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How I use my iPhone in ministry, pt. 1

March 7, 2011 in Technology, Youth Ministry with 2 Comments

A little over two years ago I went out and got an iPhone, and it has become a great tool for me in ministry. I thought I would share a couple of ways I use it in my ministry. This is part one. (I have an iPhone. You can probably do the same stuff with an Android phone.)

I love Dropbox, and if you don’t use it, you should. It has been a great find for me. What I do now is whenever we have an event, trip or retreat coming up, I put all the forms people might need in my public folder of my Dropbox. I make each file a PDF so that anyone can use it. I put all these files on our youth group website, but sometimes people forget, so this is where my iPhone has made things awesome.

A couple of months ago we were getting ready for our high school winter retreat, so I was starting to get calls and texts about getting a brochure (which I mailed to everyone, but that’s another post about responsibility). One day I was sitting in a little rural church waiting for a funeral to start when I got a text asking about a registration form. I went to the Dropbox app on my iPhone, I copied the link to the registration form, then I went to the Facebook app and sent her a message with the link in it, then text her back and told her to go to her Facebook to get the form. It took me a total of three minutes (only because I wasn’t in a 3G area).

Sign up for Dropbox, install the Dropbox app on your phone, and start using it to get information to those who need it. I know that there are lots of ways to do this, and I would love to hear how you do it. This has been a great way for me to get information to students when I am on the go.

Side note: I have also started to try out CloudApp with the iPhone app, Cloudette. It seems to work the same, and allows me to use more of my Dropbox space for other files.

“How did you do that?”

January 25, 2011 in Technology with 1 Comment

In twelve years of youth ministry, and entire lifetime of tinkering around, I have accumulated a wide variety of technological skills. None of which I could use to earn a living, but they have helped me out in my ministry at times. I have learned how to shoot and edit video, record audio, work with websites, and do some graphic design work.

Trust me, there are much better people at all of these things, but for some reason I always get asked the question, “how did you do that?”. I don’t have all the answers, but let I’ll give you some of my top tips after the jump.

Continue Reading…

Dropbox

February 26, 2010 in Technology with 0 Comments

I love Dropbox! For some time I had been looking for a way to keep files I was working on synced between my work computer and my laptop that didn’t include the use of a thumb drive. I just wanted it to do it automatically. Finally I found Dropbox. I don’t need to keep every file on my computers synced all the time, but I do have files that I am working on that need to be up to date. That’s where Dropbox comes in, and best of all it’s free, well up to 2GB.

Once you register, you install the program on the computers that you want to keep synced and start dropping files in the Dropbox folder. It really is that simple. You can also access the files from any internet enabled computer.

I can’t tell you how awesome it has been to do some work on a project on my laptop at home, and by the time I get to the office, it is already on my work computer. If you work on more than one computer, you need to get Dropbox. I am sure there are other sites out there that will do the same thing, but Dropbox is what I know, and it has always been good to me. If you want to sign up, you can use this link and both of us will get an extra 250 mb of space. It just keeps getting better and better!

Check out this link. 5 Reasons Why Your Ministry Should Use Dropbox.

Too much technology?

March 12, 2009 in Church, Featured, Life, Technology, Youth Ministry with 0 Comments

smashing_computerHello. I’m Dikran and I’m a technology-aholic. It’s true. I want the newest and coolest gadgets out there. I ususally have more gigabytes on me at any given time than my entire high school had in 1993.

In recent months I have begun to wonder what kind of damage (if any) is all this technology doing to my life, my relationships and my ministry. Is it helping or hindering?

In my own life and relationships I can see how technology has actually been hindering growth. I find myself staring at a screen of some sorts almost all day. I’m on my computer most of the day. When I get home, I’m doing stuff on my laptop, playing a game or emailing someone on my iPhone or I am watching TV. I’ve been noticing how this has been affecting me and I have been noticing how it has been angering my wife. So, I have begun to institute some new rules in my life. No TV before 7pm. No use of my iPhone when I get home unless it is a phone call or Jill and I are watching YouTube videos together before bed, and I am leaving my laptop at the office or in my bag. I’m hoping that this time will allow me to read more, spend more quality time with my wife and allow me to focus on what is important.

In my ministry, I have been going with the less is more concept. I am considering shutting down our website. (I don’t think they use it anyways.) We had all these TVs hanging from the ceiling, we took those out. I changed out our huge sound system and speakers for a smaller receiver and speakers. We haven’t set up the Wii since the summer. We still do videos, and we use videos for worship. I still video tape events and take pictures, but technology is no longer a big part of our ministry. I think that by removing the electronics, we have allowed for real conversation and fellowship.

I don’t know if I am over-reacting to the use of technology, and I don’t believe that what I am saying is right for all people and all ministries, so don’t think I am criticizing anyone. What do you think about technology use?

animoto

March 9, 2009 in Technology, Websites, Youth Ministry with 0 Comments

animoto_logo_a_smI was checking out Collide Magazine’s website and they had an article on animoto. I make a lot of videos after events and every so often want to make short promo videos as well. I love my mac, and I love iMovie, but to make a video out of pictures can get pretty boring. If I want to make it more exciting in Final Cut Express it is a lot of work. Animoto makes it so easy, and the videos look great. You can make short 30 second clips for free. These clips can be posted to websites, blogs, facebook and can be emailed to people. You can also make full length videos for a cost. You can pay $3 for a single video, or you can pay $30 for a year of unlimited full length videos. With the all access pass, you can also download these videos to your computer.

You can upload pictures or use pictures from websites like facebook or Flickr or Picasa. You can use your own music, or use the music they already have available.

I have only tried the free clips and I am really impressed. You should check it out. Here’s a clip I did this morning. It was so easy!