I continue to have a lot of conversations with friends and colleagues about the value and use of technology for ministry. That conversation inevitably touches on Twitter and its uses, whether personal or in ministry contexts. Some friends think it is a total waste of time (David Letterman?). Others think it’s fun to follow interesting celebrities, like Shaq (is it for real?) or Britney Spears (read about the top 10 celebrity twitter feeds here). Some see it as a useful way to promulgate their views or product (try here). Still others have seen it as a useful place to interact with others’ lives or encourage their local church congregations.
Here is another voice in the conversation from Collide Magazine: Tone Hoeft writing “Why Christians Should Use Twitter.” While not an earth-shattering article, for me it simply continues the conversation on social media and the changing technological context in which we do ministry.
Read it and let me know your thoughts.
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Matthew Erickson 
twitter is a waste of time.. at least for me..
Could you offer me a bit more…why is it a waste of time for you?
I use twitter. A lot. All the time. And it’s great. I have conversations, learn new things, keep in touch with people, hear about things friends and acquaintances are doing, learn prayer requests, keep up on news, etc. It’s easy, it’s free, and it provides a way to communicate that is really unmatched by anything else.
But it’s not for everyone. Nor will it ever be. It’s a great technology, and it’s become quite popular (like Myspace and Facebook and all those other things), but it’s still just a communication tool. It is not a saviour of people or a divine link to relationships.
I get a little weirded out by people who deem it necessary to fully invest in things like Twitter because they seem to forget about the lack of permanence most tech/internet things have. I’m not saying Twitter is going to disappear next year, but we have to realize that its demographic is not everyone in the US. It’s limited, and thus its usage should be limited.
In the linked article, Tone makes some good points, such as “By allowing others to see your life as you truly live it, we become a true living witness to Christ.” I’ve seen this be true every day, not only with my close friends on twitter, but also with people I’ve never met. The transparency we offer to strangers is often repaid with glorious results.
But over time the buzz will die down, the userbase will drop (as it is quite bloated right now), and some new networking wonder-site will arrive and people will flock to that. As Tone says, it would be silly for churches to not use popular methods of communication to reach and/or keep in contact with their congregations, but at times like this they also need to remember to focus on the time-tested methods. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? Actually talking to people. Face to face. As a large church body, in small groups, one on one, over dinners or breakfasts, on retreats or walks in the park, over coffee or tea or dessert.
I’ve seen too many church leaders shift their focus to the latest, greatest, generationally focused means of reaching people, only to get distracted and stretched out by trying to manage all the directions they and their ministry end up getting pulled in. “If I can just use this new website I’ll finally be able to connect to [insert age group or demographic here].” Falling victim to tool-worship is extremely dangerous, whether it be a website, a book, worship music, or whatever else shows up in this crazy world we live in.
So, should Christians use Twitter? If they want. Should churches? Sure, it’s a convenient way to communicate with those in your congregation who are hip to such things. But if your ministry is going to suffer because Twitter is down for maintenance, or if your guitar strings break, or if your video camera battery dies, then you need to rethink your approach. The early church leaders were spreading the gospel as long as they had a voice, even in jail. Today should be no different. We’ve been given the Bible, entrusted with it, and I believe it’s cultural influence and insight expands beyond any century or time period it might get pigeon-holed into.
Sam, thank you for this excellent and thoughtful response. I agree with you about the fact that church leaders – or any leaders for that matter – can easily be duped into what you termed “tool-worship.” In my experience as a church leader, I’ve seen that this is usually paired with a traveling salesmen under the cover ‘church-ianity’ who wants you to buy something so that you can be ‘effective’.
Thank you for bringing this back to the gospel and the early church’s readiness to speak the message – even in the face of great suffering. We should, as Paul said, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Cor 9:22). Twitter is a useful tool – even an enlightening tool but, in the end, it is just that.
It is a means toward something else, whether authentic and deeper connection with others, information, education, or a means of sharing the most important message.
I do not Twitter, and do not plan on starting. The reason I do not is because I do not personally have a clear and defined goal for why I would start or what I would hope to accomplish in doing so.
I see the usefulness and the thoughtfulness in how this communication avenue could be used in effective ways if someone wishes to do so. I however know currently that my time and energies are needed elsewhere in life, and not into these additional exploratory means of communication. My life goals right now do not call me to take on an additional piece, and therefore this is why I do not.
An interesting aside: Perhaps Twitter facilitates self-promotion, and superficial buzz as to one’s life? Maybe it feeds the ego and the inflated sense of one’s self? Is this part of why people are attracted to it? Hey, look at me! [maybe I’m just rough and unfair in positing such thoughts]
A general thought on a media and technology culture. I simply am trying to be more picky and thoughtful for what I give myself to. If they don’t fit a grander vision, then I’m trying to make a better effort to cut out the fat and fluff.
~Nick, author of priorityjesus.org
Nick, I think you make a lot of great points in your email. Clearly, a lot of users of social media – whether Twitter or Facebook or blogging or vlogging – are shameless self-promoters (or self-ignorant ego seekers).
I also agree with you that we have to be very intentional with what we choose to do or not do based on our time, energy, or life-situation.
Part of my goal is to experiment with new technologies or approaches to ministry in order to explore their usefulness for myself and, hopefully, for others.