Dear Pastor,
You’re awesome. I pray that you hear that a lot. Hopefully your congregation is your biggest group of cheerleaders who encourage and pray for you on a daily basis. I know that each week can contain ups and downs, and it’s easy for people to forget that. However, there’s something pressing that needs your attention and leadership.
It’s time you got serious about social media. I know you’ve heard your church members telling you to “get on Twitter” or ” like this Facebook page”, but it’s more than that. There is a whole conversation going on out there and your voice is needed. Now, you probably have a pretty good list of reasons for staying away from social media. You might think you don’t have the time or it’s too much self-promotion. Whatever your reasons are, I am sure that some of them are valid.
While I can’t answer all of your concerns, I can tell you three key reasons why you should be engaging in social media. Hopefully after reading this and little investigation of your own, you can join the social media conversation.
It’s No Longer About Teenagers and Young Adults
It’s easy to think that social media is just confined to teenagers and young adults. However, according to Nielsen the 55 and over audience is driving the growth of social media. Don’t believe me? Just take a glance at your Sunday morning audience, look at the growing number of adults using mobile devices for reading scripture. Do you know what all those mobile devices have built into them? Social media. People of all ages are now in the social media conversation.
Social Media Isn’t About Self-Promotion
If you are fearful that social media is really about self-promotion, there is lots of evidence out there to support your fears. There are plenty of people whose sole purpose for using social media is to make you focus on them. Of course, you could probably say that about a lot different communication efforts.
However, social media is not about you getting your name “out there”, it’s about engaging in a conversation. Social media is like a large event with numerous conversations going on. Somewhere, there is a conversation that needs you to speak truth into it. The church needs you to become part of the social media conversation.
Here is something to try. Go on to Twitter Search and search for your city’s name along with the word “prayer”. Now, you should see a stream of tweets from people talking about prayer who are located in your city. Think about this, what would happened if you reached out to those people? Can you imagine their surprise and the conversations that might take place?
Your Congregation Needs an Example
I know as a pastor you try to model a Christ-like life. Hopefully, your congregation can see this in the way you deal with your ministry, family, finances and your prayer life. So what does this have to do with social media? Social media needs pastors to model for their congregations how to communicate their faith. How do you communicate the Gospel online? How should the church approach difficult social issues with grace and truth? The church needs your example.
It’s time to step in and engage. Start small and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Find that person in your church who knows something about social media and let them help you get started. If you can’t find anyone, feel free to contact me, I’ll help in any way possible.
Your Biggest Fan,
Darrel Girardier