That\’s it!

The day after the February newsletter was sent, my inbox was filled with responses – all of them upbeat and encouraging. I opened Bill Martin’s message, “This sounds exciting! Even to an ‘old dog’ like me. I’m ready…” Mary McKinney put it this way, “I’ll do whatever it takes to win souls. I will do like Paul and be all things to all people that I may win some!!” Pat Stamps responded with, “This sounds so good. Just let me know what I need to do. I am excited and ready to go.”

What do you need to do?

Before I answer the question from one “old dog” to another, I would like to reassert the point that the new myWBS will be a seamless application for all WBS users. Postal, email and web – teachers, students, follow up workers and churches. So, if you are reading this message, myWBS 2.0 is for you and your students.

For Postal Teachers who are myWBS 1.0 users. Your students’ records will be migrated into the new system for you. We are currently building your Postal Teacher & student pages. When the pages are completed, we will notify you that your students are being moved into the new system. At that time we will also give you instructions for how to login to the new system as a teacher.

For Email Teachers. The email teacher & students will be released following the Postal system in myWBS 2.0. Your system is a more complex with all of the auto-generated emails associated with your processes. You too will be notified when your system is ready and your students will be moved into the new system for you. We’ll give you step-by-step instructions so the migration will be easy.

For Follow-Up Workers and affiliated churches. The two systems – the one for follow up workers, and the one for WBS affiliated churches is scheduled for release in 2010.

So, what do you need to do right now?
1 – Watch for the notification with instructions about your system and your students.
2 – Keep giving us feedback and asking questions. Your opinions not only influence our path, they also encourage us! Lance and I have set up a couple of blogs to make it even easier for you to communicate with us.
3 – Read Lance’s technology blog and post your technical questions to him.
For now, that’s it!

~ Kit

Everyday I see how your efforts are impacting the Kingdom. It matters. It is changing lives, and therefore we dream through faith to do even more in 2009.

This year is going to be exciting. What’s new with technology and ministry? It’s a difficult question to answer because so much is moving so fast. But today I thought, “That’s it! I want to tell you about myWBS 2.0.” It starts with a website called “Facebook.”

Facebook is a 5-year old social utility that helps people communicate with their friends, family and coworkers. Facebook technologies facilitate the sharing of information through real-world social connections. Anyone can sign up for Facebook and interact with the people they know in a trusted environment. The results?

WBS is keenly aware of the social networking phenomena surrounding Facebook, YouTube, and MySpace. For more than 2 years, WBS has been developing a new system to capture the positive elements of this type of communication and apply them to teaching the Gospel.

WBS is about transforming the world through the Good News of Jesus. When people of common interests converge on the web to learn, share, discuss, and recommend – like a marketplace at the crossroads – the environment is ripe for evangelism.

In 2009, WBS is releasing a series of new tools which will provide you and your students new ways of sharing your common interest of learning about Christ.  These tools are part of the new myWBS, “Version 2.0″.

myWBS 2.0 brings all WBS users – email and postal teachers, email, postal, and web students, follow up workers, churches and staff – into one social network for the purpose of growing in respect to salvation.

WBS is joining evangelism and social networking like no other Christian ministry. Join WBS as we continue to blaze the trail at GodSpeed. We look forward to telling you more and having you join us.

That’s it!