AtypicalAnecdote God, Life, and Observations all aggregated in a progressive pot of goodness.

Every Pastor is expected to call upon the Godly wisdom and past experiences of previous Church leaders to help chart the pathway to the future for their congregation.  But the extraordinary presiding Bishop of the Church of God in Christ (COGIC) denomination has searched beyond the immediate horizons.  Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake called on his deep historical knowledge and wisdom, combined with his vision of the challenge the church faces in the technological present and made a decision that would expand the church’s reach and offer opportunities for a greater sense of community within a global landscape.

Because Bishop Blake is a true visionary, in 2006 he saw a future for the church that could safely be entrusted to his younger, technologically gifted staff. In a time when few Churches actually employed a Web Team, Bishop Blake recruited his own team at West Angeles COGIC and challenged them once to take strides in technological innovation for West Angeles COGIC, and yet again—in strategically laying a foundation for online worship for the 103rd Holy Convocation in St. Louis, Missouri.

Every year, thousands of saints across the world congregate for the Holy Convocation--hoping for a shift and expecting a deeper revelation than ever before.  Historically hosted in Memphis, Tennessee; the atmosphere was thirsting for a renewal. Like the multitudes of old, the numbers this year were doubled and tripled--through technology. For every saint physically present, there were two gathered in worship around their computer screen.

In the past, The Church of God in Christ, with members both nationally and internationally, were never able to experience such a unifying event online until last week.  But now, because of the age of technology and Bishop Blake’s prophetic vision, members from Brazil, Canada, Germany, Africa, and the United States were able to sit from the comfort of their home and join into to each service.

Many wrote in their thankfulness in having the opportunity to partake online because of physical conditions, financial strains,  and other unfortunate circumstances that forced them to stay home. Not only were member able to view each service, but were also given the option to simultaneously chat about and share their experience across the social spectrum.  Hits to the site was nothing less than miraculously synonymous with the events in the book of acts as a charted total of 10.5 million hits to cogicislive.com were recorded. And now that the Holy Convocation has ended, members still have the opportunity to fellowship with one another through cogicislive.com/myexperience

Charles E. Blake, known as the Presiding Bishop for the Church of God in Christ denomination, and council member to President Obama’s Faith Based Initiative, can be now known as the futuristic Bishop of technology.