I’m always excited to get a new edition of COLLIDE Magazine. I also like to watch them experiment and try new things like the COLLIDE Show.  Just days ago, COLLIDE spotlighted a ministry I love, New Hope Christian Fellowship in Hawaii.   I was happy to see New Hope spotlighted because it has a special place in my heart for three reasons:

1) We love attending there whenever we are vacationing (I even blog it)

2) New Hope is affiliated with the Foursquare Denomination of which I am also a part and

3) They have just been through a demanding season while Pastor Wayne Cordeiro recovered from his recent open heart surgery.

You can read the spotlight on New Hope’s media here.

I’ve just received an email from COLLIDE and their year-end “best of 2008″ nominations are in.   All your favorites are on the list including….. Church Marketing Sucks, Church Video Ideas, Swerve and yes, yours truly, The Digital Sanctuary.

Vote for the best media/culture book, best media producer, best blogging platform, best sermon podcast, etc.

Here’s the link to vote for 2008’s Reader’s Choice awards.

Just a reminder that there are three more Church 2.0 Local Forums happening across the United States this fall in October and November.  Check out the details below.

In each city, we have discovered that far more people attend than register (so it’s not mandatory), but you can register if you wish through some of the available links.

Church 2.0 Local Forums happening over the next two months include:

Boston, MA  (10/17), Grace Chapel

• Register for Boston on Facebook HERE.
• Not on Facebook?  Register HERE.
• Sponsors for Boston are: LifeWay Threads, National Cine Media, SermonSpice, CircleBuilder, Planning Center Online, EasyWorship, 360Hubs, ReelWorship, FreeFoto.com, COLLIDE Magazine and Unifyer.

Tulsa. OK  (10/24), The Church at BattleCreek

• Register for Tulsa on Facebook HERE.
• Not on Facebook?  Register HERE.
• Sponsors for Tulsa are: Fellowship Technologies,  EasyWorship, CircleBuilder, National Cine Media, Planning Center Online, Unifyer and SermonSpice.

Portland, OR  (11/7), Portland Foursquare Church

• Register for Portland on Facebook HERE.
• Not on Facebook?  Register HERE.
• Sponsors for Portland are: Planning Center Online, National Cine Media, SermonSpice, CircleBuilder, 360Hubs, LifeWay Threads, Unifyer and EasyWorship.

For more details on the Church 2.0 Local Forums you can check out the website or Greg Atkinson’s Church Video Ideas.

Greg has been busy during the past year or so in hosting Local Forums all over the United States.  There are more Local Forums in 2009 and there are plans for the same process on an international level for a Global Church 2.0 edition.

At these meetups, Greg’s connected church leaders with one another and uncovered stories of creativity and innovation among innovative Christians.  From social ministries to internet technologies, the Church is innovating and many of these stories will be captured in the forthcoming book designed to spotlight ministry innovations and creative endeavor within the Church at large.

Church 2.0 Local Forums are where church pastors, staff and layleaders gather together to meet, network, discuss innovation, leadership, technology and share stories of what God is doing in ministries across the U.S.  The meetups are interdenominational, inspiring and informative.

I realize this is an entirely personal opinion, but if you had to reference the single most innovative ministy event, endeavor, or process that you’ve heard of in recent months, what would you say?

One of the reasons I agreed to speak in Dallas at the Dynamic Church Conference was so I could catch up with my friends who live there.  I love Dallas and so I planned to get a lot out of my trip.  I ran out of time to see everyone I had hoped to see but I did not miss church.   

I was a bit torn as to where to attend services because I have friends at Irving Bible Church, Fellowship Church, Watermark Community, Stonebriar Community, Bent Tree and a couple of others.  My friends who serve at Bent Tree Bible Fellowship won out and I ended up there on Sunday morning.

After my hosts finished their service roles, we got to enjoy the worship & teaching in the main service.  Following the service, another friend known to many of you, Technical Arts Director Greg Atkinson, (Church Video Ideas) led me up onto the platform for the pastoral team debrief following the service. 

I found myself with the key service leaders and Pete Briscoe, the Senior Pastor at Bent Tree.  And yes, son of Stuart & Jill Briscoe. They reviewed what worked and what needed tweaking for the next service since there are often improvements needed.  I loved seeing how careful they were about providing the best experience possible for those in attendance – even if it meant they had to alter their original service plan.

This fall, Bent Tree will move into their new expansion facilities and it will all be paid for – all $30 million dollars of it!  Serious vision requires some serious tech support and since I got such an extensive tour of the facilities from Greg, I thought it wouldn't be right not to let you peek into some of the behind the scenes set-up at Bent Tree.  
(Photos from iPhone)

What we see….. 

What they see…. 

The upcoming Biola Media Conference (May 3) provides a great opportunity for all Southern California tech / media / ministry professionals to converge, converse and collaborate in our own backyard.  In fact, a conference is a perfect excuse for a get together.

To capitalize on our opportunity, Greg Atkinson of Church Video Ideas has organized an informal and FREE pre-gathering.  Called the Church 2.0 Local Forum, it's open to those as far south as San Diego.  Billed as an event for church leaders in the Southern California area involved in ministry who would like to meet, network and share with others in ministry, that means you.

Join us Friday, May 2nd from 11:30am to 3:30pm in Grant Hall at Hollywood UMC.  You must sign up so the sponsors know how much lunch to provide.  To RSVP go HERE.

And by the way, the sponsors are: eight20eight, iStockphoto, RevoStock and SermonSpice.  I'm looking forward to talking to the iStockphoto people about all the video they now offer.

Following the LA Forum there will be another in Chicago and then others throughout the year in other locations.

You've likely already heard about this event on Facebook, twitter or elsewhere in the blogosphere.  Don't miss this chance to connect with other leaders who have a passion for ministry in the digital age.

There are a couple of new podcasts up at Churchy Media.  Check out their archives here.

Episode #17 with Greg Atkinson of Church Video Ideas (& also the technical arts director at Bent Tree Bible Fellowhship) and episode #18 focusing on College Ministries are the two most recent.