
The recent unexpected outbreak of COVID-19 has devastated the Wuhan province and many other cities in China, and has also spread to 30 other countries—including Singapore, with 401 active cases as of 24 March 2020. Within the Christian community, some churches have also been affected by the virus outbreak, which has raised concerns among many about gathering in church on Sundays. (Shared on 20 February 2020)
As an inter-confessional Christian organisation that is dedicated to serving the Church and the Christian community, The Bible Society of Singapore recognises the desire of the local churches to continue facilitating worship programmes in spite of the increased preventive measures. In our efforts to meet the needs of the Churches, we have been actively working with our local and international partners to source for alternative methods to enable Churches to resume their worship activities and serve their congregations in spite of the current situation. This includes the provision of services and products that we hope would help churches and their members to continue faithfully serving their congregations.
We are extremely heartened to be working in collaboration with several associates, and most notably with ThunderQuote to provide free technical guidance on live-streaming platforms for churches and Christian organisations whose members may be unable to attend their weekly worship service in view of the current quarantine measures in place. I would like to thank Mr Kevin Ng and his team for their hard work and dedication in helping us to put this project together in such a short amount of time, so that we may respond to the needs of our brothers and sisters in a timely manner.
Aside from this, The Bible Society of Singapore has also secured our first shipment of a thousand boxes of surgical masks—which are currently pending a permit from the government. The masks are made available for churches and Christian organisations to pre-order, with a limit of 5 boxes (500 pcs) per organisation due to the limited quantity available.
By embarking on these practical initiatives to render assistance to our brothers and sisters, as well as other communities in this time of need, it is my hope that we may spur others on to bear each others’ burdens as we join arms to combat the epidemic as a collective Christian body.
Do continue to pray fervently for individuals and churches that have been affected by the virus, and for the Body of Christ to stand firm in His Word during this period. May the Lord bless us all.
Yours in Service,
Rev Ezekiel Tan
General Secretary/CEO
The Bible Society of Singapore
Follow our Telegram Channel for announcements and updates: https://t.me/streamsoflife, or volunteer your help here.
One way of providing sermons for your congregation is to pre-record the sermon. Smartphones today are capable of recording high quality videos. However a professional camcorder with a microphone input may do a better job.
Video editing software may be used to edit the video in advance and overlay it with slides and information.
Alternatively, broadcasting software such as OBS may be used to record the sermon and overlay in real-time, to be published later. However, this means you will either need a video capture card to receive a video feed from your smartphone or camera, or use a webcam to record the video. (See Option 2 on how to use OBS)
Follow the Streams Of Life Telegram Channel/Group to seek help with your setup if needed: https://t.me/streamsoflife
Firstly you need to create a YouTube account if you don’t already have one. You will also need to verify your YouTube Account, which means providing a mobile number and receiving a confirmation SMS.
Next you will need to download and install OBS Studio. This is a free and open source tool available for Windows, macOS and Linux.
You will then need to connect your recording device to your laptop. For webcams, this is relatively straightforward. However if you are using a smartphone or a camcorder, you need a video capture card device. These are devices with a HDMI input that allows you to feed a video stream into the computer.
After which you need to setup YouTube to enable live streaming. The first time you set it up, it may take up to 24 hours to activate.
Setup OBS
Configure your stream
Record or broadcast your stream
Want to learn more?
G
How to stay connected and missional in this digital age:
Do contribute fresh ideas in the telegram channel on how the church may grow in prayer, fellowship and evangelism today!
This might interest you… or your church leaders.
SO YOU WANT TO LIVESTREAM YOUR CHURCH SERVICE (Livestreaming For Churches)
27 February, Thursday
8-930pm online on Zoom
This free 90 mins webinar on church livestreaming will help your church begin livestreaming, led by the team responsible for the Celebration of Hope livestream (May 2019).
WHAT YOU’LL GAIN
– Understand the key considerations
– Expert advice on gear and equipment needed
– Introduction to licensing and copyright issues
– Primer on how to produce your service for online use (lights, camera and sound)
– Tips on how to get started with the right equipment set-up
– Best practices of churches who livestream
– Discover the principles of engaging online
WHO SHOULD COME
– Church leaders, AV team leaders, anyone keen to learn
FACILITATORS
Simon Seow – Digital Strategist (Cru)
Steven Yeoh – Technical Director (Hope Singapore)
Aaron Char – Product Specialist (Ross Video)
Poh Haikun – Operations & IT (Faith Methodist Church)
Lim Chee Harn – Events & Programmes (Hope Singapore)
Brought to your by:
Indigitous & Digital Mission @ 360
Register now at: ndgt.us/learn
In response to the COVID-19 situation, if your organisation is facing the challenge of managing instant communication and considering how to do a video broadcast (Church livestreaming) to your members through Youtube, Singapore Bible College is conducting an “Introduction to Instant Message Broadcast and Live Video Streaming” workshop on Wednesday 19 Feb 2-5pm that might help.
Details @ https://forms.gle/k3bCZ81TN6auG76V6
Update 16 Feb: The workshop has been completely booked out.
You may fill up the Streams Of Life help form or fill in the SBC form to get further help. God bless!
Update: 18 Feb: Streams of Life will be live streaming the workshop via the ThunderQuote Youtube channel
Need more help about any of the steps above? Contact us via our telegram channel or fill up our help form. We’ll be in touch to help provide technical advice free of charge via a call or helpdesk. We are also looking for volunteers to provide AV equipment or AV help to the churches.
If the gathering requires minimal interaction from the rest of the group, the leader may choose to host a session via a Facebook / Instagram Live feed. This may be good for worship and teaching small group sessions.
Streams Of Life has linked up with Facebook Head Of Faith-Based Partnerships Nona Jones, and is pleased to bring you the Faith On Facebook Toolkit! Download the Faith On Facebook Toolkit here.
Skype is a communications service that allows members to participate in text, voice and video chat. The free service only allows a maximum of 25 members in a voice/video call.
It can be accessed via the website or mobile app for both Apple and Android users.
Do ensure that members are in a sufficiently quiet location with stable internet connection to minimise disruptions. Earphones or headphones may also be utilised to prevent echo issues.
You can find out more about Skype and use it for free here: https://www.skype.com/en/
You may also use this Skype Guide For Churches created by Gerard Su.
Zoom is an enterprise grade video conferencing solution, which allows up to 100 pax for 40 mins for free. They support video webinars, meetings and video-linked conference rooms. Premium plans are more expensive but they are the most reliable in terms of video, audio, connection quality and stability. If you’re doing church livestreaming, this is a solid option.
Update: Zoom has been overwhelmed with over 2.3 million signups in Q1 this year.
You can find out more about Zoom and access it here: https://www.zoom.us/
Google Hangouts is a communications service that allows members to participate in text, voice and video chat. The free service only allows a maximum of 250 members in a voice/video call. (Google has made its premium version of Hangouts with the increased member limit of 250 free as of 3 March to support organisations impacted by the COVID-19 virus.)
It can be accessed via the website or mobile app for both Apple and Android users.
Do ensure that members are in a sufficiently quiet location with stable internet connection to minimise disruptions. Earphones or headphones may also be utilised to prevent echo issues.
You can find out more about Google Hangouts and use it for free here: https://hangouts.google.com/
Movies and films are a great way for people to bond and have conversations about God, life and the world around us. There’s a variety of thought-provoking movies and faith-based movies for us to think about God’s big story and how we may live as Christ ambassadors in the world. Besides livestreaming church sermons, what are some movies that you can think of to watch in your small groups today?
Resources:
Faith based movies: SMIX
Movies:
Paul The Apostle
Case For Christ
Heart Of Man
Indivisible
Storm Boy
An Interview With God
The Word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12), and should continue to be preached to encourage and exhort the saints. Small groups may be edified together through listening to sermons from their local church pastors via digital means such as pre-recorded sermons, livestreamed sermons or podcasts. Alternatively, small groups could read aloud and meditate on Bible passages together. What does God wish to speak to us today from His Word?
The Singapore church has been blessed with numerous talks and conferences all these years to equip and train us in discipleship. Besides livestreaming sermons and talks, perhaps this could be a time to dig out the recordings, materials and notes from past talks and conferences and go through them as small groups?
The church is called to love our neighbour and be salt and light in our wider community. This is a time for us to be sensitive to God’s leading for kingdom assignments and initiatives to bless the poor, heal the sick and love the broken. What are some ways in which your small group may show love in action to your neighbour today?
In such a time as this, we may pause and reflect upon the role and direction of every church. Within our small groups, perhaps we could discuss and pray about the church’s role today. Here are some thoughts we’ll like to share:
Is preaching still relevant today? Do you want to harness the power of digital media for preaching? Is Your preaching keeping your church from growing? Come have these questions answered at EPPI 2020 on Jul 31 to Aug 1, 2020.
EPPI 2020: Proclamation In Today’s Digital Age
Organised by Eagles Communications
Sign up at: www.eagles.org.sg/eppi2020