INTERNET EVANGELISM AND ITS OPPORTUNITIES

 

THE EXPLOSIVE GROWTH OF THE INTERNET
 
The growth of the Internet has been phenomenal. It took 38 years for radio to reach 50 million listeners in the world, and 13 years for TV to reach that amount. But the Internet reached 50 million users in only 4 years. By mid 2005, only 11 years after the launch of the World Wide Web Consortium in 1994, there were already One Billion users of the Internet on planet Earth. Five year later at the end of 2010, Internet usage had grow to over Two Billion users world-wide.
Amazingly, by 2010 over 75% of Americans (around 204 million) were using the Internet, with over 60% of households having Internet access. In Scandanavia, home usage rates are even higher. The explosive growth of the Web provides the Body of Christ with a profound opportunity to use this new media as a means of communicating God’s message of love and truth to the masses of people throughout the world. The potential for communicating the gospel message over the World Wide Web is truly awesome. And distance is no hindrance. It is as easy to reach a web surfer in Mongolia as it is to reach a web surfer in Malibu, California. And the cost is exactly the same!
POPULARITY OF RELIGION ON THE INTERNET
A research study released by Reuters News Service, found that “more adult Americans use the internet for religious purposes than for gambling, banking or trading stocks.”  The survey found that “each day, more than 3 million U.S. adults find religious information online.” 
The researchers discovered that most of the users were involved in serious research rather than chat room participation. In fact, 65% of these 3 million daily adults were searching for religious reference material, 50% were looking for information on other faiths, and 25% were seeking spiritual counseling advice. The study found that those most active online were also most active in their local congregations, with 86% reporting that they prayed or meditated every day. The survey indicates a tremendous potential for using the Internet to communicate serious doctrinal truths. It’s a fact, when most people now look for information, they no longer go to a library or book store-- they go to the Internet. And this is where God’s profound truth needs to be presented.
THE FOURTH NEW MEDIA AND ITS GLOBAL POTENTIAL
Among Evangelical denominations, Seventh-day Adventists were pioneers in the use of mass media to fulfil the Great Commission. The work began with James White using the print media, and developed into an extensive world-wide publishing operation. Radio was introduced by the Voice of Prophecy, soon followed by The Quiet Hour, Amazing Facts, and Adventist World Radio (AWR). Then came the television ministries of Faith For Today, It Is Written, 3ABN, and now the Hope Channel.
In the last five years there has been an incredible explosion of the Internet as a 4th media to communicate information to the masses. This new media has the ability to reach “into all the world”, by literally reaching into every home having a computer with Internet access or TV with a web-access box. Through the Internet, the gospel and prophetic message can potentially reach every cell phone with web access, can reach every airplane seat with wi-fi access, and can reach every laptop with mobile-connection or hot-spot access. The message can be communicated 24 hours-a-day, 7 days-a-week, in every language and to every nation & culture, propagating the crucial Bible truths desperately needed by the world as we enter into the final generation.
AdventWeb believes that the pioneering spirit of the Body of Christ must now be directed to take advantage of this new media that has a tremendous potential for effective and low-cost global evangelism.

However, Journalists for Christ (JFC), a Christian media group based in Nigeria has urged Christians to effectively use the Internet for evangelism. The group made the call in a statement signed by its Administrative officer, Dayo Emmanuel to mark the World Internet Evangelism Day held recently. It noted that the growth in Internet use in the country offers many opportunities to reach out especially to the youth. “More than ever before, we have to be interested in utilizing the enormous opportunities which the Internet offers us to reach unbelievers who need answers to many questions about the truth of the gospel. “For us to use the Internet for evangelism, we must know enough about how it works and what is possible through the technology that has reduced the world to a global village” JFC stated. The media group implored Church and Ministry leaders to incorporate the use of internet into their evangelism strategy to reach more people. “If we are to fulfill the injunction to take the gospel to the end of the earth, we have no choice but to improve on the use of the Internet. “It is not enough to have websites like many Churches presently have, but it must have enough interactive features to win souls. No matter our reservation for the negative part of the Internet, the truth is that we must wake up to the reality that it is a tool we cannot ignore",  the journalists stated

Research materials culled from WACC and adventweb.org

A Nigerian, Who At 15 Emerges World’s Youngest Female Pilot

A Nigerian, Kimberly Anyadike, a graduate of the After-School Programmes of the Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum (TAM), Compton, California, United States, earned her place in the Guinness Book of World Records as the youngest female to fly in a private plane from coast to coast. Cyber Africa writes on this achievement even as the whole world stand still for her.

A Nigerian female teenager, Kimberly Anyadike, age 15 became the toast of the world when she did what no one in her age has ever done before. At an age when many will either be carried away by peer pressure or still be trying to come to terms with what they really want to become in life, this young Nigerian is already a pilot and has single-handedly flew an airplane.

Former President Bill Clinton of the United States was moved by her achievement and personally wrote to her a congratulatory message, describing her as “an exceptional young person with a bright future. He said what Kimberly did was extraordinary and served as a clear indication that she is an outstanding individual. What makes her feat a rare one is that at 15, she was already a pilot.

Clinton’s congratulatory message to Kimberly reads: “Dear Kimberly, I heard that you recently became the youngest African-American female to complete a cross-country flight. Congratulations!

I’m so glad that Tomorrow Aeronautical Museum offered a venue for you to demonstrate your bravery and achieve your goals. What you did was extraordinary, and it served as a clear indication of the outstanding individual you are becoming.

You are an exceptional young person with a bright future, and you should always seize opportunities to do inspiring things.

With hard-work, persistence, and focus, you can accomplish so much – I hope you will carry this lesson with you as you grow older.

I send my best wishes for success and happiness in all you do.”

Because of her American citizenship, though of Nigerian parenthood, she was given a title of “the youngest African-American female to fly in a private airplane from coast-to-coast.” She piloted a single-engine red-tail four-seater Cessna 172 airplane in the United States from Compton, California to Newport News, Virginia and back.

Kimberly who initially wanted to become a cardiovascular surgeon single-handedly flew the plane without a serious technical support, except that she was accompanied by a safety and commercial pilot, Ronell Norman and Tuskegee-trained airman, Levi Thornhill.

Precisely in 2008, Kimberly’s elder sister, Kelly, had set a world record as “the youngest African-American female to go solo in four different fixed-wing aircraft on the same day.” At that time, she was 16 years old. Kelly and Kimberly were inspired and sponsored by the Tuskegee Airmen, who run the Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum (TAM) programme.

The Tuskegee Airmen are an elite group of black pilots, who flew missions during World War II, when the United States Air Force was racially segregated. They operate a programme called Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum (TAM), an organisation which provides scholarships and after-school programmes for aspiring young pilots. The organisation encourages young people involvement in aviation as an alternative to drugs, gang violence and other self-destructive activities. While TAM advocates build and woo young talents to the aviation industry, through its programme, the organisation also provides the elementary, middle, and high school students with the opportunity to work one-on-one with qualified tutors, mentors and aviation staff for at least five days per week.
However, to qualify and maintain a continued stay on the programme, it is required that students maintain above average grades and stay out of trouble.

TAM in a statement about its programme said: “We have concluded that their newfound interest in aviation and relevant historical events improves their overall academic performance as well as their behaviour in school.”

In its few years of existence, the TAM had already set nine world records, some of which include those won by Jonathan Strickland, Breean Farfan, Jimmy Haywood, and Kenny Royhave, who at one time or the other had set world record as young pilots. The outstanding performance of these TAM graduates bore an eloquent testimony to what has been described as “the positive results of the life-changing programmes” offered by Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum. And all were said to have stayed focused and inspired with the help of The Tuskegee Airmen.

According to Kimberly she said she hoped her accomplishments inspire other young people. “The sky is no longer the limit,” Kimberly said.

The Anyadike sisters’ desire to fly was inspired by the achievements of Mae Jemison, the first African American female to travel in space and Bessie Coleman, the first African-American airline pilot.

Their Talent

Early enough, its very important that you observe the young ones in your live. There,  you can discover the hidden talent that GOD has bless them with. Nurture it for them and it will improve the quality of their experience and you will benefit from it surely in the long run. I DISCOVERED THE TALENT IN THIS BEAUTIFUL KIDS.My nephews. They are also a wonderful set of grandchildren.

HOW TO BECOME A BELIEVER IN YOURSELF.

 A young person who does not have confidence in himself or herself is as a result of the lack of believe in him/herself. Some people find it difficult in believing in themselves because of the kind of upbringing they have. Yes, that maybe a factor but discovering yourself early enough is the only way out.

The current President of the United States of America who happens to be their first black President; Barrack Obama believed he could be the first black president of the U.S.A at the age of 7. As a pupil in the junior school, his teacher asked him what he would like to become, he told his teacher he wanted to become the first black president of the United States America. His teacher and even his class mates laughed it off. Today, with hard work and perseverance, he has achieved his childhood dream.

When you believe in yourself and put to work your potentials into the right channels, the unbelievable becomes believable. You operate in a level that brings fulfillment.

I would like to use the Acrostic of the word BELIEVE to suggest how you can become a good believer in yourself and how it can yield positive result for you.

From the word BELIEVE;

B means Believe in yourself before you Succeed.

John c Maxwell, a leadership expert emphasized that believing in people before they have proved themselves is the key to motivating them to reach their potentials. I sure agree with him on this and I strongly believe that the same way you believe in others even before they succeed and eventually help them to be productive, the same way you also can believe in yourself even before you do anything that can make people to commend you. Believing in yourself will prepare your mind which is a very important part of your psychological stability, to eventually work towards effectiveness and efficiency in any of your operations.

E means Emphasize your Strengths

Do not wait for people to commend you before you feel good. Try as much as possible with true sincerity to commend yourself when you do a good job or perform well in anything you do. Always remember your qualities. Work more on your skills to become better and make deliberate effort to discover more of the potentials you have in you. Always know you have a strength that makes you unique. If you are finding it difficult to pick on these strengths, its advisable you discuss with a counselor to get professionally help. That would be a good thing to do.

L means List your Past Successes.

You should know that remembering your past positive exploits or successes will make you feel important.

Sometimes, you may never be sure of carrying out a particular responsibility effectively well if you find it difficult to appreciate your past similar operations or how well you performed in other tasks, responsibilities or assignments. It helps you renew the knowledge of who you are, what you can do and why you can even do greater things.

I mean Instill Confidence in yourself when you Fail or make Mistakes.

Failure is not a curse like many perceive it. It is a very important part of life. He that faileth not, will not appreciate the value of success. When you make mistakes or fail, always see it as a lesson{ a good lesson} to be a better person and try to be appreciative of the fact that it happened. Experiences are good for Development. Always instill confidence in yourself whenever you fail or make mistakes and work to correct them for that is the most important thing.

E means Experience Some Wins with Others.

When you work with the right people, people that can influence your life positively and help you experience some wins or good results, it makes you hunger for more.  You must have the will to carry out positive responsibilities. Sometimes, when it is not giving to you, you go and get it. David Ambrose; a renowned novelist said, if you have the will to win, you have achieved half your success and when you lack the will to win, you have achieved half your failure. You must develop the will to always learn from those who have made a positive mark in life. Also, always feel confident and free to always ask to be on their team if possible or work and walk with people that are positive minded who have good and realizable plan for their future.

V means Visualize your future successes.

The ability to visualize what you want for yourself in the future will help you to carry the necessary steps to achieving them. You have to realize there is nothing under the sun that you cannot achieve as long as you take the right step and do the necessary things to make it accomplishable. You can live 40days without food, 4days without water, 4minutes without air and 4seconds without hope. You have to hope and believe in your future. When you cast a vision for yourself and paint a picture of success in your future, you have succeeded in making yourself realize what is at stake for you.

The last E means Expect a whole new level of living.

Having faith in yourself will help you believe in possibilities and make you begin to dream dreams.  As you get involved in things that will add positive values to your life and you keep believing in yourself irrespective of the situation{ favorable or unfavorable} you find yourself, a whole new level of Existence is made available for you.

How can you discover your potentials when you don’t even believe you have one?  Your potentials is what will make your life meaningful. Nurturing them will help you reach high level of productivity.

In the words of Andrew Carnegie; men are developed the way the same way gold is mined. Several tons of dirt must be removed to get an ounce of gold. Develop what you believe about yourself and you will realize how far you can go in achievements and accomplishments.

we re like a plantation b4 GOD. we can either wither away or sprout out strong....  In all GOD is till interested in watering us. He knows everyone of us by our names....

Personal Reputation Management

Reputation applies to the rating of an object (individual, group or entity ) by those who relate with it. It is also important to note that reputation influences the image of an object.
For avoidance of doubt, image reflects the perception that is associated with an individual, cooperate entity, group or even a country. So in this context , i am focusing on the reputation management of a person. Its reputation plays or is a major factor that influences the image of a person.
As individuals, our relationship with one another is inevitable. We relate with people directly and indirectly. We relate with people indirectly when people we do not know but hear about us are been affected one way or the other by our operations. In other to have a positive image, it is very important to make a deliberate effort to portray yourself positive in the sight of the people you relate with directly or indirectly. Needless to state that you can still be portrayed negatively as a result of their beliefs, attitude and behaviour. In other words, they have a different opinion about the subject matter that as brought about a relationship between you two. These opinions can carry great implication to your operations as a person. Reputation management requires pro-activeness and re-activeness in other to remain relevant, efficient and effective as you try to achieve specific set objectives and also to flourish and have a positive quality of experience.
In the management of personal reputation as an entrepreneur, business person, employee, celebrity, communicator, student amongst other relevant specification, you must make a deliberate effort to monitor your environment to identify the matters that can carry implication to your operations. Critically examine them and take a position on them. The position you take must be influenced your philosophy in life, your vision, your mission and also your set objectives. Take note that the environment mentioned earlier can reflect your political environment, social environment, technological environment, legal environment, economical environment and also your physical environment. You identify the specific subject matters that affect you and can carry implication for your operations. Since you are a global citizen, it is important that you scan the entire global environment, not only the country where you operate from.
You set specific objectives you want to achieve with respect to what you have identified and regarding what you want to do. Note that your objectives must reflect specifics that will improve the way the people who relate with you will rate you.
However, as you pursue your objectives, there are some relevant publics that you must identify and communicate with. This publics are those that are affected by your operations. They include among many others:
1. Customer
2. The media
3. Relevant government agencies
4. Competitor
5. Professional bodies
6. Relevant rating agencies
7. Religious organisation
8. Charitable organisation
9. Education and training institute
10. Financial institution
11. Financial advisor
12. Supplier
13. Security agencies
14. Employee
15. Management
16. Parent
17. Sponsor
18. Donor

Moreover, a variety of media and techniques can be used as a vehicle and platform to communicate and pass your message to those you have to relate with in the situation of correcting wrong information about you and also disseminating specific information that can improve your rating and bring about a positive perception about you . The following media can be relevant:
1. Television
2. New media which include the social media networks like facebook, twitter, linkled-in, myyearbook, blogg e.t.c and telephone.
3. Radio
4. Newspaper
5. Journal
6. Magazine
The following techniques amongst others can be relevant amongst others:
1. Donation
2. Sponsorship
3. Courtesy visit
4. Sermon
5. Seminar
6. Conference
7. Feature
8. Press release
9. Refutal
10. Retraction
11. Referendum
12. Press briefing
13. Familiarization tour
14. Public lecture
15. Workshop
16. Naming ceremony
17. House warming ceremony
18. Rally
19. Talk show
20. Personality chat
21. Anniversary
You mobilize the needed resources in order to carry out your implementation process and make a deliberate effort to evaluate your implementation process in order to know where you have got it wrong and to improve on it or in other words, how you have fared.
Needless to state again that in the management of reputation, you must be proactive in your actions and reactive as you take the necessary steps when and where there is need for you. Your pro-activeness in your effort to prepare for and discover specific trends that can carry implication for you as they unfold and your ability and willingness to react confidently and effectively is how a solid personal reputation management foundation is laid.

Personal Reputation Management