So you can understand how I couldn’t help posting about them again when they announced that this month they are offering ALL their music for FREE DOWNLOAD.  To make the most of this, go here.  And do make sure to thank them and share this offer with others – they want it spread. How extremely generous is that?!

They’ve also done some nice performance videos for some of their songs.  Here’s one:

1. either provide a link for where the video can be viewed on the web

2. or provide a link to where we can see more about it (eg. an imdb page)

3. “Illustrating:” – Suggest what Bible passages/themes it illustrates (as many as relevant)

4. “How to use it:” – Give an example of how you’ve used it or will use it or what setting it would be good for

5. “Permission for use:” – Show what kind of permission is given for use of the video (Vimeo makes you choose a license when you upload, so this is really helpful for knowing if you can use it) and any cost involved, if any (eg bluefishtv.com)

6. “Critique:” – Add some criticism: what do you like about it? what don’t you like about it?

You can copy and use this:

{video/link}

Illustrating:

How to use it:

Permission for use:

Critique:

Thanks for your help!  Let’s build this resource!

Illustrating: This video talks through the questions people have that science seeks to answer vs the questions that it doesn’t, and so how to think about science in relation to religion.  Rather than being opposed to each other, these questions show how science can complement religious beliefs.

How to use it: Provoke thought – it could be used before a talk on how science complements Christian belief, but I think it would be best used before a small group discussion or Q&A style event.  It could even be used before a talk on something like Genesis 1 as a way of highlighting that it might not be seeking to answer the science questions but the ‘why’ questions.

Permission for use: This was made by UCCF (the christian unions) in the UK.  Like the others in the Lunchbox series, they have made it available for download here so that you can use it in your ministry setting.  Do send them an email to let them know how you use it so they can be encouraged by how their resources are being used.

Critique: It’s a bit long, at 2min 59secs, meaning it’s not quite as punchy as it could be.  I like how it is structured such that it identifies clearly the types of questions by using similar shots.  The footage is generally pretty good too.

Don’t forget to vote

Illustrating: A poem set to music accompanied by images and words, this animation asks questions about what it means to know God – How can we know God?  Do all religions lead to God?  The last line sums up it’s getting at: “Could all of these faiths hold some of the truth or is there just one way that I can know you?”

How to use it: Provoke thought – Use this video alongside a talk about how we can know God.  It would complement verses like John 17:3, Acts 4:12, and Hebrews 1:1-3.  The truth of the gospel is that we can know about God and actually know God personally because he has revealed himself in his Son, Jesus, and made it possible for us to draw near to him because of his death and resurrection.  Jesus is the problem to all of the world’s answers.

Permission for use: This was made by UCCF (the christian unions) in the UK.  Like the others in the Lunchbox series, they have made it available for download here so that you can use it in your ministry setting.  Do send them an email to let them know how you use it so they can be encouraged by how their resources are being used.

Critique: At 2min 39 secs, it’s just a little bit long for my liking, but only by a touch – certainly not too long to use.  The animation is good and complements the poem well and matches the rhythm of the music.

Illustrating: This vox pop gives a good range of people’s answers to what they think is the meaning of life.

How to use it: Provoke thought – Use this video alongside a talk about the meaning of life, which could cover many talks about what it means to be Christian.  I’ve used it alongside a talk on the rich man who comes to Jesus asking about how he can inherit eternal life, but who walks away sad because he is not willing to give up his wealth to follow Jesus (Mark 10:17-22).  Most people would be able to identify with at least one of the answers.  For me, the most striking answer is “I don’t think there’s any meaning to life, is there?”, because in the end I don’t think anyone really believes this – the way they live their lives shows otherwise.

Permission for use: This was made by UCCF (the christian unions) in the UK.  Like others in the Lunchbox series, they have made it available for download here so that you can use it in your ministry setting.

Critique: There are some creative shots and the editing is quite good – it sits at a nice 1min 22secs.  The sound and video quality could be a bit better, but this doesn’t distract from the point of the video.

A short video can be effectively used earlier in the service to ‘warm people up’ such that when they hit the Bible reading and/or sermon they are in a better headspace for hearing the Word together.  Your purpose of using the video is to get them thinking about what they’re going to be challenged about.  It may be that you use it to raise questions, challenge assumptions, or even start dealing with roadblocks – you know that baggage that people bring to their reading of the Bible or applications that are made?  A video can do this in a way that you can’t.  It can give people the space to start those questions rolling and visuals that might raise things you can never articulate.  Yet at the same time, because it’s a video designed to specifically provoke thought, it won’t be taken as the authoritative word.  But rather, it should stimulate people’s minds so that they are better prepared to consider main points and applications of the Bible reading and sermon.  Let me give you some examples of different styles of videos that are useful for provoking thought in different ways…

Kinetic Typography
This is the video style where you use animated text to carry the video.  You can use this style for lots of other purposes too – like Bible reading, teaching, or even to tell a story.  I think a great way to use this style is to provoke thought.  The most common example of this video style used for this purpose is by asking questions with the text, and then using animation and text to demonstrate or tease out these questions.  “What’s God’s Will?” is a good example.  They have used kinetic typography to cleverly provoke thought about what people might be asking about how to know God’s will.

Short Film
This video style obviously has a very wide range of use.  When used to provoke thought, you can put together something that gives a short grab of a person’s life and presents an idea about something.  They’re often good for provoking thought because it’s easier to avoid preaching.  You just raise an idea.  I like the way “Blindness” does this.  It’s short and visually stimulating, as well as intriguing – you’re waiting until the last shot to see what the blind man is painting.  And then it simply leaves you with the question of what it means to really see.  I’ve used this to lead into a talk on Ephesians 1, claiming we all need our eyes opened to who Jesus is, as well as a talk about what many people are like in the western world who though they are well off, they close their eyes to who God is.

Vox Pop
I think if you’re going to use vox pop at all, use it to provoke thought.  It’s often a bit lame for advertising and I hate it when it is used to build a straw man.  But if you want to get people thinking about something, give them a range of people’s thoughts or questions on the topic to get them thinking.  You also need to do it well though.  “Lies” does both.  It’s based around a simple idea (on a bus and using masks, both of which create an isolated yet confidential environment – you feel like you’re invited in to some of these people’s secrets.  It also gives a good range, and offers some observation without making judgement.  Good for provoking thought!

This is part of a series on using video well

You also might like to look at the principle this is based on and using video well to illustrate a point

Illustrating: The common question we all have of whether each choice is the right choice – how do I work out what God’s plan is for me?  What is his will?

How to use it: Provoke thought – This is a great short text based teaser for a talk on guidance, or even a series.  It could be used alongside a specific talk in a series that gets down to how to make godly decisions, and could complement something like Decisions, Decisions well as another way in.  Using it before the talk or Bible reading would get people thinking and help them to see why they need to think about it.  It is also reasonably light-hearted, with something in there that most people could relate to (even young parents with the choice between cloth or disposable nappies!)

Permission for use: Contact Baltimore Baptist Church (www.biltmorebaptist.org) – they have made this video available for download from vimeo.

Critique: Clever use of lots of different decisions in life to relate to a lot of different groups of people.  The animation is reasonable, and works well with the music at a good length.  Most videos like this tend to teach their view of guidance in the video itself, but I like how this one leaves it open so that it can be used to complement other things.  There are moments when it moves a little too fast so that you miss some of the words, but it still works well.

Illustrating: This little vox pop cleverly teases out not just that people tell lies, but what people think about their lies.  The use of masks helps create a sense of confidentiality.  It shows the misconceptions we often have about our lies in the way it shows the range of thoughts the people have about the impact of their own lies (from devastating to nothing), and the way that generally they shift the blame when reflecting on lies they’ve told.

How to use it: Provoke thought – This is a great teaser vox pop that could go before the sermon or Bible reading to get people thinking about their own lies.  This could be used with many passages that demonstrate how the mouth reflects the heart, like James 3

Permission for use: Contact Cooke Pictures

Critique: Beautiful camera work, complementary sound, and great idea – what a great way to do a vox pop by adding the element of masks!

I love using a video to illustrate a point because it does something that I can’t do.  Don’t get me wrong – I think that most illustrations of points should still be told by the speaker, and there’s many good reasons behind that.  But what a video can do is engage someone through a different medium.  It can involve them in a story that is separate from me (the speaker) but still close to them.  They can be swept up in the video, relate to the characters, understand the plot, contemplate the images.  Then, as the speaker, I can direct that towards the point I want to make.

Two examples

A friend of mine uses videos as illustration really well, so I’m going straight to his examples.  He often uses simple short videos.  The two examples I love from him are from his talks on Ecclesiastes, and he makes two points about what life is like.  The first is a rollercoaster – so as he starts this, he shows a one-shot video from the perspective of someone riding a rollercoaster.  It’s great fun (especially for youth) because the group can interact with the video, mimicking the screams on the big descents and leaning on the corners.  My friend then talks of how life is like a rollercoaster – you get up, do as much as you can through the day, then you ‘get off’ at the end of the day and rest so that you can get back on again as quickly as possible.  Here’s an example of what this might look like (you may only need a short segment of this).

The second video he uses to illustrate what life is like is a time-lapse of a banana rotting.  It starts all yellow, but so quickly goes black and shrivels up.  You feel how quickly it goes.  And it resonates with my experience of bananas.  And so I can then make the connection with life – it really is so quick, and the reality of the end of life is striking.

This is one of a bowl of fruit which you can download and use:

I like that both of these videos are short and tell small stories and engage our experience.  And they make a striking point that helps complement the point my friend is trying to make.

 Warnings!

Now there are also many ways you can go wrong with using a video to illustrate a point.  Many of these are similar to warnings someone might give about spoken illustrations, but with video it will be even more pronounced because you’ve made a point of showing a video – remember, you don’t have to show it!  So, the big warnings…

Using a video with a talk to illustrate a point fails when:

1. The video distracts from the point – this often happens when you’re trying to make a point from a small part of the video that gets overshadowed by the big point of the video.  Or if the big things that people remember from the video do not evoke the point you are illustrating.  If the video is going to distract, leave it out.
2. The video doesn’t match the value of the point – in the same way for a spoken illustration, this frequently happens when someone has a great video and they just really want to use it, so they use it at the first opportunity.  But if the point it is illustrating is only a side point, or sub point that is only a very small part of the main idea, the video can be too good for the point it is illustrating, and makes too much of the point.  Either the point it is illustrating gets lost, or it overtakes the main point, or the video is just seen as a cool video rather than complementing the talk.  If it doesn’t match the value of the point, leave the video out.
3. The video needs too much explanation – if you’re using the video to illustrate a point, it should do that.  You should at the least understand the illustration.  The speaker should then only need to connect the illustration to the point.  If people couldn’t actually understand the video (or at the least the point that you think the video is making), then there’s no point in using it.  Leave it out.
4. The illustration from the video doesn’t illustrate the point you’re making – this is the same for a spoken illustration.  Make sure it actually illustrates your point well.  Make sure it does something.  Don’t use the video just because you want to use the video.  Know your purpose.  If it doesn’t illustrate the point, leave it out.

I’d love to hear more examples of videos that you know of that helpfully illustrate points.  Please comment with your favourites.