Christian.com to Relaunch as the Premiere Christian Community On-line

June 25th, 2008 Lee Posted in Christian Web Network, Christian.com, Social Networking, Web 2.0, Web Ministry No Comments »

Normally I am going to keep my company blog (at blog.christian.com) and this blog separate, but this announcement is a big one, so I am adding it here as well.

We just announced that we are going to merge recently acquired sites - HisHolySpace.com and FaithItUp.com - to become the starting place of the new Christian.com social networking community.

His Holy Space

FaithitUp Christian.com

If you are not already a part of a Christian social network, please consider joining HisHolySpace.com…soon to be part of the new Christian.com!

Here is the announcement…

It is with great pleasure that I am announcing something that has been several years in the making, and has already involved thousands of hours of hard work and prayer by myself and many others.

In some ways the journey for me started back in the mid-90’s, but in other ways it is only now beginning. I envisioned an on-line Christian community, a “social network”, many years before MySpace or Facebook were in existence. Finally many years later, in 2008, we are getting ready to finally launch Christian.com, and my goal for the site is ambitious yet simple…to build the best Christian social network in the world.

But not just a social network. The site should be more than a “Christian Myspace” or a “Christian Facebook”. We can do better than a copy-cat of a secular site, and the vision is much bigger than that. Christians need something special on-line, something unique, something…God-ordained. And it has to be something that the community builds- not just me. I am committed to the community - the site members who want to be a part of this vision - coming together and being a part of designing and building Christian.com. It will not happen overnight, and will take some time and a lot of changes and improvements before we get it right. But I think the outcome of the process will be something truly unique in Christian history- a community of millions of Christians worldwide “linked in Jesus” and growing together in spiritual maturity and in love for Christ and for one another.

I hope that you, too will catch a vision of what is possible in the days and years to come…

Imagine a world-wide community of millions of believers, encouraging one another, praying for one another, and engaging in the journey of life together…

Imagine a place that a young believer can come and be walked through a simple process of discipleship, as they grow in their knowledge of God’s Word and in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ…

Imagine a site where each member of the Body of Christ is doing their part…”he who teaches, let him teach; he who exhorts, in exhortation…” Where we are Christ’s eyes seeing people for what they can be in Christ, we are Christ’s arms open wide for the hurting, and we are Christ’s legs running to the prodigal son who has returned…

Imagine a place where unbelievers can come, wondering if they will find hypocrites, division, and condemnation, but instead are pleasantly surprised to find people filled with God’s love, diverse yet working together in unity, and are drawn in by seeing “something different about these people”…

Christian.com is arguably the best Christian domain name in the world, and is something I am honored to be entrusted with. Having the opportunity to purchase the domain was nothing short of a miracle, and God’s provision of resources has been miraculous as well to bring us to this point over the last several years. Many have come alongside to help, and we believe that together we can make Christian.com not only the best Christian domain name, but the best on-line Christian community in the world!

So that is a little about the vision for the future…so how do we get there? That is the question this blog will explore and report on over the next days, months, and years.

So welcome to HisHolySpace.com…soon to be the new Christian.com…and to the journey of building a global community of Christians unlike any other!

God bless,

Lee Raney
Founder and President
Christian.com

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FaithItUp Joins Christian Web Network

May 23rd, 2008 Lee Posted in Christian Web Network, Social Networking 3 Comments »

We are wrapping the acquistion of FaithItUp.com

FaithItUp Christian Social Network

The site is also celebrating its one-year anniversary this month.  Here is our press release going out on Tuesday…

Social Network FaithItUp is the Place for Christian Friends

Fast-Growing Site Connects Christian Music Artists and Fans

 

DALLAS, May 27, 2008 – Social networking site FaithItUp.com is a lot like MySpace and Facebook, but serves the niche market of Christians seeking friendship and community on-line.  The website is celebrating its one-year anniversary this month, and has quickly grown to over 11,000 members.

 

The site has a lot to offer Christians, including blogging, chat, video sharing, games, and of course, making new friends.  One of the most popular features of the site is the “points game”.  By inviting friends and contributing on the site, members can earn points and play a game for the chance to win prizes such as Best Buy gift cards and an iPod Nano.

 

Over 800 Christian music artists are also on the site, connecting with their fans and finding new ones.  Music genres include Gospel, R&B, Rap, Rock, Latin, Praise & Worship, and Contemporary Christian.  Many of the artist’s profiles include a media player, allowing site members to listen to a sampling of the artist’s music on-line.  Each month there is a different featured music artist, as well as a frequent “Latin Artist in the Spotlight.”

 

The site membership is growing rapidly, and all Christians age 13 or older are invited to join. One member Joyce says, “I love it because it is very encouraging. I hope that more and more Christians will continue to come and continue to make it a great place to be.”

 

Site founder Manny Ramos attributes much of the site’s success in the first year to the hard work the members put into the site to get the word out.  Manny says, “At FaithItUp I have found some very genuine Christians who were looking and helping others deepen their relationship with our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ”.  The site’s new administrator, Lee Raney, is excited about the future for the site.  “If FaithItUp were a church that had grown to 11,000 members in the first year, it would be big news nationwide,” Raney observes.  “Of course we are not a church in the true sense, but as a community of Christians ministering to one another, serving one another, and doing life together, we can all grow in our Christian walk a little each day.”

 

In looking back at the success of the first year, FaithItUp is also looking forward to a bright future.  Additional funds are being invested in the site, and plans are underway for a site upgrade including new site features and some partnerships that will help the site keep pace with the ever-changing trends in social networking.  “By continuing to provide a safe and fun environment for God’s kids to ‘hang out’ on-line,” Raney says, “the ministry will continue to grow and reach thousands of people around the world.”

 

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