Media Outreach

I get a lot of question regarding the new update for WordPress. So I decide that I would create this blog to highlight some of the new features that I like and use on the site.

• New Workflow for Managing Media - Simpler, more intuitive ways to work with images, video, and other media on your blog. Add media files with a single button, drag-and-drop media files, organize your galleries, and add captions on the fly.
• More Options for Embedding Media – Add Instagram, SoundCloud, and Slideshare links directly in your blog posts. No embed code necessary! Https links are now allowed, making it easy to embed Vimeo files too.
• New Device-Responsive Theme - With Twenty Twelve, a mobile-first device responsive theme, your blog looks good on any device, especially on smartphones and tablets.
• Streamlined Dashboard - High-resolution graphics and a cleaner, more task-focused look. Privacy Settings and Search Engine Visibility are now located on the dashboard’s Reading screen.
• Blogroll Widget Discontinued for New Blogs - The Blogroll widget is still available for blogs created before this upgrade. For blogs created using WordPress 3.5, create your own blogroll using a Custom Menu and the Custom Menu widget.
• Improved Accessibility - Your blog now works better with screen readers, touch devices, and keyboards.
• Performance Improvements - Improved WordPress loading time.

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It is no secret.   We love WordPress at faithHighway.  About a year ago we made a decision to move away from our homegrown CMS in favor of a managed WordPress Platform.  So far the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.  Our clients have been thrilled.

One of the best things about building websites for churches on a WordPress framework is the enormous development community that churches can rely on.  Today, WordPress boasts nearly twenty five thousand unique plugins to add functionality to your church website, some of them at no cost.  This adds so much value to a website that you just can’t find in a closed system.

Now twenty five thousand, that is a lot.  To save you some time here are the top 5 WordPress Plugins for churches.

1. Sermon Manager – A simple way to add your sermons with series graphics to your site.  Supports both audio and video.
2. Church Pack – A tool to make your staff listings ministries and events look awesome.
3. PrayBox – A tool to allowing you to have users easily submit prayer requests.
4. Spiritual Gifts Survey – An awesome spiritual gifts survey that will allow users to receive a simple spiritual gift assessment report via email.
5. Connections Business Directory – A Great tool for creating a church directory which can be put behind a password protected area.

Do you have some favorites that I am missing?  Do tell.

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Our team has written some really great articles about church websites over the past year – check out the top 3 posts!

1. How to Pick a Web Address – This article will help you pick the best URL to represent your church while maintaining marketing best practices.
2. 7 Steps to Resizing Images for the Web – Don’t ruin a great site with poorly formatted images. Learn how to keep your site looking great!
3. Best Church Websites: Maximizing Your Manpower – Put your volunteers to good use by splitting up website updating tasks to your team.

What is your favorite blog post about church websites? Please share in the comments!

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I recently read an article by Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Mobile, about the top 5 greatest things he learned from his mother. It got me thinking about how not only to put these lessons into practice in my personal life, but also in a professional capacity.

Lesson 1:  Live with No Regrets

This one was tough for me. While we do walk with the legacy we build for ourselves around with us every day, we can’t let our past mistakes define us. This can be especially true when we have peers, co-workers, bosses, or other leaders that keep us accountable as they notice our past failures. Generally as artists, we are our own worst critics, so one thing I constantly have to remind myself is, “Yes, I made a mistake. How can I go above and beyond to make the perception of myself one step higher?” If you are running a race and you stumble, you don’t stop to turn around and get depressed that you tripped. You pick yourself up and try to catch up with the other runners!

Lesson 2: Learn to Survive – Fast

Sometimes when we feel like we are alone in our difficulties, it’s hard to see the forest through the trees. Getting buried is a common phase in life, so by all means… ASK FOR ADVICE! I don’t know how many times I’ve had a light turn on from just asking another person who perhaps has a different outlook on the issue or, even better, has been through the same thing!

Lesson 3: Put Others First

I think this pretty much speaks for itself. It’s the idea of whatever goes around, comes around. If you give a little, you’ll get a little back. Be kind to those around you. It will all always come back to you in your favor.

Lesson 4: Keep your feet on the ground

It’s easy to get distracted by the stary-eyed big picture. But take it step by step. My best advice is to have someone that you trust be your rock and ally. If you have another voice to bring you down to earth, it’s easier to stay on track and be realistic.

Lesson 5: Every day is a fresh chance

I love this one, because we are human. We mess up. All the time! Tomorrow is a new day so go forth and conquer!!

Photo By: Shutterstock.com/ Sukhonosova Anastasia

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Back when I was in high school, I was convinced that I was the greatest bass clarinet player in the country, maybe even the entire world. As it turns out, I was the 4th best player in Central Texas, but that is neither relevant to this blog, nor is it something I want my fragile psyche to deal with at the moment. Anyway, one day I was back in the practice rooms working on a solo for an upcoming competition, when a friend of mine walked back to see how it was going. I was struggling with a particularly difficult passage, and she asked if she could try it. I handed over my horn, not really expecting much since 1) she was a clarinetist, not a bass clarinetist and 2) she would be sight-reading the piece. Of course she took my horn and nailed the passage better than I ever had. At that point, I realized 2 things:

1. My friend was a far, far greater musician than I was, or would ever be.
2. I hated her for it.

I could go on, but the purpose of the blog is not to force you to relive my teenage years. Over the years, one of the things I’ve learned in working with churches is that delivering a great sermon is a lot like a great musical performance. In order to do both, it really comes down to 3 things:

1. Source Material – No one ever got famous playing, “Row Row Row Your Boat.” In order to achieve musical greatness, a musician must first attempt great things. If that sounds like rhetorical nonsense, it probably is so I apologize. To put it more simply, one of the keys to a great performance is playing great music. The same holds true for delivering a great sermon. In order to deliver a spellbinding performance at the pulpit, a pastor must have great source material. Fortunately, there really isn’t any better source material available anywhere outside of the bible, so pastors are by in large well equipped for this task. To quote Proverbs 3:5, “trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding.”
2. Equipment – The Declaration of Independence states that, “all men are created equal.” The same does not hold true for musical instruments. When I was a student at UT, I had access to the finest instruments I’ve ever played on through the school of music. 10 years later, I’ve purchased my own bass clarinet, and while it’s not the cheapest model available, it’s a far cry from the level of instrument I used to perform on. Fortunately, a pastor does not have to purchase a $16,000.00 instrument to make his or her voice heard. However, the message put forth by a pastor can be greatly aided by using the right equipment. Good recording equipment, websites with robust media players, and other technological advances have enabled today’s pastor to spread the message far and wide.
3. Yourself – When it comes down to it, the best music and the instrument in the world can’t help a musician who simply doesn’t know what they’re doing. Just as no one sight reads at Carnegie Hall, a good sermon is generally not made up on the spot. However, does this mean that one need be a naturally gifted brilliant public speaker in order to even attempt a sermon? Not at all. As I alluded to in my earlier story, I am not a naturally gifted musician. However, what I didn’t mention earlier is that after being thoroughly trounced by my virtuoso friend, I continued to work on that solo piece for several weeks, and ultimately performed it a competition were I received the highest possible score and qualified for the state level. All it took was a little ability, and a lot of practice. The same holds true for a pastor working on a sermon. By practicing the delivery and with a firm goal in mind, a pastor can build and develop the skills necessary to rock the house on Sunday.

I realize that this blog post is heavy on metaphor and light on specific advice on how to deliver a great sermon. Truth be told, I’ve never given a sermon in my life, so maybe I’m not the right person to speak on that topic. However, I’ve given many, many musical performances, and I do believe that the keys to a great performance are the same, whether you’re performing Tchaikovsky in a symphony hall, or delivering the word of the Lord to your congregation. Because in the end, I believe that the potential for greatness is inside everyone. How we choose to get there is up to us.

Photo By: Tarchyshnik Andrei / Shutterstock.com

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