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Imagine this is the mid-1500s—seventy years after Gutenberg was the first to use moveable type to print the Bible. Over 1,000 print shops have opened throughout Europe. Martin Luther has translated the Bible into the German language and is challenging the church's authority over mediated salvation. Western culture is at a tipping point. Luther and other reformers see power in the new technology of printed media, and they organize to take full advantage of it. We could say the rest is history; however, history has a habit of reinventing itself.

Broadcast media was equally world changing, but the church did not take the lead in this new era as it did during the Reformation. Still, individuals like Billy Graham and Oral Roberts used this new and powerful tool to bring the Gospel to the world on a scale never before imagined. Bill Hybels, attuned to a generation shaped by mass media, was an early pioneer of using a theater venue for church. Some identify this strategy as "seeker sensitive" or "attractional." The fastest growing and largest churches in America follow some variation of this model. Even churches that are more traditional or critical of the seeker strategy have adopted elements of this model.

The digital era brings new challenges. It changes the focus from large-scale, mass appeal to smaller venues with narrower and deeper interests. This change requires different leadership skills, different kinds of facilities, a different approach to preparing the congregation for ministry, and a radically different approach to spending priorities. This does not, however, mean an immediate overhaul.

Becoming digital is as much a mindset as it is technical proficiency. The digital mindset values experimentation, holistic thinking, and boundary-less networking—foreign concepts to those of us raised in the linear, rational world of print or the polished and celebrity world of broadcast. Far from being nameless and faceless, the digital world promotes collaboration and interaction.

Many church administrators I talk to see these changes happening in the business world. Our biggest challenge is busy-ness and our focus on the immediate and often urgent needs of the business at hand. Administrators are tied up making sure the ship stays on course, and pastors, immersed in the weekly preparation for Sunday, lose touch with a changing world.

Everyone works hard to perform their roles, but there is little opportunity to explore and address the implications of such a cultural mega-shift. To add to the challenge, this kind of shift cannot be learned at a conference, read in a book, or willed by leaders. It is counterintuitive to the things that worked well in a print or broadcast environment.

So how can you get up to speed on the new rules of the digital age? Here's what I recommend:

Digital technology levels the playing field and extends boundaries globally. The advantage goes to the agile, networked, and highly cohesive organization. Those who have large infrastructures and hierarchies will be at a disadvantage. To understand more about this concept, read Thomas Friedman's book, The World is Flat.

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