Google Highlights Darfur

Google is doing something that is certainly not evil, they are adding information to Google Earth about the crisis in Darfur.

Now international humanitarian crisis generally fall outside of this blog’s audience and purpose, but there are some things that we have to point out.

The crisis in Darfur is unimaginable, but what is more unimaginable is the inaction of many people in the United States and other areas of the minority world. For example this news item appeared not in Wired or another American tech publication, but in Al Jezeera’s English edition. Al Jazeera people!

If you would like to know more about what is going on in Darfur and how you can help, check out Save Darfur.

Hey Churches: Free Stuff

Anyone who’s worked with a church website can tell you: The hardest part isn’t coming up with the ideas, it’s coming up with the funding. In an age where web applications are expanding how people connect with each other, there are so many things you’d love to do with your website: Sermon podcasts, blogs, classifieds, small groups…but who has the money, and who has the time?

A lot of churches are finding clever ways to get interactive tools for free: establishing presence on Myspace, joining Facebook, and posting on YouTube, but while these solutions are certainly trendy, they don’t quite fit the actual needs most churches have.

Enter MyChurch.org, a Web 2.0 service focused on church community.

My review is after the jump:

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The Beat of Truth

I like humming a tune while I work. Sometimes, I like to listen to solid Biblical teaching while I work. Sometimes, I like to do both at the same time - visiting that place where beautifully orthodox Biblical teaching meets the dopest of funky-fly beats.

I’m talking about a great example of someone using technology and art to deliver the Gospel message in a relevant way. Relevant Revolution mixes Evangelical preaching with hip-hop beats and makes them completely available for download on their website. They deliver these sound-tracked sermons via Podcast, as well. Interestingly enough, you’ll find a few names well known around the Silas Partners office, including Alistair Begg of Parkside Church and Truth for Life.

My personal favorites (so far) are John Piper’s sermon on the Cross, along with CJ Mahaney’s Main Thing sermon… it’s really a toss up.

If you like these sermons, you might also appreciate Relevant Revolution’s Bible on Beat, another compelling example of a creative and relevant way deliver the Gospel message.

Connecting on the Web

Mashups are all the rage now days. If you aren’t a link follower, a mashup is the combining of two web applications to make a third one. I think they also give us a window on human behavior.

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Christians + YouTube = GodTube

That’s right, there is a Christian version of YouTube! GodTube is an online collection of videos honoring God. It’s actually in Beta right now and working very well!

Check out the Most Viewed page for some popular videos, including the Mac vs. PC parody series - which has “Christ-follower” talking with “Christian” about how to live a true Christian life. If you have a good sense of humor I highly recommend Baby Got Bible.

Check it out!

Convio buys Get Active

Well this is big, you can read the official word from Convio on their site. It seems that Convio gets GetActive’s advocacy platform, content management system and GetActive’s DC based services operation.

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The Church Inc. Review

Recently the Washington Post wrote an article about churches running themselves like a corporation and dealing with annual revenue greater than many companies on the NYSE. While it is an interesting read for those outside of the church industry, anyone on the inside understands the complexity of meeting the needs of their members.
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Good Works

We get a fair amount of mass and junk type mail in the office, but every once in a while I’m surprised by something really good mixed in, like the prize in a box of cereal. On Monday we got the Vision Forum Family Catalogue. I had never heard of them before, but it looked intriguing, so I leafed through it to see if it might be of interest to anyone else in the office. As I looked through the catalogue, I was actually incredibly encouraged to see the good works Vision Forum is doing, particularly on strengthening the family. Read more >>