Twitter

If you don’t have a free Twitter account yet, go to Twitter.com and sign up for free.
Watch this 2 min video on what Twitter is.

You can update your Twitter status many different ways. If you’re at your desktop, you can update through a desktop application. If you have a smart phone, such as an iPhone or BlackBerry, you can update through a smart phone application. If you don’t have a smart phone, you can update via SMS. I explain exactly how to ‘tweet’ via SMS in the video below.

What Does This Have To Do With Church?

I’m glad you asked. Our culture is increasingly interactive. We’ve always learned in interactive ways. And now, popular culture has gone interactive. American Idol, Dancing With The Stars, and most reality shows have embraced interactivity with the audience. The internet is changing into a social portal that is interactive and dynamic, not just static. The most popular internet sites such as Myspace, Facebook, and YouTube are interactive.

With generations growing up and learning this way, we feel like the church can also teach the most important things in life, in an interactive way.

How many times have you had a question in the middle of a sermon, but you couldn’t raise your hand to get clarification? If you’re like me, a lot. Through Twitter, we can change that. We can be interactive.

How Will It Work?

At a designated time in the service, you will be asked a question, or given the chance to ask a question. Through Twitter, you can respond, and your response will appear on the projector screen. This will allow the pastor and church to interact with each other in a unique, timely, and efficient manner.

Watch and Learn

Watch this video to learn how to set up an account, how to SMS into Twitter (if you don’t have an application on your phone), and why we’re experimenting with this.

Video on vimeo.

Checklist

1. Set Up Twitter account
2. Acquire application for phone or link mobile number under the Devices tab
3. Begin ‘tweeting’ to be familiar with the process
4. Follow other people on Twitter

Who To Follow?

For starters:

John Van Pay: @johnvanpay

James Rios: @bjrios

Drew Witt: @drewwitt

Seth Henderson: @sethhenderson

Juan Ginez: @Juanginez

Veronica Gonzales: @coinlady

Looking For Twitter Applications?

For Mac

Twitterific (iconfactory.com/software/twitterrific)
Tweet Deck (tweetdeck.com)

For iPhone

Twitterific (iconfactory.com/software/twitterrific)

For BlackBerry

TwitterBerry (orangatame.com/products/twitterberry)