Covey's "Speed of Trust", the Kindle, Facebook, and the GNW

I bought my first Kindle book today.

During the plane change in Denver today I got a Facebook message inviting me and some of the staff leaders in our region to join a Facebook discussion thread in our Greater Northwest staff Fb group. We would be sharing thoughts and ideas around the idea of building trust with others, with the book "Speed of Trust" by Covey as the framework.

Not having the book and wanting to jump in sooner rather than later, I sprung for the Kindle version (using the iPhone app, not the Kindle hardware). Unfortunately, it didn't download before the friendly Southwest flight attendants asked us to turn off our portable devices. But, it quickly showed up once my phone was on in Orlando. I'm curious to see what the experience is like to read a whole book on my phone. The kindle price of $12.99 is higher than the paperback cost, so there is certainly a premium on convenience.

I'm also curious to see what it is like to have a virtual book discussion with staff from our region. Will people engage? How frequently? Will they have to be prompted to share? Will sharing about building trust...build trust? Is there a better way to do this than via a Facebook discussion thread?

Digital media and the end of college

A lot of thoughts and inputs converging lately. Here are some of the inputs:

1. Via email - I received an email last week making it clear our national leadership within the USCM understand the future of campus ministry will prominently feature digital media as a tool and platform towards evangelism and discipleship.
2. Via podcast - I listen to a podcast pretty regularly called "This week in Google", which sounds both narrow and nerdy. However, the conversations covered by the three hosts (and one weekly guest) range from the practical (tips on using Google Voice, for example) to the theoretical and futuristic. It is the latter which fascinates me and keeps me listening. I posted about one such topic (how technology allows us to learn from anyone in the world at almost any time) and it's ministry implications on my test blog a few months ago.
3. Via RSS Reader - Seth Godin posted recently about "The coming melt-down in higher education". This flows right out of #2 above. What if the college campus as we know it radically changes...or becomes obsolete?
4. Via News - The level of debt around the world is threatening to radically change financial priorities and realities for the indefinite future, from government all the way down to the individual.

And now for the thoughts:

First, the internet disrupts everything it touches. It has changed the music industry, the porn industry, the movie industry, the retail industry, the news industry, the telecommunication industry, and the travel industry... to name a few. How long until the internet disrupts the college "industry"?

Second, bubbles eventually burst. There is a lot that could be said about the reasons behind the ever-upward ratcheting of college tuition, but it is looking increasingly like there is a college "bubble". There have been tulip bubbles, stock market bubbles, a dot.com bubble, and most recently a housing bubble.  Costs can only get so high, and people leveraged so far with debt, before things collapse.  And after the collapse and disruption, things may look very different.

What if the internet is the thing that makes the college bubble finally burst? And what will "college ministry" look like in this new world? Is this new reality coming? How long until it gets here? What can we do to prepare?

Ah, if only we knew the future...

Evangelism - Using the internet at Winter Conference?

I had the chance a few months ago to do some brainstorming with our NW Winter Conference design team about this year's conference (an annual event at the end of December for students, faculty, volunteers, and staff from around our seven state region - here is the facebook fan page for the last one). One of the aspects of the conference we discussed was evangelism. Like other Campus Crusade conferences around the country, we usually spend part of the conference doing outreach in the city. What if, as an aspect of this time, we did something like...

- ...have students initiate a spiritual conversation with a non-Christian friend they've been wanting to talk to from their campus or back home...while at the conference via Facebook?
- ...have students go out in the city and initiate conversations. When they've had a conversation with someone, ask if they (the student) could blog about the conversation they've just had and invite their new friend to check it out and comment. They'd need to have a blog and a leaving piece with the address. Wouldn't you want to know how someone would debrief a conversation they've had with you?
- ......same thing, but find out their name and ask if they could be their friend on Facebook/other. After connecting online, ask a follow up question from the in-person conversation.

There are lots of great resources to anchor/augment the above ideas (Boxes of Love, Soularium, Short Film Outreach, EveryStudent.com, etc.). The thing about the list above is that they all place the event within the context of a larger story and relationship. And while they use the internet, they all involve being face-to-face at some point. Could that translate in to greater things, both at and after the conference?

Any other ideas that could help our students experience the mission, harness the power of the internet...and move people toward the Savior?