Macs in the Ministry

Selecting the Right Image

Wed, 3 Mar 2010 16:22:00 -0500

Building a blog like this one in iWeb is wonderfully simple, except for one thing: every blog post has a placeholder for a large image. That’s a lot of pressure to come up with an appropriate image for every post! Sure I could just delete the image and move everything up on the page, but that just feels like a creative cop-out. So each blog post I write brings with it the challenge to find an image that fits.
That’s very similar to the challenge you’ll face when developing a Keynote slide show to accompany your sermon, or when creating a document using one of Pages media-rich templates. In our multimedia, visual world, a picture really is worth a thousand words, but that brings with it the challenge to find an image that communicates the message you want to get across.
In Macs in Ministry, you’ll find advice on selecting the right image. There’s a whole section devoted to it in the chapter on “Presentation” (pages 41–43). In the chapter on “Making an iMovie,” I actually walk you through the creative process I went through in selecting the images for the promotional video you’ll create. For example, when I couldn’t find an appropriate image of David gazing down on Bathsheba, I found another way to capture the idea of voyeuristic lust.
Selecting the best image can be a creative challenge, but it’s tremendously satisfying when you find something that works. Macs in the Ministry will help you do just that.

What is Mission Mommy?

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:27:26 -0500

In yesterday’s post I mentioned something called “Mission Mommy.” What is Mission Mommy? It’s a fun tradition I started with my family years ago. Here’s an excerpt from Macs in the Ministry that explains how Mission Mommy got started:
Thankfully, I don’t have to travel on business very often, but a few times a year I need to leave my family to exhibit at shows that may last anywhere from three to seven days.
Those trips were hard on my wife, especially back in the days when we had three kids under four. So one year, before I left, I bought a bunch of manila envelopes and printed the words TOP SECRET on them in a Stencil font. Each envelope was also labeled with a different day of the upcoming week. Inside each envelope, I placed instructions for Mission Mommy. The idea was that each morning Lisa and the kids would open an envelope and receive a mission that they had to carry out. One mission might be to go to a movie together just to get Mommy and the kids out of the house. Others might be for the kids to give Mommy a backrub, or to clean their rooms without her help, or for the kids to handle the bulk of the bath and bedtime routine themselves. The morning I left for the airport, I left these envelopes on the dining room table and hoped for the best.
Boy, was Mission Mommy a hit! My wife felt taken care of because I had taken time to set this up before I left. The kids enjoyed the whole spy theme, and helping to take care of Mommy made them feel important. Having them open a different assignment each day gave them all something to look forward to and helped to break up the week for my wife. With a little creativity and about an hour or two of time to set the whole thing up, I had scored major points with my wife and unwittingly begun a family tradition. Yes, every trip since then has been accompanied by some form of Mission Mommy.
In the book, I describe how Mission Mommy became more elaborate over the years, thanks in large part to the fact that I had started to play with iLife. You’ll read about my attempt to create a Mission Mommy DVD and my last minute solution when I wasn’t able to get it burned in time. You’ll also read about Mission Mommy’s transition to iWeb, which I found to be much easier to implement.
If you’d like to see how I do Mission Mommy, you can visit the Mission Mommy page of my family website. You’ll get a little window into my family (like the fact that the boys have to be reminded to comb their hair!), but hopefully you’ll also get some ideas you can use with your own family.

Macs for Men?

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 19:53:19 -0500

In our family’s homeschool co-op, my wife helps in the nursery with a mother of seven who has co-authored a book of devotions for expectant moms. When my wife told her I had written a book on Macs in the Ministry, she expressed interest in seeing the book even though she doesn’t own a Mac.
After reading through portions of the book today, she expressed surprise at the variety of subjects that it covers. She had expected Macs in the Ministry to be a straight technology book, but after looking through it, she concluded that it should appeal to a far wider audience than just professional ministers who use Macs.
She was especially impressed with Chapter Six, which talks about how you can use your Mac to meet “Practical Needs.” A large portion of that chapter is devoted to “Family Ministry.” There I argue that ministers’ families are often a “forgotten people group” who become the last to receive the minister’s time and attention. I therefore offer several ideas for how you can use your Mac to build up this “most important part of your ministry team”: things like creating custom greeting cards, preserving family memories, and engaging in “Mission Mommy.” (I’ll explain what Mission Mommy is in a future post.)
In response to all this emphasis on family, my wife’s friend said that while she wouldn’t walk into a bookstore and purchase a book entitled Macs in the Ministry, she would certainly want her husband and other men to read a book like this. She then quipped that “Macs for Men” might have been a more appropriate title!
So can a technology book make you a better man and help you love your family better? I’d like to think so. I hope you’ll purchase Macs for Men—er, I mean, Macs in the Ministry—and see for yourself.
P.S.: My apologies to the cover designer whose excellent design I butchered to create the mock cover pictured above. Hopefully he or she has a sense of humor!

Choosing the Right Bible Software

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:06:38 -0500

I read an interesting blog post today about the challenges Zondervan faces in moving its users from its now discontinued proprietary Bible software for Windows to other Bible software platforms. On the Mac side, Zondervan made its materials available for the leading Mac Bible program ten years ago, but the only way Windows users could access Zondervan’s materials was to use the program Zondervan had developed. Since no books from other publishers could be used with Zondervan’s software, and since none of Zondervan’s books could be used with other Windows Bible software programs, Windows users found themselves having to use two or more different programs. Now they face the cost of upgrading to a new Bible software platform in order to keep using Zondervan’s materials.
It would seem that this is yet another example where Mac users have had it better all along.
That, of course, is the Mac-biased conclusion I draw from all this. John Fidel, the author of the aforementioned blog post, makes a more general point when he writes:
The buyers’ lesson here is two fold: First, invest in software companies that are strong contenders in the marketplace. Technology changes quickly, and information is made available in new formats very quickly. Companies need to adapt, adopt, advance or get left behind. Second, buy your software from a software company, not a publishing company.
So how do you decide which software companies are “strong contenders in the marketplace”? As someone who works in the Bible software industry, I hear rumors from time to time of companies that are struggling to survive, but of course their websites and advertisements make it appear as if they are doing just fine. On the other hand, I’ve heard salesmen for other software companies say the company I work for is struggling to survive, when in fact we’ve experienced growth every year for as long as I can remember. Clearly, you can’t figure out who the strong contenders are by reading marketing blurbs or listening to industry gossip.
In Macs in the Ministry, I offer advice on “Choosing Bible Study Software” (pages 20-22) which should give you a good sense of who the “strong contenders” really are. I don’t give specific software recommendations, but I do offer tips for getting past the marketing hype so you can make an informed choice. Choosing Bible study software is a little like choosing a computer platform. The wrong choice can prove costly in the long run, so it’s important to get it right the first time. While there are no guarantees in any industry, if you follow my advice, you’ll be more likely never to regret your Bible software purchase.

Promote Your Next Sermon Series

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 12:00:42 -0500

One of the projects in Macs in the Ministry shows you how to create your own iMovie. The video above is included on the accompanying DVD and shows you what the finished product should look like.
If you play the movie, you’ll see that it is a brief promotional video advertising an upcoming sermon series. This could be shown in a worship service to build excitement about the next teaching series, placed on your ministry website, or even burned to DVD and distributed to people in the community.
Note how the promotional video lays out the overarching questions which the teaching series will seek to answer. That way, it goes beyond merely advertising the series to actually laying out its central themes. Show this video a couple of weeks in advance of the start of the series, and your people will find it easier to remember what the series is all about.

David and Bathsheba

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:04:57 -0500

Part Two of Macs in the Ministry is the “Perspiration” section, containing a series of sample projects with step-by-step instructions. You’ll learn how to study a passage using Mac Bible software, create a sermon outline, build a Keynote presentation, develop a daily curriculum, and much more. The accompanying DVD contains everything you need to complete those projects.
Rather than developing a series of disconnected projects, I decided it would be much more interesting to have each of these projects build on one another. I wanted the passage studied to lead to the sermon outline, which would in turn lead to the Keynote presentation, curriculum, website, podcast, etc. That way, you’ll get the added benefit of seeing how a single lesson idea can be reinforced through a wide variety of Mac-created media.
The next thing I had to decide was which passage to build all these projects around. I ended up settling on the story of David and Bathsheba for several reasons. First, it requires some research into the story’s historical and geographical setting, which meant I could expose you to things like maps, timelines, and other cool study tools. It also features high drama and so lends itself to a media-rich presentation—a must if it was going to serve as the basis for all those multimedia projects. Finally, it speaks to a range of issues and can be used in a variety of applications. In other words, it’s a passage that preaches really well.
By the time you finish reading Macs in the Ministry, you should have a really strong grasp of how to study a passage, build a series of lessons around it, and reinforce your message through multiple forms of media. You’ll also know a lot more about David and Bathsheba.

Mac Ministers

Tue, 16 Feb 2010 20:11:14 -0500

In a previous post I indicated that I don’t consider myself an expert either in Macs or in ministry, and that I had to learn as much in writing the book as I hope you’ll learn reading it. One way I got around my lack of expertise was to enlist the help of other “Mac ministers”—people who are already using Macs to enhance their own ministries. Macs in the Ministry is peppered with their experience, wisdom, and practical advice. You’ll be able to follow the example of small church and megachurch pastors, youth ministers, church planters, Sunday school teachers, and people in a variety of support roles. You’ll hear their stories, and read valuable advice in their own words.
I’m very grateful to all of the “Mac ministers” who lent their expertise to Macs in the Ministry. I know you will be too.

My Mama Liked It

Mon, 15 Feb 2010 11:25:37 -0500

I got my first critical review of Macs in the Ministry last week: from my Mom. I brought my parents their complimentary signed copy of the book on Thursday evening, and my mom called Friday afternoon to tell me she had read the entire book and was ready to “get a Mac and do great and glorious things with it.”
My dad is the Mac user in the family, but my mom is the avid reader. As a gifted teacher in a school system that favors PCs, she uses a Dell laptop, so she’s not exactly the book’s target audience. If I hadn’t written it, I doubt she would have gone out and bought a book on Macs in the Ministry. Still, she managed to get inspired by all the cool ideas for creating presentations, websites, and podcasts, and she said that the book was an easy read. I figure that’s high praise for a technology book—even if it is coming from my mom!

Last Minute Valentine Cards

Sat, 13 Feb 2010 11:46:41 -0500

Macs in the Ministry is not just about using Keynote in your sermons or iWeb to create a website. How about some practical advice to help save your bacon this Valentine’s Day? The following excerpt is from Chapter 6, in which I discuss various ways to minister to your own family:
Last-Minute Greeting Cards
I don’t believe I’ve ever forgotten a birthday or anniversary, but I’m afraid I often forget to go out and buy a greeting card a day or two in advance. If you’re like me, you can use iPhoto to turn your weakness into a strength.
When it’s getting late on the night before some important event and I realize I forgot to buy a card, I fire up iPhoto and create a photo card. If you can drag a photo onto a template and express your feelings in a sentence or two, you can do it too.
Here are a few of the cards I’ve done. Feel free to take and use any of these ideas:
Photo: Wedding photo of my wife and I lighting a Unity candle
Outside greeting: After fifteen years…
Inside greeting: Our flame is burning brighter than ever! (See Fig. 6.06)
Photo: Wedding photo of my wife and I kissing
Outside greeting: Some kisses linger on your lips…
Inside greeting: While others remain forever in your heart.
Photo: Photo of myself dressed up in a knight costume
Outside greeting: I may not be your knight in armor
Inside greeting: But you will always be the ruler of my heart
[More examples can be found in the book]
As you can see, these are relatively simple greetings designed to go with the accompanying photo. You don’t have to be a poet to do this, just take an idea and build a card around it.
For example, this past Valentine’s Day came just two weeks after my wife gave birth to our fifth child. Wanting to pamper her, I got her a gift certificate for a pedicure at a local spa. That much I did ahead of time, but once again, I forgot to get a card! So I tried to come up with a card that had something to do with feet. I came up with the phrase, “You gave feet to my dreams,” which I thought had a nice ring to it. Then I needed a photo to go along with it. So I hit on the idea of trying to line all the kids up and just get a picture of their feet (see above). It took some doing with a squirming baby, but the final result was very special to my wife.
When I make a greeting card, I usually limit the greeting to a simple sentence or two. Then I’ll write a longer message by hand on the printed card, just like I would with a store-bought card. Basically, I’ll just expand on the meaning of the printed greeting. That way, the whole card still has a unified message, but the hand-written sentiments feel more personal than they would if they were printed.
If you were to create your cards far enough in advance, you could order professionally printed cards from Apple, but last-minute types like me will need to print the cards themselves. Be sure to use photo paper that can be printed on both sides of the page and that is sturdy enough to have a card-like feel. When you print the card, you’ll need to print page 1, turn the paper over in the printer, and then print page 2. Once the printing is done and the ink is dry, simply trim the edges of the card and fold it in half. A good paper cutter is obviously a must here.
Take it from a man who has been there: iPhoto’s card-making feature is special-occasion insurance for those with a tendency to procrastinate. Use it well and you’ll stay out of the doghouse with your family.

Mac Literacy

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 17:47:05 -0500

Throughout Macs in the Ministry, you’ll find brief lessons in Mac Literacy. These lessons will expose you to interesting Mac facts and trivia, history lessons about Apple and the Mac, and things you need to know to avoid looking like a Mac newbie. Look for these valuable lessons:
• Good Enough or Insanely Great?, page x
• It’s a Mac, not a MAC, page xvi
• Why “Lorem Ipsum”?, page 4
• Why Is It Called Keynote?, page 38
• Why One Mouse Button?, page 46
• Motivating the Macintosh Team, page 84
• Who is Ken Burns?, page 133
• “For the Rest of Us”, page 156
• Apple Plays Catch-Up with Podcasting, page 182
• What is RSS?, page 209
• It’s iWork, not iWorks, page 213
Complete these lessons, and you’ll have earned your degree in Mac literacy.