Three Great Websites for Online Worship

by Reba Collins

Sometimes, I don’t go to church. Not out of protest or lethargy, but because I’m traveling, one of the kids is sick, or life interferes with my schedule in some other way. Recently, I’ve missed Sunday morning church due to some knee surgery. But, thanks to my wonderfully connected computer, I’ve worshipped with folks in Atlanta, Kansas City, and southern California via live streaming.

Frankly, I can see why some people make this stay-at-home-worship experience their preferred method. It’s so easy and convenient. You don’t have to get dressed, you don’t have to coordinate four other morning schedules to leave your house on time, you can pretty much worship any time anywhere you want, and you don’t have to stand to sing for long periods of time. 

The downside, of course, is that you don’t get to gather and worship with other people. You don’t get to see people who genuinely care how your week’s gone or who are excited to catch up on what’s new in your life. Though not highly interactive from a person-to-person perspective, online worship experience can be interactive in other ways.  When the church sees online worship as an intentional connection point and not just an afterthought, they will provide you with ways to link and communicate with them and others through live texting, Twitter, and Facebook discussions. These connection points make online worship more than a one-way exchange.

 

Now many people think only the larger megachurches live stream, but that’s no longer the case because the cost of technology has come way down. Smaller churches have discovered that they can stream their services through their Websites. And, while the quality and production values may not be the same, smaller churches can share their messages and experiences with you.

But yeah, the biggest and best resourced churches tend to do it better than the rest with fewer delays in streaming or dropped connections. To jump start your own live streaming experience, I’ll give you my top three favorites to check out.

When I can’t make it to my church, these are my favorite go to sites and here’s why: 

• North Point Community Church – (http://northpointonline.tv/). With AV technology that’s better than CNN’s, you experience the highest quality possible for worshipping in the moment. You get interactive Twitter feeds and iTunes links to download the worship music by the original artist. But the main reason this is one of my favorite sites is you can vet the sermon topic ahead of time and be guaranteed a great delivery of the message and content from highly skilled communicators in a one-hour service. When I want to understand better the context and life-application principles of a piece of scripture, this is where I go. One downside to this site is that they don’t offer as many rebroadcasts as some other sites. But tune in early for a real treat called “The 10 Before.” This short segment is THE BEST worship announcement approach I’ve seen, plus you’re greeted warmly by an online worship host just prior to the beginning of the service. North Point’s main Website (http://northpoint.org), also houses previous worship messages without the full-service options.

• The Church of the Resurrection United Methodist Church (COR) – (http://www.rezonline.org/). COR offers two live-streams on Sunday, one morning and one late afternoon, and a whole bunch of rebroadcasts throughout the week. I like to worship online here because I can choose my worship style – traditional or contemporary/praise. Rezonline.org also offers a live twitter feed and an online tool for you to take notes during the worship experience. I often make this my second home for worship because many issues of our faith are not black and white and very few pastors do as good of a job of exploring the grey areas as Senior Pastor Adam Hamilton. Like North Point Community Church, COR’s main website (http://www.cor.org/), houses a sermon archives along with a weekly Grow, Pray, and Study (GPS) Guide for your mid-week spiritual growth plan. 

• Saddleback Church – (http://www.saddleback.com/onlinecampus/) This international mega-multi-site church offers an online campus worship service almost every hour according to online pastor, Jay Kranda. To help guests navigate their online experience, Saddleback provides a 1 ½ minute video introduction. Just click on the “New Here” button above the screen. What makes this site another of my favorites is the frequency of online worship opportunities, the easy-to-access sermon outlines, and the corresponding small group follow-up video. Saddleback’s reputation for intentional discipleship and getting people connected extends to their online community and sets the gold standard for other churches. When I want to know specifically what the Bible says about an area for life transformation and spiritual growth, I tend to gravitate here. 

My choices may or may not line up with your preferences for any number of reasons. There are lots of good choices and it’s important that you find the online worship experience that best fits you. I’m always looking for new options, too, so let me know where you go online to worship and why. I’d love to check them out.