Planetshakers, Trumpets and Twitter

The Planetshakers conference has rolled into town and has pitched its tent at the Hisense Arena. The conference is running between the 12th and 15th of April and is in its 14th year of operation. Back in my youth-group heydays, I went to the conference when it was in Adelaide and I still have fond memories of 'shakers with the long bus ride, sleeping in church halls, learning to play warlords & scumbags, the South Australian heat, queuing for dominos pizzas, and jumping around in the loud worship.

The most memorable Planetshakers moment for me was during one particular session when Kong Hee was preaching and he stopped in the middle of his explanation of the communication system between ancient Israeli villages to give an example. His demonstration required a trumpet player, so he surveyed the 3000 strong crowd of sweaty teenagers and asked if anyone knew how to play. I raised my hand (I had been purporting to play trumpet at secondary school for many years) and he picked me out to come onto stage. To unjustifiable applause, I leapt onto stage and was handed a trumpet by one of the band members. Kong Hee then returned to his explanation, built up the story about the signalling system that relied on trumpets to sound warnings of danger, and then indicated that I give a suitable warning-of-danger blast. What came out of the end of my brass instrument was somewhere between the sound that gave the thunderbox its nickname and a rusty old truck horn that had been swallowed by an elephant.

Suffice to say that Rev Hee was suitable unimpressed.

He graciously kept me employed for the remainder of his demonstration, however by the time I had played equally painful blasts - much to the amusement of the crowd - he clearly was rethinking his teaching strategy and seriously questioned my ability to play the tortured instrument. I retired to my seat and I haven't picked up the trumpet since.

Is it helpful for Christianity to
embrace social media?

Planetshakers has always been very deft at cornering the youth market and using the tools of the day to ensure that their message is relevantly presented. This time 'round, they have embraced social media - particularly twitter - to be engaging to the life-in-140-characters crowd. The hashtag #Planetshakers reveals a mix of plugs for speakers, neatly encapsulated sentiments of snappy preaching sound-bites, and personal reflections of God's work in their lives. The tweets are overwhelming positive, punctuated by numerous exclamation marks - partly explained by Russell Evan's admonishment of cynics and urging conference attendees to honour the church.

So, the question is: is it helpful for Christianity to embrace social media? On one hand, social media is simply a tool, another system or strategy for the Christian to use. It also could be seen as an extension of the conversation that would normally occur offline between people. Additionally, it is very much in tune with today's culture.

Conversely, does a 140 character limit encourage deep reflection and mediation on the message of God? Does an emphasis on social relevancy provide a point of distinction away from the normal noise that seeks our constant attention? Social media may make us feel more connected, but updating your fb status three times during a sermon may not be the most profitable method to discuss, critique and respond.