The Christian Broadcasting Network

Tough bikers, Facebook achievements, old-time revival preachers and more ...

I just got back from a screening of the new Disney/Pixar movie WALL*E in L.A., so posts were a little sparse last week. I'll post a review of the film on Friday along with some commentary from interviews we got to conduct with of the film's stars, so keep an eye out for those later in the week. More good news is that I got to sit behind Bob Saget on the plane ride back, and I can say that after a short chat exiting the airplane, that Danny Tanner is really nice in real life too.

1) Facebook Tops MySpace
I wrote a story last week about the rise of Web 2.0 technology and the implications it has on faith (you can go here to read “The Tipping Point of Faith 2.0”), and now new numbers show that in May, Facebook has took a significant lead over MySpace in the number of unique visitors going to the site. This is significant not only because of the sheer volume of people going to the social networking destinations (almost 240 million in May alone), but because Facebook is lending credibility to social networking. Online sites like Facebook are no longer just places for teens and music fans to hang out and exchange information; Facebook has created a place where college students, working professionals and friends of all ages can communicate and network.

2.) Tougher than Hell!
Here’s a story about Guts Church in Tulsa, OK, and their recent “Tougher than Hell” biker rally. I occasionally went to events at Guts when I lived in Tulsa a few years ago, and they’ve always come up with creative ways to reach the community. You can go here to see a few YouTube clips from the event. Along with having a good time and reaching out to bikers from the Tulsa area, the event raised more than $300,000 for the church’s missions program that provides children with clean water and food.

3. Thinking Big
Here’s a cool video interview from Big Think with Blake Mycoskie. Blake is the founder of TOMS Shoes, a company that makes unique looking-shoes with a social element to their business model. For every pair of shoes they sell, they give a pair to child in need in poor areas of countries in Africa. Though the company is for-profit, it’s sales model is breaking ground in conscious consumerism.

4. Outreach Behind Bars
The Denver Post has written a really inspiring story about a local prison ministry that is changing lives through faith. The article even features interviews with intimates who have had their lives changed through the outreach. In some cases, the prison officials have even reported mini-revivals within the prison stemming from inmates who have had their lives changed by God.

5. "A Rollin' Gospel Revival"
Tony Jones, Mark Scandrette and Doug Pagitt—leaders in the somewhat controversial emerging church movement (you can go here to read my article, “The Emerging Church Explained”) are embarking on a summer tour to market their new books and generate interest in their organization, Emergent Village. The three will be posing as turn-of-the-century revival preachers in what their describing as “The Church Basement Roadshow”. Though the group’s self-described “irreverent” antics are causing a lot of buzz, Tony Jones says that so far, the reaction has been overwhelmingly positive. 

Print      Email to a Friend    posted on Monday, June 23, 2008 10:58 AM