The Christian Gamers Alliance and the larger Christian gaming community is many things to many people. Our communities are connecting points where people make new friends, play games with old friends, encourage fellow Christians, glorify Christ in an even larger community (gamers) largely hostile to the Christian faith and moral absolutes, and supplement their involvement and attendance at local churches.
I'm quick to remind people the Christian Gamers Alliance, Tribe of Judah, and other CGA affiliates were never intended to serve as a substitute for joining and getting involved in a local church. I have always viewed our communities as supplements for those with church homes or bridges to those currently seeking a church home.
Perhaps the clearest way to explain my vision for the Alliance and the larger Christian gaming community is to compare it to a church lobby: A pastor does not preach sermons in the lobby; rather, church members meet and fellowship with one another in the lobby before and after service.
In the context of those seeking a church home, the lobby serves as a segue between the outside world and the church auditorium. Similarly, I want the Christian Gamers Alliance community to serve as a place where Christians not currently attending a local church have an opportunity to "warm up" to the idea of attending a local church.
My vision explains why Abba San's recent and current threads on local church attendance and involvement are so important to our community.
I hope my vision also clarifies our purpose, what the Alliance community is and (perhaps just as important) is not, and my passion as President of the CGA.
I believe our community has a firm grasp on what I loosely call "passive" ministry--creating a welcoming environment for Christians of various denominations and backgrounds to gather together, united first by a common faith and secondly by a common interest. I believe the community we've created is also welcoming to non-Christians interested in Christianity but still hesitant to take the next step.
It is my plan to explore more "active" ministries in the near future. As stated in other threads, I'm not really the sort of person who feels comfortable approaching a complete stranger and asking them where they think they would go if they died tonight. (It is not my intention to say such direct methods are invalid; I'm simply stating a personal preference.) While I imagine "active" ministries taking a more direct approach, we would continue using "passive" methods as well. ("Passive" is a misnomer as it actually takes a great deal of work on the part of many to develop and maintain a community like ours; I use the word "passive" only to contrast it with the as-of-yet vague "active" ministries I have in mind.)
I don't know if I'm clearly communicating my intent, but I wanted to share my heart and vision for the Alliance so there is no room for misunderstanding.
I'm also aware that some community members simply want to log in, play games with other Christians, and log off when done. There's a place for those Christians as well; our community is built to make a place for Christian gamers with varying levels of involvement.
TL;DR version: The Christian Gamers Alliance isn't a church; it's a supplement to church. The community we've built is (in my opinion) awesome, but I'm wanting to expand into more outgoing ministries while maintaining what we have already. I don't know exactly what the new, more outgoing ministries will look like, but I'll need Christian men and women of character to help make them happen.
I'm quick to remind people the Christian Gamers Alliance, Tribe of Judah, and other CGA affiliates were never intended to serve as a substitute for joining and getting involved in a local church. I have always viewed our communities as supplements for those with church homes or bridges to those currently seeking a church home.
Perhaps the clearest way to explain my vision for the Alliance and the larger Christian gaming community is to compare it to a church lobby: A pastor does not preach sermons in the lobby; rather, church members meet and fellowship with one another in the lobby before and after service.
In the context of those seeking a church home, the lobby serves as a segue between the outside world and the church auditorium. Similarly, I want the Christian Gamers Alliance community to serve as a place where Christians not currently attending a local church have an opportunity to "warm up" to the idea of attending a local church.
My vision explains why Abba San's recent and current threads on local church attendance and involvement are so important to our community.
I hope my vision also clarifies our purpose, what the Alliance community is and (perhaps just as important) is not, and my passion as President of the CGA.
I believe our community has a firm grasp on what I loosely call "passive" ministry--creating a welcoming environment for Christians of various denominations and backgrounds to gather together, united first by a common faith and secondly by a common interest. I believe the community we've created is also welcoming to non-Christians interested in Christianity but still hesitant to take the next step.
It is my plan to explore more "active" ministries in the near future. As stated in other threads, I'm not really the sort of person who feels comfortable approaching a complete stranger and asking them where they think they would go if they died tonight. (It is not my intention to say such direct methods are invalid; I'm simply stating a personal preference.) While I imagine "active" ministries taking a more direct approach, we would continue using "passive" methods as well. ("Passive" is a misnomer as it actually takes a great deal of work on the part of many to develop and maintain a community like ours; I use the word "passive" only to contrast it with the as-of-yet vague "active" ministries I have in mind.)
I don't know if I'm clearly communicating my intent, but I wanted to share my heart and vision for the Alliance so there is no room for misunderstanding.
I'm also aware that some community members simply want to log in, play games with other Christians, and log off when done. There's a place for those Christians as well; our community is built to make a place for Christian gamers with varying levels of involvement.
TL;DR version: The Christian Gamers Alliance isn't a church; it's a supplement to church. The community we've built is (in my opinion) awesome, but I'm wanting to expand into more outgoing ministries while maintaining what we have already. I don't know exactly what the new, more outgoing ministries will look like, but I'll need Christian men and women of character to help make them happen.
I have also been praying for several months now and how I could better use the internet from my end to help spread the word, through studies, outreach, etc...so I will partner with you Tek in prayer and we can see what God has in store. 
