It’s highly likely that as a youth worker, you’re multitasking at your church. And it’s also likely that you play some role (if not THE role) with technology in your church. Yesterday I came across an incredible article from Collide Magazine that I couldn’t help but share with my readers. Collide sits down with Erwin McManus, pastor of Mosaic in Los Angeles, and talks about technology in the church. Mosaic holds nine different services across seven locations, and doesn’t use a video feed for any of them. Interestingly, McManus speaks more about creativity than technology itself.

I’d like to point out a few very interesting quotes from the piece, with a few of my thoughts.

The first quote comes on the topic of video feeds when he says, “I’m a huge fan of technology. The challenge is when you start using technology to advance something in this moment that may actually slow it down for the future. So while putting me in nine venues helps us today, it doesn’t necessarily help us in terms of raising up a generation of world class communicators tomorrow.”

McManus makes an excellent and valid point here. If we can be face to face with one another, we should be. While technology can extend the reach of the church in many ways, that doesn’t always make it the best option. It makes me wonder how the church would be different today if we didn’t have technology.  Would we be more vibrant and outspoken if we didn’t rely on technology to be heard?

McManus views technology in relationship to people in a very unique way. He says, “…technology is a medium that serves the giftedness inside of the people.”

I love how eloquent this is – and brilliant. We too often think of using technology as being creative in and of itself, rather that understanding how it can magnify the creativity that God places within us.

The article is full of great quotes and thoughts from McManus. While I’d love to list them it here, it makes more sense for you to read the article here or in a nifty flash-based magazine form here,