Redeemed Point started as a concept many years ago.  I was one of those people that fell in love with computer’s from the very beginning.  As a young boy I would spend hours using our family Tandy TRS 80 III Computer.  I would buy BYTE Magazine and slowly input the code in the back to test out programming.  I loved to see how things worked and always believed that computers would be the future.

No one can argue the place of computers in our world today, more specifically the use of the Internet as the greatest communication tool available to us.  How else can you get a message out to people around the world, all at the same time, for such a minimal cost? 

Henry Blackaby’s study, Experiencing God, as well as Rick Warrens Purpose Driven Church/Life, both speak about finding where God is working and joining him there.  I love the illustration that Rick uses in the opening chapters of Purpose Driven Church.  He says that trying to “start” things yourself is like riding a surfboard out into a flat ocean only to beat the water with your own arms trying to create a wave. When what we should do is paddle out and look for a wave that God has already set in motion, position ourselves into that wave and ride baby ride!

We see the wave that God has created, its called the internet and social media.  We need to do what we can as God’s people to join him where he is working.  One of the more popular places on the net is Facebook.  Facebook provides tools for people to get in touch with others from around the world.  It is amazing how many people are turning to sites like this to reconnect with friends from the past that may have moved on to some other location or country.

So some people ask, “Why start a church that uses the Internet as a means to reach out?”  Here is why, and mind you these are just statistics from one site:

• More than 200 million active users
• More than 100 million users log on to Facebook at least once each day
• More than two-thirds of Facebook users are outside of college
• The fastest growing demographic is those 35 years old and older

Facebook Statistics

We have an opportunity to touch millions of lives on any given day by simply logging into a website and checking up on friends and family.  We need to live out our lives online for Christ as we do away from the keyboard.  We can not ignore a mission field this large any longer.  Matthew 28:18-20.

Redeemed Point will use social media like Facebook, Twitter, Streaming Video and more, along with a local group of believers working behind the scenes to perform its mission.  We are excited about joining God where He is working and can’t wait to see the harvest.  Email onpoint@redeemedpoint.com if you would like more information or have suggestions or questions.

Yesterday we said farewell to some of our best friends in real life.  Bob and Michelle Veach, and boys, are leaving Cooper Ave Baptist Church after 9 and a half years of serving as Associate Pastor of Students, or whatever Bob’s title ended up during the time there.  It was a wonderful time filled with stories that made us laugh and cry.  I was standing near our families usual seat in the sanctuary when Dr. Tom Stringfellow, our associations Director of Missions came up to me and asked  a simple question.

“So what do you want to be when you grow up Mike?”

At face value one could get a little insulted at such a question.  Especially when you are forty years old.  I mean, shouldn’t you know what you want to do and be doing it?  But Tom was not asking in order to insult, he was asking to find out what he could do, as an equip-er, to help.  He knows, exspeicaly with the emotional air around Bob leaving and heading out into the unknown, that the wounds from my leaving First Baptist where fresh.  And honestly for the past few months I have been floundering back and forth wrestling with God on what it is he desires of me and my family.

I have come to the point that I know that the only thing I can do, the only thing that I am truly good, or gifted at, is serving God.  So I told Tom just that.  I want to do what he can use me in.  Now . . most would say, what a cop out.  Not sure eh?  Some might expect someone to say, “I want to be the senior pastor of (fill in the name of a huge successful church here).”  But honestly I have always wanted what he wants.  I have no aspiration to be top dog, I just want to serve.  Mind you I am aware of the gifts he has given me, in leadership, teaching, connecting with people.  But Tom pushed the subject, and it led to a little bit of discussion between us, as much as standing in the middle of a rapidly filling auditorium could allow.

To be honest with myself and with you, part of my hard time answering the question is that God has shown me some wonderful things in how to truly connect with people.  The frustrating part is that when I begin to talk to someone around me in the real world about how cool it was to hang out with 9 other people online, working together to take down a enemy together in order to pass out some loot that it drops that most likely goes to someone in our group that needs it. . well.. imagine a deer in the headlights look.  Facebook, Twitter, Email, Computer games, Coffee at Starbucks, texting back and forth on your cell phone, just a few examples of how people are connecting, and where people are today.  So part of the reluctance might be not wanting to be looked at like some loon.

Not limiting the possibilities is another reason to possibly not directly answer such a question.  If I say, yes, I want to be a Worship Pastor, then what if he wants to show me a senior pastor position, or even a custodial job that allows me to shine in his kingdom?  I have always been a sort of jack of all trades master of few, or even none.  I love to learn, I love to teach others about what I learn, I love technology, innovation, relevance.  I don’t want to pin him down and lose out on something.

So my answer was, “Whatever he wants of me.”

Then as the service went on, Tom brought the message, my mind was going over what I was going to say about Bob since I had been asked to join the group of people getting up to speak about him and say something nice.  My mind raced as I saught our families life verse when it hit me.

Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans I have for you” —[this is] the LORD’s declaration—”plans for [your] welfare, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. ” (HCSB)

God has gifted me with some unique talents.  He has given me a desire and hunger to reach people that, for the most part are not sought.  He has shown me that it is possible.  I turned to Tanya and said, “Hun, I think I just need to put down that He has called me to be a tech pastor.”  Instead of the look of frustration with me for having my head in the clouds she said, “then that’s what you put on your resume.”

So, what do I want to be when I grow up?  I still want to be someone that God can use for what he wants.  What that entails is working with technology, computers, media, sound, video, facebook, twitter, computer games, phones, computer software, whatever it takes to reach people and be a friend.

For those who have a mindset that the church is to look like, or feel like it was in the 50′s, well, thank you for all you have taught me, thank you for all you have done for us, and thank you for how radical you where then.  But please, remember that society is changing and the best way to reach people is to be where they are.

So, Brother Tom, what do I want to be when I grow up?  A Tech Pastor.

We truly live in a very connected and wired age.  With this age of communication ease has crept up some interesting and fantastic tools that help plug people into one another’s busy lives.  Gone are the days of “small town” Mayberry, where on any given evening you could walk around and talk with your neighbors as they swung on a large comfy swing on the front porch.  Today our lives are so busy that once we get home from work we rush to the fridge, get dinner started, make sure the kids are getting homework done and getting ready to rest and relax for the night, that is if you do not have extracurricular activities, preparation for the next day at work or what not. 

Our world has changed.  People are not as open to company just dropping by as they once did (This affects church and ministry life drastically, but ill save that for another post.)  At the beginning of this age you could feel a vacuum as people started to pull away from others, but then something deep inside of us longs to be connected.  But we don’t have time. . We are busy.  I should take an hour or two out of my night to go over and see so and so, but then it turns into a 4 hour ordeal, then we get to bed late, and wake the next morning more tired that before.  Ever happen to you?  So what do we do to connect?

I am so glad you asked.  *smile*  About a year and a half ago I learned of something called Twitter.  At first it seemed silly.  It was explained to me that you simply put in up to 140 characters of what your doing, and people who follow you can read it. 

At first I was like.. “uhm. . so?”  I mean who wants to know when someone had a really yummy peanut butter sandwich?  So I put it aside for a few months until some issues in my ministry and life fell apart to such a stage that I withdrew into a deep cave.  It was at this time, the time I needed people and connections, that I blew the dust off of this platform and started to learn of its power to connect people together on so many layers and levels.  It was not simply about eating lunch.

Twitter has grown into an organic thing with people posting whatever they want, within the 140 character limit.  As of this writing I follow 138 people, and have 110 people following me.  This is amazing.  As someone who wants to know what others think and feel I can . . eavesdrop on a public conversation they chose to share.  I have been able to learn some amazing things about some of the people I have known for years or even days.  Things they reveal are non threatening, yet give us a picture of who they are. 

Not only can I see what they post, but I can in turn respond to them in a quasi IM.  By responding to them with an @ symbol I can direct a message to them that others that follow me and them can see.  Connection!

Now when I post something I have 110 people that will read it when it comes across their feed.  They too can then respond to me.  I will typically share small tidbits about my gaming, struggles, blog posts, ideas, questions and more.

Twitter has opened our world that is busy, bored, and alone into something that even in our hectic schedules gives us the ability to connect on a level not done before.  The ways to use it are endless.  And to be honest, the best way to get your head wrapped around it is to just do it. 

Head over to http://twitter.com and set up an account.  Then follow some users.  You can follow me by going to http://twitter.com/manorton Once you are following people just sit back and watch, learn and interact.

Come join me and others on the new swing on the new front porch, doing the same thing we did 50 years ago;  Sharing small bits of our lives with others.

  I have to admit I jumped at the chance to install and play around with Windows 7 Beta.  I have been having nothing but issues with my quad core CPU system and Vista.  Probably does not help that it’s a Dell, but hey.

One frustration I had run into was trying to install a few apps I love to use.  Being a good tech/geek I first installed my antivirus/firewall of choice.  I love AVG over many others, especially Norton, for the fact that it is not a recourse HOG.  Game’s and other system hungry apps need all the power they can get and don’t do well when a security system is hammering away for no reason every 10 seconds or so.  The install went well, and all seemed to work.  But then I was unable to install Google Chrome and Windows Live Writer. Chrome would install, and a warning came up that it might not be compatible with Win7 but I could get no connection to the outside world once the window was up.  With no warning from the AVG firewall to allow data to pass I thought nothing of it and figured it was just not ready for Win7.

Then this morning as I started my normal routine I fired up Twhirl, my Twitter app of choice on my desktop.  The app loaded but no tweets, nothing, it was dark.  No message from AVG, but it got me thinking.  Headed into the AVG options, disabled the firewall and boom, twhirl worked.  So I scratched my head and started to install Live Writer again. 

Well, I am currently writing this post from within Live Writer on my Windows 7 Beta install.  So you can figure out the issue.

I have disabled the AVG firewall, turned ON the windows firewall for now and will see what else I am able to get running.

So far on a scale from 1 to 10 of satisfaction with Win 7 I am shooting at a 9.  No kidding.  Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit runs like a champ.