Rebecca Ligtenberg

This is a GREAT idea! Glad to see the Network expanding in this way.

I was glad to find this post today in my search for some updated materials on Safe Church. The second bullet points mentions a "Safe Church Training Notebook" and I was able to find the place that has links to the power point presentations (here: http://www.crcna.org/SafeChurch/what-safe-church-ministry-team), and I also see there are lots of resources like previous bulletin inserts, worship resources, etc., but I'm just sort of wondering where to start with all of this as far as what we should have in our Safe Church Notebook?

Also, a second question, I see that there is a specific topic for this year's Abuse Awareness Sunday in September, but I think we might be in a place where we need to talk about this more generally this year, and was wondering what of the resources you might recommend to meet that need?

Thanks for the tips! Very helpful to get your ideas on how this will practically affect our Facebook presence.

I handle social media for both my ministry work and my other for-profit work. While I understand the need for Facebook to monetize, and don't mind it as much for the for-profit world, it's been frustrating to see that non-profits are treated the same as for-profit businesses when it comes to reduced visibility, even among people who have already opted in as fans by liking our page. 

I found that I very much resonated with this comment: "It is to read a book for inspiration, not information." I have only VERY recently begun reading more non-fiction, Christian non-fiction that is, and have found myself inspired by the stories and words of others that so beautifully tell of God's faithfulness. I would add that it was not that long ago, in a season of feeling far from God, that I realized that contemporary voices of faith were drawing me back to God in unique ways I could not have anticipated. I've come to the conclusion that many writers, because of how their own stories weave into what they share, end up seeming to me as a kind of testimony, not unlike when someone I know personally shares a story of God in their life.  Great topic and not just for pastors (which I am not.)

I'll play along. :) Admittedly, I have not been the best at actively posting to our page, but I did put up a new cover photo earlier this summer that I rather like. Feedback welcomed! https://www.facebook.com/CrossroadsCRC

Great suggestions and ideas. I rather like the cover photos that are a collage of images, a great way to show various facets of worship and church life.

I just wanted to add some additional tips about open -ended questions that were shared with me by a communications pro. The best open-ended questions start with the key question words: Who, What, When, Where, Why & How; and cannot be answered with a yes or no. (My favorites start with "Why" or "How.")

Great tips here!

Thanks for sharing your comments. I attended just for the day Tuesday, and it was a wonderful experience. Taking a few minutes to read your story reminds me that today I should spend a few minutes remembering what I learned and thinking about how to make space for it to change my life.

Hi, Tim!

I was just curious if the numbers of downloads or views of the recorded/archived webinars are considered when you determine if a topic has been successful? I only ask because although there have been some topics of interest, I haven't been able to attend any of the webinars live due to my work schedule (I work half time at two jobs and I'm always at my non-church job on Wednesday mornings.)

For example, in looking at the scheduled webinars, I was noticing that there are dates for trainings for Elders and for Deacons. Many in those roles probably serve in addition to their "regular" full time jobs, but may be able to view such an event in the evening, either individually or as used by a church in a scheduled meeting.

Thanks for the reply! I think this is a really great initiative, I'm so glad to see there are more webinars on the schedule!

This is GREAT news! We have Google Apps at the free level for our church, and it's GREAT! Here's some of the ways we use it (just adding some examples to ways already mentioned!)

- Shared calendars. Our entire calendar is embedded on the church website, but individual ministry leaders have access to their calendar to update events for their ministry. The great thing is that once updated, the changes are immediately visible online, there is no additional step at the church office to keep the website up-to-date.

- Google Docs. This is excellent for sharing documents when more than one person needs to have access or update something, and everyone sees the changes immediately. For example, our Worship Director maintains a monthly schedule that includes everything from each week's song choices to who is serving that week. Our Secretary may access it anytime to update it with the Pastor's scripture and sermon titles, and viewing the information for creating the bulletins. You can set the sharing settings for any single document or group of documents so you know who has access.

- Email addresses with our domain name. All staff have an email address with @crossroadscrc.com. We use the same naming convention for all addresses, so that everyone knows they can reach someone using the formula firstname.lastname @ _________.com.

I work in ministry part-time and in my other part-time job, I use google docs at a for-profit company, so I'm using it literally every day somewhere. Highly recommended. :)