Toward the end of June I did some thinking about the future of Spirit Blade Productions and Christian Geek Central in specific. I settled on some conclusions that, while not entirely new ideas to me, were still considerable game-changers regarding how Christian Geek Central will move forward.
Since the fall of 2006, Spirit Blade Productions has been largely a solo effort. My wife does the book-keeping for our taxes, but everything else pretty much gets done by me. It's not ideal, but I've accepted it. After all, I'm doing something that, monetarily speaking, isn't the most sought after occupation. So asking others to join me out on the limb and invest without financial return has never really been an option I've considered. And none of that has really changed.
But Christian Geek Central is a different story. It's an endeavor produced and supported by the resources of Spirit Blade Productions, but one that will never be realized if I am the only one pushing it forward. From the beginning I envisioned CGC as something FOR a growing community. But I'm unavoidably concluding that it must also be BY that community.
Fulfilling the vision of Christian Geek Central to equip, encourage and inspire Christian geeks to live more and more for Christ is an ambitious vision that requires efforts far outside of my areas of strength. Up until now I have spent much of my time climbing up a mountain to achieve relatively little through a huge amount of effort. I am one part of the Body of Christ but I've been trying to do the jobs of several other parts. Jobs I'm simply not made to do effectively. And by trying to be these other "body parts", I've lost opportunities to serve God in the areas I am most effective in.
So at this point, although I am still 100% committed to the vision of Christian Geek Central, I'm equally convinced it is meant to be realized by a group of people, not just myself. And with that in mind I've posted a list of several open positions I would like to fill at Christian Geek Central, which together will form an administrative leadership team to take the vision forward.
My plan is to lead that team, providing the foundational vision and philosophical grounding for Christian Geek Central. But the rest of what Christian Geek Central will become will largely depend on the ideas and passions of those who come alongside me to help lead it.
I'd greatly encourage you to check out the description of open positions and contact me if you are interested or have any questions.
I've also had some thoughts for those of you who may not feel drawn to apply for one of those positions. I suspect that God is currently taking our community through a season of growth. By that I don't mean numbers, but maturity. Oftentimes, churches that grow too quickly can fall apart because they do not have a solid core of people to provide stability and consistency for those suddenly joining. With more people in a community must come more leaders. Maybe not those in official leadership positions, but those who are welcoming or friendly, supportive or discerning, insightful or knowledgeable... the list goes on. If you're at a healthy church you've probably met one or more people who aren't in leadership, but are consistently there and consistently provide something valuable to you.
I want to be clear that I don't view Christian Geek Central as a replacement for the local church. But there are things common to a healthy local church I'd like to see develop at Christian Geek Central. We've got a small core of maturing believers who are dedicated to Christ and each other. And for CGC to move forward that core will need to develop even more. A growing core of people who enjoy being a part of the community, but also recognize it as more than recreation. People who see their involvement at Christian Geek Central, whatever it may look like, as a purposeful way to grow, be encouraged, and facilitate spiritual growth and encouragement for others.
My vision for Christian Geek Central is for a community increasingly filled with people who are gung-ho, hard core geeks who also highly regard scripture and apply it to their lives well. A community that doesn't judgmentally look for trouble in the geek world or forget how to enjoy geek entertainment, but that also doesn't downplay or compromise portions of the Bible or the Christian faith to avoid conflict or the label of "legalism".
It's a crazy kind of fine line to try and walk, requiring constant discernment. Constant "truth seeking". I may be leading the battle cry at Christian Geek Central, but I'm in need of growth here as much as anybody. So I need a site like Christian Geek Central just as much as I want to provide it for countless other geeks.
The number of Christians online engaging in geek culture on behalf of Christ is growing. But as I've combed the internet in search of sites to link to or partner with at Christian Geek Central, I've noticed a disappointing trend. "Christian Geek" sites, podcasts, etc. almost always endeavor to blend faith with the geek lifestyle somehow. But they often seem to emphasize one over the other in an unhealthy way.
I don't mean to discount "stealth ministry" outreach sites that focus primarily on geekery and avoid being "preachy". I think those sites, aimed at unbelievers or nominal Christians, are great and greatly needed. I'm talking about how Christian Geek sites handle truth, however much of it they may be presenting.
Many sites either emphasize biblical truth and only casually or hesitantly embrace the geek lifestyle or (far more often) emphasize the geek lifestyle and neglect discernment of truth, resulting in the acceptance of ideas and practices that are harmful to the Christian life. This is sad in either case because, despite their stated goals, they are subtly, unintentionally arguing against the idea that scripture and geekery are compatible.
I want Christian Geek Central to not only be a place that SAYS we can fully embrace both faith and geekery, but practices that and demonstrates, by our lives, by our handling of scripture, what that looks like day to day. Far more than a site where Christian geeks can feel welcome. A site where Christian geeks will be equipped, encouraged and inspired to live more and more for the Creator of Creativity, the God of the Universe.
If you'd like to be a part of that vision, you should know that it can't move forward without you and others like you. I'd invite you again to check out the description of Open Positions at Christian Geek Central, and then hop over to our forums, introduce yourself if you haven't yet, and strike up some conversation. As small as it may sound, connecting with each other is where it all begins.
-Paeter Frandsen
