January 6, 2012 Vital Congregations continued from page 1A High-Tech Chat
Call-To-Action report,” said Mid- State District Superintendent Lynn Dyke. “It gives every church a simple way to set goals, and gives us a way to compare trends, because every Conference will be measuring the same things.” The Council of Bishops and
the denomination’s Connectional Table, in a commitment to be faithful to the heart of our denomination (the local church) empowered a team to identify what makes a congregation vital. In January 2010 the Call to Action Steering Team was formed to gather data and to seek an objec- tive operational assessment of the Connection. The information gathered would lead to recom- mendations for the reordering of the life of the Church for greater effectiveness in making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transforma- tion of the world. (CTA Report p. 6)
The purpose of the goal
setting function of the Vital Congregations website is to give churches a sense of direction. “If you know where you are
headed, you stand a much better chance of being able to get there,” Dyke said. “This site is easy to use, and displays things in a simple way.” All churches in the Missouri
Conference are expected to enter their goals in the Vital Congregations website in early 2012. These goals will be com- piled, and each Bishop will share the goals from his or her area at General Conference in April. The UM Vital Congregations
website also has a component in which churches are encouraged to share their best practices. This area should develop into an edu- cational component in which vital congregations are helping other congregations find direction.
Vital Congregations Are:
Go to
www.umvitalcongregations.org for more information.
A Disciple of Jesus Christ:
Matthew 22:36-40 • worships regularly • helps make new disciples • is engaged in growing in their faith
• is engaged in mission • shares by giving in mission
A Vital Congregation Has:
• Inviting & Inspiring Worship
• Engaged Disciples in mission & outreach
• Gifted, Empowered & Equipped Lay Leadership
• Effective, Equipped & Inspired Clergy Leadership
• Small Group Ministries • Strong Children’s & Youth Ministry
• 16 drivers of vitality according to the Call To Action Report
• Spirit-filled, forward-leaning communities of believers that welcome all people (Gal.3:28) • Places where Disciples of Jesus Christ are made through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Matt. 28:18-20) • Communities that serve like Christ through justice and mercy ministries. (Micah 6:8, Luke 4:17-21)
Connect print with mobile media via QR codes
So our church wants a direct
and quick response from a pro- gram flier it has created and distributed to the community? You wait for the recipients to read your URL, go to their computer and find your site. However, chances are, many will for- get. Solution: QR codes. QR codes are an excellent way to connect print with mobile media and generate an immediate and measurable response. More than 35 percent of Americans own a smartphone; this is a great incen- tive to use this technology for effective marketing. What is a QR code? QR (Quick Response) codes
are two-dimensional (2D) matrix barcodes that you can scan or read with your iPhone, Android or other camera-enabled smart- phone. With a simple free app, anyone can scan a QR and link to whatever is attached to the code. Getting one is easy A church can get a QR code
Palmyra continued from page 1A
at the church, and he said yes. The church as a whole was in favor of it, but many people had the same question: Who would pay for this? “Whenever that came up, I just
said God’s paying for it,” Bannon said.
A couple ads were placed in
the local paper looking for vol- unteers and donations. The local grocery stores and banks helped out, as did individuals. “I had people approaching me
to give me money in the street all over town,” Bannon said. The first day a meal was served
six children showed up. The next day there were 25. The church
averaged about 35 people coming to the meal each day, mostly chil- dren but a few parents sat down for the meal as well. The church served 950 meals over about seven weeks, and it took 280 volunteer shifts to do it. “We had some ladies from the
First Christian Church volunteer to be here one day a week at the beginning, and they ended up coming about every day,” Bannon said. Volunteers typically came in at
about 8:30 a.m. They started serv- ing the meal everyday at about 11 a.m., and usually finished cleaning up by 1:30 p.m. It was a different
cooked meal each day. At the end of the summer, the
church had about $1,500 in dona- tions left over. That money may be used to get next year’s program started. Bannon said if they do it again, he’ll try to recruit more churches to help so that none of the volunteers get burned out. Anderson was impressed to see
Bannon hear about a community need, and boldly take action. “This all started out as an act
of faith on his part,” Anderson said.
from a QR generator online (like Kaywa,
http://qrcode.kaywa.com/) and decide where to connect it. When you request a QR code, the site will ask where you want the user to go. Simply put in the address. Then save the QR code graphic to place in your ad, bulle- tin, prayer journal or newsletter. Getting specific Use a QR code to link to
digital content on the web or to activate phone functions, such as email, instant messaging and short message service. Churches can use QR codes to link to spe- cial events – conferences, retreats, outreach and community hap- penings. Potential visitors will feel more comfortable when they know what to expect upon their first visit. Connect them to digi- tal content that welcomes them and shares something about your church. As new people begin to connect to different ministries, use QR codes to help them learn,
call, text or otherwise participate in the life of the church. Praying is one of the most powerful things we can do. With a QR code in the bulletin or on the bulletin board, a church can connect people to its prayer chain. In the community QR codes can
make the programs of the church more accessible for the church family and reach people in the
community as well. Put a QR code on any marketing materials you create, signage at the church, VBS registration or anywhere else you want someone to find more information or engage in pro- gramming. The individual can use a QR code reader app like i-nigma or Qrafter (iPad) to scan the code with their camera and access the “call to action” you created. People can get directions easily, see the website, watch the latest sermon and find other valuable informa- tion. Beauty is timeless Many in our churches are
aging. With age can come wis- dom. Wisdom might suggest that using technology like QR codes will connect with the younger generation. They are hungry for God in their life and have a ten- dency to gravitate to newer tech- nologies. Artistic and beyond An interesting fact about QR
codes is that they have a 30 per- cent tolerance in readability. If you have creative people in your church, you can have fun with clever designs. Several services like QR Arts will create design- specific QR codes for you. Even beyond QR codes, some com- panies like Digimarc work with watermarks you can embed subtly in your publications or art. Just as your smartphone app can read a QR code, this app will read the watermark and link you to digital content without the digital code look.
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