For the past six years, the General Conference has sponsored a symposium on Internet evangelism. Interest in this forum has dramatically grown throughout the world field. Initially, about fifty people met at the General Conference headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland. Last year, more than 100 people from different parts of the world gathered in Denver, Colorado to explore creative ways of communicating the gospel via the worldwide web.
Millions of people look at the Internet as their primary source of information. It is the communication medium of choice for postmodern culture. For this reason, the church must constantly seek innovative ways to take advantage of the possibilities the Internet provides.
The Global Internet Evangelism Network Forum is a gathering of communicators, Internet specialists, and church leaders to explore fresh methods of communicating Biblical truths. The
upcoming forum will be held at The Florida Hotel and Conference Center, Orlando, Florida, and will begin Thursday morning, September 10 and continue through Sabbath afternoon, September 12, 2009. Wednesday evening, September 9, provides an opportunity for all participants to meet over a light meal to network and share experiences. Please note the date has changed.
Please consider adding your spouse or family to your GIEN Forum plans. They will be blessed by the deeply spiritual presentations Friday and Sabbath and have the bonus of relaxing in the Florida sunshine. Additionally, we will make some recommendations for you to choose sightseeing and general tourism both before and after the conference.
Our theme is "DIGITAL BREAD: collaborating - transforming - enriching." It is a new direction in our forum focus and, along with format changes, is the result of attendee feedback and input from the larger Adventist Internet Community. Our hope is to give more content access to all participants, fostering interaction and inspiration.
Plenary sessions and division reports will be designed to stimulate creative thought and imaginative ways of communicating God's message of eternal truth in new ways via the Internet.
We would encourage you to pass on this information to your unions, conferences, and missions. You may desire to select a certain number of delegates to attend, but also encourage lay people to attend. For more information or to register early, please go online to http://gien.adventist.org.
We are confident the next Global Evangelism Internet Network Forum will be much more than a "business as usual event." It will be a catalyst for a new paradigm to reach people for the kingdom in your territory.
We look forward to seeing your division represented at this significant event.
Sincerely,
Mark Finley
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