Today’s blog post is by Tony Morgan. Tony is the founder and lead strategist of The Unstuck Group, a company that helps leaders grow healthy churches by guiding them through experiences that focus vision, strategy and action.

By Tony Morgan

If you’re familiar with any of my work, you probably can guess I really like numbers.

While numbers aren’t everything, without a baseline perspective, it’s hard to make decisions about ministry strategy. If you’re trying to discern whether or not a church is healthy, the numbers give you something consistent to review—an indication if all of the activity is producing the right results.

Many churches try to make changes and have no way to measure if those hard-fought changes are really having an impact—in a positive or a negative way, which is why I think it’s so important to be looking at what the numbers are telling us.  

Exactly two years ago, my team released the very first version of The Unstuck Church Report. It was designed to give church leaders an objective view of church health by highlighting the trends we’re seeing in 5 key areas of ministry across a wide variety and number of churches (Ministry Reach, Staffing and Leadership, Connection, Finances and Ministry Health).

What indicators can we look at to see if a church is healthy?

It’s easy in ministry for there to be a lot of anecdotal stories that illustrate how people feel about church or a specific ministry, but what about data to show where the Church is headed?

A few quarters ago, I even dissected the difference in growing and declining churches in each of the key areas. It was fascinating.

Each quarter, I like to share the data that stands out to me.

This quarter, there were three areas in particular that I want to dig into. These are the trends that jumped out at me.

While numbers aren’t everything, without a baseline perspective, it’s hard to make decisions about ministry strategy.Click To Tweet

1. The Front-Door Challenge

I wasn’t surprised to see this show up. When my team and I work with churches, this is something that we see often, and this is also a theme we’ve seen consistently in our quarterly reports.

For churches to maintain health and growth over time, the number of first-time guests over a 12-month period needs to be equal to or greater than their average weekly attendance. But, on average, we’re seeing churches of 1,000, as an example, average 490 first-time guests in one year.

If you dig into the report, you’ll see that ministry connection numbers are getting stronger, but also that churches are seeing fewer first-time guests. These numbers combined suggest churches really are dealing with more of a “front-door” than a “back-door” challenge.

I suggest reading what I wrote on Carey’s site last month. With an outside perspective, Connexus embraced this “front-door” challenge by pursuing an inviting culture and went all-in on becoming a church that’s passionate about seeing their friends, neighbors, and colleagues experience Jesus.

(A few years later, they’ve seen their number of new guests sky-rocket.)

The number of first-time guests over a 12-month period needs to be equal to or greater than their average weekly attendance. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

2. An Increase in Group Engagement Isn’t Necessarily a Win

This quarter, we saw churches report that 64% of adults and students are in small groups, but only 44% of adults and students are engaged in volunteering.

On the surface, this may look like a win. Yes, it’s encouraging that so many people are connecting into small groups for community and Bible study. And that is a great way to connect with people and build relationships. My wife Emily and I have been involved in, or led, many small groups over the years.

However, our experience at The Unstuck Group has shown that people who volunteer are actually far more “engaged” in the mission of the church. Having people involved at that volunteer level impacts many aspects of church health, including frequency of worship attendance, invitations to new guests and giving, as examples.

If you’re trying to find ways to engage people and keep them engaged, it’s critical to build up the volunteer teams and leaders of those teams.

Serving together creates a deep, rich community environment worth pursuing. It gives people the option to “own” part of the mission of the church and put their gifts and talents to use. This is how God designed the Body of Christ to engage the mission…together.

If you’re trying to find ways to engage people and keep them engaged, it’s critical to build up the volunteer teams and leaders of those teams. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

3. Governance Complexity and Declining Churches

Back when I wrote the article series on the differences in growing and declining churches, the same data stuck out to me.

Declining churches have twice as many committees.

Declining churches have twice as many committees. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

Churches that have large decision-making boards and multiple additional committees generally struggle, but it should be no surprise.

The more people you have making decisions about what can or can’t happen in ministry, the fewer people you have actually doing ministry.

Growing churches have streamlined their governance structure to eliminate unnecessary committees and the meetings that go with them.

This allows these churches to be more nimble when it comes to decision-making. Tough decisions that impact the overall health of the church don’t get bogged down in various layers of bureaucracy.

It’s counterintuitive, but it can often be smaller churches that struggle with having more committees and boards than larger churches. If you lead at a small church, it might be time to reevaluate how your church governance is structured to make sure it is efficient and actually serving the church’s broader vision and mission.

The more people you have making decisions about what can or can’t happen in ministry, the fewer people you have actually doing ministry. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

This data is just the beginning.

The Q4 2019 report holds some really compelling data on 15+ other metrics.

I really believe this tool can help you take some valuable steps towards health in your ministry. It’s invaluable to have data and benchmarks to measure your church’s health and see where other churches are today.

If you’re interested in reading the other metrics and learning about the trends we’re seeing, you can download the report here.

It’s invaluable to have data and benchmarks to measure your church’s health and see where other churches are today. -@tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

What Changes Do You Need To Make?

Getting a church growing or helping a church that’s reaching new people grow even further can seem daunting.

It doesn’t have to be.

Whether you’re a church that isn’t growing, has plateaued, or whether you wish your church was growing faster than it is, I’d love to help you breakthrough. That’s why I created the Church Growth Masterclass.

The Church Growth Masterclass is everything I wish I knew about church growth when I got into ministry more than 20 years ago.

The Masterclass includes a complete set of videos that you can play with your team, board or staff, PDF workbooks that will help you tackle the issues you’re facing, and bonus materials that will help you navigate the most pressing issues facing churches that want to reach their cities today.

You can learn more and gain instant access to the course today.

Which of these metrics could you be doing better on?

I’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below:

The post The Church Health Trends You Need to Be Looking At appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: The Church Health Trends You Need to Be Looking At

The post The Church Health Trends You Need to Be Looking At appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: Pete Scazzero will be the first to tell you that while he was successful on the outside as a leader, he was immature on the inside, and his wife had had enough. That moved Pete on a journey to figure out what was wrong and how to make it right.

Raw, honest and gut wrenching, in this interview, Pete will help you gauge your level of emotional and spiritual maturity and help you make progress.

Welcome to Episode 230 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.

Overcome the seven greatest challenges no one expects and everyone experiences. Learn more and get your copy of Didn’t See It Coming at didntseeitcomingbook.com.

Maximize giving at your church. Visit Pushpay.com/Carey to receive an exclusive offer for podcast listeners and discover why churches see an increase in giving by using Pushpay’s digital mobile strategy.

…

The post CNLP 230: Pete Scazzero on Why So Many Successful Leaders Are Emotionally Immature, How to Tell Whether That’s You, and How to Become Emotionally Intelligent and Spiritually Mature appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 230: Pete Scazzero on Why So Many Successful Leaders Are Emotionally Immature, How to Tell Whether That’s You, and How to Become Emotionally Intelligent and Spiritually Mature

The post CNLP 230: Pete Scazzero on Why So Many Successful Leaders Are Emotionally Immature, How to Tell Whether That’s You, and How to Become Emotionally Intelligent and Spiritually Mature appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: So…what’s the difference between a growing church and a declining church?

Well there are many, but one of the biggest differences I see is the attitude of the leaders.

The leaders of growing churches almost always share a common attitude.

So do the leaders of declining churches.

And the attitude has a huge influence over the results each church sees.

Attitude may or may not be everything, but it’s close.

Here are 5 attitude differences I see again and again in growing churches and declining churches.

1. We Can v. We Can’t

Perhaps the biggest differences I see between growing churches and declining churches is the attitude around what’s possible.

Growing churches believe they can.

Declining churches believe they can’t.

They’re both right.

…

The post 5 Significant Attitude Differences Between Churches That Grow and Churches That Don’t appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: 5 Significant Attitude Differences Between Churches That Grow and Churches That Don’t

The post 5 Significant Attitude Differences Between Churches That Grow and Churches That Don’t appeared first on Passion for Planting.

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.

Source: 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

The post CNLP 224: Levi Lusko on Planting Churches Where Nobody Plants Churches appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: Every week you host services at your church hoping to reach more people, which is admirable and appropriate.

The problem is that the culture is changing and never bothered to ask you permission.

In many ways, preachers are using a method that’s been around for centuries…if not millennia…which on the one hand is wonderful. The challenge is that culture is changing so rapidly, fewer and fewer people are hearing the message every year. At least that’s the case in many, if not most churches.

If you think that the cultural change is over, fasten your seat belts. It’s not showing any sign of decelerating any time soon.

Here are 7 things that are changing right now.

Wise leaders will see the change and respond. As we’ve said before, leaders who see the future can seize the future.

The problem for most preachers is that the culture is changing and never bothered to ask you…Click To Tweet

1. People Aren’t Automatically Coming to The Message Anymore

It’s almost singularly true that throughout human history to date, the only way to get the message was for people to assemble to hear it.

Just think about Jesus’ day: the crowds assembled to hear him. And in every century since then, that’s how it worked…

The post Declining Attendance and 7 Preaching Shifts That Are Happening Right Now appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: Declining Attendance and 7 Preaching Shifts That Are Happening Right Now

The post Declining Attendance and 7 Preaching Shifts That Are Happening Right Now appeared first on Passion for Planting.

Source: 5 Signs You’re a Lone Ranger Leader (And Can’t Grow a Team)

The post 5 Signs You’re a Lone Ranger Leader (And Can’t Grow a Team) appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Tony Morgan: What is the first-time guest experience really like at your church?

When my team at The Unstuck Group helps a church assess ministry health, one key step we take is to attend and review the church’s weekend experience through the lens of an outsider.

That’s because once you see what an outsider sees, you can’t unsee it.

Serving in 100+ churches each year, we’ve started to notice some patterns.

What are the most common offenses? Here are the Top 10—the biggest issues with the weekend that we see the most often.

Keep in mind, these are only issues for churches that actually want to reach new people…

One last thing before I get to the list: Many of these issues show up in the “secret shopper” reports for large churches just as often as in small churches.

Once you see what an outsider sees, you can’t unsee it.Click To Tweet

1. The Guest Services area is staffed with people who don’t engage with newcomers.

The church feels like a private club. Guest service team members are more engaged with one another than with newcomers.

Guest services are the “first” in “first impressions.” If this team is off, my visit is off within minutes.

If the guest services team at your church is off, the guest’s visit is off within minutes.Click To Tweet

2. The church didn’t welcome me and help me know what to expect.

There’s a general lack of guiding visitors through the worship experience and explaining what to do in the different elements of the services, like singing, offering, etc.

Specifically welcoming new people is frequently missed. Someone yells “welcome” and then all of a sudden people start standing up, and then they sing. The only place I sing is in my car or in my shower. Guide me a little more. Invite me to sing, but give me permission to just take it in.

3. People on stage don’t reflect the church’s target “customer.”

The people on the platform should non-verbally communicate this is a safe place, a normal place, to the people you are trying to reach… just by being who they are.

Many times the platform presence doesn’t reflect that. A lot of churches miss the “75% rule”—having 75% of people on the platform in the same age range (or below) as the people you are trying to reach. (Credit to Lee Kricher in For a New Generation for defining it well).

Put 75% of people on the platform in the same age range as the people you’re trying to reach.Click To Tweet

4. The service order feels like an assembly of separate parts, rather than a cohesive experience.

Stop…start…stop…start… Nothing makes me check my watch more than a herky-jerky service. We sing two songs, there’s a video announcement, there are live announcements, we have a song for offering, message, another song, communion, closing announcement, benediction…

An unchurched person will be thinking, “Get me out. Land the plane.”

Nothing makes a guest check their watch more than a stop-start-stop-start service.Click To Tweet

5. The message is too long.

Especially if there were already a lot of other service elements (see the last point), I’m not gassed up for a 45-50 minute message. Tighten it up, add a story, make it applicable, and send me on my way.

6. Lack of application or next steps in the message.

I’ve given you an hour—give me something specific to take away that applies to my real life today.

7. Lack of security in the children’s area.

If I can walk off the street into your kid’s area, that’s a problem.

My team often finds unlocked, dark, rooms in the same hallway as kids programming, along with unattended external exits.

This is an issue we see far, far too often.

If someone can walk off the street into your kid’s ministry area, that’s a problem.Click To Tweet

8. The bulletins/programs are too crowded.

It looks like the Cheesecake Factory menu. What on earth am I supposed to choose to pay attention to?

This is a key first impression piece for a new person. It should welcome them, tell them what to expect and provide key info on kids ministry.

Unfortunately, many churches view it as the way to keep all the insiders informed.

9. Too many specific, insider-focused announcements instead of a few church-wide announcements.

I would add that many churches waste announcement time telling me about all the logistics of what their people could be doing instead of leveraging that time to communicate the “why” behind the activity.

They use the time to say, “Small groups will start next week, at 7 pm, in room 202, which is up the steps and down the hall.”

What would be more meaningful? Share a personal story about your small group and then challenge people who aren’t connected to get in one.

And really, just stop announcing so many things all together. Point people to your website.

Stop announcing so many things at your church. Point people to your website.Click To Tweet

10. The feel of the church—the interior design—feels like nothing else I experience outside the church.

It’s brown. There are bulletin boards, plastic flowers in the restrooms, churchy banners that mean nothing to an outsider, and sometimes worn out carpet, furniture, and funky smells.

The church members and staff have been nose-blind to it all for years, but a new person who steps through your front door will instantly notice all of it.

Your first thought reading that list might be that having an outsider attend your service and point all of these things out would be discouraging.

Oddly enough, the opposite tends to be true. This experience is one of our clients’ favorite phases of the whole planning process.

Why? Because as I said at the beginning, once you SEE what an outsider SEES, you can’t UNSEE it.

If you want to reach new people, start trying to see yourself the way they see you.

And, start looking at them the way Jesus looks at them: with a willingness to leave the 99 for the one.

If you’d like some more insight on this topic, I dug a little deeper in a recent episode of The Unstuck Church Podcast (5 Ways to Impress Your Church’s First Time Guests | Episode 45).

In that episode, I give some suggestions for how to prioritize tackling these issues, where to start, and why.

You can listen (and subscribe) here: The Unstuck Church Podcast

Final thought: This matters. Let’s not make it difficult for those who are taking a step towards God. Let’s do everything we can to meet them where they are.

Let’s not make it difficult for those who are taking a step towards God. @tonymorganliveClick To Tweet

The post Want to Reach New People? These 10 Habits Set Your Church Back appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: Want to Reach New People? These 10 Habits Set Your Church Back

The post Want to Reach New People? These 10 Habits Set Your Church Back appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: If you preach with any regularity, you know the pressure that comes with staring at a blank screen with a deadline approaching.

And if you communicate regularly within the context of the local church, like I do, you quickly discover that Sundays come around whether you’re ready or not.

I get asked regularly what I do to prepare for my messages, and there are a few things I practice and that I’ve seen other leaders do that I think can gain any communicator an edge.

They’re not talked about that often, but they work for me and for other communicators I admire. But even more than that, it took me years to get there.

Here’s to shortcuts. Five of them actually—for every communicator and preacher.

1. Focus initially on the quality of your thinking instead of the quality of your writing

So how do you get to a killer message, article or post? You think your way there before you write your way there.

Look, I admire great writers and communicators. They can make anything sound interesting, fun or even meaningful.

But I appreciate great thinking even more.

So will your audience.

A great idea adequately expressed is worth more than a bad idea eloquently expressed.

If you put lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.

A great idea adequately expressed is worth more than a bad idea eloquently expressed.Click To Tweet

If you’re trying to develop fresh angles, perspectives and insights, time is your best friend. I often start thinking through a sermon series or book a year or two in advance. I’ll keep notes in Evernote and just let the ideas simmer, refining them or adding to them regularly.

If time is your best friend, change of venue is your next best friend. I personally find that ideas get better not when I’m sitting at a computer keyboard, but when I’m doing something else: cycling, cutting the grass, washing the car, listening to a podcast or music or even cooking. Something in the back of my brain will connect dots I didn’t think connected.

When that happens, all you need is a place to record the idea. Again, Evernote is so handy. I have recorded dozens of voice files in Evernote during bike rides. It’s a convenient way to save key ideas I don’t want to lose without stopping.

This approach may not get you to next Sunday or your Wednesday deadline, but don’t get discouraged.

Instead, this week, why not start keeping notes on future series, articles and posts? Use whatever system you want, but just write your ideas down and let them gestate.

If you keep notes like this and refine your thinking over weeks and months, you’ll develop a catalogue of great ideas that can be put into use at any point in the future.

A good idea gets better over time. A bad idea gets worse over time. So give yourself time.

When you jot down your ideas and revisit them as time passes, you’ll have a much clearer sense of which is which, and the pressure to get to Sunday disappears. Plus you can keep refining them and making them better.

A good idea gets better over time. A bad idea gets worse over time. So give yourself time.Click To Tweet

2. Spend a lot of time on a few key words or thoughts

When you’re keeping your journal of ideas and concepts for the future, keep them simple.

My notes look like a series of key phrases and ideas that I keep refining until they resonate.

If your thinking is strong (see #1 above), then the next most important thing is to phrase your thinking so it’s both memorable and impactful.

Many communicators I know and respect summarize their thinking in a bottom line: a short, memorable statement that outlines the main point of the message you’re delivering.

Here are some examples of bottom lines I’ve written:

Changing your mind can change your life. 

Moral compromise compromises you. 

God doesn’t runaway from runaways.

You can make excuses or you can make progress but you can’t make both. 

God is bigger than your circumstances, and he’s better than your than your circumstances.

The best sex life is a surrendered sex life.  

It can take me weeks or months of letting an idea simmer to reduce to a simple statement like the statements above, but it’s so worth it.

I find that once I have a key idea stated as simply as that, the message becomes relatively easy to write, because the statement has so much pre-loaded into it.

Why is this so important? It’s simple. If you’re not clear on what your message is about, no one else will be either.

If you can’t state the main point of your message in a simple phrase, then you don’t understand it well enough to deliver it.

If you’re not clear on what your message is about, no one else will be either.Click To Tweet

3. Test your key ideas on a team

I personally do a lot of my writing alone, but I employ a team at key stages.

Some of my favourite writing moments happen when I walk a rough draft of the bottom lines and a short summary of the talk or series I’m working on into a meeting and bounce them off my team.

Three things happens when I present my outline to a team:

1. I learn which ideas resonate and which don’t. Better to find this out now than when giving the talk.

2. The team will frequently offer better ways to phrase key ideas than I’ve developed on my own. This makes the message or talk far better.

3. Verbally processing my ideas in front of a team often helps me discover better ways to say things than I would have discovered on my own.

I like to walk ideas into a meeting like this a month or two before I need to finish the message.

Then I go back and finish up the talk on my own, sometimes checking back in, but sometimes not if the talk or piece is now resonating well.

4. Think more about God and your audience than you think about yourself

When it comes to delivering the message, most of us naturally over-focus on ourselves. Here’s why you’ll think about if you don’t stop yourself.

Will:

Deliver this well?

People laugh at my jokes?

I knock it out of the park?

I have those thoughts too. But when I focus on them, I tend to do less well than when I focus on two other elements: God and my audience.

A sermon is not really about how you ‘did’ as a communicator; it’s about God’s interaction with his people.

A message isn’t about how you ‘did’ as a speaker; it’s about whether you helped your audience meet Christ. So don’t focus on how well you did as a preacher, focus on how well you brought Jesus.

Put a filter on your thoughts about you.

For sure, you need some personal elements in your talk…some stories, and maybe even some humour. But even while those elements are about you, they’re not. They’re about God using you and about your audience.

When you take the focus off of yourself, your insecurities lessen their grip. You begin to serve God and serve your audience through your communication, and you find you actually help people far more.

Don’t focus on how well you did as a preacher, focus on how well you brought people to Jesus.Click To Tweet

5. Focus on understanding your message, not memorizing it

This one’s for speakers.

How do you memorize a 45 minute talk?

I have no idea. But I regularly give 45 minute talks without using notes.

The best piece of advice I’ve ever received on how to ‘learn’ a talk is this: don’t memorize your talk, understand it.

Think about the next conversation you have today at work or with your family. You don’t memorize what you’re going to say before you say it. Instead, you understand what you’re trying to accomplish (I need to talk about the third quarter results, or what we’re doing for dinner.)

A talk is obviously more complex, but not much more.

If you do this, all you have to remember is the big idea of what fits in each part of the talk. Sometimes it’s as simple as thinking “How do I get to the main point again? Right, the story about last summer’s vacation!”

Personally, I will write out some stories and key phrasing in detail, but I don’t write a full manuscript any more.

I just write enough so I understand what I’m going to say.

That takes the pressure off of you as a communicator, because if you forget something the only person who knows is you. And the talk is shorter, so everyone wins.

Don’t memorize your talk. Understand it.Click To Tweet

Tomorrow’s a BIG day for Preachers

Tomorrow, Mark Clark (Lead Pastor of Village Church, a rapidly growing megachurch in Vancouver) and I open up our brand new course, The Art of Better Preaching.

You can still get a free Preaching Cheat Sheet  if you visit the website today.

The full course opens for registrations tomorrow, Tuesday, June 19 2018.

In the Art of Better Preaching, Mark and I share everything we’ve learned about communicating in a way that will help your church grow without compromising biblical integrity. We cover detailed training on everything from interacting with the biblical text, to delivering a talk without using notes, to writing killer bottom lines that people will remember for years.

Don’t miss out!

Any Tips?

What tips have you discovered for better preaching and communicating?

Scroll down and leave a comment!

The post Some Simple Practices That Will Make Your Preaching Better appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: Some Simple Practices That Will Make Your Preaching Better

The post Some Simple Practices That Will Make Your Preaching Better appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: There’s no question we’re undergoing one of the biggest transformations in history, but the digital disruption that’s happening around us every day has caught most church and business leaders off guard.

Clay talks about how large and small organizations are missing out on one of the greatest opportunities there is, and some ideas on how to respond.

Welcome to Episode 193 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.

Guest Links

Clay on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | ClayScroggins.com

How to Lead When You’re Not in Charge

CNLP 035: Leading Young At North Point – An Interview With Clay Scroggins

CNLP 153: Clay Scroggins On How To Lead When You’re Not In Charge

Free Downloads

Carey Nieuwhof Resource: Connexus Church Online Philosophy Document

Clay Scroggins Resource: 4 Big Moves

Links Mentioned

Join The Art of Better Preaching waitlist today! Don’t miss out on open enrollment coming summer 2018!

BelaySolutions.com/Carey

How to Do Crazy Good Turns – Frank Blake on The Tim Ferriss Show

CNLP 174: Jeff Henderson On The Dos And Don’ts Of Marketing Your Church Or Product And The Backstory To The #FOR Initiative

CNLP 173: Craig Groeschel Deconstructs His Approach To Preaching, Leadership, Success, The Future And More

CNLP 115: Sean Seay On Winning In Leadership While Failing At Home And How He Got Healthy

3 Insights from This Episode

1. Ignoring digital disruption is a bad idea

Many churches and businesses are staring at their declining numbers and scratching their heads; totally dismissing the digital explosion happening around them.

The largest car service in the world owns zero cars.

The largest hotel industry in the world owns zero rooms.

The largest retail store in the world owns zero inventory.

It’s unwise to ignore what’s going on in today’s culture. In order to reach more people, the church has to work through what it looks like to engage a digital world.

2. Live experiences matter, but today’s culture calls for a screen-first mentality

Live experiences are absolutely relevant and matter, but don’t be limited to the boundaries of a building. The needs of people can’t be left to be met only on Sunday mornings or weekdays from 9 to 5.

There are very few places anyone goes in life prior to first visiting them on a screen. A quick search online is the first impression that can lead to continued online and physical engagement. Buildings can host a lot of people, but websites can reach so many more.

3. It’s hard to leverage digital touches with an analog mindset

The digital world and analog world need each other, because they fuel each other’s growth. We Amazon Prime some things and drive to a store to purchase others. Online and in-store go hand-in-hand and the same is proving true in churches who keep track of their online attenders. The more people watch church online, the more people engage in the church community.

The definition of attend is changing. It’s hard to keep track of how many people are engaged in your services online, but digital attendance needs to count in some way. Every church has to figure out a strategy for what to do after someone clicks on your site. What’s the pathway in place for them? Start with what you want to measure and build a strategy around it.

Quotes from This Episode

Leverage the tools of the day to reach people with the message and hope of Jesus.” – @clayscrogginsClick To Tweet

Engagement is the new attendance.” – @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

There are very few places we go in life that we don’t go to a screen first.” – @clayscrogginsClick To Tweet

The front door of the internet is way bigger than the backdoor.” – @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

A building can’t create the boundaries of your ministry.” – @clayscrogginsClick To Tweet

The map will appear when the car is in motion.” – @clayscrogginsClick To Tweet

Join The Art of Better Preaching Waitlist Today

Carey teams up with Mark Clark in his next online course The Art of Better Preaching. Join the waitlist now to receive exclusive insider bonuses and secure your spot when enrollment opens summer 2018!

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

iTunes

Google Play

Stitcher

TuneIn Radio

Plus, I host a second podcast every month called the Canadian Church Leaders Podcast. If you’re Canadian, or just interested in ministry in a post-Christian culture, you can subscribe for free as well at:

iTunes

Google Play

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: Jerry Hurley   

Jerry Hurley joined the staff at Life Church in 1998, when it was a single campus and running about 600 people. He’s been on the senior leadership team as it’s grown to over 80,000 attenders and 29 locations today. Jerry shares his top insights on scale, leaving the corporate world and recruiting staff and volunteers. Plus, he tells the story of how he challenged Craig Groeschel to make a change that Craig calls one of the most important in his early ministry.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 194.

The post CNLP 193: Clay Scroggins on How the Digital Disruption is Changing Everything For Churches and Businesses appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 193: Clay Scroggins on How the Digital Disruption is Changing Everything For Churches and Businesses

The post CNLP 193: Clay Scroggins on How the Digital Disruption is Changing Everything For Churches and Businesses appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: In a polarized culture filled with a growing number of angry people, how do you find your voice, counter arguments and keep your sanity?

Messy Grace author Caleb Kaltenbach is back with a fresh look on how to embrace a culture of outrage and division. Conservatives and liberals both struggle to respond to the changes around them, let alone to one another. Caleb offers and outlines option for the culture that merits every leader’s attention.

Welcome to Episode 192 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.

Win a Free Copy of Caleb’s New Book

Want to win a copy of Caleb’s new book, “God of Tomorrow”?

To be eligible to win Caleb’s book:

1) Go to my Facebook page.
2) Like Caleb’s post pinned to the top of the page.

2) Share it; and then

3) Subscribe to the podcast (current subscribers will still be included in the contest if they like and share this post)

Then enjoy this interview.

My team will select the winners on Thursday, May 17th.

Guest Links

Caleb on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

CalebKaltenbach.com | God of Tomorrow available now!

Messy Grace

CNLP 033: Growing Up With Gay Parents—An Interview With Caleb Kaltenbach

Links Mentioned

Join The Art of Better Preaching waitlist today! Don’t miss out on open enrollment coming summer 2018!

Visit DesignCrowd.com/Carey for your $100 VIP discount!

3 Insights from This Episode

1. There are 3 Ways People Engage (or don’t engage) in Our Constantly Changing Society

We live in a divided culture. Historically, it’s always been this way, but the tensions of the current climate have stirred up a great deal of fear in many Christians.

Fear isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it just depends on how you manage it. We fear what we don’t understand and can’t control. In Caleb’s new book, God of Tomorrow , he shares 3 ways Christians choose to manage their fears when engaging a society that is constantly challenging moral values.

Aggressively Fighting with a Broken Society – viewing the opposition as the enemy
Surrendering and Fully Hopping on Board with Society – ignoring the tough subjects for the sake of not hurting others or stirring up conflict
Investing in Society with Empathy and Conviction – abstaining from negativity with a listening ear,  while still standing up for values and injustice.

2. Social Media Filters Are Always a Good Idea

We all know social media has its good and bad sides. Most times, it seems the bad upstages the good – or at least grabs the biggest attention. Engaging in it can be tempting, especially with the best of intentions when it comes to topics close to your heart. Caleb offers 3 simple and smart tips to consider before sending that next potentially damaging post.

Don’t post something online if…

1. You wouldn’t say it to someone’s face.

2. It doesn’t apply to a majority of your followers.

3. It doesn’t lead to encouragement.

3. Allowing Difficult People In Our Lives Creates Opportunities for Jesus to Move

The easiest way to rid your life of difficult people is to kick them out or remove yourself from their paths, but the only person that serves is yourself and in the end, can lead to a callused, empty heart.

There’s nothing wrong with maintaining a healthy level of boundaries when it comes to protecting yourself (and in extreme cases, separation is absolutely necessary), but when you separate from people who are different than you, you are running away from the opportunity to be made more like Jesus. It’s a commitment you are called to make over and over again, because there’s always a chance that God can use you to make a change in the life of someone who needs Him.

Quotes from This Episode

Our differences should drive us to people, not from them.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

We fear that which we cannot understand and that which we cannot control.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

Combativeness without compassion is always going to be counterproductive.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

Allow difficult people in your life because they make you more like Christ.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

A lack of empathy will always lead to shame.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

Our theology never changes, but out posture towards society has to change.” – @calebwildsClick To Tweet

Join The Art of Better Preaching Waitlist Today

Carey teams up with Mark Clark in his next online course The Art of Better Preaching. Join the waitlist now to receive exclusive insider bonuses and secure your spot when enrollment opens summer 2018!

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

iTunes

Google Play

Stitcher

TuneIn Radio

Plus, I host a second podcast every month called the Canadian Church Leaders Podcast. If you’re Canadian, or just interested in ministry in a post-Christian culture, you can subscribe for free as well at:

iTunes

Google Play

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: Clay Scroggins  

There’s no question we’re undergoing one of the biggest transformations in history, but the digital disruption that’s happening around us every day has caught most church and business leaders off guard. Clay talks about how large and small organizations are missing out on one of the greatest opportunities there is, and some ideas on how to respond.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 193.

The post CNLP 192: Caleb Kaltenbach on How to Embrace an Outraged and Polarized Culture Most Leaders No Longer Like appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 192: Caleb Kaltenbach on How to Embrace an Outraged and Polarized Culture Most Leaders No Longer Like

The post CNLP 192: Caleb Kaltenbach on How to Embrace an Outraged and Polarized Culture Most Leaders No Longer Like appeared first on Passion for Planting.