Does your Church have a lot of IT talent on the Technical Ministry Team? Some Churches are blessed by this, where the volunteers just take care of IT support issues on their own. Other Churches hire one or two IT staff to handle issues at the Church, such as:

• Networking, hardware and software
• Computer support issues by staff
• Worship support issues
• Other services in need of computer support

Whether you have great staff or great volunteers, if you have the expertise, then look for ways to share it with other Churches and related ministries. You could have any of the following opportunities:

• IT equipment swap; make sure any computers have been erased and the OS reinstalled, to avoid sharing malware
• Meetings where you discuss IT issues and solutions with other Churches
• Training on various software; some older adults struggle with it
• Cyber Security issues; how to avoid getting hacked

The needs are there. People need more IT support than they can usually afford. By sharing your expertise, you are providing a ministry to your congregation and community.

Many Churches are using Live Streaming to share the worship service over the Internet. The recent pandemic made this a necessity for a while. Now, people are returning to the worship space for in-person worship. However, there are other ways to use the technology.

Churches can produce Pod Casts on various topics. This could be as simple as a Bible Study with the pastor. Or it could be a group discussion on some current issue. Either way, the pod cast is linked into the Web Site, where it can be downloaded and played by anyone. This is another way to share the Good News. It involves minimum hardware and software. And you probably already have it with the Live Streaming technology.

Every Church has a Leadership team. This may consist of at least one person who serves as pastor, staff and custodian. (I have been there in small Churches.) This is certainly efficient, but also limited to what one person can accomplish.

In most Churches, there are both Ministers and Lay people serving as the Leadership Team. This fits the model in ACTS, where there were Apostles for Spiritual Matters and Deacons for Materialistic Matters. It is a good blend, ensuring that the Church remains focused. And the Lay leaders take care of practical matters, such as paying the bills, cleaning and set up for meetings, etc.

Church Buildings need to be heated and cooled. Ideally, the Church should have automated control systems for this. Here are some ideas:

• HVAC Programmable Thermostat
• External Lighting Control
• Security System

When the building is occupied, the HVAC should set the temperature to something comfortable for the congregation. When a meeting is scheduled, then the Security System should be automatically disarmed to avoid false incidents. And the lights outside should be on at night to show the Church.

Just as businesses need security systems, so do Churches nowadays. There was a time when you could leave the Church unlocked 24×7, so people could come in and pray. However, nowadays you have to lock the doors to prevent vandalism. And you need a Security System to monitor for incidents.

What happens when the Security System fires off? It will happen, so you need a process for the System Monitoring service to follow. Here are some ideas:
* System Monitoring Service calls the Contact list; if the alarm is invalid, then they give the all clear.
* System Monitoring Service calls the Police to check the building.
* Church Staff responds to the alarm, to make sure that everyone is okay.

Having a specific process to follow will avoid incidents escalating to police events all the time.

With the COVID-19 pandemic still a concern, Trick-or-Treating becomes a question this year. Gathering in large groups is not encouraged, so big, indoor Halloween parties should be avoided by adults and children alike. However, what’s wrong with door to door Trick-or-Treating, especially in small groups of children wearing masks? I suspect that this would encourage children to wear a mask at other events, rather than discourage them.

It seems like the masks sold by the makers of Halloween costumes could easily include an air filter. Usually, there is a small slit for the children to breathe through. If that doesn’t happen, then perhaps a technical ministry crew could spend some time making Halloween masks that would be safe. The children will already be socially distanced from the front door.

One neighbor I know set up a Halloween display that included a PA and visual effects. The theme was to Test or Treat rather than Trick or Treat. He made huge testing sticks and turned large balls into COVID-19 spiked viruses. And he used a long PVC pipe to slide the candy down into the children’s bags. It was a big hit. It shows that with a little creativity and some technology, you can even celebrate All Hallow’s Eve in the faith community.

Typically, users login by entering 2 factors – i.e. a username and a password. For a lot of web sites, the rule is to make the username an email address. I suppose that makes it easier to respond when the user loses there password. 🙁

These days, 2 factors is not enough; so a lot of web sites are going to multiple factors for logging in securely. For example, you can add a 3rd factor, which could be one of the following:

• Text message to a mobile phone
• Phone call to a telephone number
• Random numbers generated by an Authentication App
• Biometric response – e.g. a fingerprint reader

The web sites for our Churches need to be secure. So perhaps it makes sense to add multiple factors for login to your staff’s accounts. But is it appropriate to ask Church members to use Multiple Factor login? Please comment if your Church is doing that.

Do you allow your staff to install and upgrade software? Most organizations do, since it is easier to make the users a Local Admin on the computers they use everyday. However, it is more secure to control the software that goes on a computer from a central, authorized source. That way, the chance of installing malware goes way down.

Your Church no doubt has a Local Area Network (LAN). This comes with setting up an Internet connection. The portion of that system that comes from the Modem to your computers is the LAN. It can be wired (using Ethernet) or unwired (using WiFi). It is the last leg of the technology that you use to connect. If you have exposed your WiFi to the congregation, then they are all using your LAN.

Given the public nature of a WiFi connection, you should monitor the traffic. You don’t want a drive-by hacker to use your Internet connection to send SPAM (or something worse)! If you suspect a problem, you can always block the WiFi connection while you sort things out. Your Modem should have a administration access (inspect the device for tips on how to access it.) You can log in and see a lot of details about traffic and configuration settings and versions etc. Don’t change any configuration setting unless you’re sure it needs to be changed. Do look for ways to monitor the traffic. You can restrict it in many ways. The most restrictive is to only allow certain devices to use the network. The least restrictive is to allow all devices to use the network. You can block devices that cause a problem. You want to monitor usage to identify any devices that are abusing the network and block them.

Virtual Servers are a great opportunity for economizing the Church Web Hosting budget. One physical web server can serve up all of the Church’s web sites. This reduces the cost considerably.

The key to using this technology is realizing that you can map any domain to any web server. You just need a separate sub-directory for each domain. And you may need a separate database to hold the data. But one physical machine can easily handle multiple web sites. Talk to your web hosting company to see if you can consolidate those separate web sites into one on a virtualized server.

Spring is a good time to review your software needs and capabilities. No doubt you have some software packages or services that have fallen into disuse. Feel free to get rid of them. By deleting them, you save disk space and make your computer systems run more efficiently. But do a survey of staff and users first to make sure nobody is really using them. It doesn’t do to delete a package or service and surprise somebody. They were expecting it to be there, but now it’s not!

Churches also need to renew licenses on an annual basis. The expense should be covered by a budget item. Keeping software packages and services up to date is good stewardship, for it heads off problems down the road. Pick a time when you know the computers are unused. (Sunday mornings are a bad choice, for what if you have a glitch in the upgrade process? There isn’t time to really resolve that when worship is about to start and the system has to be in working order!) So the best practice is to Turn Off Automatic Updates on presentation systems! That way, you don’t get a prompt on the big screen to enter your password or license! The worship team will appreciate that you did that. But that means that you have to schedule time for updates; just do it at a time when you don’t have an event about to happen in the sanctuary. That way, the computer systems stay up to date, the backups get done, and the systems are protected from known security threats in old software.

We live in a time of amazing access to great images. Who isn’t inspired by a mountain vista? Or how about a scene from a sandy beach? Or how about smiling children at play? Or pictures of the stars? Worship should take advantage of these inspiring images to bring God’s creation to mind. And careful selection can add to the power of the Word.

One approach to using Inspirational Images is as backgrounds for lyrics. Most presentation programs make this easy to do. You just drop a background image on the first slide and it will be there for the whole song. You can even have different backgrounds for verses and choruses. Or you can even use video loops to provide a moving background. Some tips to follow:

• Read through the lyrics of the song, to get the gist of the ideas included. Then, you’ll be picking images that match.
• Search in your own library, then online for images that match those ideas. You may already have an image that fits!
• If you can’t find an image, make one. It can be as simple as a large heading, or as complex as your own artwork.
• Be mindful that some images are copyrighted. If so, then be sure to get the copyright holder’s permission before publicly displaying it.

Adding Inspiration Images to the sermon can enhance the spoken Word in new ways. Why not show the congregation the Bible place you are talking about? Or use a still frame from a movie that most people have seen to make a point about Christ. These images can make a point with greater clarity – remember the old adage about a picture being worth a 1,000 words! I used to have a book entitled “1,000 Bible Illustrations.” It consisted of short paragraphs of text making various points, with an index in the back. The idea was to add the illustration to your sermon or teaching to clarify it. A carefully chosen image can do the same thing. And people will remember the image long after the sermon was preached. Or better yet, include it in the bulletin or sermon notes AND use it in the sermon. That way, you drive your points home!

The above image was taken by the author in Cades Cove on September 9, 2017, and is hereby released to the public domain. Feel free to use it any way you like.

There are a number of security headaches out there waiting to strike your Church. Malware, Viruses, Trojans, Worms, Ransomware, etc. How can you possibly keep on top of all of the threats? Obviously, you need to get good Anti-Virus software and let it run automatically. It will update it’s database of known viruses periodically and scan your computer automatically, looking for threats. You also need to establish good internet habits. If something looks phishy – it probably is, so avoid it! Here are some additional security tips for your staff:

• Check those links in the email message to be sure they are legitimate before you click or download anything from them. Typically, you can hover over them to see the actual address in your status bar at the bottom. If the domain doesn’t match the exact domain that you were expecting, then you know it is bogus!
  1. For example, the email might purport to be from FedEx.com with an urgent message about your order.
  2. However, when you hover over the link, you notice that it will really take you to fedex_com1234.com.
  3. The destination for the link is bogus, and probably contains malware which will automatically download to your computer.
• If you get an email asking you to do something immediately like transferring money, verify it with the person that supposedly sent it. All it takes is a quick phone call to avoid making a costly mistake!
• If you get an email from someone asking for a password, don’t reply with it. Rather, pick another communication channel to tell it them. You can call them and spell it over the phone, or text it to their cell phone with no references. You can be sure that anyone hacking your email server will take note of an email requesting a password and read the following response. And that just gave away the keys to the account!

Finally, be sure you make regular backups. If your system is compromised, they give you a way to recover. And be sure the backups are valid. You should be able to load a specific file back in from the backup and get the exact file contents.

Churches survive on donations. And sometimes, people will be moved to donate technical equipment. I’ve seen cases where people wanted to donate a big screen TV, or an old cell phone, or an old computer. What do you do in a situation like this?

First, always respect the giver. You may have a use for the equipment right now, or in the future. Don’t let a knee-jerk reaction result in you disrespecting the giver. God moved on their heart, getting them to give the gift. Accept it graciously. Then tomorrow you can look it over, try it out, and see how much use it will be. If it turns out to be something you can use, then make use of it immediately. If it needs some work, maybe even repair, then consider fixing it yourself. (Lots of times, someone on the Technical Ministry team will know how to repair it – they just need the parts.) If it doesn’t work and would be too expensive to repair, then quietly junk it. (Sometimes the cost of the parts will exceed the price of a new one, so it is too expensive.)

Second, followup on the gift by informing the Church Treasurer. They’ll want to make a note of the gift, and send a thank you to the person who donated it to the Church. They may ask you for a valuation, so they can give the donor a tax deduction. If so, then estimate the value based on the current market. (There are plenty of online selling sites that will give you an idea.) It may have been really expensive when it was first new.

Finally, unless the giver specified that it was to be kept discrete, let others know about the gift. You could put a thank you in the quarterly newsletter for all the technical equipment donations. And you could add to that any other needs, like a new audio cable for the band. There are lots of items like this that wear out over time. While they don’t cost much, they do have to be replaced. Why not enlist the Church members to donate? All too often, the Technical Team just buys what’s needed out of their own pocket. This way, you can share the cost with others willing to give.

Many software providers are moving to the Cloud Computing model – i.e. the Internet. By providing SAAS (Software As A Service), these providers are solving problems for their customers that previously were expensive and resource intensive. For example, what happens when traffic on your website grows exponentially during your revival? The budget priced web hosting service you signed up for gets overloaded – maybe even crashes. That is the worst possible time for a crash, and the Church is left with a black eye when it comes to pulling off the revival. However, it doesn’t have to be that way.

With the cloud computing model, the web site can automatically expand in capacity to handle the increased demand. At the data center, they will simple spin up another server, or as many as required, to handle the demand. This all happens transparently to the Church staff. The Cloud just gets a little bigger. And after the Revival is over, the cloud can shrink back to normal size. You may notice the bump in web traffic demand, but it isn’t a crisis. Perhaps more Churches need to take advantage of the flexibility and performance available in the cloud.

What’s the first impression that people in the community have of your Church? Perhaps you have a Digital Sign out front that identifies the building and provides some basic information about the Church. No doubt it lists the service times, so people will know when to come for worship.

During Advent, we announce the coming of the Babe in the Manger in new ways each year. That message appears in the Advent sermons. It shows up in the bulletins and newsletters. And it should show up on your web site. It should also be prominent for your Digital Sign out front. But how do you write that message in a format that fits the signage? Here are some examples that might work:

• Happy Birthday, Jesus!
• Celebrate Christmas Here
• Joy To The World
• Put Christ back in Christmas
• Santa never died for anyone
• Jesus came to die for you

What if we could connect a Social Media account up to the Digital Sign and let the congregation post messages. Of course, they would have to be vetted by someone, so you couldn’t do this real time. But it would be a cool way for members of the congregation to express what Christmas means to them in the community.

Stewardship involves more than just giving money. It really involes the whole person. But sometimes this is hard to see. The following link is for a spreadsheet that I came up with that looks at three aspects of stewardship – Time, Talent and Treasure. Take a look and see how you balance these three in your life.

Excel Format:
Time Talent Treasure Worksheet

PDF Format:
Time Talent Treasure Worksheet

NAS stands for Network Attached Storage. It is a computer device that provides online storage to a Local Area Network. Think of it as a File Server. These days, you have a NAS measured in TB (TerraBytes or 10^12 characters). They are a great way to provide your users with backups of their computer systems. Automated software can keep the local hard disk and the directory on the NAS in sync, so that the user never has to worry about losing a file. It is always backed up.

Does your Church IT group provide a NAS? Is it used effectively to preserve ministry files? If so, then how? You might share your technical configuration so that others can learn from it.

Some Churches follow the Liturgical Calendar – a 3 year cycle that takes you through the scriptures systematically. Other Churches depend on their ministry team to select scriptures appropriate to the season and current events. The Liturgical Calendar recognizes that there are patterns in worship (Advent, Christmas, Lent, Easter, Pentecost.) It also offers some balance in that it may cover each Gospel in turn.

For Churches that use a Liturgical Calendar, how do you include that in your web site? Here is one example, taken from one Episcopal Church. It uses the appropriate colors for each Sunday.

http://www.studioredarchitects.com/fellowship-of-the-woodlands

Perhaps you have another.

Your staff will no doubt be using printers in the office. (Although there are some who have gone paperless, most Church offices still rely on some paper.) Should these printers be available on Sundays for volunteers to use? Suppose a Small Group Leader needs a few pages printed for handouts to the group. Should the Church make that available? There is a cost associated with each page that is printed. It includes:

• Cost of the printer divided by the number of pages it will print over it’s lifetime
• Cost of the ink or toner used
• Cost of the paper that is printed upon.
• Electricity cost

Since the Church Staff is charged with being good stewards of the office equipment they use, perhaps some limits should be set. For example, anyone can print up to 10 pages on Sundays; but no more. That way, the paper does last until the end of the year. And the staff aren’t surprised on Monday mornings when they find the printer out of paper.

There is a difference between Open Source software and Freeware. Open Source tends to be more thoroughly tested, and thus more reliable. Freeware is often limited, being used as a come-on to buy the commercial product. If your Church is using software to enhance its ministries, then how do you decide? I would suggest the following rules of thumb:

• If it absolutely has to work every Sunday, then perhaps you need a proprietary product. That way, you have support.
• If you are using it in a ministry setting occasionally, the Open Source is less expensive and readily available.
• If you want to turn around and give it away, then Freeware carries no strings.

There are many software products out there these days that are designed for Churches. Some are proprietary. Others are Open Source. The Church needs to make wise choices about these products. Be sure you have several staff and/or volunteers who know the software that you are proposing to get. That way, there will always be someone around who can teach it to others.

TIP: For several software needs, you will find reviews herein – e.g. Presentation Software.

Can the Gospel be communicated over Instant Messaging? Certainly! The method of the communication is not what’s important; the message is! If the instant message contains the words “Jesus is the Christ,” then it would seem to be the Gospel. However, Instant Messaging tends to be short, so it would be best used for quick followups.

How about following up with every new believer by sending them a daily text message of encouragement? That would no doubt be a tremendous help in those difficult days following a decision for Christ. Temptations ramp up. Old lifestyle choices tend to come back in full force. Consequences are encountered for past actions. An immature Christian is often times choked by the weeds in the Parable of the Sower. Perhaps some Instant Messages would come to the rescue of a brother or sister in peril. It could be as simple as an agreement to pray for them. It could be as complex as a Bible passage and interpretation. The possibilities are limitless.

Advent is right around the corner. Will it be just another Christmas? Or can you make it something special? Consider enhancing your media for this Advent season. Live video instead of static shots will catch people’s eye. If you have an outdoor nativity scene, why not set up a web cam and put it on your web site? That way, people who can’t come to Church on Christmas Eve can still see what’s going on.

As the end of the year rolls around, it is time for some planning for the new year. How do you plan out a strategy for the Church for a whole year? You gather ideas from the key leadership in the Church. Then you share those ideas with others in the congregation to refine and publicize them. Then you set strategic goals for the year ahead. If people have a chance to express their opinions about something, then they will be more likely to buy in and become a part of it.

Most of the time when you think of Research and Development (R&D), you think of think tanks with too much money on their hands. So is there a role for R&D in the Church? Perhaps it has to be at the general Church level, where it can result in improvements Church wide. Or perhaps it should be in the services that provide technology for the Church to use – e.g. software that specializes in Church Administration. Either way, the R&D needs to address the unique needs of the Church.