Cloud Culture by Chuck Giacinto and Bryce Conlan, with a giveaway

The Issue

More than 150 million Americans log on to a social media site every day. Facebook just reached the billion monthly active users mark. Twitter is adding one million accounts every day. And in one day on the Internet, two million blog posts are written, enough posts to fill TIME Magazine for 770 million years. Social media is more than a trend—its redefining communication worldwide. How should Christians respond to this booming trend and what possibilities does it offer for furthering the message of the Gospel?

About the Book

In their new book Cloud Culture: Walking the Walk & Typing the Talk: Christian Living in the Social Media World (Seven Leaf Press, 2012), Chuck Giacinto and Bryce Conlan help believers understand how social media fits into their daily walk with Christ and how it can be a mechanism to serve others.

 In Cloud Culture, Giacinto and Conlan examine social media technologies to see how they fit into a Christian’s life, as they seek to live out Christ’s kingdom on earth, follow Him, and serve others. Less about social media and more about the need to communicate well, Cloud Culture is a book about communication, how to do it better and how Christians can engage the world through the dynamic and ever-evolving world of social media.

 

My review:

 

   This is a book that should interest anyone that is on line, as it has to do with something most of us use: social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, blogging, etc.

 

   It isn't a long book, coming in at just 120 pages, but it is an interesting, informative, and convicting read. The authors have really nailed it in this book. Christians use social networks as much as non-Christians, but how often do we use it for God, and how careful are we in how we use it and what we say.

 

  The idea of the book is not that we have to constantly evangelize and post Christian things on our blogs, facebook, and other such sites. The authors present a great case though that we need to be doing more than we are, and that we can be reaching people in small ways.

 

   One thing they talked about that hit me, is how shallow so many of our friendships are on Facebook. How little we really communicate and get to know people. They pointed out how some people's posts can indicate problems, but all too many of us overlook it instead of trying to really be a friend and reach out to them.

 

  This book isn't a major guilt trip that is going to hit you over the head. The authors don't have that attitude at all. In just 120 pages, they simply present some ideas of how Christians should better use social networking. I enjoyed reading the book, and have to say they have a lot of good things to say that we all need to apply to our on line lives.

 

About the authors:

 

Chuck Giacinto and Bryce Conlan are long-time acquaintances who have lived seemingly divergent lives before tag teaming on this collaboration. Both based in Illinois, Giacinto serves as a worship pastor, music producer, husband and father of three, while the Connecticut-bred/Chicago-transplanted Conlan, also married, works with his video production company Big Swell Media servicing celebrities, authors and politicians. Cloud Culture is their first collaboration.

 

Giveaway:

Courtesy of Side Door Communications, I have one copy of Cloud Culture to give away.

To enter, comment on this post with couple of social networks you use, if any.

I will pick a winner 2 weeks from today on December 12 using Random.org.

 

Cloud Culture is available from Seven Leaf press.

 

Thanks to Debbie from Side Door Communications for the review copy and giveaway copy.