Conversations That Matter
Long before Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, LinkedIn, or even MySpace—if you’re old enough to remember that—people were meeting online to talk about the things that mattered to them.
Some of the earliest online communities were bulletin board systems, or BBSs, where conversations often appeared as little more than white letters on a black screen. Those discussion communities were around even before the World Wide Web.
The screens have changed considerably, but the appeal has not: finding other people who want to talk about something that interests them.
The Lunch Counter is our social community. It is built around people, relationships, profiles, updates, groups, and informal interaction.
Conversations That Matter is different. It is built around topics.
If you spend more time in your favorite Facebook groups than scrolling through your news feed, you already understand the idea. Here, discussions stay organized by subject. You can ask a question, follow the replies, contribute your own experience, and return later to continue where you left off.
Find a Conversation
General Discussion
Open conversation on subjects that do not fit neatly somewhere else.
Prayer and Praise
Prayer requests, praise reports, updates, and encouragement.
In Ministry
Discussion of ministry issues, experiences, challenges, ideas, and resources for both professional and lay ministry.
Online Ministry
Websites, social media, livestreaming, online communities, digital outreach, technology, and the particular opportunities and challenges of ministry online.
Bible Studies
A home for topic-oriented Bible study discussions, including subforums devoted to individual studies.
Naphtali’s Heirs
A discussion group for Christian writers interested in craft, publishing, faith and writing, fiction, nonfiction, and the writing life.
Jesus Movement and Music
Conversation about the Jesus Movement, Jesus Music, artists, recordings, history, memories, and its continuing influence.
As the community grows, so can the list of discussion groups and special-interest forums.
Rules of the Road
Conversations That Matter is intended to be a welcoming place for thoughtful discussion. We do not expect everyone to agree, but we do expect everyone to treat one another with respect.
- Play nice. Disagree with ideas without attacking people.
- Treat everyone with dignity. Personal insults, harassment, and slurs based on race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or other personal characteristics will not be tolerated.
- Leave partisan politics at the door. There are plenty of places online for political debate. This is not intended to be one of them.
- No advertising or solicitation. Do not use the discussion groups primarily to sell products, services, causes, or yourself.
- Stay reasonably on topic. Conversations wander—that is part of conversation—but respect the purpose of each discussion area.
- Respect privacy. Do not repost another member’s personal information or private comments elsewhere without permission.
- Moderators may moderate. Moderators may edit or remove posts, move topics, close discussions, or remove members when necessary to protect the community.
The purpose of moderation is not to prevent disagreement. It is to keep disagreement from destroying the conversation.
How to Join
Registration is free. One Catch Community account gives you access to both Conversations That Matter and The Lunch Counter.
- Click Register and complete the registration form.
- Check your email for an activation message from The Catch Ministry.
- Click the activation link in that email.
- Return to the site and log in using the username and password you selected.
- Enter Conversations That Matter and join a discussion.
If you have already registered for The Lunch Counter, you do not need another account. Just log in with the same username and password.
If you have difficulty registering or activating your account, contact Terri at terri@thecatchministry.com.