A guest post by James from Epsom

There is an interesting dilema in the world wide web of super-preachers. On the one hand the ministry of people like John Piper (Desiring God
Ministries) has really taken off once their church based preaching was
pushed out in various forms over the web. But on the other hand the capture of this very medium relies on there being people in the pews on a sunday morning listening. Why bother when you can lie in all morning then catch up later on itunes, or perhaps even follow it on twitter, dressing gown on, coffee and toast in hand?

The debate is explored slightly in these two posts first from Josh Harris
[1], then followed up by John Piper [2]. I like Pipers follw up, it hints
at why you should be there, in the church, joining in. Quote:

“…Hearing preaching is heart-felt engagement in the exposition and
exultation of the Word of God. This is a fragile bond. The fact that an
electric cord is easily cut, does not mean that the power flowing through it is small. It produces bright and wonderful effects. So it is with preaching. Great power flows through fragile wires of spiritual focus. Perfume can break it. A ruffled collar can break it. A cough can break it. A whisper can break it. Clipping fingernails, chewing gum, a memory, a stomach growl, a sunbeam, and a hundred other things can break it. The power that flows through the wire of spiritual attention is strong, but the wire is weak…”

In other words listen! Twitter is a clear “No” during church simply because it breaks your concerntration. But Piper doesn’t say much about the copper wire of my broadband connection, or the thin wire to my headphones. If I concerntrate hard enough, put down my coffee and toast, why can’t I just ‘do’ sunday morning on the sofa? Is Piper hinting at something more when he talks of an ‘electric cord’, something a bit more than words, is this a ‘Holy Spirit’ thing? So does it work with mp3s? Or is church more than just preaching? I’m not sure I know, but as much as I like my leather sofa and my ipod, I won’t be quitting church yet.

[1] http://www.joshharris.com/2009/05/should_we_use_twitter_during_c.php
[2]

http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1828_more_on_not_using_twitter_during_worship_services/