Over the last few months I have been following people on Twitter who have been part of Lifechurch.tv and their online church experience.

When I first had heard about it I thought, “Church online? Not sure how that would work.” I didn’t think too much about it and didn’t have anything negative to say about it as I never experienced it for myself. I didn’t have much interest to be honest because I didn’t think it would be all that good. “So I get to watch a preacher on video while chatting with some people. What’s the point really?”

I kept seeing people discussing it on Twitter and finally one day I decided to take a look. I did so in part because Lifechurch was teaching about Elijah and our own church was in the middle of a series about Elijah. Brandon Donaldson was doing the preaching and it was for the first time that I finally saw why people have such a passion for this ministry.

This wasn’t a simple video and a chat room. It was a truly interactive experience. They had a time of worship (a good fast Internet connection is necessity to enjoy the experience because music with lag time is no fun) and then announcements like any other church. The chat room was not just a free for all place. There are committed volunteers there ready to interact, answer questions and provide guidance. If a person needs more intimate prayer time, there is a place people can click and interact with a person one on one.

The messages are great with printable sermon notes. If the chat room and other things get distracting at all, one can easily go full screen to pay attention just to the message. Like any other church, Lifechurch.tv does ask for donations and makes it easy to give. At any time you can see how many countries around the world are tuned in at any given moment. They’ve even developed a tool for the chat room that allows people from different countries to chat in their own language and have it translated to the language another person is using. It is obvious the people behind this project worked very hard at being able to allow a person to experience as much of a true church experience as they can.

It isn’t only the church experience as well. If you click over to this page you can read their blog, and also find out about small groups (lifegroups), missions, volunteer opportunities and more.

One thing I don’t believe is that the online church experience is the only experience people should encounter (and I’ve seen nothing from the good people at Lifechurch.tv expressing the notion that church online can replace the traditional church). Nothing can replace the true brick and mortar church and the personal experience one gains from it in all facets of the church experience. But online church has a place in our world. Here are some benefits I think it brings:

1. It allows those interested in Jesus to experience it anonymously. People are nervous sometimes about walking into a church for the first time. It can be intimidating especially if they’re alone.

2. There are those who have physical disabilities and it makes it hard for them to leave the home. Rather than just watching somebody preaching on television, this gives them a chance to interact with others.

3. People can always learn more. Because church online at Lifechurch.tv has such a broad schedule, the opportunity to go to church and get some study time in — even if you’ve already been to church — is there and with plenty of times available.

4. It provides people with the opportunity to connect with people from all over the world. How cool is it to know that you can discuss a sermon you just watched with somebody 6000 miles away who saw the same thing?

There are people who have strong reservations about the online church. I think those reservations are misguided in that people think it is an attempt to replace the traditional church. It’s not. It’s merely a new way, using the technology we have to introduce the experience of church to people in a different way and to provide the church experience for those who may not be able to attend the traditional church.

It’s a great thing and I’m glad I clicked over to experience it.

If you have a Twitter account, here are a few people you want to follow who can help and answer questions if you have them:

Tony Steward – He’s the Online Community Pastor for Lifechurch.tv
Amanda Sims & Kim Thompson – Both volunteer for the church online experience.