Tour of Christian.org

Christian.org...Doing Life Together!

Christian.org is a great place to:

  • Connect your existing group on-line - great for church small groups, Sunday school classes, or Bible study groups.  There are many features to facilitate discussion, communication, and collaboration so everyone in your group can stay connected throughout the week.
  • Learn the Bible - grow spirtitually by being a part of a Bible disussion group and reading devotionals and Christian articles.
  • Discuss Christian Topics - there are discussion groups on a variety of topics, and many are open for any member to join.  If you can't find a group on a topic you are interested in, you can start a group.
  • Start Your On-Line Ministry - this is a place where the Body of Christ ministers to one another.  Get active and be a "doer of the Word" by joining in on group discussions, sharing what God is doing in your life in groups and blog posts, answering others' questions, and praying for other Christian.org members.
  • Create On-line Community for Your Ministry - if you are part of an existing non-profit ministry, a group on Christian.org will complement your ministry website and is a great place to share about your ministry with a Christian audience, discuss topics related to your ministry's purpose, and invite people to join your cause.
  • Share Your Journey - this is not only a place for you to learn and grow, but to share your journey with others.  Your blog posts will be featured on your own Christian.org profile, and your friends can subscribe to your blog and see your latest posts in their Dashboard.  You can also share your blog posts and group discussions on Facebook and Twitter.

Christian.org is a community that is integrated with Facebook in several ways, but serves a much different purpose than Facebook...

Facebook = My Friends

Facebook is all about keeping up with what your friends are doing, and is a great way to stay connected with friends near and far. 

Christian.org = My Christian Journey

Christian.org is not about friends as much as it is about growing in your Christian walk, getting deeper in discussing the Bible and Christian topics, and sharing your spiritual journey with others.

 

Here are a few ways to get started...

Joining Groups

There are many groups to choose from on Christian.org, or you can start your own!  Groups can be Open to the public (any Christian.org member can join) or Private (by invitation only - normally for existing groups like a church Sunday School class).

Some suggested Open groups that you can join:

Our Christian Community - for feedback and imput on Christian.org and growing the community

What the Bible Says About...  - a general discussion group on Bible topics

HHS Radio - Jeff Brodrick is back on the air with the HHS Radio show.  Join this group to connect with Jeff and other listeners.
 

Completing Your Profile

Take a couple of minutes and share a little more about yourself.

On the top menu, go to "My Stuff" and click "My Profile" to see your Christian.org profile.   When you joined, you only needed to complete your First Name, Last Name, and pick a Username.  You provided your email address too, but that is keep private and not displayed on your profile.

At the least, you'll probably want to add a picture and fill in the "About Me" info.  Click on the "Edit" tab, and you will see several sub-links underneath:

Account - here you can update your e-mail address, change your password, change user preferences, and upload a photo of yourself (recommended).  There is also a "Contact Form" option which is unchecked by default, but check it on if you want to enable a contact form to allow other Christian.org members to send you a message (which is sent to your email address, but does not show them your email address).

Profile Info - complete the About Me field (recommended) to tell others a little about you.  This is shown prominently on your profile page.

Other Info -    (optional) complete this info only if you would like to share more about yourself.  This info is only displayed if a user clicks on "Read More About" link on your profile.

Twitter Account - (optional) if you use Twitter, you can provide your Twitter account info and your recent tweets will show for others on your Christian.org profile, plus you'll have the option to tweet any blog posts or other content you create on Christian.org to your Twitter stream each time you post.  Recommended for writers and frequent Christian.org bloggers.

 

Starting Your Blog

It is easy to start your Christian.org blog and share it with others.  From any group page, click "Create Blog Post" and your blog entry will show up in that group AND on your user profile at the same time.  For more info, see our Blogging FAQs
 

Subscribing to Favorite Writers

When you read an article or find a writer you like, there is a link at the bottom of the article (or on the writer's profile) to "subscribe" to that writer and start seeing their articles in your Dashboard.  Note that it gives you the option for "Email" or "Web" - choose web to have them show up in your Dashboard, or Email if you want to receive an email alert when new content is posted.  You can change this setting at any time.

When you join a group, you are also subscribed to posts in that group (again, note the "Email" or "Web" option). 

Your "My Content" section is also a great place to track the latest posts in your groups and content by writers you have subscribed to.  In "My Content" the first tab "My unread" shows items you haven't read yes, and you can clear these off of this tab after you have read them (or if you want to skip them).
 

Using Your Dashboard and Bookmarking

Once you have joined some groups, participated in discussions and subscribed to some writers, you will start to see your "Dashboard" be a very useful tool to keep up with the groups, discussions, and topics that are most interesting to you. 

When you read an article that you would like to refer back to later, click the "Bookmark" link at the bottom of the article.  This will add it to your "My Bookmarks" section.

 

That's plenty to start!  Have a look around, and enjoy Christian.org!

If you have any questions or want to make a suggestion, join the group Our Christian Community and someone in the community will be happy to help!