New CIS communications team launches website, vlog

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Ukraine, CIS Field

For Zee Kleshchar, communications is a ministry of connecting. Effectively connecting Nazarenes who are hours and days apart is critical to maintaining unity and encouragement on a large, spread-out field like the Commonwealth of Independent States, where Kleshchar is the new communications coordinator.

In December, she met with her new teammates — Joseph and Ree Sumi, as well as Regional Communications Coordinator Dennis Mohn — to lay out objectives, goals, and to discuss ideas to support the field.

"Just like no man is an island, [the] church is the same way," Kleshchar said via Skype. "While it is easy and great to keep in touch with people at the local church, when you see a bigger picture through newsletters and websites and other means of communication, it is a blessing. I love to know what is going on in other churches because then I know what God is doing there and it gives me hope for our church."

The team set four objectives for their new ministry:

• Inform — Share the news of what God is doing; target audience is the general Nazarene lay person
• Report — Share the news of what God is doing; target audience is pastors and leaders
• Equip — Education, primarily for pastors and leaders
• Proclaim — Sharing the gospel with all people

The team plans to start a video blog — or vlog — in April to minister to youth and young adults. A host will answer questions young people may have, such as "What should I do if people in my class are teasing me for being a Christian?" and illustrate the answers with personal stories.

"While vlog in no way should cancel the direct talks, sometimes it is hard to admit even to yourself that you have [a certain] question or worry — and even scarier to admit it to someone who is your leader," Kleshchar said.

The first vlog will be hosted in the Ukraine, but the team plans to show leaders in other CIS countries how to start vlogs of their own. A second vlog may be started in Russia.

The team will also start a Facebook page to unite and inform the CIS Field youth and to post the vlogs.

"In these digital times, it is essential that we make professional use of social media," Mohn said. "Therefore I am thrilled about the video blog. It will be a fantastic tool to proclaim the gospel to all generations. Communications is all about finding the means how people want to be communicated to. They found a way and I am sure it will bear fruit."

The CIS Field website is in the final stages of development and is set to go live in March. The existing website for the CIS Field Partnership will remain in place, still geared toward compassionate ministries and recruiting volunteer teams for work trips, primarily from the U.S.

The team hopes to use the new website to direct pastors to resources such as theology books translated into Russian, as well as opportunities for further education.

"If we're talking about establishing means of communication between pastors, it can also help them to share their needs with each other," Kleshchar said. "Therefore, I hope that by stimulating communication between pastors, they can help each other out. Some are located very close to each other, so knowing the need, they can help."
--Church of the Nazarene Eurasia Region

 

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