Messages

The Messages feature lets you have private conversations with other members of your church right inside the portal. You can send notes to a friend, message a small-group leader, share a photo, or quietly check in with your pastor -- without exchanging phone numbers.

Opening Your Inbox

1. Log in to the Member Portal.
2. Click Messages in the sidebar navigation.

Your inbox lists every conversation you are part of, sorted with the most recent activity at the top. Each row shows:

• The other person's photo and name (or the group of people if it is a multi-person conversation)
• A preview of the most recent message
• The date or time of the latest message
• A blue dot or badge if there are unread messages

A small unread-count badge also appears next to the Messages link in the sidebar so you can see new activity at a glance from anywhere in the portal.

Composing a New Message

1. From the Messages page, click New Message (or Compose).
2. Start typing the recipient's name in the To field. As you type, matching members will appear in a dropdown -- click the person you want.
3. You can add more than one recipient if you want to start a group conversation.
4. Type your message in the body field.
5. Optionally attach an image (see "Sending an Image" below).
6. Click Send.

Note: You can only message members who have a portal account at your church. If you cannot find someone, ask your church office to confirm they are set up in the system.

Reading and Replying

1. From the inbox, click any conversation to open it.
2. The full thread appears with the oldest message at the top and the newest at the bottom.
3. Type your reply in the box at the bottom of the page.
4. Click Send (or press Enter).

The conversation refreshes automatically when the other person replies -- you do not need to reload the page.

Sending an Image

You can attach a photo or screenshot to a message:

1. While composing a new message or a reply, click the image / paperclip icon in the message toolbar.
2. Select an image file from your device (JPEG, PNG, or GIF).
3. The image uploads and appears as a preview in the message box.
4. Add any text you want to go with it, then click Send.

The image will appear inline in the conversation and the recipient can click it to view the full size.

Reactions

Sometimes a quick reaction is faster than typing a reply. To react to a message:

1. Hover over (desktop) or tap and hold (mobile) the message you want to react to.
2. A small reaction picker appears with common emoji.
3. Click an emoji to add your reaction.

Your reaction shows up below the message with your name. Tap your reaction again to remove it. Multiple people can react to the same message, and a small count appears when more than one person uses the same emoji.

Editing a Message You Sent

If you send a message and notice a typo (or want to reword it):

1. Find the message you sent in the conversation.
2. Click the Edit option (often a pencil icon that appears when you hover or tap the message).
3. Update the text and save.

Edited messages are clearly marked with an (edited) label so the conversation stays honest.

Viewing edit history

Click the (edited) label or the message's options menu and choose View Edit History to see every previous version of that message along with when each edit was made. This works for messages you sent and messages others sent you.

Marking Read / Unread

• Opening a conversation automatically marks it as read.
• To deliberately mark a conversation as unread (so you remember to come back to it), open the conversation menu and click Mark as Unread. The blue dot reappears next to it in your inbox.

Archiving a Conversation

Archiving moves a conversation out of your main inbox without deleting it -- useful for keeping things tidy.

1. Open the conversation you want to archive.
2. Click the Archive button (or use the conversation's options menu).
3. The thread disappears from your inbox.

To find or restore archived conversations:

1. From the Messages page, switch to the Archived tab or filter.
2. Open the archived conversation.
3. Click Unarchive to bring it back to your main inbox.

If a new message arrives in an archived conversation, the system unarchives it automatically so you do not miss anything.

Deleting a Conversation

If you want to permanently remove a conversation from your inbox:

1. Open the conversation.
2. Click the Delete Conversation option from the menu.
3. Confirm when prompted.

Note: Deleting a conversation only removes it from your view. The other participant(s) still have a copy in their inbox.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Can I message someone who is not a member of my church? A: No. Messages stay inside your church's portal and require both people to have member accounts.

Q: Are my messages private? A: Conversations are private between the participants. Church administrators do not casually browse member messages, but as with any system, content can be reviewed if there is a safety or legal concern.

Q: Will I get an email when someone messages me? A: Yes -- if you have direct message email alerts enabled in your Notification Preferences (see 02-managing-your-profile.md).

Q: How do I block someone from messaging me? A: Member-to-member blocking is not currently a self-service feature. If someone is contacting you in a way that makes you uncomfortable, contact your church office or pastoral staff right away.