A lot of churches have started to use multimedia technology in their services. But what often gets lost in the rush to have "the next great thing" is the question "why?" What will necessarily be gained and lost by incorporating multimedia into our services?

1. We want to keep our young people interested in worship. In our survey, three-quarters of churches said they began using visual media technologies ...

Did you know Thanksgiving is a year-round holiday? That's right; we're called to continually give thanks. We have so much to be thankful for—life, health, family, and, of course, salvation offered through Jesus Christ. The list goes on and on. With all of these great things, why don't we say thank you more often—to God, and to others in our lives?

Besides giving thanks to God for his many ...

Editor's note: In the following excerpt from his book, The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture: How Media Shapes Faith, the Gospel, and Church, author and pastor Shane Hipps offers a prophetic call to the church. He wants followers of Christ to be aware of the ways our messages are impacted by the ways in which we communicate. Whether you agree or disagree with his assertions, we think these are important ...

We recently had the chance to chat with Shane Hipps, author of The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture (and a FaithVisuals.com consulting editor). We talked about the importance of understanding how electronic media works, Marshall McLuhan's four laws of media, and how the power of visual media can also be used to manipulate. And that's just in this first half! We hope you find Hipps's insights as ...

Church use of digital media—technology such as projection systems and computers—has become a major aspect of church worship in the last decade. Churches all over the world—from nondenominational "community" churches to mainline churches—are using digital media in worship on a weekly basis and it is having a profound effect on their ministries. Some churches claim digital media ...

Editor's Note: This article is Part 4 of 6 in a series of articles, Using Video in Different Elements of Your Worship Service.

He didn't want to admit it, but Pastor Harding was insulted. Betty's words, though soft spoken, had left a sting. "Pastor," she had said, "you know we love you and want the best for the church. We know that you try really hard. But we get a little tired of hearing the same ...

We recently had the chance to chat with Shane Hipps, author of The Hidden Power of Electronic Culture (and a FaithVisuals.com consulting editor). In the first half of our discussion, we talked about the importance of discovering the ways electronic media affect our messages, and how electronic media could be misused. In this final section, we talk about what kinds of messages are well-served by electronic ...

When we talk about using media (new, old, visual, or otherwise), it's important to first understand what media are and why media exist. So, what are media? Webster defines "medium" as "a means of effecting or conveying something." For our purposes, a medium is something that allows a message to be communicated, where previously it had been impossible.

In this sense, the answer to "why do media exist" ...