Ministry in the Digital Age by Bourgeois, A Review

Ministry in the digital age is a topic that is very, very close to home. This right here, how the church mixes and operates in the digital age, is my world. I attained a Master’s degree in Biblical Exegesis with the intent of serving the Church in some way shape or form. I work full-time in digital marketing, always knee-deep in website design, in search engine optimization (SEO) and in ongoing marketing campaigns. That said, I was extremely excited when I got my hands on this book. I worked my way through how important it is to develop a team, a strategy, and to implement your marketing efforts for the sake of the Gospel. It’s been incredibly encouraging for all avenues of my life — whether it is how I help with my local church, how this website is managed or how I work with clients in my day-to-day digital marketing workplace.

As far as the book itself and how it influenced me, I will restate that this is my full-time work. Majority of the dialogue in Ministry in the Digital Age was not incredibly new to me but I do think that almost all of it is incredibly important for churches to digest in this “post-website” era. Those who are seeking Christ beyond the walls of the church are doing so on social media, on micro-blogging platforms, in Google searches and the like. If a Gospel-centered church is not there when someone is looking for it … than that person will stumble upon another digital voice. We, the Church, have got to consider how we can reach the ends of the earth in conjunction with the rapidly-growing digital world.

The book Ministry in the Digital Age is practical, insightful, and seldom talks over the heads of the reader. I would suggest Ministry in the Digital Age not for a pastor, per se, but for somebody on staff who oversees church communications. Beyond the church staff, this is a great cursory resource to digital marketing. If you want a 1,000 foot view of what is happening in the world of marketing than I would encourage you to pick up a copy of Ministry in the Digital Age.

Sidenote: Allow me to always, always be a reference for anybody who needs help in this area. I built this site that you’re looking at and I work day in and day out in the world of digital marketing! Reach out to me if you need any help.

“Christianity is fundamentally a communication event. It is God revealing God’s self to the world. And God uses a large variety of media to accomplish that revelation.” —Shane Hipps, author of Flickering Pixels

Viral videos and retweeted posts fill the air around us. In the midst of constant news feeds and mobile alerts, ministries have unprecedented opportunities to connect with people yearning for community with others and God.

But how? In this post-website world, it’s no longer enough to have a static website and hope that people find it. If you want to get your online content in front of your audience, you need to have a digital presence in the streams where they’re already active.

David Bourgeois offers a practical step-by-step guide for discerning and implementing a digital strategy for your ministry. He provides an overview of how Christians can use technology and communication media wisely, with concrete ideas for churches and nonprofit organizations. Discover how you can make the most of every opportunity to extend your ministry’s electronic reach and impact.

• Book Contents
• Introduction
• 1. What Hath God Wrought?
• 2. Getting in the Stream
• 3. Creating Change
• 4. The Digital Ministry Framework
• 5. Planning Your Digital Strategy
• 6. Implementing and Running Your Digital Ministry
• 7. Privacy and Security Considerations for Digital Ministry
• Conclusion
• Appendix A: Digital Tool Categories
• Appendix B: Research Report: Best Practices in Internet Ministry
• Appendix C: Church web usage survey
• Notes
• About the Author

Links Related to Ministry in the Digital Age

1. Read more: Here
2. Read more at IVPress.com or Amazon.com