xxxchurch- My Inspiration

I have been struggling to be a strong, outspoken Christian for years now. I have felt like I should keep my mouth shut and just go with the flow. Don't rock the boat or upset people. Where am I afraid to speak freely? It is not at work or on the secular campus, it's when I am in Church or around other Christians.

Usually I just feel guilty for having these feelings. Why can't I just go to church on Sunday, pass the plate, sing 4 songs, listen to a Bible story and go home content? Why is it that I want more? Why do I crave a challenge and inspiration? Why do I seek to push the boundaries and ask questions that people don't seem to want to hear?

I have taken this all very personally, but that is changing. I am starting to come across other like minded Christian folks that feel we are missing something. God is doing something bigger than me or you.

The culture of most churches is not effective at reaching the culture of the communities within which they live. The world has changed and how we communicate with the world needs to change along with it. Case in point, the boys at xxxchurch are taking a bold and unique approach to battling the porn that has infested our culture by reaching out not only to those consuming it, but to those creating it. I posted about these guys on the Marketing the Church Blog the other day. I kept thinking about these guys and another buzzword sweeping the blogosphere: Web 2.0.

The web has changed since the pre-bubble days. No longer are webmasters crafting a one way message to visitors. Blogs have opened up what Scoble calls Naked Conversations. Unedited, democratized discussions that are not under anyone's control. These conversations are changing the way communication is happening. The world is becoming Napterized. Information is being unbundled and distributed in microchunks. The mass market is being given a voice, and they are deciding who is worth listening to. This is the next generation of the web.

Putting these two concepts together: bold Christians presenting timeless truths to a modern culture in a relevant way, and a shift in the paradigm about how, when and who gets to speak in the conversation and you get Christianity 2.0. I have invited some of my Christian friends that seem to be living on the edge and putting their lives at risk for God to be a part of this blog community. I invite you to join us in this discussion about how Christians can be relevant in our modern culture while remaining true to orthodox Christian truths.

I look forward to the intercourse...