by Carey Nieuwhof: Silicon Valley titan Pat Gelsinger, the CEO of VMWare and former CTO of Intel, and Scott Beck, who scaled Blockbuster Video, Boston Market, Einstein Brothers Bagels and Ancestry.com, and is the Founder of Gloo, talk about how the future church can use technology to reach people and connect people.

Pat and Scott also talk with Carey about why church leaders resist technology, privacy concerns and why the future is more relationally-connected than we imagine.

Welcome to Episode 372 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.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about weird lies that pastors and church leaders believe about church online.

Guest Links

Pat Gelsinger on Twitter | Gloo | GlooConnect

Episode Links

Remodel Health

The season to reevaluate your health benefits is right around the corner. Are you ready for it?

These times are challenging enough for leaders within churches and faith-based organizations, let alone trying to navigate health insurance questions and rate increases! What if you could have an industry expert come alongside you to not only help you understand your options, but find a solution that could save you and your employees hundreds of thousands of dollars? I know this sounds too good to be true, but I promise you it isn’t.

Remodel Health is the health benefits software and consulting service that helps employers save money and care better for their teams. By switching organizations from traditional group insurance to individual plans for each employee, Remodel Health helps you and your team tap into significant savings on health insurance.

To date, Remodel Health has helped Carey Nieuwhof listeners save $2.1 million in the last year and a half! Imagine what your ministry could do with that extra money. We know right now is a very challenging time for churches, so why not take healthcare off your list of financial stressors.

If you’re interested in learning more, Remodel Health’s benefits consultants can run a free analysis for your unique team to help you evaluate all of your options.

Visit remodelhealth.com/carey today to learn more and get access to their free Savings Calculator, Church Buyer’s Guide and brand new e-book.

ServeHQ

Our partner, ServeHQ, is launching a new option for homeschool families and we want to tell you about it.

Homeschool Magnet supports homeschooling families by providing students with instruction from world-class credentialed teachers in a remote classroom with their peers. Parents choose the best teachers for each student based on values and teaching approach to ensure every child is receiving exactly the education they desire. This puts you, as the parent, in full control of your child’s education without the daily responsibilities of lesson planning, pre-learning, teaching, tutoring, and grading.

Each student will receive instruction in the four core subject areas of Math, English, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies. Parents ultimately have the freedom to involve their student in as much or as little learning as they prefer based on each student’s learning goals.

Every student has daily access to their teachers who know their learning needs and can help with instruction and tutoring. With Homeschool Magnet, you get the freedom and control of homeschooling without the burden.

Homeschool Magnet is only a fraction of the cost of private schools and the 30-day money-back guarantee upon enrollment means this choice is risk-free.

Learn more about Homeschool Magnet’s student experience, by going to homeschoolmagnet.com and join the growing waitlist.

CONVERSATION LINKS

GlooConnect

The Juggling Act by Pat Gelsinger

Moore’s Law

ChurchPulse Weekly

Barna

7 Weird Lies About Online Church Pastors Need to Stop Believing by Carey Nieuwhof

Text CAREY to 33777 to join more than 75,000 subscribers to our leadership content

*As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

INSIGHTS FROM PAT AND SCOTT

1. Your church should use technology, not rejecting it, to reach more people

If you look back at the times of Martin Luther, it’s obvious that it would have been foolish for him to say, “We shouldn’t use the printing press to print more bibles. We should keep doing things the way they’ve always been done.” The printing press was a groundbreaking advance of technology that allowed more Christians to have access to the Bible.

The problem is that many Christians and churches are doing the exact thing with the internet. A lot of pastors are looking at online technology and saying, “It’s only temporary.” Or, “We need to keep getting people into our buildings on Sunday morning.” Sadly, those leaders are going to miss out on the biggest opportunity to spread the Gospel in our lifetime.

2. Privacy needs to be a priority as you move forward with technology

While technology is great, there are some dangers that come with any new technology. One of the biggest concerns with using the internet is data privacy. If your church has an email list or an online database of any kind, you know this is a challenge. Where do you store your members’ data? What happens if it gets hacked? How should you use it?

As you move online, you should put more energy into making sure your church’s data is secure. Platforms like Gloo and GlooConnect are backed with the highest data security in the world and have the resources to continually watch for potential breaches. Most churches don’t have the bandwidth or resources to do this, so it’s critical to outsource this.

3. Digital churches need to scale 1-to-1 interactions along with the 1-to-many

Pastors are focused on three things right now when it comes to online church: Video broadcasting, video broadcasting and video broadcasting. That’s great, but if you want to begin engaging more people online, you need to do more than just broadcast. You need to scale online 1-on-1 interactions as you scale up your broadcast interactions online.

As you put more and more of your effort online, ask yourself, “How am I helping my church have more 1-on-1 or 1-on-a few interactions online?” Are you providing Zoom rooms? Running ad campaigns around certain felt needs? Whatever you do, your ability to scale your reach will match your ability to scale healthy and helpful 1-on-1 interactions.

Quotes from Episode 372

90% of humanity will be persistently connected to the internet by 2030. 10 billion people are part of your potential congregation. @PGelsinger

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There are going to be two types of churches going forward. There’s going to be the phigital church, that is digital and physical, or the church that’s all digital. @PGelsinger

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This is the opportunity for churches to really scale, to really reach the world. – Scott Beck

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If you’re a physical-only church, you’re dead in the future. I just don’t think that you’re going to be able to survive in this increasing digitally-connected world. @PGelsinger

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Christ didn’t command us to go build churches, he said, ‘Go make disciples.’ @PGelsinger

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There’s nothing more important today than to be able to make sure that the smallest recovery center, the smallest church has the world-class capabilities to be able to leverage technologies. – Scott Beck

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Church is limited today by the capital of the edifices that we’re building. @PGelsinger

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We have to bring technology into the right design in order for it to be used for personal growth and for God’s purposes. – Scott Beck

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The average American spends 152 minutes a day on social media alone. @cnieuwhof

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People are screened out on things that aren’t interesting to them. They’re screened out on bad content, but are they screened out? Nope. @cnieuwhof

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Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 372

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

Turn Online Viewers into Real Relationships: Meet GlooConnect

Ever wondered how to turn online viewers into real relationships?

Every day, people visit your church website and access your content, but few ever really identify.

GlooConnect is a new solution that gives people watching the opportunity to introduce themselves to your church.

It can help your church:

Get a steady stream of introductions to people ready to connect with your church
Build real relationships with the people visiting your church’s website
Connect with people who are looking for guidance, hope, and support in life’s challenges where their church is already equipped to serve
Participate in world-class digital campaigns to reach people with needs in your community
Do digital outreach in a way that’s compliant with the strictest privacy laws in the world

GlooConnect lets you pastor while GlooConnect programs. No extra staff. No complex tech. Get started in as little as 15 minutes, and get ready to meet the people already connecting with you online.

To get instant access to GlooConnect and learn more, click here, and make 2021 a year of unprecedented growth for your church.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Nancy Duarte, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, Francis Chan, Ann Voskamp, Erwin McManus and many others.

Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Google Play

Stitcher

TuneIn

Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

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 Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn 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: Andy Stanley

In July 2020, Andy Stanley made national news when he announced North Point would not reopen until 2021. In this interview, Andy explains his reasons for the decision, the methodology he uses to find clarity, what he’s learning about preaching to a camera and the hardest part of the pandemic for him personally.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 373.

The post CNLP 372: Pat Gelsinger and Scott Beck on the Future Church, How to Connect with the People Watching Your Church Online and Why So Many Church Leaders Resist Tech appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 372: Pat Gelsinger and Scott Beck on the Future Church, How to Connect with the People Watching Your Church Online and Why So Many Church Leaders Resist Tech

The post CNLP 372: Pat Gelsinger and Scott Beck on the Future Church, How to Connect with the People Watching Your Church Online and Why So Many Church Leaders Resist Tech appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: Greg Atkinson returns to the podcast to talk about welcoming guests online.

So much has changed since COVID hit, and Greg shares best and worst practices for engaging online and in-person guests, how to move attenders into engagers, and how to best deal with trolls and other people who threaten to take you off mission.

Welcome to Episode 369 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.

Plus, in this episode’s What I’m Thinking About segment, Carey talks about vanity metrics and why we should stop focusing on attendance.

Guest Links

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Connect with Greg

Episode Links

Pro Media Fire

Are you a leader of a church facing these challenges?

Your digital team is at max
Your social media team can’t keep up with the need for content
Your creative team is overwhelmed
And you’re cautious about spending money with new staff to help

But how do you increase your quality and output of content without a huge expense?

The solution is Pro Media Fire, where you can hire an entire creative team of professionals for less than the cost of a staff hire. And the best part is the plans are month to month.

You can get help today with professional graphics, videos and content to make an impact while navigating this season of digital expansion.

Book your free strategy session today at promediafire.com/churchgrowth.

The Ascent Leader

This is a unique season that is often the most challenging environment to lead. You may find that you’re inheriting a prior leader’s staff, culture, elders and much more.

If you’re a new lead pastor who is leading a church after a recent senior leader transition, I want to invite you to The Ascent Leader cohorts.

In these cohorts, you’ll get to learn from many of the best transition leaders in the church, you’ll be connected with like-minded A-level peers and you’ll have access to a coach who has experience with dozens, and even hundreds, of church leadership transitions.

Apply today at theascentleader.org.

CONVERSATION LINKS

First Impressions Conference

CNLP 132: Greg Atkinson on the Secrets of a Secret Church Shopper: What People are Looking for When They Come to Your Church

CNLP 132 Transcript

CNLP 185: Greg Atkinson on How First Time Guests Get Alienated by Your Church Services

CNLP 185 Transcript

CNLP 357: JP Pokluda on the Future of Online Preaching, What Pastors Can Learn from YouTubers, and How to Influence the Next Generation

Church Online Platform

Crossroads Church Cincinnati

Church Anywhere

Elevation Church

Life.Church

Churchome

Hillsong East

The Summit Church

North Point Community Church

ChurchPulse Weekly: with Thom Rainer and Myron Pierce

Some Awkward Questions About How to Measure Online Church Attendance (+ 5 Growth Strategies) by Carey Nieuwhof

The Online Church Engagement Summit

Text CAREY to 33777 to join more than 70,000 subscribers to our leadership content

INSIGHTS FROM GREG

1. Questions your team should be asking in the online chat

It seems like most online chat experiences are either trivial or divisive. People are asking questions like, “What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?” Or, there are trolls who make everything political, making it a point to disagree with anyone who speaks up. How can you avoid this?

To avoid trivial conversations, have the members of your greeting team intentionally go into the chat and ask highly emotionally intelligent questions and give great answers. The quality of your questions will determine the quality of your chat.

For the trolls, Greg recommends that you try and take the conversation offline. If they’re a member of your church, have a phone call or text with that person. If they’re someone you don’t know, and refuse to take it offline, you will likely have to ban that user. Greg and Carey both often have to ban people online. It’s okay.

2. You’ll be tempted to view your online audience as “secondary” to your in-person audience, don’t

Greg has watched pastors completely forget about their online audience over and over throughout his career, and he thinks that pastors will begin to fall back into that habit as they come out of the current crisis.

Many pastors are already saying things like, “The 30% who have returned to in-person church are the devoted ones, and those staying home are less committed members.” This simply isn’t true.

Some of your most committed members have serious health risks that are keeping them at home. Don’t forget about them in your quest to refill your room.

3. Your church’s future depends on what you learned (or didn’t learn) in the crisis

One of the big questions coming out of the COVID crisis is, “Will church attendance go back to what it was pre-COVID?” Greg thinks that it will return for some churches and won’t for others. He thinks it will totally depend on whether a church learns the lessons that we need to learn from this pandemic.

If you go back to the old way of doing things, your church isn’t going to thrive. But if you learn from this season about how powerful online can be, reinvent yourself, and add a healthy online experience and community to your church, your church will likely thrive.

Quotes from Episode 369

If a church feels like they can’t be a church because of missing a one-hour service out of building, we were missing the point all along, ministering to people. @GregAtkinson

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During times of uncertainty, lead with your humanity. @Andy Stanley

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The gospel has never been proclaimed so largely, so broadly, so loudly as in the past five, six months of this COVID experience. @GregAtkinson

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Never forget your online audience. We’re in that phygital world from here on out. There are always people watching at home. @GregAtkinson

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That front door experience, that very first impression, starts online. @GregAtkinson

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When you tune into an online experience, there should be somebody that sees you and acknowledges you and thanks you for tuning in. @GregAtkinson

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Pastoral care has never been so important. @GregAtkinson

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Let people see your heart, because people really resonate with emotionally engaging content. @cnieuwhof

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Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 369

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Watch Back Episodes of The Podcast on YouTube

Select episodes of this podcast are now on YouTube. Our YouTube Channel gives you a chance to watch some episodes, not just listen.

The Online Church Engagement Summit

So you’ve got people watching your church online. How do you turn them into engagers?

On October 8th, 2020, Carey Nieuwhof is hosting The Online Church Engagement Summit. It’s a free, 90-minute value-packed event where Levi Lusko, Nona Jones, and Bobby Gruenewald will give you their best practical strategies to turn viewers into engagers.

If you feel like you don’t even know where to begin, or if you’ve had success but want to reach and engage more people, this is for you and your team.

Learn more and register for free.

SUBSCRIBED YET?

Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Nancy Duarte, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, Francis Chan, Ann Voskamp, Erwin McManus and many others.

Subscribe using your favorite podcast app via

Apple Podcasts

Spotify

Google Play

Stitcher

TuneIn

Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

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 Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn 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: Brad Lomenick

Brad Lomenick returns to the podcast to talk about his new podcast, H3 Leadership, and how to grow your influence without producing more content. Brad explains the power of curating content and connecting people, and how he used that to build one of the largest leadership networks out there. Brad also discusses future trends every leader should watch. Plus, Carey and Brad talk about the launch of a brand new podcast network: Thrivicity.

Subscribe for free now so you won’t miss Episode 370.

The post CNLP 369: Greg Atkinson on How to Grow Engagement in Online Attendance, Best and Worst Digital and In-Person Church Practices, and Improving the Church Guest Experience appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 369: Greg Atkinson on How to Grow Engagement in Online Attendance, Best and Worst Digital and In-Person Church Practices, and Improving the Church Guest Experience

The post CNLP 369: Greg Atkinson on How to Grow Engagement in Online Attendance, Best and Worst Digital and In-Person Church Practices, and Improving the Church Guest Experience appeared first on Passion for Planting.

By: unSeminary

Thanks for listening in to this week’s unSeminary podcast. I’m excited to have Brett Bixby join us from Bridgewater Church – a multisite church with campuses in New York and Pennsylvania.

Founded in 1807, Bridgewater Church plateaued for many years with most of their growth being transfer growth rather than new salvations. But fifteen years ago God began stirring in the hearts of the staff and in 2009 Brett was brought on board as the Outreach Pastor to help develop a focus on reaching adults with the Gospel. Listen in as Brett shares the methods Bridgewater began to implement over the years to become one of the fastest growing churches in the country in a relatively rural area of the northeast.

Change your methods. // As Bridgewater began to shift their focus more to spreading the Gospel, they realized that most people who don’t attend church aren’t necessarily against God, but rather see church as unappealing and have no desire to come. So Bridgewater began to examine their structure and methods for reaching the lost to see what needed to change. The first of these changes was to add a contemporary service and then encourage their people to invite their friends and family. People were so responsive to these invitations that the church had to continue adding services, and eventually transition the traditional service because they needed the room for new families.Invite friends. // Bridgewater made it normal for people to invite everyone they knew to hear about Jesus. The staff wanted to be the first to model the invite culture they were trying to develop and so they went out of their way to get involved in the community. As part of this natural outreach, the lead pastor coached high school soccer and Brett coached junior football and sought to connect with local families. This philosophy and involvement in the community continues to be an important part of Bridgewater’s culture today.Tell God-stories. // Another change Bridgewater made was to focus on stories of life-change within their communities. Week after week they shared stories of what God was doing in the lives of people at their church. When they didn’t have the ability to record videos of these testimonies, they simply asked people to come to the front of the room and share. Bridgewater also celebrates salvations with carnations. Whenever people give their lives to Christ, it’s represented by carnations within the service. At a recent church business meeting, 464 carnations were displayed, each representing the people who were saved at the church in the last year. Realize that God wants to show up this way all of the time in our churches, but we have to be willing to work with Him.Plug people in. // As new families have come to the church, Bridgewater looks to Jesus’ example of how he connected people relationally and invited people to serve. Jesus had his disciples passing out bread and fish and hanging out with each other, and connection can be as simple as that. Brett reminds us that there are several team roles that can be available to anyone, regardless of where they are spiritually. Working as a greeter, serving coffee in the café, or working in the parking lot are all roles new people can step into. And now as churches reopen, cleaning teams will be necessary at each campus as well. Plug people in wherever they fit and get them relationally connected to people who love Jesus in order to help them take steps forward.Explore what’s next. // When the lockdown started, Bridgewater went back to their mission and just looked for different ways to accomplish it. Now as the church reopens, they are exploring new campuses to see where God wants to move them next. Another church has already approached them during this season to explore a possible merger. When planning to launch a new campus, take a look at towns with elementary schools. As Brett notes, any place with a school has enough young families that they need a great church.

You can connect with Bridgewater Church at www.bridgewater.church.  

Thank You for Tuning In!

There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I’m grateful for that. If you enjoyed today’s show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they’re extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally!

Lastly, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, to get automatic updates every time a new episode goes live!

Source: Turning Up the Volume on Reaching Unchurched People with Brett Bixby

The post Turning Up the Volume on Reaching Unchurched People with Brett Bixby appeared first on Passion for Planting.

This guest post is written by Angela Faith, Digital Strategist at one of our trusted partners, Pro WEBFIRE. Pro WEBFIRE spends every day on the edge of the digital space, and I’m excited to share what Angela and the team are learning.

The ever increasing shifts in culture seem to be at warp speed. That which would have taken years can now happen in a matter of months.

For example, a church with a few hundred attendees can reach a thousand or more when viewed online. Or a church with a few thousand people during a live service can turn into a church of hundreds of thousands. And while lots of people have questions about whether this is a good thing or not, the truth is, this is the age we live in.

In the past, the church has often been a late bloomer in cultural trends racing behind to keep up instead of being a trendsetter.

There are elements and shifts that are beyond our leadership that affect church growth.

You can be a good leader and communicator and yet your church can be in decline simply because you’re not making certain shifts toward the digital world. After all, everybody you want to reach is online. If you’re not there, you’re missing them.

After all, everybody you want to reach is online. If you’re not, you’re missing them. Click To Tweet

Here are 5 digital shifts that affect church growth:

1. Digital has become the New Normal

The new normal for many growing and multi-site churches is for people to watch the message on a video screen. The pastor preaches at one or maybe two services and the message is aired in other services or campuses on a big screen.

What was strange years ago, is now normal. We all consume large amounts of content on screens.

Younger adults have fully embraced a digital platform and are very comfortable watching the message digitally at a live service. This is revolutionary. Embracing the digital platform helps prevent burnout of the lead communicator (if you have multiple services) and allows for easier expansion to reach the community beyond the traditional 4 walls of the church building.

You may be asking, why would people attend a service to experience the message digitally? Great question.

Because they want a non-downloadable experience. People come for the community, live worship, kid’s ministry, relationships and to bring their friends.

Churches that understand that the platform has become digital are experiencing a reach that far extends the weekend services. The digital platform expands the reach of messages to thousands more online than those that walk through the doors of the building and can be re-lived and shared over and over again.

And online church is a front door. Many visitors watch online services for a few weeks to months before attending an actual service.

When you focus on the digital platform experience online, you can expand your reach which will, in turn, affect the growth of your live services.

Churches that shift to a mindset that the pulpit is not just live but is also digital, will reach more people and experience growth over the next decade.

Churches that shift to a mindset that the pulpit is not just live but is also digital, will reach more people and experience growth over the next decade.Click To Tweet

2. Apps Aren’t Your Front Door. Websites Are.

With the invention of smartphones came the rise of apps.

There was a short trend that suggested church apps would completely replace church websites. It was similar to those saying email would die. But today, the opposite has happened.  Emails and websites are stronger than ever.

Surprisingly, nobody visits an app to check out a church. Why? Because they Google their question, and Google leads them to websites, not apps.

The venture through the church website creates a digital experience that allows the church to have a voice and speak into the person’s life or it repels them.

The website isn’t nearly as much for the congregation as it is for unchurched people who are searching for answers.

Surprisingly, nobody visits an app to check out a church. Why? Because they Google their question, and Google leads them to websites, not apps.Click To Tweet

In today’s culture, the main purpose of the website is for the unchurched and the first-time visitor. Sure, your church website will have information for those in the church, but you could put that on an app (for attenders) or on the back pages of the site.

Websites are the digital foyer. Your website is the gateway for new people to discover amazing leadership,  preaching and a faith of their own.

Websites are the digital foyer. Your website is the gateway for new people to discover amazing leadership, preaching and a faith of their own.Click To Tweet

3. Right or Wrong, Decisions Get Made In Seconds

Digital decisions are lightning-fast decisions.

In a matter of seconds, you make decisions about whether to keep watching a video on YouTube or click away bringing the level of expectation higher than it’s ever been. Quality media is expected by those in your community for this reason.

Stopping the scroll goes beyond social media and translates into your church website.

When someone lands on your church website what do they think?

Your digital presence is sending a message from you that a generation is welcome or not welcome.  This message is not done in words but the actual design of your website.  Just like stopping the scroll, the decision is made in seconds.

Your digital presence is sending a message from you that a generation is welcome or not welcome.Click To Tweet

Before they watch a message or read what your church is about, the website visitor has already made a snap judgment about the church. The decision is made visually and through the power of design.

How often do you buy a product at the grocery store for the package and you haven’t even tasted it?  You liked the packaging so that is the one you choose.  The other product may have tasted better, but you make a snap judgment based on the package.  Whether you buy it again, will depend on the taste, but trying it out was based on the brand packaging.

Today, people make a decision to visit your church because of your brand and design.  Your digital presence and design matter more than the building you meet in for services.

Again, that might not be ideal, but it’s real.

Today, people make a decision to visit your church because of your brand and design. Your digital presence and design matters more than the building you meet in for services.Click To Tweet

People have already made a decision about you before ever walking through your doors.  This changes the visitor experience and how you need to treat them in your services.

If the digital experience is one that greatly affects your weekend visitors at your services, it only makes sense to get digital right.

When someone visits a church today, they have already decided they like it through a digital experience. They are one step away from becoming part of the church.Click To Tweet

4. Outreach is Also Shifting to Digital-First

Some of you remember the days you would go door to door as a church to evangelize.

But today things have changed. Almost nobody knocks on doors anymore (except couriers) and when they do, it’s almost counter-productive. What if you could knock on every cell phone within 30 miles of your church?

The good news is you can through Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

You can literally reach your community digitally and single out those in need. Then with a simple follow-up strategy in place, you could call or meet face to face with those needing prayer for a personal tragedy.

Your church has the biggest opportunity in history to reach your community for Christ. But are you maximizing the digital platform of our church?

What if your social media became a beacon in your community that said, “we are here to help?”

Over the next decade, the church that invests in digital will reach more people for Christ.

Over the next decade, the church that invests in digital will reach more people for Christ.Click To Tweet

5. Rural and Urban Have Become More Equal

Digital and the internet has reshaped the world.

Even in rural communities, people have access to the same media as the big cities.  It’s flattened our experience and broken down divides that used to exist because of geography and culture. While there used to be a big gap based on location, the average kid in the country has the same access to YouTube and TikTok the average urban kid does.

What does this mean for the church?

Churches that are intentional about creative media will be the ones who are heard in the future. Most young millennial couples will be reluctant to share a post from their church that has an outdated design?

Media brings the entire world together, and that means the geographical divide that impacted churches a decade ago isn’t nearly the factor it used to be.

Media has brought the entire world together. The geographical divide that impacted churches a decade ago isn’t nearly the factor it used to be.Click To Tweet

Want to Get Started? Some Help.

If it all starts with a google search for a first-time guest, the questions become: will your church’s website be the first to pop up? If so, does it make the people landing on your site want to go further not just digitally, but personally?

Most churches have room for significant improvement when it comes to their website.

A lot of churches wish they could hire staff, but just don’t have the wiggle room financially to do it.

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If you want to learn more about how these services can rapidly grow your church, check out Pro WEBFIRE at www.prowebfire.com/carey.

What Are You Seeing?

What are you learning about decision making, evangelism and online reach?

Scroll down and leave a comment!

The post 5 Digital Shifts That Are Impacting Church Growth appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: 5 Digital Shifts That Are Impacting Church Growth

The post 5 Digital Shifts That Are Impacting Church Growth appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: The attractional church model has been the dominant church model for 20 years in growing churches and many leaders are noticing it’s not nearly as effective as it used to be. Few churches were better known for the attractional model than Cross Point Church in Nashville, TN.

In a raw, honest and open conversation, Creative Director Drew Powell and Executive Director Matt Warren talk about why attractional church isn’t what it used to be, why it was effective but isn’t as much anymore, what they’ve changed (and why Cross Point is now the largest its ever been) and where the future church is heading.

Welcome to Episode 251 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

@drewpowell | @mattywarren | crosspoint.tv | crosspoint.tv/music

Episode Links

Step up your digital game and grow your congregation through custom-tailored content with Pro Media Fire. Take advantage of this special offer for podcast listeners at promediafire.com/carey and receive 10% off all plans for life and 40% off media bundles for life.

Mark Clark and I team up in The Art of Better Preaching, where we 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. Find out how you can improve your preaching by enrolling today.

5 Reasons Charismatic Churches Are Growing (And Attractional Churches Are Past Peak) by Carey Nieuwhof

3 Insights from Drew & Matt

1. The foyer of the church has moved online

Nobody goes to a restaurant without checking out the website and reviews first and it’s no different for seekers looking for a church to call home. Most people are going to visit a church online before ever considering to step through the doors and that’s why the foyer of the church has moved.

Once online attenders are ready to experience a service live, the transition can be intimidating. That’s the time where they get to find out if everything they’ve been experiencing online (and missing out on live) is real and true.

It’s important to have volunteers on the ground ready to make them feel expected, welcomed and at home. That successful transition often leads to fast engagement because they are eager to get involved in the church community once that online barrier has been crossed.

2. Everyone can still be welcome in a charismatic model

As many churches move towards a more charismatic model, it’s important to continue to be welcoming to everyone – a key component of attractional church that doesn’t need to disappear.

What’s shifting in the charismatic approach is who the programming is being created to reach. Instead of cultivating a service with only the unchurched in mind, incorporate space in the program that provides the “first couple of rungs on the ladder” for anyone new to the church space while keeping the focus on engaging Christ followers in continued spiritual growth.

3. Don’t wear Saul’s armor; find your own fit

If you feel stuck in a model that isn’t working and aren’t sure how to change course, there are two places to focus on in order to slowly turn the ship around.

First, pray – and if you don’t know how to pray, ask God to teach you how. Seems too simple, but never underestimate the powerful changes that can come through intentional prayer.

Second, focus on your unique calling instead of getting lost in the comparison trap. The things that connect your church to your community are not necessarily the same things that connect other churches to theirs. You can’t wear Saul’s armor. You need a suite customized for your own battle. Focus on your strengths, know who you are and hone in on what God has called you to do.

Quotes from Episode 251

Nobody is looking for WOW anymore in the church. If they are truly lost, they are looking for HOW. -Matt WarrenClick To Tweet

People show up looking for Jesus and shame on us if they show up and only find us. @cnieuwhofClick To Tweet

I never want to lose the environment that says everybody is welcome. -Matt WarrenClick To Tweet

We’re never going to have the opportunity to actually get our arms around online attenders if we don’t engage them in the new foyer, which is online. -Drew PowellClick To Tweet

Read or Download the Transcript for Episode 251

Looking for a key quote? More of a reader?

Read or download a free PDF transcript of this episode here.

Reach More People…Every Weekend

Ready to start preaching better sermons and reach the unchurched without selling out? Then it’s time to start using the right tips, lessons, and strategies to communicating better.

76% of people say that preaching is a major factor in whether they decide to stay at a church.

The Art of Better Preaching Course is a 12 session video training with a comprehensive, interactive workbook that will help you create, write, and deliver better sermons. The course contains the lessons Mark Clark (lead pastor of  Village Church, a growing mega-church in post-Christian Vancouver) and I have learned, taught, and used over decades of being professional communicators.

This is the complete course you need to start preaching better sermons, including:

7 preaching myths it’s time to bust forever
The 5 keys to preaching sermons to unchurched people (that will keep them coming back)
How to discover the power in the text (and use it to drive your sermon)
The specific characteristics of sermons that reach people in today’s world
Why you need to ditch your sermon notes (and how to do it far more easily than you think.)
How to keep your heart and mind fresh over the long run

And far more! Plus you get an interactive workbook and some bonus resources that will help you write amazing messages week after week.

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.

Check it out today and gain instant access.

Subscribed Yet? 

Subscribe for free and never miss out on wisdom from world-class leaders like Brian Houston, Andy Stanley, Craig Groeschel, Nancy Duarte, Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni, Francis Chan, Ann Voskamp, Erwin McManus and many others.

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Spread the Word. Leave a Rating and Review

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 Apple Podcasts and leave us a brief review! You can do the same on Stitcher and on TuneIn 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: Kevin Queen

What do you do when a well-known, charismatic founder of a highly visible, successful church resigns and you’re the successor? That was Kevin Queen’s situation in 2017 when he took over the Lead Pastor role at Cross Point Church in Nashville, TN after Pete Wilson stepped back. Kevin had never been a Lead Pastor before and has a very different style and approach. 18 months later, the church has never been stronger or larger, and is moving into the future as alive as it’s ever been. Kevin shares that astonishing, unlikely story of how it all came together under God’s grace.

Subscribe for free now and you won’t miss Episode 252.

The post CNLP 251: Drew Powell and Matt Warren on Why Attractional Church is Past Peak, Why It’s Changing and What’s Next for Weekend Services appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: CNLP 251: Drew Powell and Matt Warren on Why Attractional Church is Past Peak, Why It’s Changing and What’s Next for Weekend Services

The post CNLP 251: Drew Powell and Matt Warren on Why Attractional Church is Past Peak, Why It’s Changing and What’s Next for Weekend Services appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Rich Birch: Have you ever considered why some churches grow while others decline?

What is it that seems to drive some churches to make a difference and reach more people while others struggle to keep the doors open?

This will be a year of incredible breakthroughs in some churches while others will find themselves at the beginning of eventual decline; even more churches across the country will close.

In the coming year, there will be leaders reading this post that will look back and remark at how amazing it was to have reached more people and to have seen them get plugged in, while others will look back and be shocked that their church is in a plateau or decline. My assumption is if you are reading this article that you’re a church leader who cares deeply for your church and you want to see it thrive!

…

Source: 7 Facts About Church Growth That Will Make You Think Twice

The post 7 Facts About Church Growth That Will Make You Think Twice appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Carey Nieuwhof: In a world where everything’s changing, how should the church change to reach more (not fewer) people?

The struggle you have is the likely the struggle most church leaders have: reaching new people seems to be getting harder and harder every year.

What if it didn’t have to be that way? What if it became easier and easier?

Here’s a big idea.

Right now we’re in the greatest communication revolution since 1440 and the invention of movable type with the Gutenberg press.

As more than a few observers have said, with the explosion of audiobooks and podcasting, we’re currently in the middle of a shift in which listening is emerging as the new reading.

While Gutenberg opened up reading to people who never had the means or opportunity to read before, audio listening (audio books and especially podcasting) is breaking down an even more massive barrier.

Listening likely has the potential to be as big or bigger than reading, because while people who are literate don’t always take the time to read, many people (especially non-reading men) are discovering that listening to books and podcasts is very doable.

…

The post Sermon 2.0: The Future of the Preaching and Reaching The Unchurched appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: Sermon 2.0: The Future of the Preaching and Reaching The Unchurched

The post Sermon 2.0: The Future of the Preaching and Reaching The Unchurched 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: Any idea what the best outreach opportunity of the year at your church is?

You might think it’s an event you do, or perhaps it’s Easter. But whether Christmas has historically been your best opportunity to reach unchurched people or not, I believe it could be.

You may think it’s far too early to start thinking about Christmas, but think again. Whenever I share these ideas about Christmas each year, people say “Hey, I wish you’d talked about this earlier.” So we are.

So why can Christmas become your very best outreach event of the year?

As our culture becomes more and more post-Christian, we’re seeing far fewer times when the holidays of the church and the holidays of culture sync.

I remember about a decade ago hearing a Toronto DJ refer to Easter as “the first long weekend of summer” (in Canada Good Friday is a holiday and schools still take Easter Monday off…a relic from Colonial days). Good Friday and Easter were completely lost on him. It was simply time off.

Christmas is completely different. It’s the one time each year mainstream culture still pays attention to a Christian holiday.

Our culture still loves Christmas. Sure, you can yell and scream that the motives are commercial.

…

The post 11 Strategies to Help You Leverage Christmas To Reach The Unchurched appeared first on CareyNieuwhof.com.

Source: 11 Strategies to Help You Leverage Christmas To Reach The Unchurched

The post 11 Strategies to Help You Leverage Christmas To Reach The Unchurched appeared first on Passion for Planting.

by Rich Birch: Welcome to the unSeminary podcast. So glad you’re tuning in because today we have Justin Dosch from Grace Community Church in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania. Grace was built with the intention of looking like a community center that happened to have services on the weekend so that it would feel less like a church in order to bring in people who aren’t comfortable with the typical church atmosphere.

Justin is the family pastor at Grace and is here today to talk about how they are reaching unchurched people and how you can adapt their strategies in your own church.

Care for people when they mess up. // When someone comes through their doors, whether for the first time or whether they’ve been coming for ten years, it’s very important to Grace Community Church to care physically, emotionally, and spiritually for them. At Grace they have a counselor and different levels of care via small groups or one-on-one care through volunteers. People who have gotten burned at churches may feel that it’s not really a safe place. If they mess up, we point fingers. While Justin explains we should all recognize our sin and grow from it, we also need care along our spiritual journey. Because Grace Community Church tries to care for people the way that Jesus cared for those around him, their culture is heavy on the side of grace without neglecting to share the truth of the gospel. As a result they’ve seen many lives changed as people feel safe to be works-in-progress on their spiritual journey.
Hospital for the hurt. // It can seem to be a difficult thing to communicate care within a large church without overlooking people. At Grace they do this through consistency and clarity. They proclaim this value not only from the stage, telling the congregation, “Hey, this is a hospital for hurting people,” but also down through the staff. Grace works to make sure people know that no matter what they’re struggling with, it’s a safe place to come where they can find someone to help them work through things.
Go back to the drawing board to do more. // Many churches do a Trunk-or-Treat type outreach for Halloween and while Grace Community had too, they felt that it had become stale and repetitive. So they went back to the drawing board and began to reimagine a fall outreach for the community. This led to the development of Fall Frenzy three years ago, which Justin describes as “basically a fall festival on steroids.” It is a free festival with food trucks, games, and inflatables, with the main attraction being theme rooms, for example Star Wars Jedi training, in the church. A lot of people comment that they can’t believe this is a church and many come back to services another day, with the Fall Frenzy outreach as their first interaction with the church.
Encourage working within the church early. // At Grace Community, being a part of the church starts early. They have a youth program like other churches do, but they try to keep it simple to engage kids in what the gospel is about. Once a month they have a big youth night that’s fun and encourage students to invite their friends. On another night during the week, the youth group meets to talk about what the lesson was during the monthly youth event, and delves into scripture more deeply. The students are encouraged to get involved in the church and serve in a capacity such as an usher or working in the café, as the adults would.

You can email Justin at Justin@mygcc.org or learn more about Grace Community Church at https://mygcc.org/.

Thank You for Tuning In!

There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I’m grateful for that. If you enjoyed today’s show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they’re extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally!

Lastly, don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, to get automatic updates every time a new episode goes live! 

Lightning Round

Ministries Following // Northpoint

Influential Book // Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World by Bob Goff

Inspiring Leader // Andy Stanley or Craig Groeschel

What you do for fun // Play guitar, exercise, time with wife

Contact // website mygcc.org or email justin@mygcc.org

Source: Being a Church that Unchurched People Love to Attend with Justin Dosch – unSeminary

The post Being a Church that Unchurched People Love to Attend with Justin Dosch appeared first on Passion for Planting.