God's Call Comes by Cellphone
COLUMN ONE - By Stephanie Simon - Times Staff Writer - Published May 16, 2006
Bible verses on a BlackBerry, sermons on an MP3 -- an explosion in digitalized spirituality is making true believers of online e-vangelists.

A recent national poll found just 17% of adults view the local church as essential for developing faith.

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"At first blush, it may seem a little peculiar to connect with God on your cellphone," said Christopher Chisholm, a TV-executive-turned-digital-evangelist. He recently helped launch FaithMobile, a service that will send a daily Bible verse to your cellphone for $5.99 a month.

In this harried age, he asks, how else are you going to "get in touch with the Word?"

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Heres a new twist on free sites

An evangelical church in Granger, Ind., put up billboards a few months back showing a rumpled bed, entwined feet and the address www.mylamesexlife.com. That site linked to an artsy mini-movie with shots of a seedy motel and a man sunk in morning-after regret.

http://www.skepticrant.com/uploaded_images/pureSex.jpg"Is your sex life a bore? A chore? … Why does it seem like everyone else is having all the fun?" the text asked. As the movie ended, viewers for the first time saw the logo of Granger Community Church, which was sponsoring five weeks of sermons on sex, lust and porn. The tagline: "We're not afraid to talk about it."

Pastor Mark Beeson credits the campaign with boosting attendance 70% the week he gave a sermon entitled "The Greatest Sex You'll Ever Have." Six weeks after the series ended, weekly church attendance still topped 6,000, up from 5,000 before the ad campaign.

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Forget video on demand heres GOD...God on Demand

...[he] gathered his wife and their three kids, still in their pajamas, to worship in front of a flat-screen computer monitor in their home.

The only thing they missed were the free Krispy Kreme doughnuts at the church door.

"It was amazing," Vallandingham said. "My wife even said, 'Church doesn't get better than this.' "

Nineteen virtual congregants were so moved by the service, they clicked an icon to indicate they were accepting Christ, or being "born again."

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