There are a number of churches that are grappling with the question of how much multimedia to introduce in their services. Often, the younger, techno-savvy members of a congregation want to have their services full of technology, while the older members want to hold onto a more traditional-style service (please forgive the stereotypes). So is there a place for both in the same service? Or is a separate service (or even separate church) the solution?

Our traditions are beneficial in many ways. They provide us with a sense of corporate identity. They remind us of tenets that are at the core of our faith. They can help us keep a posture of reverence before an almighty God. Traditions can become negatives when they keep us from pursuing and fulfilling the call of God, or when they significantly restrict the expression of worship to God.

Technology can also be of great benefit. It can provide a connection point for lost people who are visiting the church (for example, when a clip from a familiar movie is used as a sermon illustration). It can aid in sermon retention, since most people alive today learn visually. It can also help us in our praise and worship times (through images of the wonders He has created). Technology can become a hindrance when it leads to a performance/production mentality, becomes distracting, or generally does not aid the church in fulfilling God's calling.

So where do we find the right balance? The starting point is asking, 'What particular group of people has God called us to reach and disciple?' Based on the answer to that question, we can then move toward determining exactly what the overall tone and direction of our service should be.

I firmly believe that virtually all 21st century churches should make use of today's visual technology to some extent. With that said, there will need to be some churches that are more traditional and some that are more contemporary and multimedia oriented. The right mix for your congregation depends on who you are called to reach.

Having a traditional service and a separate contemporary service is one solution to be considered that has worked well in a number of situations. However, if it is possible to reach a consensus among all church members, there is, in all probability, a higher level of unity in the church that has committed to one style of service, and that church may have a more sure sense of identity and direction. And even though there will almost always be someone who is not pleased with the style of service, a significant consensus can be reached in most cases, if the congregation as a whole is willing to make it an item for substantive prayer.

Finally, let's remember that more important than technology or tradition or your ideas or my ideas or how we spend our budgets or what songs we sing or how many times we use the projector is the love of Christ that we show towards each other.

Two Sunday nights ago, we had just begun our praise and worship set when our projector suddenly flashed a warning message about overheating, then decided it needed a rest and shut itself down. This type of event occurs in churches all around the world every Sunday: a computer locks up; a bulb blows; there is no audio feed from the DVD player; the disc that worked fine 20 minutes earlier now will not read.

As techies, our goal is to go unnoticed, and when things go wrong, everyone notices. So how can we make the best of these situations?

1. Don't let the distress that you feel over the event show outwardly during the service. Remember, our goal is to go unnoticed, so the less demonstration we make, the better.

2. Priority number one is to clear the screen or platform of anything that is distracting. It is far better to have nothing on the screen, than to project something that should not be projected.

3. Look for the fastest way to minimize the disruption to the flow of the service. For instance, if a sermon illustration video clip is malfunctioning, it is probably better to move on and skip the illustration than to wait several minutes for the video to be resurrected. Ask this question: 'Is the overall effectiveness of our communication today going to be higher if we simply move on or if we wait it out?' Obviously, there is not one answer that fits every situation.

4. Do the best possible job you can without taking yourself too seriously. No matter how much you plan and prepare, something will happen sooner or later that is unexpected. And when you have done your homework and it still happens, most of the time a little laughter is better than a big blow-up or silent sulk.

5. Learn from the wreckage. Research why things happened the way they did, and take the steps necessary (assuming they are financially feasible) to prevent their recurrence. Was the incident caused by operator error? If so, would additional training help? Was it because of equipment failure? If so, look for ways to add redundancy, so that if your primary mode of media delivery malfunctions, you have a quick fix (e.g., if the church uses a desktop computer, is it possible to have a laptop on standby?).

Things will, at times, go wrong. Let's commit to asking God to help us respond the right way the next time they do!

In the last few months, I have had numerous conversations with folks that are considering the possibility of using multimedia in their Sunday worship services. One question I hear repeatedly goes something like this: 'Isn't all this putting on a show? I mean, doesn't it all get to be more about a performance than worship?'

For the most part, the difference between worship and performance is a matter of the heart. But I think there is a fundamental misunderstanding that is at the root of the question: using multimedia is not about looking better (although I'm not sure that there is anything wrong with looking competent) - it is about communicating more effectively.

One reaction that I have heard more than once to Mel Gibson's 'The Passion of the Christ' is: 'I had read about the way Jesus suffered and what He went through for us all my life, but after seeing this movie, it is real to me on a whole new level, it means so much more. I will never take communion the same way again.' That, friends, is effective communication, and it clearly demonstrates the potential of multimedia used correctly.

God uses different forms of communication to speak to each of us: for one, it might be a pastor's words; for another, it might be the lyrics of a song; for another, it might be a video that tells a moving story. Multimedia is simply one of the tools for His use - but it is an important one in today's culture, and one that should not be marginalized.

Are you considering the implementation of one or more types of multimedia in your church? Then ask these questions: 1) Will this help us more effectively communicate with the specific group of people that are coming or may be coming to our church? and (if the multimedia relates to the praise and worship portion of your service) 2) Will it help them enter into true worship? All the other questions and concerns we may have are secondary.

There are two major trends developing related to the use of multimedia in worship services:

The first is increased creative potential. In the early days of church projection, there was little room for creativity. Songs were projected on a standard PowerPoint® blue background (with, of course, the same font for every song). Thankfully, times have changed. With recent advances in software and a little creative effort, we have the ability to not only put video images behind our text, but also mix a number of video backgrounds within the same song.

The second is that projection has become a central part of the worship experience at many, if not most, churches. There has been exponential growth in the number of churches utilizing projection every Sunday, the size of media budgets, and the number and size of tech teams.

These two trends merge to one point: projection computer operators are in a position to have a major impact on the worship service. We (operators) are now a big part of the worship team, and the computer is our instrument.

The guitar player plays from his heart, and thereby affects the worship of everyone in the congregation. In the same way, when computer operators see their function as a true act of worship and engage the heart and creativity to that end, it has a tremendous positive impact on the congregation as a whole.

While I am a great advocate of planning and preparation, there is a difference between being prepared and being mechanical. Optimally, ours is not a mechanical function. As part of the worship team, we need to be willing to be led by God, and adjust what we are projecting to the flow of the service. It's the Experiencing God principle: see what God is doing and join Him in it! It is an act of worship, and worship by definition is organic.

So this Sunday, don't just walk into the sound booth to fulfill your weekly function. Grab your instrument and worship the King of Kings!

In our last article, we discussed some of the technical aspects of using video backgrounds for projected worship lyrics or scriptures. Now let's look at some basic principles for increasing the effectiveness of motion backgrounds.

Principle #1: Know your audience. Video backgrounds are tools that are intended to help move the congregation into a place of true worship. To that end, you must tailor your selection of backgrounds to appeal directly to the folks that will be present for the particular service you are planning. For instance, your selection of backgrounds for a youth service should be radically different than for a Sunday morning worship service, and your selection for a Sunday morning service will most likely be different than your selection for a seniors' event.

Obviously, it is more difficult to plan for a multi-generational service (such as a Sunday morning service). Our experience has been that using a cross section of video styles is acceptable, as long as you stay clear of the extremes on either end of the spectrum.

Principle #2: Match the content of the music to the content of the video, when possible. Some songs, such as Let the River Flow or Shout to the Lord lend themselves very easily to this - others do not. Which brings us to our next point...

Principle #3: ALWAYS match the tempo of the song with the tempo of the music. Even though you cannot always match the song's content, you should always match the tempo. Putting a fast-moving background with a slow-tempo song, or a slow-moving background with a fast-tempo song will seemed out of place - to the point of distraction. Tempo is at least as important, if not more important, than content.

As a side note, we should not confuse 'fast motion' with 'a lot of motion'. Too much motion can and will distract from, rather than aid worship (again, know your audience!)

Principle #4: Avoid images of animals or the faces of people. There are different schools of thought on this topic, and I certainly respect differing opinions. However, our experience is that showing either of these two types of images causes the audience to begin to intently watch the video and lose their worship focus. In the shots that we use of people, they are either out of focus or in the distance, so that they do not become the focal point of attention, and we usually have them in a worshipful pose.

A final note: I firmly believe that we can worship with our eyes, and that there are times when we want to focus the attention of the congregation on the screen in order to present images that inspire them to greater worship. At those times, the video should be absolutely captivating, and could include a lot of motion, faces, animals - whatever is appropriate to your audience and message. However, video that is meant as a background for worship serves a significantly different purpose, and its purpose should be reflected in its content.

The use of video backgrounds behind projected worship lyrics or scriptures can add an incredibly powerful dimension to your worship service. Since the use of these backgrounds is a fairly recent development, let's look at some of the most frequently asked questions concerning them.

Do video backgrounds work in Microsoft Powerpoint? Basically, no. Powerpoint will play certain types of video files, and even has the ability to loop them. However, the program does not allow you to overlay text onto moving video. The closest you can get when using Powerpoint is to split the screen - for example, using the top two-thirds of the screen for video and the bottom third with text on a black bar. There is also a plug-in for Powerpoint that goes for around $150 that will allow you to use moving backgrounds.

What software packages allow you to make use of video backgrounds? There are a number of church-related software packages on the market that allow you to use video backgrounds. Among the more popular are: MediaShout, EasyWorship, Song Show Plus, Presentation Manager, SongBase, and Prologue Sunday Plus. Most of these programs are similarly priced and have trial versions available.

What computer specifications do I need to be able to use video backgrounds? The computer specs you need are dependent upon the presentation software that you use. Generally speaking, you will need: a hard drive (7200rpm) with plenty of storage capacity, a processor speed of 1ghz or better, and as much RAM as possible (128mb or better). Also, most software packages with this feature utilize a dual monitor system, so you will need either two video cards, or a single powerful video card with dual monitor capability.

What is the advantage of a 'seamless loop' over an ordinary video clip? The ability of a clip to loop seamlessly is very important in worship presentations. When a clip loops seamlessly, you do not notice when you reach the end of the clip and it restarts. When a clip does not loop, you notice an obvious glitch in the video when the file restarts, and this can be a distraction (instead of worshiping, some in the congregation will be wondering 'What just happened with that video?').

What is the most effective way to make use of video backgrounds? The answer to this question is totally dependent on the worship style of your church. The backgrounds that you choose should reflect the personality of your church and flow smoothly with the other elements of your worship. Some churches use a single background for their entire worship service. Typically, a church will assign a different video background to each song, and most software packages are designed with this in mind. You can add to the effectiveness of the presentation by trying to coordinate the background with the content of the song. For instance, if you are singing 'Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble?', you might choose a majestic mountain scene for your background.

One further thought: new advances in some software packages will soon allow you to use multiple video backgrounds within the same song. Obviously, this will increase the skill level required of the technician, but also will present some interesting possibilities for increasing the effectiveness of the presentation.