NewSpring Church Blog Archives

Here’s the promised video story of Web Campus volunteer Aaron Cavin, who flew from Oklahoma City to Greenville in May to get baptized after drawing closer to God through the NewSpring Web Campus. He is now a volunteer chat host at our 6 p.m. service.

No matter where you live, you can find great Christ-centered teaching and the support of a loving Christian community on the Web Campus.Share the link. It could change someone’s eternity.

The following blog post was a message sent to Perry about a California family that has seen dramatic life change as a result of group viewing of the Web Campus. These kinds of stories pump me up!

Hey Perry, I wanted to share a testimony with you regarding New Spring from some friends in our home town in Redding, California.  They came to visit us in February and we of course drug them to New Spring - a must on the list while in town.

They seemed to enjoy it but didn’t make too big a deal about it.  I recently found out that they have built their own “sanctuary” - which is basically a tv room with a flat screen and couches where they gather to listen to New Spring every Sunday.  They have also accessed any archives of messages they could get their hands on.  The couple are both near age 40, and have drawn a real following there in California.  They have spread the word of how great New Spring is and now have several other friends and both sets of their parents hooked on the messages as well.  Their teenage children now gather around and invite their friends to listen as well.

Two really awesome things as a result:  their 8 year old daughter got down on her knees during one message with tears streaming down her face and accepted Jesus.  Second, the dad of our friend who is about 65 has been harboring unforgiveness toward his brother for about 9 years and hadn’t spoken to him since.  A recent message about forgiveness wouldn’t leave his mind and he couldn’t sleep all night.  The next day he called his brother and had him over for dinner and forgave him and asked his forgiveness!  How cool is GOD!!!!—Tracy, Anderson, SC.

Are you inspired to hold group viewing of the Web Campus in your home? We’ve got all the information you need here. Want to become an official viewing host to help you draw people to your worship experiences? You can fill out our volunteer application here.

This blog post is from Maryland Web Campus attender Joe Hall, who volunteers as a chat host for our 11:15 a.m. service.

“Last year a knee injury remade what was intended to be a short visit to Baltimore into a year-long recovery as a virtual shut-in amidst a strange and unfamiliar city. NewSpring had been my church home for 4 years, and I badly missed it. Of all my friendships, 99% were through NewSpring, which was suddenly a formidable 565 miles and 10-hour drive away.

NewSpring posts video and audio versions of its services online (via both iTunes and the church’s web site), but welcome as that option might be for keeping in touch and catching up, sitting alone in front of a computer screen to view last Sunday’s message two days after the fact often meant that a good deal of the service’s immediacy … and spiritual impact …often felt diminished or missing.

When I first heard about the Web Campus, I was puzzled. A web campus?  Does that mean an internet church … or something else?  I started wondering how a “web campus” could come close to being the same thing as worshiping “live,” in person … and how a “web campus” would be any different from say, watching Joel Osteen or Reverend Ike on TV, or viewing the NewSpring service via iTunes?

The difference is that unlike watching church on TV, the NewSpring web campus is Interactive. Got questions about what Salvation means?  Need prayer support during a crisis?  Got a question about tithing or volunteering?  Just log into the Chat Room and ask: the answers will be live, immediate and personal.

Interactivity also means that unlike TV, the web campus is building a strong sense of Christian community among believers who might be hundreds, or even thousands, of miles apart.  The web campus makes this possible because online interaction translates to constant opportunities for affirming Christ’s presence, witnessing to nonbelievers and for providing prayerful support and encouragement within the Body.

A web campus isn’t meant to replace or supersede “brick n’ mortar” churches, but with literally hundreds of millions of souls online around the globe representing the planet’s last unexplored mission field, the web campus is the ministry ready and able to go forth … live and worldwide … to make disciples of all nations.

And isn’t that just what Christ commanded?

How has the Web Campus helped you in your walk with Jesus? Drop us a note with text or video to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

This is a video blog from Web Campus Volunteer Coordinator Andrea Berg, who helps us manage the pipeline of applications to join our ministry team and leads our 2 p.m. service. She lives in Boston, and proves that it doesn’t matter where you live, you can play a full part in this body of believers and advance God’s kingdom.

This is a guest blog post from Jen Hall, an online group leader who holds a text-based chat every Wednesday at 8 p.m. EST.

To me, small groups are an essential element of Christian life. They provide friendship, fellowship, support, and accountability. They help us feel like we belong – intimately – in our church community. Participating in small groups has spurred me further in my faith than I would have dared to go alone.

I’ve found over the past couple of months that these same dynamics translate to the online environment. There’s that same mix of people, and the same level of conversation. Instead of connecting after group for coffee, we connect via facebook. We status message instead of text message. We invite others through twitter. Our tools may be different but the dialogue still translates.

Chatting in an online environment is paradoxically similar and dissimilar to face-to-face groups. It’s been my experience that, regardless of the size of a small group, there’s always a diverse mix of people – some are social, others are quiet, some attend weekly, others sporadically, and so forth. There’s a place and a role for everyone. 

Sometimes, it can be difficult to connect (at first) with a group you know only through their chat handles. You might wonder who these people are, what they look like, how they joke around, etc, but after a conversation or two, these things become much more apparent. Facebook fills in the gaps pretty well too. I’ve also found, that for some people, talking in an online environment is easier because the situation negates any fears caused by speaking in front of people or being shy. It’s easier to be more brazen in conversation when you don’t have to stare someone in the face. Given the depth of things we discuss in group, the tool of semi-anonymity has been beneficial. Small groups aren’t so much about a moment that causes life change. They’re more about a collection of moments and experiences and conversations that promote growth and gradual life change.

For me, this online small group has given me a space to voice my struggles and successes, share in the experiences of others, and understand it all in a more spiritually relevant way. And of course, as you might expect, I’ve been able to grow my leadership skills and refine my organizational skills.

I’d encourage any of our web attenders to give participating in online small groups a shot. It’s a great opportunity for growth and fellowship and one of the best ways I know to make the NewSpring experience more personal throughout the week.

Interested in participating in Jen’s text chat group on Wednesdays at 8 p.m. EST? Prefer a video chat small group that meets on Thursdays at 9 p.m. EST? Let us know by filling in this form and we’ll get you plugged in.

Believe it or not, I look forward every Monday to opening my email. So often, there’s a simple note from someone who has been touched by the Web Campus and wants to share just a little of why.

Here are three snippets that might encourage you as they’ve encouraged me. In all cases, it’s clear that the Web Campus isn’t just a “virtual ministry,” but part of our church’s ability to wrap its arms around people no matter where or how they are connected to NewSpring.

“Back in March, I was introduced to NewSpring by a dear friend and co-worker who attends the Anderson campus.  I have been on line with you every week since then, either live or via archive, whichever my work schedule will permit.  WOW…I just wanted to thank you for the blessing the Web campus has been in my home, and especially in my heart.  Hopefully, I will be able to attend the Anderson campus soon.  My friend says that if I love the Web campus so, I’ll really have my socks knocked off in Anderson ... looking forward to that.  Anyway, I just wanted to thank you and all of NewSpring for having the Web campus available”—Robin, Greenwood, SC.

“First of all, I just want to let you and everyone at NS know that the web campus was an incredible experience for me! I loved how not only could I listen to the service, but that I could communicate with other believers via chat. Last Sunday was an experience like none other for me. Secondly, the Live Prayer Ministry was incredibly touching. I was just expecting to talk with someone and have them pray, but what i GOT was the opportunity to talk to a Christian Counselor-in-training who sent me some amazing notes from an inspirational book she is writing. We have spoken and she has been very uplifting and encouraging ... She seems very genuine and empathetic towards people with emotional struggles”—Emily, Greenville, SC

“First, I want to tell you how much I absolutely LOVE Newspring! I started watching the Beautiful series in February and have been hooked ever since. This church has challenged me in unbelievable ways when it comes to my relationship with Christ, and I will probably faithfully watch the sermons online for a long time to come. I just graduated from college in May, and to tell you the truth, I have this semi-irrational desire to just up and move down to South Carolina and become a member of one of the campuses.”—Sarah, Monroeville, PA.

Do you love the Web Campus? We’d love to hear from you. Drop me a line at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) with text or video describing your experience, and we’ll post it here.

More than 70 volunteers helped pack everything needed for the exciting transition to the new Greenville location at the Carolina First Center. Doors were taken off their hinges, children’s toys were packed up and trucks were loaded Sunday after the 11:15 service. In our new space, we’ll have room for 3,000 adults in each service, and with KidSpring in full effect, we’ll also have more than enough room to encourage and entertain your kids with age appropriate activities and worship services.

God is doing some awesome things here at NewSpring. Please join us this Sunday at 9:15 or 11:15 as we celebrate our first Sunday together in our new digs.

This is a guest post from Shannon La France, who had been invited to the NewSpring Web Campus by attender Tammy Johnson, sharing what the Web Campus has meant to her faith life.

It started with a tweet on a Sunday morning inviting me to attend the Web Campus. It started with the search for a deeper connection beyond what I had been experiencing at a brick and mortar place of worship. Now the Lord is using me to invite others to experience his love right where they are.

Let’s get personal. Here’s what I am on any given day Sunday:

A wife to an unsaved, abusive spouse … not physical, but verbal, you know the kind, controlling! Isolated.

A mother of four children, ages 16,13, 6, 2.

An educated individual. Well read, with two degrees behind her name.

A business relations team leader for a major-market, faith-based radio station in the Chicago market.

An only child from a broken marriage with an alcoholic father.

A daughter to an amazing mother whose start was just like mine.

A 40-something with several major health issues that can’t be detected at first glance: chronic fatigue syndrome, ADD and depression. 

Where’s the hope?

If your reading this, your looking at it: A computer screen that knows no boundaries or any of the stuff listed above that would paint you as someone who can’t be used for Christ.

I was depleted worn out and yearning to connect in my life. Lonely. Longing to share with others who were leaning & looking up to their heavenly Father to save them in the midst of their circumstances. 

On the Web Campus, you can come as you are right where you are, with all your baggage. We can’t see it. And quite frankly, we don’t care! Let your hands hit the keyboard and come on in! 

if you’ve adopted the NewSpring Web Campus as your home, we’d love to hear your story of how it has improved your walk with Jesus. Send text or video to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

This Sunday, June 14, our Greenville campus will open in a new location. We’ll offer two identical services and the space for 3,000 people at each. So, bring your friends, neighbors, family and that guy you met the other day at the gym. Service times are 9:15am and 11:15am. For driving directions and more info, go here.

We received this salvation story in an email from Web Campus attender Ashley Anderson of Dahlonega, Ga.

It’s so encouraging to see how the technology that God made for his purpose is proving that the word of God never returns empty.

In the last few years God has been dealing with me, as my nanny would say, “to bring me closer to him.” My grandma, 75, outlived all three of her children and husband, and not once asked God “why?” which amazed me. When her last child (my Dad) died of cancer at the age of 49, she never once got mad at God but reminded me of Job and his story, which at the time I had never read. ... She felt that it was her purpose to see that all he children found the right road to go home. Then my nanny died three weeks after my dad, and suddenly, i felt all alone in the world. ... With my parents being divorced when i was young ... I had to plan a funnel from my grandma at the age of 26.

Three months after that I lost my job at a bank as a customer service specialist, i found a job as a 911 communications officer in Lumpkin County. This is when i was introduced to you and [Newspring] Church. On the Sundays that we work (12 Hour shifts), we are able to have church through your online church, and my world has been changed. I HAVE BEEN SAVED!!! AND REBORN I just wanted you to know that your church as a whole has touched me.”

if you are a Web Campus attender, or if you’ve just heard about our web ministry, we hope this story encourages you to continue inviting people to experience NewSpring through the Web Campus. It could change someone’s eternity, just as did Ashely’s.

Do you have a story like that? We’d love to hear it. Send your story in text or video to .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). We’ll publish it here.