by Carey Nieuwhof: 12 years ago, Levi Lusko left Southern California to plant a church in Montana. Today, Fresh Life Church has 12 locations, most of them in very small towns where few people would plant churches.

Levi talks about why and how they did it, how he handled the cultural gap, and about how he’s met some of the personal challenges he’s faced as a leader along the way.

Welcome to Episode 224 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

Guest Links

Levi on Instagram | Twitter | I Declare War

CNLP 213: Levi and Jennie Lusko on Losing their Daughter, and How to Fight through Grief to Keep Living and Leading

Fresh Life Church Locations

Orange

Episode Links

Breaking 200 enrollment is open! Don’t miss out on the absolutely best pricing of the season and exclusive bonus material at breaking200course.com.

Find a healthcare solution that’s way more affordable for you as an employer and for your staff at RemodelHealth.com/Carey. Receive a free quote and buying guide just for checking them out.

Maximize giving at your church. Visit Pushpay.com and discover why churches see an increase in giving by using Pushpay’s digital mobile strategy.

Great stories keep rolling in from Didn’t See It Coming readers. You guys are amazing and I am thrilled to see how this book is resonating with you. Don’t have your copy yet? Grab one here.

…

The post CNLP 224: Levi Lusko on Planting Churches Where Nobody Plants Churches, Being Yourself in a Different Culture and Declaring War on the Issues that Plague You As a Leader appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

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by Carey Nieuwhof: Mark Clark and Carey talk about their different approaches to preaching, how to reach unchurched people and how to preach to churched and unchurched people with Biblical integrity.

Plus, Carey and Mark share some of their favourite insights from their brand new course, The Art of Better Preaching.

Welcome to Episode 197 of the podcast. Listen and access the show notes below or search for the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts and listen for free.

The Art of Better Preaching is available now!

Carey teams up with Mark Clark in his next online course The Art of Better Preaching. Take advantage of open enrollment and special pricing now!

Guest Links

Mark on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | PastorMarkClark.com

CNLP 151: Mark Clark On Apologetics For Post-Christian, Post-Modern Young Adults: Sex, Hell, Science And So Much More

CCLP Bonus 004: Mark Clark And James Mallon On How The Holy Spirit Is Growing The Canadian Church

CCLP 015: Mark Clark On Apologetics For Unchurched Canadians, The Expansion Of Village Church And Finding Personal Margin

Links from this Episode

Enroll in The Art of Better Preaching  today and enjoy special pricing!

3 Insights from This Episode

1. There is a difference between learning from great speakers and mimicking them

Influence from speakers and mentors is absolutely necessary to learn and grow, but you have to find your own voice. You can’t simply speak like the leaders you look up to and use their content. There’s a need for development and education, but once you find your own voice, make sure you aren’t depending on the gifts and talents of others to do your work.

Find ways to force yourself to get better by weaning off of your dependency of others. Imitation kills innovation and trying to be someone else does a disservice to who God called you to be.

2. Equipping the church for discipleship and speaking to the unchurched are equal priorities in sermon prep

Great speakers are totally a gift to the church, but people shouldn’t be bringing guests to church to hear from the PASTOR, they should be bringing them to share the message of the gospel with those who need to hear it. The goal is to equip believers for an evangelistic movement that will reach people outside the walls of a building, which is why you need discipleship and theological development in your preaching.

At the same time, preaching to the unchurched has to remain a top priority during sermon prep. To get inside the mind of the unchurched, simply get inside your own head. There are no churched and unchurched issues. Only people issues. We all struggle. None of us have it all together.

Speak to all people when offering the gospel of Christ. Keep going after who’s not there while filling believers with Biblical truths that grow their faith and drive to share the message of Christ.

3. Preaching without notes frees you to be more connected with your audience

Carey and Mark are in full agreement that speaking without notes is a must and they offer great advice on how to do it in their new course The Art of Better Preaching . Here are Carey’s top 4 reasons to leave the notes on your desk.

Authenticity – There’s already a built-in institutional bias for many people listening to your message and reading from notes doesn’t make you more believable in their eyes.
Eye Contact – Eye contact is relational and gives you a way to receive feedback from the audience.
Natural Posture – Being unscripted gives you more freedom to move on stage and connect.
No barriers – There are no barriers between you and the audience, because you aren’t bound to looking down at your notes.

Quotes from This Episode

Imitation kills innovation. – @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

There aren’t churched and unchurched issues. There are people issues. – @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

It’s a sin to make the Bible boring. – @markaclarkClick To Tweet

You can be an expository preacher and still be evangelistic. – @markaclarkClick To Tweet

It’s the equipping of the saints that’s actually going to reach our country. – @markaclarkClick To Tweet

The podcast releases every Tuesday morning

Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Louie Giglio, Ravi Zacharias, Craig Groeschel, Sue Miller, Kara Powell, Chuck Swindoll, Greg McKeown, Jon Acuff and many others.

Subscribe via

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Appreciate This? Rate the Podcast.

Hopefully, this episode has helped you lead like never before. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on iTunes and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn Radio as well.

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Kristen Ivy    

Kristen Ivy is the Executive Director of Messaging at Orange, one of the largest next-gen ministry organizations in the world. In a candid and personal conversation, Kristen talks about the impact that her parents divorce had on her, how effective churches connect with parents and kids, and how to better connect with your kids when you have a crazy, busy schedule.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 198.

The post CNLP 197: Mark Clark and Carey Nieuwhof on How to Preach in a Way that Reaches Unchurched People and Maintains Biblical Integrity appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 197: Mark Clark and Carey Nieuwhof on How to Preach in a Way that Reaches Unchurched People and Maintains Biblical Integrity

The post CNLP 197: Mark Clark and Carey Nieuwhof on How to Preach in a Way that Reaches Unchurched People and Maintains Biblical Integrity appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: Christine Birch has been part of three large churches in both Canada and the US. How do you connect people in a large church and how do you connect them at your church? Christine shares her experiences on both sides of the border as they apply to large and small churches alike.

Welcome to Episode 013 of the podcast, which you can access on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts.

Guest Links

Christine on Facebook

Christine on Instagram

Christine at Connexus Church

Links Mentioned

Compassion Canada

Canadian Church Leaders Conference

Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation

The E-Myth Revisited

A Mission Partner

Looking for a mission partner? Compassion Canada helps release children from poverty around the world, and they do it through the local church.

They can help you develop a mission strategy for your church that can change the world, whether your church is large or small.

For a free consult, contact them at church@compassion.ca.

Want to Reach More People?

How different is ministry in Canada?

Join us June 14-16, 2018 in Barrie, Ontario for the Canadian Church Leaders Conference, a conference designed to help Canadian Church Leaders reach people.  Intimate, interactive and featuring all new talks. This years speakers include Laurel Buckingham (Moncton Wesleyan), Shaila Visser (Alpha Canada),  Jon Thompson (C4 Church), Jeff Brodie (Connexus) and Carey Nieuwhof.

Registration is officially open.

Secure your spot now to grab the early bird rate before the tickets are gone. It’s already 40% sold out!

3 Insights from This Episode

1. Posture your church so that guests feels expected and accepted

People assume that community will just happen organically, but no matter the size of your church it takes intentionality and hustle. Size doesn’t have anything to do with how warm or cold a church can feel to a new attender and church staff must develop a welcoming posture to ensure a guest feels expected and accepted.

2. Make your follow up with new guests quick, personal and generous

Connexus Church has a great system for following up with guests. It isn’t time consuming and offers personal notes with generous gestures to make people feel welcomed into community. Here’s an overview your church can use and modify to fit your needs.

First Sunday: Connections Card & Small Gift (example: coffee mug)

Week One: Handwritten Post Card from a volunteer, Bombbomb Email from Campus Pastor, Personal Phone Call from a staff member

Week Two (Attender): Hand written, stamped and addressed Note with Gift Card

Week Two (Absent): If a family doesn’t return,  mail a hand stamped and addressed Letter with incentive to return (example: coupon for a free book)

If attenders opt in to receive emails, send regular invitations to attend a new members style class and any current events happening on campus.

3. Honouring the personal space and privacy of attendees shows them respect and protects your church, too

Never force attendees to identify themselves. Instead, respect personal space by allowing them to remain anonymous until they feel comfortable being known. In the mean time, make sure that those next steps are clear and easily available so people can engage your church when they are ready.

If people have volunteered email addresses to receive information about your church you have the responsibility to continue communicating to them until they opt out, but take the time to learn Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation to protect your church from legal battles.

Quotes from This Episode

The average church sees 1 in 10 of their first time guests return. – Christine BirchClick To Tweet

Our follow up should be generous. – Christine BirchClick To Tweet

Persistence is a good virtue. – @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

Does Church in Canada Have to Stay Small?

So you would love to reach more people, but how? Your church just can’t seem to sustainably grow past the 200 barrier.

You’re reaching new families every month, but it’s like pouring water into a leaking bucket: you just can’t grow past your current plateau. What gives?

Breaking 200 Without Breaking You can help you and your team break through the barrier 85% of churches never move past: the 200 attendance barrier.

So many leaders who try to break it either get stuck at 50, 100 or 200 in attendance or burned out in the process of trying.

It doesn’t have to be that way.

Believe it or not, the reasons most churches never break 200 aren’t spiritual reasons, they’re practical reasons. Strategic reasons.

The course tackles eight key issues that keep churches from passing the 200 barrier and beyond. It includes:

8 videos designed to guide you and your leadership team through all the key growth barriers smaller churches face.
150 page downloadable workbook for you and your team.
12 licenses, so you can take your entire team through it—board, staff, key volunteers—whoever you want (that’s about $20 a person).
A bonus cheat sheet with access to 20 free resources designed to take you further.
A private Breaking 200 Facebook Group access exclusive to the first 1000 purchasers.

So whether your church is 50, 150 or 250 in attendance, the principles will help you gain the insight you need to break the barrier more than 85% of churches can’t break.

Click here to get instant access!

The podcast releases the first Monday of every month.

Subscribe for free if you’re Canadian, or just interested in ministry in a post-Christian culture.

Subscribe via

iTunes 

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Plus, I host a weekly podcast called the Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast.  Subscribe below and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Louie Giglio, Ravi Zacharias, Craig Groeschel, Sue Miller, Kara Powell, Chuck Swindoll, Greg McKeown, Jon Acuff and many others.

iTunes

Google Play

Stitcher

TuneIn Radio

Appreciate This? Rate the Podcast.

Hopefully, this episode has helped you and your church reach more people. That’s my goal. If you appreciated it, could you share the love?

The best way to do that is to rate the podcast on iTunes and leave us a brief review!

Your ratings and reviews help us place the podcast in front of new leaders and listeners. Your feedback also lets me know how I can better serve you.

Thank you for being so awesome.

Next Episode: Brett Ullman

Mental health is not a subject we discuss well in the church. But at any given time, about 20% of your church and leaders are struggling with various mental health issues. Brett Ullman, a nationally respected speaker and authority on parenting and teens, talks about how his struggles started and how to respond in the church and in leadership when mental health issues arise.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 014.

The post CCLP 013: Christine Birch on Connecting New People Who Come to Your Church appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CCLP 013: Christine Birch on Connecting New People Who Come to Your Church

The post Connecting New People Who Come to Your Church appeared first on Passion for Planting.