Articles

One of the lessons we learned from recent disasters is how important it is to have a copy of your church database and accounting system backed up to an off-site location.

It’s not a matter of if a computer will crash, but when.  Thus it’s important to protect computer systems from problems that will arise.

Some church offices are more often a collective progression of necessary solutions than a well-executed plan.  Additional work areas are often carved out of classrooms, basements, and closets as ministries grow, but an efficient office suite is rarely the result.  Churches that analyze and strategize their office needs can come up with some surprising solutions.

In a unique way, we in ministry are stewards of the resources of God’s kingdom.  This demands our best efforts at making every dollar count.  One way church leaders can spend ministry dollars with confidence— especially in the area of computers and technology— is by adopting a carefully formulated purchasing strategy.

A pastor's time is one of his or her most valuable resources.  Because it is finite (even pastors only get twenty-four hours in their day), it is important to choose a communication strategy that helps balance the demands of email, instant messages, and text messages with the demands of personal time with God, family, staff, and message preparation.

Those of us who use technology a lot have a collection of little tools and utilities that we've come to rely on that help us get a lot done.  Those of our friends and colleagues who use technology very little are often amazed at what we can do!  Though many of these are simple, here are a few of my favorite tools that help me accomplish a lot and "Wow!" the masses.