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puppetmaster


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Christians and MySpace
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So, a couple of weeks ago, I found that access to MySpace was blocked from our church offices.  Still not sure if this was intentional or if it's just a computer glitch (or a super-tight filter that does not discriminate!!)...but it did get me thinking!


Now, I am not about to go to my SP and say, "Why can't I access my MySpace from the office?" I really don't have that much time during the say to spend on it, anyway, and if I do have that kind of time, I should be getting busy being visionary and all that stuff!!  I use it primarily to stay in touch with current friends and get back in touch with old ones, which I can do and am more than happy to do on my own time.


On the other hand, it is almost essential in this day and age to a youth pastor's ministry to be able to access MySpace.  This is a primary mode of communication for teenagers.  It is where a lot of the new Christian bands are promoting their music.  I figure if our YP wants it, he'll push to be able to access it again.  If he doesn't, IMHO, he is really missing out on a key element of ministry in this century...but I digress!


But what got me thinking was that I have talked to so many Christians who are scared of this site.  I understand that it can be a generational thing to be reactionary against a new cultural phenomenon.  I also understand the dangers in regards to sexual predators (but on the other hand, those dangers have been around since Al Gore invented the Internet ).


I even went online and found a news article that talked about a pastor who preached an entire sermon against MySpace, comparing it to crack cocaine and encouraging everyone who had a space to go home that day and delete it. 


My opinion?  Obviously, since I have my own MySpace site, I don't have a problem with it!  I feel that it is a tool that can be used for good (connecting with friends, ministry, promoting music, etc) or for bad (sexual predators, etc).  But we don't go around being afraid of baseball bats because people have used them to assault or kill others.  As with anything, it's a matter of training our kids - and adults, in some cases - to use the tool properly!


And I'm sorry, but I am really annoyed at the cheesy "Christianized" sites like "MyPraize," or others like it that are supposed to be safe and squeaky clean.  Yeah, right.  Like sexual predators have never infiltrated Christian organizations before...


Anyway, just wanted to throw this discussion out there and see what you all thought!!!



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Deanna


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Well obviously Puppetmaster you know my feelings on it since I personally have a myspace and you are one of my "friends" on the site. 


My husband and boys have one - we originally got one to keep up with our two kids.  But I'd say at least half of our church has a myspace and we keep up with a lot of them (just as many adults) as well.  It's another mode of communication.


I will say that even aside from the internet predators (which I agree, will find you anywhere if they really want to) one downside of it, just like e-mail is that it can cause issues between people in the church, unfortunately.  Things have drastically changed and created more of a challenge for pastors in this day and age of communication.  My husband calls myspace a church directory.  Unfortunately if somebody is not happy they can just immaturely rattle off a bulletin or something about something they don't agree with...or a blog. (I know you experienced this yourself recently puppetmaster, so you know the pain I speak of...) 


When you get immature loose cannons in the church who can't control their mouth this can be a problem.  Especially in the youth...you know the he said/she said...babyfied type stuff.  But I guess you really can't control that - if people are going to be immature, they'll do it one way or another, so you might as well use the tool for the good it has to offer.



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puppetmaster


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I agree...except in the situation I recently dealt with, the offending blog was posted on blogger.com...not on MySpace, lol!!


But yes, there are many immature people who have yet to learn blogging or e-mail etiquette.  That is, if you're angry and need to blow off steam, by all means, spend some time typing furiously until your fingers are numb (I've done it myself many times!!), but DON'T POST OR SEND IT until you've had a day or two to cool off!!  Chances are, you'll do some serious editing once you've had time to think it over.


As much as I try to be myself on my blog, I also realize that as a Christian and as a pastor, I am accountable for what I write on it.  I've had over 1,000 views of my site, so I know someone's reading it.  Yikes!  Really makes me think about what I put on there!!!


It can also be disheartening to get back in touch with old friends/church members and find via their sites that they're not serving God anymore.  On the other hand, it's a great way to speak into people's lives and to use your own life as a testimony...


There are ups and downs to this and other social networking sites - but let's face it, they're not going to go away!  So we might as well use them to our advantage instead of hiding from them.


One more tip for fellow MySpacers (or if you have teenage kids, pass this on to them!): Change your password every few months!!!  Seriously.  There are hackers and spambots who will send pornographic bulletins to your friends in your name.  This happened to me a few weeks ago.  I sent out a "counter-bulletin" letting them know that those bulletins most certainly did not come from me, and not to open them.  But if you change your password on a regular basis, it's much more difficult for them to do this (I'd had the same password for over a year when this happened, and I haven't had this problem at all since I changed it!).



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Send_Judah


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There is good and bad on myspace. I've got a page and have met some wonderful people. All our stuff is ministry related and all the groups I may interact with are also in ministry. It's been a wonderful networking tool to meet other christians.


I also keep tabs on my daughter and it helps to see Pastor Mom as one of her top friends!


I have reconnected with young people from my old church. These are young women who were very young when I attended. I discovered that many had walked away from God because the church was so traditional and overbearing. As soon as they were 18 and mom couldn't make them go to church anymore...they left.


I've been able to reach out to these young women and minister to them through myspace. To my surprise a lot of these young women not only remember me but claim that I had some type of influence in their life.


Myspace has been a wonderful ministry tool. I firmly believe the Apostle Paul would have a myspace page! LOL


 



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Deanna


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Oh yeah Puppetmaster, that was on blogger, I forgot.   Well, I've got one of those myself...


www.lifetimeintimateportraitds.blogspot.com


I agree Pastor Lisa...I think Paul would have had one, and I'm serious.


I believe in some ways the whole internet thing has made pastoring harder in some respects.  Email was the first thing.  It makes you much more accessible for the good things...and the bad.  So many pastors have told me that when someone is upset with them, it's very common that folks just rattle off a criticizing e-mail and press send before even really thinking it over.  (Where as in times past, people would not take time to pen a letter, find an envelope, a stamp, and send it.  By the time they did, they often cooled down and realized it was stupid to send it.)  The internet changes all that.  It's "I'm going to rant and rave, press send, and let you deal with it.  This is the bad part.  There are pastors who have had people send an e-mail to everyone's address they had in the church with something negative.  Again, it took more work in the past for people to write a letter, address it, pay to mail it, etc.  Even people who used to "work the phones" in our churches had to take time to go down the directory and do it.  With e-mail, it's done in 2 seconds.  This is what I don't like about it.


What I do love is...I'm in touch with people on a constant basis.  I can tell my whole ministry team in 2 seconds about a meeting, or give them a reminder.  I can ask a quick question to the whole team at once instead of waiting for Sunday or Wednesday.  I can spend more time helping people I wouldn't otherwise have time to help.  People can reach me more and I can answer them when I have time, which sometimes is 1 am!  Sometimes I think best then so at times I give the best advice at that time. 


It's not going away...you're right.  So, the smart thing for us to do is, use it, use it, use it!



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Co-Pastor, Celebration Church of Tampa

puppetmaster


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I also have one at blogspot...


http://musingsnstuff.blogspot.com.


That's my "deeper" blog - where I am a little more transparent than on MySpace - just because most people don't know about it.  I'm thinking of reworking some of the stuff I've written on there and writing a devotional of sorts for women in ministry...


Feel free to take a look!!



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Deanna


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Great stuff there - you're a good writer.  So keep it up!

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revdell


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I have a blog at praize.com  It's pretty cool. The comments have been positive and it seems very healthy. (And yes, even there you have to change your password often and stay alert.)


Go to www.praize.com  and run down the blog list. Mine is RevDell Balancing Family and Ministry.


Heading over to check out MySpace again.


 


Dell



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