The Future is Mobile
Dr. Joel Selanikio had an interesting article on BBC News titled The Invisible Computer Revolution.What Dr. Selanikio discusses is the use of mobile phones in developing countries, as opposed to computer/laptop technology. Organizations like One Laptop Per Child are breaking new ground by providing children all over the world with access to education through inexpensive computers. However, with mobile phones already available globally, should we be developing for and utilizing that technology first?My friend Dave Browning from Christ the King Community Church noted that internet access in Africa is very limited, but almost everyone has a cell phone. He has been working to develop leadership training programs that can be delivered via SMS (text messaging).
From the article:
“The question we should be asking ourselves, then, is not “how can we buy, and support, and supply electricity for, a laptop for every schoolteacher” (much less every schoolchild), but rather “what mobile software can we write that would really add value for a schoolteacher (or student, or health worker, or businessperson) and that could run on the computer they already have in their pocket?”
I’d like to add “church leader, pastor, disciple, new believer, and person who doesn’t know Christ” to that list. There is a great opportunity for any of us who might invest ourselves to leverage mobile technology to train, develop, and/or reach people around the world. It will take more than just those of you that are technical or can program… it will take ideators, teachers, pastors, business people, financial contributors, translators, project managers, administrators, missionaries, and more. I don’t know what all of the applications should be, will be or even are. Are there any applications using mobile technology that you have seen being used to reach people for Christ? What are some that should be built?
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very innovative stuff Bobby!
I’ll be thinking about this for a while…
I agree. Can’t wait to see what Bobby has up his sleeve next.
the technology that is available with the iphone (a full internet browser on a mobile device) is where we are going wholesale in 3 years. Probably some breakthrough with internet satellite tech too.
Bobby –
I currently work with a company that is working on delivering health care via SMS. We have a pilot program that is just starting in Johannesburg that uses SMS to remind patients of complications with HIV drugs that they should be looking out for, and allows doctors to notify them when they have an appointment, when drugs are available, etc.
In my spare time I’m working on a free online seminary (very early stages), which I’m thinking of ways in which mobile access might be integrated.
The problem with SMS is that it is extremely limited. Your maximum text size is somewhere between 120 characters and 160 depending on the phone/service.
I think it would be difficult to do evangelization with a cell phone, but discipleship is a definite possibility. Have you considered writing software to integrate your online lifegroup message boards with an SMS interface?
Google Android?
Bilingual texting is one of the simplest ways to get understood in an area where foreign languages are spoken. Modern cell phones have enough memory to hold a 5 MB database and so the “mobile conversation” can be run offline.
Have a look at our Polish-English Translating dictionary “LexiTools” that can be used for any pair of languages. Understandable utterances, phrases and even whole sentences can be built by adding these entries together.
Check out Echo prayer Management!
http://www.echoprayer.com
It’s very cool! You create an account, enter your personalized prayer requests (”Healing for Aunt Sue”, “Align myself with God’s will”, “That Joe would come to know Christ”, etc.), set reminders, and Echo will email or text message to your cell phone (your choice) a reminder to pray about your specific needs.
You can also make notes about your prayer or mark it answered.
Journaling is also available.
Enjoy!
I’ve set several to arrive via email! It’s wonderful!
Everyone…good thoughts/ideas/info…Thanks, and I’d love to hear more.
Android is definitely a promising platform…we’ll just have to see how well it is adopted worldwide.
Jonathan, I’d love to know how your pilot program goes and what all you learn from it if you are willing to share. I didn’t know we had message boards for our life groups…but, there is a lot a don’t know :)
Bobby –
You actually have LifeGroups that are online only (at least your website says so — I think I remember seeing a message board for one at some point):
http://blog.lifechurch.tv/Internet/2008/01/top_ten_reasons_to_join_an_onl_1.html
Anyway, our pilot project has actually been on hold for a year while we got clearance from the government to deliver health care electronically. They are just now putting through the first tests, so it will be a few months before we have any real information.
One thing I don’t know is what the baseline phone is. With MIDP2 phones, you can actually do a whole lot via SMS, because you can set up unique SMS ports that are listened to by certain applications. But then the problem is installing an application where you only have SMS.
Another idea for developing countries is participating in the OLPC (one laptop per child - laptop.org) program. These computers are set up to search for mobile networks, and they are power-friendly enough that they can run on hand cranks! They are made to work with the new Wifi equipment that has a 60-mile range.
So, you could distribute some of the OLPC laptops with LifeChurch content preloaded on it - perhaps equip it with extra games, too. LifeChurch would then be enabling all sorts of things for local villages that were not previously possible, and spreading the gospel of Christ at the same time.
Another problem that it might solve if you put some head time in on it is this — a lot of poverty out in the rural areas is because the rural areas are not directly connected to the markets, and instead have to deal with middle-men who take out most of the profit. If you were able to set up, using the OLPC laptops, an online merchant area, you could enable growers to sell directly to buyers at much higher prices.
Anyway, just some ideas. We’ve been working on the same types of problems ourselves.
Jonathan,
good ideas. I actually have an OLPC laptop at home. I got it just before Christmas and have been playing with it. It’s very cool for what it is. No hand crank though…I think they ship external charging devices (possible a hand crank or solar) when they send them to the developing countries though.
**(Please don’t post this)**
Bobby, obviously you know you are on to something with this! Are you familiar with the site xda-developers.com? There, programmers and enthusiast’s from around the world write and program Windows based PPC’s to do things most people and companies don’t ever think of. And it is all free for the betterment of the public. As a pastor, my fellowship with these guys has inspired lots of ideas. Think locally and globally!
As ubertechnical as you are, I’m sure you’ll see what I’m talking about when you visit the site, but if on the off chance it is all Greek, let me know and I’d be happy to summarize with a phone conversation.
God bless you as you change the world!
Bobby, the general link is:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/index.php
Very interesting topic and very applicable to where our on-demand/real-time society is progressing. My wife came to me last year with a very simple, yet obvious idea. She/I/our friends/family all communicate regularly via SMS…sending photos, mms, videos, music, etc. around to each other. She said to me, “I want to figure out a way to create a place where people could, on-demand or passively, access witnessing information via their mobile phone?” ie Roman Road to Salvation.
In the interest of full-disclosure, and to further explain why my wife may be thinking along those lines, I work for an interactive mobile messaging agency in Dallas.
So one weekend last May we sat down, researched the various free or inexpensive technologies out there and put together a plan. By the end of the weekend and after calling several friends/family requesting input, we had a “beta” version up (www.MyGodMobile.com). It was very rough and very simple, but I could tell from my wife’s strong conviction for doing this that ultimately it would prove to be useful and people would benefit from it.
Her core concept was to provide people the ability to access on-demand tidbits and passively receive SMS messaging pertaining to and assisting people in witnessing (ie applicable bible verses). Additionally, providing believers the ability to receive daily updates/scriptures/prayer requests/devotionals, etc.
A few concepts spawned from that but we never fully developed, were, to provide users the ability to post prayer request to the MyGodMobile twitter page. By posting those on the public twitter page, users could also periodically go there and pray for other users as well. Again, the concept was good but she/I lacked time in maintating all of the add-ons.
As previously stated, its very simple and in true beta form but my hope and my wife’s hope is that maybe someone could take the idea, make it better and use it’s core concept as a basis to grow and truly make an impact. We believe this concept at its core truly lowers the barrier of entry for someone to educate themselves or others on becoming fully devoted followers of Christ.
I am interested in hearing any thoughts/input/suggestions?
I was in India about 5 years ago and I could see that the future was in the cell phone. For the most part the government had a committed to a wireless future. Everywhere I went people were on their cell phones (even in the remote areas) and it seemed that on every block there was a cell phone store. By contrast internet was confined to selected cafe’s. When I was in China last year it was the same picture (urban and rural). People were just crazy for their cell phones and were on them all the time, young and old, urban and rural, rich or poor it didn’t seem to make much difference. What a great idea of providing ministry resources through the wireless networks.
Ben, Ray, Jessica,
I’ll dive into the links tonight and respond. Thanks for the input and ideas.
It would be great to see somethings materialize that could leverage this opportunity.
A great resource on this discussion is Mobile Web Design by Cameron Moll. Some of the stats he compiled and published in the book are astonishing. The metrics compare the ubiquity of mobile phones versus computers on a global scale. We live in a very “PC-centric” country, while many countries in the rest of the world almost completely rely on mobile devices for information gathering/sharing.
The focus of the book is intended for web developers who are looking to open content to alternative devices, but the initial argument for “why” is very sound.
As a Church, we need to be there!
I like this article, but I would have to be one that would argue that the mobile copmuting that is espoused to in this article is something that is done already. The paradigm of laptop and large-screened computing that many wessternized nations are accustomed to is something that is making headway in developing nations, but as it stands mobile phones and even smartphones are already taking advantage of the existing infrastructes in order to make aspects of computing possible where it was not before.
I am an USAmerican who uses mobile devices for the bulk of his computing. By mobile I mean that I am typing this on a Nokia N800 Internet Tablet while connected via Bluetooth to my smartphone. For what I have seen in both life and ministry, computing is becoming more mobile, and it is the use of such personal devices that is making it possible for the paradigm shift to happen in the lives of more people across several types of cultures and economies.
Probably the best analogy towards what is happening in developing nations with mobile technology is what already happens in Asia. There, much of the computing and lifestyle is centered on the use of mobile devices. This paradigm, combined with the ingenuity of programs like OLPC will create something that’s more than just fertile ground for ministrry work; but also a place for communities to thrive under social and economic pressures by using computing as a spark to a second type of industrial revolution.
Last comment: (for a while anyways): on the website/magazine that I’ve created, I also talk about this and other mobile-oriented issues. One of those things spoken about was how the OLPC’s Give One Get One program made for fertile ground for churches/missions orgs to be able to not just donate to the need for developing nations to have computing technology, but also create teams that can be involved with co-laboring efforts towrads teaching how to best use this technology. In terms of tech and ministry, this is probably the area that is most neglected; that aspect of not just giving something, but also teaching and equipping.
Antoine,
Perhaps you could help everyone understand some of the mobile applications that are already being leveraged by ministries. I’m well aware of the OLPC plan…but, I’m curious about what we can do (or what is being done already) to leverage the “invisible” computer (mobile infrastructure).
I had an inkling to come back here before getting offline for the night and see you’ve approved my comment already;; fast service, thanks :)
I wrote an aaaarticle at Cynthia Ware’s site that answers just want you are asking; ttthat is, what can the church do to respond to using mobile tech. The article is called “The Church and the 7th Dimension” and this is the link to it:
http://thedigitalsanctuary.textdriven.com/2007/12/15/mobile-ministry-musings-the-digital-divide/
That should answer much of what we can do; in terms of what has been done - ChrisitanMobile, Laridian, OliveTree, eBible, YouVersion, Mobile Ministry Magazine, Cccchurch Tech Matters, and others do aspects of utilizing mobile technology in ministry endavors. The key is making sure that the use of the technology is relevant, and fades to the background as the Gospel is preached and lived amongst those whom are using it. Mobiles are only tools, not the ministry in and of itself.
Thanks Antoine.
Bobby - I recommended Antoine stop by Swerve and check out this post. I did so because Antoine knows more about the development a “mobile church” than anyone else I’ve run across. He’s been a vanguard in this undeveloped field for a long time.
Antoine and I both were contacted by the NRB (National Religious Broadcasters) to republish articles we had written and I told them the same thing. I can’t find anyone who is as well-versed as Antoine when it comes to combining the concepts of church + cell phone. We’ll hear a lot more from him in the future.
I am currently running a service for the church to help expand & also deliver a personal message fromt the Church’s Pastor everyday. It is called MOBILE SERMONS!!! Mobile Sermons is the new way that a Pastor can have a immediate effect on thier constituents lives, the Pastor can now deliver an up-lifting message WITHOUT the member having to be physically in the same area. Please view our website at http://www.MOBILESERMONS.org, if you have any questionsplease do not hesitate to email me at SermonSoldier@hotmail.com. Thanks & GOD Bless.
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