend two
or more activities per week, including church services, prefer e-Giving
the most. The survey found that
overall 60 percent of respondents
give electronically, or would if they
had the option, but that percentage
is higher for members who participate in leadership or committee
roles (70 percent), or have children
involved in activities like Sunday
school (67 percent), after-school
activities (76 percent) and in youth
sports (80 percent).
Helping inactive members keep
What would churches find most up with their pledges is a valusurprising in the survey results? able benefit of electronic giving for
The highest demand for e-Giv- churches and their members, but
ing options comes from people the survey shows it may not be the
who participate in at least two or most important reason. Churches
more church groups or activities. can also connect with their most
6
engaged members through faster, additional insights about church- time for Christmas giving. Acmore convenient ways to give.
goers’ preferences, attitudes and tive members, whether they’re in
perceptions about church giving. attendance or away for the holiWhat does the survey say about Findings will include the most days, can fulfill their year-end
seniors and electronic giving?
prevalent motivations for church giving plans simply and securely
Millennials and younger mem- giving, current attitudes toward through e-Giving. And, occasionbers are leading the way, but they’re e-Giving, as well as communica- al members or holiday visitors can
not the only ones driving demand. tion and technology preferences. have a convenient way to express
The survey results show a clear We’ll share meaningful correla- their generosity through elecpreference for e-Giving options tions between age, church en- tronic options. We make getting
among regular churchgoers of all gagement, income levels, giving started with e-Giving easy for
ages. Younger churchgoers who preferences and behaviors.
churches, and provide coaching
have grown up with the Internet as
and success strategies. Churches
a normal part of their lives are more What’s the advantage of start- who move now to solve the giving
likely to want to give electronically, ing an e-Giving program now? gap can help regular members
but the difference between that age
This is the most important and holiday churchgoers fulfill
group and others isn’t as large as giving season for churches. There their intentions to give.
you might think.
is still time to get in alignment
Preference for e-Giving was with member preferences in
highest for the youngest respondents with only a 4 percent difference between the 24-34 (79 percent) and 35-44 (75 percent) age
groups. But those aren’t the only
ages to significantly favor e-Giving
— 50 percent of churchgoers aged
45-54 and 55-65 expressed a preference for e-Giving, and almost 40
percent of seniors aged 66-72 said
This is the most important giving season,
they would prefer to give electronand there’s still time for churches to offer
ically.
members the electronic options they
We’ve seen anecdotal evidence
prefer for Christmas giving.
that seniors will embrace e-Giving
when given the opportunity, and
that they’re more tech-savvy than
they’re often given credit for, but
these results put to rest misconceptions that seniors as a group
are too conservative or traditional
to give electronically.
Get started with e-Giving
for Christmas
What information will be
added to the full report and
when will it be available?
We intend to release the full
report in January 2016. It will have
Contact our experienced team to learn more
connect.vancopayments.com/holidaygiving | 800-675-7430
7
MINISTRY LEADERSHIP
By Michael Jordan
How do you know you are
really making disciples that last?
R
eal discipleship is hard. You need every idea, tool and all
the help you can get. You need a really practical strategy
that gives next steps, fills the gaps people normally fall
through, a solid teaching process and measurable accountability.
What can really help is a single platform tool
for your whole church to use. A tool both your
staff and congregation will want to use because
it is easy, intuitive and totally mobile. It must be
a tool that can inform, connect and even multiply
your ministry in ways that save you time without
becomeing burdensome to an already overworked
church staff. You need a real ministry helper. You
need Realm Pathways.
Pathways is a compelling, leading-edge feature
of Realm from ACS Technologies. Realm Pathways
provides the framework that moves people through
the processes that make both them and your church
stronger. Pathways are customizable and provide
the communication platform that churches need
to help people fit into the organization. Making
disciples is what it’s all about. And Realm’s Pathways
help people close the gaps between what they’ve
planned to happen and what actually happens in
their journey of giving, volunteering and growing.
In fact, they are so useful, we’ve identified five
particular ways that Realm Pathways can help your
ministry.
1. Strategy. Creating a Pathway forces churches to
think strategically and put their plans on paper.
Scripture says that without a vision people perish.
Pathways holds the answers you’ve found from
the problems your church faces. How do people
become members? How do they get involved in
small groups? What happens with visitors? How
can people start serving in the youth ministry?
How does someone come to lead a small group?
2. Providing Direction. Realm provides leaders
with reminders and updates every time they log
in. It’s like a living to-do list of kingdom ministry.
They can see who people are and where they are
in the organization. They see where they are in the
Pathways and what steps they, as leaders, need to
take to help others move along.
3. Filling the Gaps. Pathways set up in Realm help
8
MINISTRY
leadership find and fill the gaps
people fall through. If people
continually get caught in one
place of your process, you can
fix this area or review the whole
process. Maybe people are
bottlenecking in the “training”
step of your pathway. This
may result from a failure of the
leader providing the training,
the time the training is offered
or the communication of the
training.
4. Teaching Processes. You
will hire new staff members
and appoint new leaders. They
will need to be trained to do
ministry the way you do. The
Pathways you’ve set up in Realm
are easy to communicate and
easy to understand. Leaders
will know the ways things get
done because they are in Realm
for them to see. New leaders
will implement things faster
and ministry will be more
stable because your pathways
communicate your processes.
5. Accountability. Pathways
hold people accountable for
completing a process and
they hold staff and leadership
accountable for walking people
through the process. Realm
allows churches to assign each
part of the process to a specific
leader. For instance, a potential
children’s worker may need
to walk through the following
pathway.
Application—>Interview—>
Background Check—> Background
Check Review—> Assistantship—>
Training—> Teacher—>
Coordinator.
MINISTRY
At every step of the way, Realm is there for you
with guidance through Pathways. It’s powerful,
informative, easy to use and comfortably helpful.
There is so much to making disciples that last.
Pathways is one way to help you just a little more in
doing it right.
Realm’s benefits go way beyond pathways. Realm
is a true whole-church solution that is optimized
for the convenience of all users, both staff and
congregation. For giving, groups, contributions,
dashboard reports, engagement, and much more, it
gives you secure access to your data, is easy to use,
and makes your info usable from any device. This
includes Macs, PCs, mobile phones, or tablets. Totally
cloud. Totally secure. Totally there for you 24/7.
Learn more about how Realm can help you do real
ministry in new and meaningful ways by requesting
a personal demo at www.realmchurch.com.
9
10
Protected With
PURPOSE
By Steven Sundermeier
Keeping Your
Battery Charged
I
think we all get to the point, at times, where daily life can feel a
bit repetitive as we go about our normal routines. Given that (and
the fact that we experienced our first snow during last weekend’s
soccer games), when an opportunity arose for Thirtyseven4 to sponsor
a major church/technology event in Southern California, I immediately
saw the personal…eerrr professional benefits! I knew it was a fit for our
business, and my soul needed a little Cali sunshine. I was all in.
I’ve taken numerous business trips to the San
Francisco area over the years; however, this would be
our first business travel to the Los Angeles region. And
because this was new territory and a family friendly
conference, we made the decision to travel together
as a family. I will say that the conference provided
me (and my family) an opportunity to temporarily get
away from the norm, and it re-energized my passion
and appreciation for my job and the talents God has
given me to share with the world.
Now, that being said, the re-charging of the soul
was slightly delayed. I am a person who likes direct
flights, but sometimes given the Departing and
Arriving airports, it simply isn’t possible. This was
one such case…we had a connection in Denver with
a small layover. Our flight took off on time (5:00 AM
EST), however, when our plane was 70 miles out from
reaching our Denver destination, the flight attendant
alerted us to the fact that there was dense fog at the
Denver airport and that our plane would be doing
“donuts” in the sky until the fog lifted. Two hours later
(Yes, two hours later!), the flight attendant made a new
announcement that our plane only had about 20 more
minutes of fuel (Yikes!), so the fog either need to lift
within the next five minutes or we were going to be
re-directed to the Colorado Springs airport to re-fuel.
(Is anyone else hyper-ventilating?) Praise the Lord
we eventually landed in Denver. Every passenger’s
connections on the entire plane had been missed, and
we were told that the quickest route to Orange County
was for our family of five to board a new plane (headed
to San Jose: Northern California), hangout for a 3 hour
layover and then hop on an express jet to head to our
final destination. To say it was a long day of travel is
an understatement (arrived after 7PM PST), but the
important thing is that we got there safe.
As I mentioned, my wife and three children (age
8 and under) accompanied me on this trip. My wife is
amazing at preparing “things to do” to keep the kids
busy and happy on flights (i.e. School work, travel
Protected With
PURPOSE
surprises—have you seen those
“blink watches”?, tiny crafts and of
course markers and crayons.) And
though we try our best to keep it
at minimum, plane activities for
the kids (especially in desperate
situations) can include mobile
devices, and as you know it may
seem impossible at times to keep
those gadgets juiced. With minutes
turning into hours, and hours
morphing into many more hours,
planned activities dry up, and
school work is finished. My article
this month will focus on getting
the most out of your smartphone
battery in case a situation like our
west-bound flight happens to you.
As much as we all hate to admit
it, sometimes these devices come
into handy.
Before we begin, I think it is
important to differentiate between
two common terms regarding
smartphone batteries: Battery Life
and Battery Lifespan. Battery Life
can be thought of as how long a
device can work on a single charge
before needing recharged. Battery
Lifespan is how long your device
battery lasts until it dies or needs
to be replaced.
Let’s start with some obvious
performance
suggestions
to
maximize your devices Battery Life1. Turn down the Brightness of your
screen. The brighter the screen,
the more drain on your battery. 2.
Utilize a Wi-Fi connection rather
than your device carrier’s data plan
when possible, as accessing data
over your cellular network increases
the strain on a battery opposed
to a Wi-Fi connection. However,
please note past articles, where we
outlined security risks of keeping
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11
12
Protected With
PURPOSE
a Wi-Fi connection available on public locations. 3.
Make sure that high-usage, power draining apps that
utilize GPS, etc. are turned off when not in use. There
have been times when I use an app like Maps for
navigation, arrive at my target designation and forget
to turn the app off. 4. Avoid using or storing your device
in extreme temperatures. Research has shown that
mobile devices work best and at peak performance at
temperatures ranging from 32 F to 95 F. I understand
that sometimes, especially during harsh Ohio winters
or even an October weekend in Orange County (can you
believe temperatures topped 104 degrees for two days
of our visit to Cali!), that isn’t always possible. But when
applicable, having your device in a safe temperature
zone will certainly help preserve your battery. 5. Lastly,
while it may seem like a hassle and ‘one more thing to
do’, installing manufacturer suggested upgrades can
help as well, as the upgrade may include energy saving
/ performance updates integrated within the upgrade.
Btw- Many of the manufacturers of mobile devices now
incorporate a ‘Low Power Mode’ or similar feature. This
type of feature will automatically do many of the things
(i.e. brightness, turning off some app functionality, etc.)
listed above for the user to conserve battery life.
With the general performance tips covered, let’s
move on to maybe some not so obvious methods for
maximizing both Battery Life and Battery Lifespan.
Let’s first start with the idea of “convenience” over
“long term health”. Let me explain what I mean by
this regarding our mobile device battery…how many of
us after a long hard day (and I am totally guilty of this
one!) plug in our phones right before we call it a night
so that by the next morning the phone is fully charged
and ready to go? Did you know that leaving a mobile
device continually plugged in after it has reached a full
charge can (and often times will) shorten the overall
Battery Lifespan? The complication here is that when
the battery reaches a full charge it continually receives
small dose electric charges keeping it at 100%. These
tiny charges place excess and unnecessary stress on
the battery of the device. My son found this out the
hard way as it occurred not with a smartphone
but with his Wii U GamePad. Excessive charging
damages batteries.
Keeping with the idea of “convenience” over “long
term health”, another sure way to limit your Battery
Lifespan goes hand in hand with the plugging in your
battery at night- that is- waiting until the end of the
day to first begin your battery charging process when
the battery charge has dipped below 10%. While it
may be inconvenient to continually plug in your phone
at short intervals through the day, it will save life on
your battery. Many times we wait until the charge has
dropped below the 10% mark or even more detrimental
the 5% mark. Charging a battery from these extremely
low levels up to 100% is very harmful to the battery.
Instead don’t wait until the battery is about dead before
charging. Charge the battery at intervals throughout
the day and disconnect the charge before it hits the
100% fully charged mark.
And finally, in addition to everything else
mentioned, you could also invest in a couple power
banks to have on-hand to keep your devices
charged. But in the end, it is also one more thing to
remember, to plug-in (…and un-plug!), and to carry
about with you.
Protected With
PURPOSE
In summary, it’s possible that
some of our basic tips may be fresh
to you (dimming screens, utilizing
a local Wi-Fi (responsibly!) instead
of connecting to your carriers,
and turning off unnecessary apps.
And I hope the tip about not overcharging can shed some light (or
longer-lasting light!) if you have
questions about why you lose a
charge so quickly.
Phones have become such
an essential and personalized
accessory that we all have a
vested interest in keeping them
powered up and useful for as long
as possible. I learned many things
through our California trip, and
it’s uncanny how many parallels
I began to make concerning me
and cell phone batteries as I made
the comparison:
• Don’t wait until your battery
is almost totally drained to
recharge!
• When you are fully charged—
get back out into the world
and do your job. Don’t just
keep sucking energy.
• Embrace technology. Get the
“latest updates” on the world
and for your device. It will
make you a more informed
person and positive changes
are always being made.
And my last tip: Take direct
flights. Okay, so this isn’t a direct
correlation, but this one relates to
mobile devices because if you are
delayed (our trip out to California
lasted 17 hours of travel), your
battery will die, your kids will cry,
your wife will sigh.
13
14
Deeper Impact
By Steve Caton
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
AN OPINION AND KNOWLEDGE
F
all is one of my favorite times of the year. In Colorado the air is
crisp, perfect for mountain hikes, the aspens are ablaze, and I can
again watch my beloved Georgia Bulldogs play football. While I
am enjoying the turning of the season, this fall has been tough for the
Bulldogs. That isn’t my opinion; it is a measurable fact. After taking a
public beating by Alabama, we lost to unranked Tennessee and to top it
off, Chubb, our star running back, blew out his knee and is done for the
year. They can still turn the season around, but there is no question that
this is not a good start.
For better or worse, sports is full of data. The
data speaks for itself. Tackles for a loss, average yards
per play, turnover ratio, your number of wins. These
are facts that are not contested, and if someone asks
you how your team is doing, you have access to the
knowledge to answer definitively.
Not all areas of our lives benefit from these
objective and measurable metrics. Lacking that
information doesn’t stop us from using our opinions
as facts though. Here’s an observation I’ve made
watching hundreds of churches over the years:
Usually when you ask a church leader how their
ministry is going, you get opinion, but that may not
be based in knowledge. Few churches effectively
measure and monitor their church’s performance.
But as the old adage says, knowledge is power, and
in ministry, that’s the power to grow in influence
and change lives.
question ‘how’s the church doing’. As a leader, you
need to develop a data-friendly culture that measures
output as well as impact and then uses that data to
refine ministry areas, increasing your effectiveness.
1. Define your goals and metrics. The work
we do in ministry has eternal significance — it
deserves the best we can bring. The problem is
that our best can be hard to quantify. The only
way to clear up the murkiness in our answers to
how our ministries are going is by defining clear
objectives and ways to measure our progress
toward them. Define the ‘wins’ you’re looking for
in your ministry, and track the metrics that can
tell you if you’re getting them. You may not pick
the right metrics the first time, but refine them
as you go. Take advantage of technology like
your church management software to manage
the important data all in one place.
How do you know where you are and where
2. Set clear expectations. Wherever you want
you’re going?
your ministry to go, you can’t get it there alone.
There are a few things that you have to do as a
Your staff and volunteer leaders have their
church leader if you want to objectively answer the
15
Deeper Impact
own areas of responsibility,
and they need to be on the
same page. Set expectations
for performance, both on
the individual level through
job descriptions and on the
ministry team level through
your mission statement and
business plan. Make sure all
documentation is clear and
success is measurable. People
do their best work when they
know what is expected of
them and know how to gauge
their progress!
3. Keep seeking improvement.
Now that everyone has clear
goals, it’s time to monitor
how well you’re reaching
them. It’s not wrong to listen
to your intuition, but it
needs to be balanced with
hard numbers too. When
you have data, you can dig
into it to figure out what it’s
telling you about the current
state of your ministry and
the trajectory you’re on. Be
ready to change strategies
and try new things when the
metrics tell you the old ways
aren’t working as well as you
want. Remember, neither
your existing processes nor
the data points you collect
are sacred — if a process isn’t
working, or data isn’t telling
you anything useful, change
it up and try again!
By implementing these three
steps, you can begin to clear up
the murkiness around what a
‘win’ is to you and how you’re
going to get to them. The work
you do matters. All the effort you
put in to change, measure, and
improve processes is aimed at
making a more lasting and farreaching kingdom impact. I think
that is why college football is
played on Saturdays. After a loss
to the Vols, I have a day to rage
and mourn and then the next
morning, sitting in church, I get
my priorities adjusted back to
what is really important. I just
still don’t want to talk about the
‘Bama game.
16
FEATURED
By Jonathan Smith
C
Technology,
Christmas Gifts,
and Keeping
Kids Safe
hristmas is a great time of year for ministries as we celebrate
the birth of our Savior. It can also be a challenging time for
parents as kids’ Christmas lists are full of the latest high tech
gadgets and whatchamacallits so they can visit websites you’ve
never heard of. Here are some tips for parents to help keep children
safe on Christmas Day and every day.
I am very pro technology, but like most things
in life you have to earn the privilege to use it and
then continue to use it responsibly. For example,
when you learn to drive you don’t get behind the
wheel of a race car at Indianapolis right away.
That isn’t saying that race cars in Indy are bad,
but that you have to earn it and work hard to use
it properly.
In the real world we have curfews, so why
not in the virtual world? Parents should set
boundaries on their kids use of technology and
devices. I don’t agree with the notion that as
parents we should let our kids fail first and then
pick them up and help them along and allow
them to continue making bad decisions so that
they can “learn”. That is how many kids end up
viewing porn or participating in online activities
that are not appropriate – oftentimes long before
mom and dad are aware. And by the time mom
and dad become aware it is too late. (Prov. 22:6
and Ephesians 6:4)
It is also important to encourage Godly
relationships. Positive peer influence is critical
as over 80% of kids ages 7-10 years old view
pornography online at the encouragement of
a friend. Do your kid’s friends model a Godly
example and help them live a life that strives to
become more like Christ? Those peer influences
in the physical world also impact actions in the
virtual world.
Proverbs has a few things to say about this.
Proverbs 27:17 talks about iron sharpening iron.
Remember that this iron sharpening can happen
virtually as well. Proverbs 18:24 says, “A man of
too many friends comes to ruin, but there is a
friend who sticks closer than a brother.” What
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FEATURED
did it say? Too many friends
can be a bad thing? That seems
to fly in the face of the goal of
having as many online friends and
connections as possible.
As a parent I expect obedience.
The Bible is pretty clear about
the whole children obeying your
parents thing (Eph. 6:1), but
often the rules seem looser when
it comes to online obedience or
obeying mom and dad when they
don’t understand the technology.
Internet use, cell phone use,
tablet use, video console use, etc.
is not a right, it’s a privilege that
is earned through responsibility.
It is not an inalienable right.
After all, who is paying for it?
Removing the technology
should always be an option that
is on the table when it comes to
expecting obedience. Granted,
some technology is required for
school, but there must still be a way
for young people to accomplish
their education and then not use
their devices for anything else. If
there is a sin issue in their life as
a result of the technology then it
must be removed, whether that
sin is something obvious like
pornography or something less
obvious like gossip.
The story is told of a traveling
salesman back in the good old
days before the internet and
cell phones who struggled with
pornography on hotel room TVs.
Recognizing this challenge in his
life he decided that he would not
stay at hotels unless they would
physically remove the TV from
his room, and if the hotel would
not remove the TV from his room
then he would stay at a different
hotel.
What lengths are you willing
to go to in order to help your
kids stay pure? It might not be
easy but I believe that if we are
going to stand before God and
give an account for how we raise
our children then how easy or
convenient it is shouldn’t matter.
(1 Cor. 10:31, Col. 3:23-24)
Finally, we should provide
accountability and set a good
example. How are mom and dad
using the latest technology and
18
FEATURED
gadgets? Who helps hold mom
and dad accountable? What’s
better, for mom and dad to
learn about the latest technology,
gadgets, and social media and teach
their children, or for the kids to
learn about it from someone else?
A recent study of 13 year olds by
CNN found that parental involvement
and accountability “effectively erased
the negative effects” of their kid’s
online interactions, whether through
social media, games, chats, etc.
When a secular study says that, it
seems like we as Christian parents
should take notice and provide
accountability.
Here are some accountability
suggestions:
1. Spend time with your children
online and learn from them.
Ask them to show you what
they like to do online and
their favorite sites. Ask them
to teach you how to use the
latest gadgets.
2. Check up on their logs and
history, across all devices.
3. Use other software for filtering
and internet tracking. The goal
is not to remove independence
but provide accountability to
help the children grow and
mature spiritually.
4. Find out about other points of
access. Where else can your kids
get online and use other devices?
School? A friend’s house?
I believe we are all accountable
for our actions. I think we tend to
forget what “ALL” means and who
it applies to. We are accountable
for our actions both in the real
world and in the online world. We
are accountable for our children,
and our kids are accountable for
themselves before God. God is still
God, even in the virtual world filled
with high tech gadgets and toys.
If you’d like to learn more about
keeping kids safe and technology,
visit
http://faithlafayette.org/
parenttech.
Higher Power With Kevin
Best Tablet and
Smartphone for
Bible Study
By Kevin Purcell
T
he majority of Digital Bible Study happens on a computer, but
increasingly users want to study their Bibles on the go with a
smartphone or tablet. The desktop or laptop still offers the best indepth Bible study experience. Be sure to go back to our October 2015 (http://
ministrytech.com/back-issues/) issue to read my recommendations for the best
computer for Bible study. Today I’d update that to include the new Microsoft
Surface Pro 4 or Surface Book (http://www.microsoftstore.com).
iOS or Android for Bible Study
Let’s start our discussion by thinking about which
mobile operating system users should choose. Don’t
bother with Windows phones or low-end Windows
tablets. There’s only one decent Windows Store Bible
app, from Laridian (http://www.laridian.com). The
platform’s terrible for Bible study. Pick from either Android or iOS.
For a few years iOS Bible apps were far ahead
of Android. The best Bible study apps worked great
on iOS but their Android versions had some of the
best features missing. For the most part, that’s not
the case any longer.
Let’s look at the major Bible study software
companies and see what they offer. We’re not
talking about simple Bible reader apps, like the
YouVersion Bible app (http://www.bible.com).
Those apps work great for reading the Bible, even
searching the Bible and keeping up with a devotional reading calendar, but they don’t offer
enough tools to help students understand the text
in a deeper way.
To pick a good mobile Bible study app, first
look at the app from the company that makes
your desktop Bible study program. If you’re a Logos user, then you want to install the Logos app. If
you’re a WORDsearch user, then you’ll want their
mobile app.
19
20
Higher Power
• Olive Tree – iOS and Android apps with great features on both and a recently updated set of apps.
Olive Tree is a mobile first platform that also does
versions for Windows and Mac.
• Bibleworks – no mobile apps.
• Accordance – only an iOS app that’s mostly a book
reader, but now offers some advanced study features and getting better all the time.
• PC Study Bible – no mobile apps.
• Laridian – decent apps for both iOS and Android
and the only good Windows mobile app for Bible
study. They are also a mobile first company, that
offers programs for Mac and Windows.
Here’s list of the major programs and what they
• eSword – a simple iOS app, one for iPhone and anoffer in the mobile sphere:
other for iPad.
• Logos – iOS and Android with powerful features.
Based on the list above, iOS offers slightly more
• WORDsearch – iOS and Android apps, but they’re
little more than reader apps with few advanced than Android. That doesn’t matter if your desktop
features. See their Android app in a YouTube demo: software company offers both. Still, if you want more
options in the future, then go with an iPhone and/
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21
Higher Power
or iPad for the best Bible Study experience. However, if you’re one of those people who avoids Apple
products, then Android works great for users of Logos, Olive Tree and Laridian. If you don’t use one of
those, then consider Mantis Bible for Android or iOS
(http://www.mantisbible.com).
Apple just released the new iPad Pro. The Theotek Podcast spend most of the hour disussing
how good it works for study, teaching and preaching on episode 46, recorded November 13, 2015.
Watch or listen to it here: http://wp.me/p2D1s29P. You can also subscribe to the YouTube channel at https://youtube.com/channel/UCg3J-3l3hVWE8UbOPb9KqOw or the audio Podcast at
http://kevinpurcell.org.
Take a look at the Accordance Bible app for
iPad alongside Word Mobile. That’s Rick Mansfield’s iPad Pro. He’s a co-host on the Theotek
Podcast mentioned above. He’s with Accordance
Bible Software (http://accordancebible.com) and
you can follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.
com/thislamp.
What’s the Best iPhone and iPad for Bible
Study?
On the iOS side, this is easy. You can choose between and iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus. One’s a 4.7inch screen and the other sports a 5.5-inch screen. If
you don’t mind the larger body of the iPhone 6s Plus,
go with that. It’s got more screen real estate to use
for reading and studying the Bible. You’ll want a Bible pane and a commentary pane open at the same
time. That’s harder on a smaller screen.
To save money you can find older versions still
on sale. Avoid the iPhone 5s or older since they’re so
small it’s hard to do much serious Bible study.
Get as much space as you can afford. Apple sells
the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus in 16GB, 64GB and 128GB.
Don’t get the 16GB version as it’s not enough space
to hold your apps, pictures, and Bibles and books.
Whiles 64GB is probably enough, if you can afford it,
go with 128. You’ll never need more space than that.
All of these phones and tablets include beautifully crisp screens that show text and images really well.
The decision gets harder with an iPad. Apple offers three sizes (http://apple.com/ipad/compare/).
The iPad mini 4 offers a 7.9-inch screen that’s great
for reading. You can comfortably view two panes at
once. Jump up to the 9.7-inch iPad Air 2. Few apps
If you can afford about $1,000 the iPad Pro will
allow for more than 2 panes, but the Laridian Pock- do the best job. That’s a lot of money, so many will
etBible app does. It works great with 4 panes.
want to get the iPad Air 2 instead which starts at
$500, but most will want to spend $600 to get the
one with 64GB of storage.
Android Phones
Instead of asking which phone works best for
Bible study, you should ask which phone works
best for you. All of them will handle Bible study
about the same. My colleague Cory Gunther at GottaBeMobile.com posted a list of the best Android
smartphones for 2015 at http://gottabemobile.
com/2015/11/12/best-android-phones-of-2015/.
22
Higher Power
Android Tablets
The only decent Android tablet that I’d buy is
the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2, which comes in either an 8-inch model or a 9.7-inch model (http://
samsung.com/global/galaxy/galaxy-tab-s2/). The
larger screen will let you do more, but it’s not as
mobile. The screens are incredible. You get bright
rich colors and amazing crisp text. The tablets
run fast!
Microsoft Surface
I included the Surface in the best computers
for Bible study, but it’s also a tablet so it has to be
listed here too. If you want to run full Bible study
software, then this is the best option. They cost
anywhere from $500 for the Microsoft Surface 3
Cory’s list includes:
• Google Nexus 6P – a great 6-inch phone run- or up to a few thousand for the most powerful Mining the latest version of Android called crosoft Surface Pro 4. Get the one with the most
Marshmallow. It’s one of the only large screen storage you can afford. The Surface 3 has a 10inch screen and is lighter, making it more portaphones with Marshmallow available.
• Samsung Galaxy Note 5 – an awesome phone
with a great stylus that you can use to take
handwritten notes. I own one and use it often
to take notes. I use the button on the lower left
Easy for your members to contribute to your church.
that switches between apps. It also lets you
Use gifts by text and all contributions received are
put two apps on screen at once. Put a Bible
integrated with your RDS accounting system.
app on top and the S Note app on bottom.
Electronic payment solutions is the economical and
• Moto X Pure Edition – often a favorite of peoeasy way to linkGive
contributors
andthe
yourconvenience
RDS accounting.
members
of
ple who want a pure Android experience with• Credit and/or
Debit card contributions
Internet
contributions,
tithes and pledges.
• ACH (Automatic Clearing House) recurring gifts
out a lot of extra junk like what we get from
Secure, ease of use, customizable.
• Text message gifts
manufacturers like Samsung, HTC or others.
• Send text messages to on-line contributors
• Samsung Galaxy S6 & Galaxy S6 Edge – of
• Use QR (Quick Response Code) codes on
these two, don’t bother with the Edge version.
your website and literature
It’s a gimmick not worth the extra money. The
• One electronic account can have records
S6 is a great phone with a slightly smaller 5.1downloaded for many different bank accounts.
inch screen and still does split screen.
• LG V10 – the latest from LG and one of the
newest phones available with Android. It also
runs Marshmallow, the only one besides the
Nexus 6P above. It’s got an awesome camera.
My son owns the LG G4, the previous generation, and he really likes his.
Any of the above phones will work well. I
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sions of Android first.
Contributions by Text
23
Higher Power
ble. It still runs full Windows
software. The Surface Pro 4 is
a larger screen at 12.3-inches.
It starts at $900 with 128GB of
storage and 4GB of memory on
an Intel Core m3 processor. The
m3 processor isn’t as powerful as the iX processors. For an
Intel Core i5 add $100. You can
spend as much as $2,699 for an
Intel Core i7, 16GB of RAM and
1TB of flash storage. That’s way
more computer than most Bible
students need. I’d recommend
getting at least 512GB if you
can or 256 if you can’t afford the
extra $400 for the 512. A Core
i5, 8GB of RAM and a 512 SSD
costs $1,699. Add the Type Cover for $130.
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TABLET: Microsoft Surface Pro 4 unless you really
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24
Ethos
I
STARTUP
By Russ McGuire
n this article series, we’ve defined a startup this way: a new
venture working to solve a problem where the solution is
not obvious and success is not guaranteed. We’ve also
defined a Christian entrepreneur as: a person, driven to glorify
God in all he does, and ruled by the Word of God, who starts
a new venture and is willing to risk a loss in order to achieve
the success of the venture. Each month I’ve been introducing
you to specific Christian startups and entrepreneurs, some of
which may be helpful to your church, ministry, or business,
but my main intent is to encourage, inspire, and educate you.
So far, all of the startups I’ve featured have been
businesses, but startups can be new ministries as
well. This month, I’d like to feature a new technology-enabled startup within an existing, traditional
Christian organization.
Daily Chapel is Good
Founded in 1950, Oklahoma Christian University
(OC) has just over 2,500 students. According to their
website, “Oklahoma Christian University is a higher
learning community that transforms lives for Christian faith, scholarship, and service.” This fall I arrived
on campus as the new Entrepreneur in Residence
and I was excited to hear a story that combines my
passions for entrepreneurship, Christian faith, and
mobile technology.
Daily Chapel has been a valued tradition at OC
since the school’s formation. Most students attend
“Big Chapel” but other options include Missions
Chapel, Seekers Chapel, Women’s Chapel, Great Songs
Chapel, and weekly chapels for each academic college
or department. Historically, students have been required to attend chapel each day, with a set number of
absences allowed.
Spiritual Development is Better
Summer Lashley, an OC alumnus, had spent a couple of years early in her career at a web startup company. That entrepreneurial spirit must have been apparent because, after she returned to campus as part of
the student life team, she was asked to move into the
spiritual life office and figure out how to “reboot” the
university’s approach to spiritual development. Chapel has always been good, but she realized that it may
not meet every student where they are in their spiritual
growth. Summer observed that “Today’s students are
raised with more choices and are more empowered to
control their own life. This new generation was asking
for more than just chapel.”
In true Lean startup mode, Summer started doing
Customer Development. She would pull students out
of chapel, both those up front and fully engaged and
those in the back corner with ear buds in and hoodie
pulled over. What did they like and what didn’t they
like? What was missing? What was their real need?
She started creating alternatives, forming small groups,
and working with YouVersion to launch an OC reading
plan within the popular Bible app. She gave a small
group of trusted students the freedom to pursue their
own spiritual development plan and to journal what
they did and how it impacted them.
As Summer and the campus minister read their
own reading plan and considered what they were
learning from the students, the Holy Spirit seemed to
focus them on the two great commandments that Jesus clearly outlined in Mark 12:30-31 “‘Love the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your mind and with all your strength.’” and “
‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.” What if OC could model
25
STARTUP
spiritual development off of these
great commandments?
Summer began planning a new
program for spiritual development,
named Ethos, where students
would be encouraged to practice
spiritual disciplines in five dimensions: Community, Discipleship,
Discovery, Servanthood, and Worship. But how could the university
pull off such a radical redefinition
of its spiritual life and how could
students be encouraged to adopt
the new model?
One day, Summer realized that
she was increasingly using her iPhone to discover and to track important things in her life. In addition to YouVersion, she was daily
using RunKeeper and the Starbucks
app to track her progress towards
important goals. She realized that,
for today’s student, their phone is
like the remote control for their life.
There’s an app for everything, so
why not an app for spiritual development at OC?
Summer engaged with the OC
marketing team and used an online
tool to mock up a beautiful Ethos
mobile app for creating, discovering, and tracking spiritual development activities. She showed it to
the university leadership team who
loved it and brought the IT team
onboard as excited partners. Next
she took it to the university’s board
who was cautiously supportive,
concerned about the school’s traditions. With the help of a champion
on the board, in time, this group
also became strong supporters. A
university donor stepped forward
to provide funding for the development and launch.
Spiritual Transformation is the
Real Goal
The IT team built the Ethos
front-end using the Ionic framework to simplify launch on both
iOS and Android smartphones. The
mobile and web clients interfaced
with the API core backend, with databases for students, check-ins, etc.
it also interfaces to the university’s
student information and event systems and to AD for identifying and
authenticating users.
IT also gave Summer a tool for
26
STARTUP
generating reports. Who is attending which events? What are the
patterns by college, by class, by service club, etc. This may not qualify
as “big data” but it certainly started
to provide insights that the spiritual
life office could use to fine tune how
to enable spiritual development for
students. But, Summer is quick to
point out that students are already
doing that fine-tuning themselves.
In the first year of operation, students attended over 4,000 distinct
events, 1,700 of which were spontaneously created by students (and
approved by the spiritual life office).
“For Christian universities,
a graduate who can tell the story of how her campus experience
transformed her life demonstrates
the distinctive value of the Christian university,” Summer explains.
“Ethos is not only enabling that
transformation, but the software is
helping capture that story for the
student - recording the spiritual
events and enabling the student to
capture her comments on how it
impacted her.”
Ethos is one of many examples
of how God can use technology to
change people’s lives, but it is also
an example of how God can use an
entrepreneurial leader to start a
new ministry that can help “reboot”
the spiritual heart of an established
institution with a rich Christian
heritage. Summer is quick to thank
God for blessing Ethos and enabling
it to be a blessing to many.
Russ McGuire is a trusted
advisor with proven strategic
insights. He has been blessed
to serve as an executive in Fortune
500 companies, found technology
startups, be awarded technology
patents, author a book and
contribute to others, write
dozens of articles for various
publications, and speak at many
conferences. More importantly,
he’s a husband and father
who cares about people, and
he’s a committed Christian who
operates with integrity and
believes in doing what
is right. Learn more
at sdgstrategy.com
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6
Communication
Strategies for
Christmas
27
Ministry
Communication
By Yvon Prehn
C
hristmas outreach is not only a time for you to bring in new
people to your church, but it can also be a time to remind your
congregation about the importance of sharing their faith and
an opportunity to give them the tools to do it. Technology provides us
with resources unimaginable in the past, but we need strategies to use
them effectively. Following are six communication strategies that will help:
1. Spend time in prayer asking God to impress on
your heart the seriousness and the privilege of
your communication opportunities at Christmas.
People who don’t come to church any other time of
the year will come to Christmas events to be with family.
This might be your one opportunity to share the gospel
of Jesus with them. Far beyond giving people a pleasant
Christmas experience in music, drama, traditional services, or watching the cute things children do, their eternal destiny can be altered.
In addition to your personal convictions, pray for fire
in your soul as you motivate your people to be part of
your churches Christmas communication outreach. Remind them that Jesus is the reason for the season, not
because we needed a reason to buy stuff, but because we
needed salvation from our sins. What prophets and people anticipated for millennia as they looked forward to
the Messiah, we must be careful not to trivialize.
2. Based on your time with the Lord, as a ministry
team, decide what you want your Christmas communication message to be.
Come up with one overall theme and a slogan that
summarizes it. This is key because you want all of your
advertising, digital and print publications, and preaching
to reflect that one theme. You will change the medium
that you use, but your core message must stay the same
for maximum retention and response.
Where to get a theme? One of the best places for
inspiration is from the lyrics of Christmas Carols. Here
is an article that lists the carols in the Public Domain
along with some ideas on how to use them: http://www.
effectivechurchcom.com/christmas-carols-as-inspiration-for-christmas-outreach-sermons-website-content/
3. Select graphics, colors, and images to portray
yourtheme and use them consistently throughout
all your advertisements.
Along with the theme, select a primary graphic image and colors that you will use in all your holiday outreach. I emphasize the word “all” because churches often
want to change colors or images they use to promote the
same event.
They do this because a common misconception is:
“If I keep saying things the same way, my audience will
get bored.” Wrong. Audiences don’t get bored, audiences
get confused.
The most successful companies in the world have an
28
Ministry Communication
image that never changes--think Target or Apple--you
immediately know what their logo looks like. On a smaller scale, if you continuously change the image that goes
with your Christmas theme, people will see the image
first and assume it’s for a different event.
You may get bored using the same image again and
again, but it’s better that you get bored than your audience becomes confused.
5. Once you have the overall approach and the
communication pieces, equip your congregation
For any church holiday outreach to be successful, every person in the congregation has to be convinced that
THEY need to be the ones inviting their friends, praying
for them, and working hard to get them to Christmas
events at church. Remember the primary responsibility
of church leaders and communication creators is not to
bring in new people to the church; your job is to equip
the saints so they can do the work of the ministry. You
decide the theme; you create the communications; then
you equip your congregation to do the inviting.
Not only is this the best way to get a large group of
people to your events, but even more important, your
people will grow in their outreach skills if they take part
in it.
4. Decide on a variety of ways to communicate your
message; use and repeat as many as you can.
We live in a time of multi-channel communication
where we need to use different communication channels to reach different ages and interest groups. Communicate your message through postcards, bulletin announcements and inserts, invitations, web page entries,
email blasts, verbal reminders, phone calls, social media,
Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or whatever you can, as 6. Share your personal convictions and outreach plans.
many times as you can.
Share from the pulpit, blogs, Facebook and tweets, messages like this:
• “As I look ahead to Christmas, I remember what it was
like before I knew the Lord— my brother’s invitation for
me to come on Christmas Eve changed my life.”
• “I’m praying for Peter, the barista at my local Starbucks
and an opportunity to invite him to church.”
• “My kids are sharing invitations to our Christmas Eve
service to their friends along with cookies they made.”
• “My relatives back home don’t know Jesus—so I’m sending some links to our blogs about why Jesus really is the
reason for the season.”
Share with your congregation who you are praying for,
how you give out or send out invitations, and how you follow-up to be sure people attend. Never, ever expect your
congregation to do more than what you are doing.
There will always be more you can do, but if you try
these six strategies, you’ll be sure to increase the committed
, involved members in your congregation who will not only
bring friends to your Christmas outreach events, but who
will learn how to do personal evangelism in the process.
___________________________
For many more ideas on how to effectively communicate at Christmas, for ready-to-print templates, and PDFs, of
Christmas outreach materials, go to: www.effectivechurchcom.com/category/seasonal/christmas-seasonal-communications/
29
Serpents & Doves
By Nick Nicholaou
J
NICK AT CHURCH
esus made an interesting statement in
Matthew 10:16b, “...be as shrewd as serpents,
and innocent as doves” (NASB). I believe these
words of His are good guidelines for Christians to
apply in every aspect of doing business. We are to
be shrewd, yet innocent.
The word translated as shrewd
sometimes means being prudent,
sensible, and practically wise.
Jesus gave this counsel to his
disciples, and it may also have had
the sense of acting with prudence
regarding to their own safety.
Being innocent, on the other hand,
means to be pure. In other words,
negotiate wisely; but always honor
the Lord by loving those with
whom you negotiate. Be willing to
ask, and to do so in such a way as
to bring the other person closer
to Jesus— or at least in a way that
doesn’t drive the other person
further from Jesus.
What does all of this have to do
with computers? Let’s take a look.
• If you’re actually buying software
in a store, don’t be afraid to make
a “counter-offer”— a price lower
than that posted on the package.
If the salesperson won’t reduce
the price, ask that another
program or some supplies be
added at no extra charge. While
you may hear, “No” fairly often,
you’ll be surprised at how often
you hear, “Yes”!
• If available, always ask for
charity pricing! Many software
providers offer SKUs that
steeply discount their solutions
for charities.
Vertical Market Software
Software that isn’t normally sold
over the counter by a local retailer
Off-The-Shelf Software
is often called vertical market
Some software, such as off- software. Vertical market software
the-shelf productivity suites, offer usually has a narrow market niche,
very little over which to negotiate thus its name. Church, school,
an improved position. Open for and donor management software
discussion, however, are:
are examples of vertical market
software. When buying any of
these, open for discussion are:
• Ask
for
a
full-system
demonstration. Automated
online demos don’t always tell
the true story. If there isn’t a
representative in your area,
maybe they can do one live
over the Internet via WebEx or
some similar system. Perhaps
this could also be accomplished
by asking for an extended trial
period to help you determine
whether the system will meet
your needs. Most will be willing
to give you at least a thirty day,
no questions asked, window
within which to return the
software if you’re not satisfied.
• One of the greatest causes
of church, school, or donor
management
software
dissatisfaction is due to poor
implementation and a lack of
understanding how to use the
program. Require the seller
to include implementation
guidance and training in your
package. You may be required
to do it over the Internet, but
try to get someone onsite if
possible (that’s always the most
effective way). This is a major
investment for your ministry,
so even though it may have a
cost attached, it’ll be worth it.
• Insist on getting documentation
that details the formats and/
or tables of the software’s data.
30
NICK AT CHURCH
Requiring this as a provision
of your license agreement up
front may save you a lot of grief
and frustration if you decide
to change systems a few years
down the road. If a publisher is
unwilling to grant this request,
they may not be one with
whom you want to do business.
Remember, it’s your data.
computer, consider asking for the
following:
• Suggest a lower price for the
Hardware
system, maybe 5% - 10% lower. Most
Though
hardware
profit hardware, if it can be purchased,
margins are fairly thin, computer is at least a little outdated
prices are almost always open (manufacturers are always working
for negotiation. When buying a one or two generations beyond what
is currently available), so asking for
discounts is often something they’ll
agree to.
• Always ask to upgrade
the memory (RAM) beyond that
offered in base models. You’ll never
be sorry with more memory. And if
the price is fixed, maybe this is an
area for negotiating a compromise.
• Ask for a large capacity USB
flash drive to be included with the
system. If one already comes with
it, ask that a full-featured software
package be thrown in rather
than the “software-lite” packages
usually included.
• The system should come
with an operating system and
will probably have some software
“bundled” with it. Look over the
software, and ask to exchange
any of the pieces if you prefer
different products. For instance,
if the system comes with Norton
Anti-Virus software, but you
prefer Sophos, ask that the two be
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The Greatest of These Is Love
Remember when negotiating
to love your neighbor. There is
nothing wrong with knowing
what you want and asking for it.
And certainly there is nothing
wrong with challenging the profit
margin of the seller by asking for
more than is normally offered for
NICK AT CHURCH
the same price. But there is everything wrong with
negotiating in a demeaning manner. Remember to
love and respect those with whom you are negotiating.
Jesus died for them. Be wise, yet innocent.
Vine, W.E., Page 222, An Expository Dictionary of
New Testament Words. Old Tappan, NJ: Fleming H.
Revell, page 222.
2
Vincent, M.R., Word Studies in the New Testament,
Volume I. McLean, VA: MacDonald Publishing
Company. page 40.
1
Nick Nicholaou is president of MBS, an
IT consulting firm specializing in church and
ministry computer networks, VoIP, and private
cloud hosted services. You can reach Nick at
nick@mbsinc.com, and may want to check out his
firm’s website (www.mbsinc.com) and his blog at
www.ministry-it.blogspot.com.
For the scholar, the
seeker, the servant.
OC is home.
·
Recognized as one of the best universities in the west by U.S.
News and World Report and The Princeton Review.
·
·
·
More than 60 areas of study.
More than 30 current National Merit Finalists.
Named to the President’s Higher Education
Community Service Honor Roll.
www.oc.edu
31

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