This is part I of III called "Trends I'd Like to See in 2011". Today we'll look at things I'd love to see the Church (a word I use in a general sense) invest in more fully in 2011.

Mobile technology. With services like The Church App by Subsplash, why wouldn't churches want to have their own apps and take-on-the-road resources?

Use of online services. As a Catholic, I'm treading on thin ice here. I'm not saying that online church services are a substitute for actually getting in your Ford and heading to "a" church but let's face it, Grandma has been watching church on TV for years. Now the rest of the population is catching up and it's very cool. LifeChurch seems to be way ahead of the curve on this and entire WordPress themes are being designed for the satellite campus-ing church in mind.

Mobile giving. If the Red Cross can raise millions via texting, surely the Church can leverage more of its wealth to help those in need.

Translating high-level teaching for The Average Joe. My dream is that every Catholic parish has someone who can translate papal encyclicals and statements from Bishops so that The Folks can understand them. There is a lot of solid teaching coming out of the US Bishops Conference (as just one example) that literally no one will ever know about because it's not written in a way that can be easily digested.

Transparency regarding finances. Do I need to explain this?

Greater emphasis on the spiritual dimension of work. Here is one of my former posts on the matter. With the Wall Street debacle of the past few years, has there ever been a better time to discuss how God is involved in work?

Stress management. We don't need more church activities. What we do need is a pair of glasses through which we can make sense of the madness called stressful daily life. Help us to turn off the noise and pray on a deep level.

Prayer that matters. Let's move beyond purely ritualistic praying and help people learn to pray on a deep and personal level.