New Ministry Tools -- the Internet and Email

Written by Becky Biser

When I started my job at Tarrant Baptist Association in 1982, we were using the telephone or “snail” mail to correspond with our churches. These two media were our only choices for communication other than face-to-face meetings.

Internet — A Ministry Tool

As time passed and technology changed, we began using the Internet and email in our ministry. For a time we used an outside company to design and maintain our website. While this was nice and easy for our staff, it wasn’t dynamic or current enough for our churches. Therefore, we decided to maintain the website in-house. Some qualities we wanted for our website were:

• A helpful resource for our churches;
• Regularly updated; and
• Easy to use and understand.

  Included on our site are:

• General information about our association;
• A hyperlink to our encampment’s website;
• A directory of churches, including their email and website addresses;
• Resources on numerous subjects;
• Information on upcoming events;
• Information on and email addresses for our association staff;
• A list of pastorless churches;
• Online e-mail forums; and
• Access to our newsletter.

  A person can go to our site (www.tarrantbaptist.org) and find:

• Information or a contact person who can answer their questions, such as; “how do I plan a children’s camp” or “do you know who could speak at our marriage retreat?”
• Times and details on upcoming events; and
• The current Tarrant Baptist Challenge (newsletter) even before it has been mailed.

The resource section of our website includes our A.C.Team (Association Consulting Team). This team has been expanded to include not only Sunday School consultants, but those for other areas of ministry. Along with a list of resource people, we include links to other websites, and books and videos addressing different subjects.

Our site also lists upcoming training opportunities. No longer does a person have to call our office and ask several questions to reach the correct person to find out about an event. They can, at their convenience, go to our website and access event information with all the pertinent details.

Email — A Ministry Tool

Email has been a tremendous ministry tool. I thought the fax machine was the greatest invention, but e-mail is even better. Now, I send notes and documents directly from my computer. More and more churches are also using email. I receive information and pictures by email from churches in Tarrant Association.

For example, instead of making time-consuming calls to 10 people to give them the same information, we use email groups and send one message that goes to all ten. Not only does this save us time, we can receive replies back almost instantly. For instance, if we learn of a someone who is suddenly ill and needs prayer. We send one e-mail message and a whole group of people can begin praying.

We’ve also begun using email forums. A forum allows groups of people to communicate via email. By sending email to a special forum address, the message is automatically sent to all the people who have subscribed to that forum. People can go to our Web site and sign up for the forum of their choice.

Once a person has signed up, he or she can add the e-mail address to his or her e-mail address book and automatically send messages to everyone on the list. When their message is answered, they all receive the reply. For instance, recently our office received a call from a youth minister asking if there was a basketball league for church youth groups. We emailed a message on the Youth Ministry Forum asking youth ministers if their church had a league, or if they were interested in being a part of one. The forum began to hop. Messages were being sent by numerous youth ministers either interested in being a part or letting others know of their leagues.

We are still learning how to use both of these ministry tools to their greatest potential. If you have not begun to explore email and the Internet, I encourage you to jump right in! As we say here at Tarrant Baptist Association: Check it Out!

Becky L. Biser is Ministry Assistant for Church Leadership and Development at the Tarrant Baptist Association in Fort Worth, Texas.

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