Practical Church

Longer sermons aren't somehow better simply because they are longer. In fact, it could have the opposite effect. Welcome to welcome to episode 28 of Practical Church Planting. Longer sermons aren't more spiritual or better just because they are longer. In fact, going too long can actually hurt what you are hoping to accomplish. In this episode, we share 3 benefits of shortening your sermon. It kee...

Church announcements aren't anyone's favorite. But they don't have to be awful either. Welcome to welcome to episode 27 of Practical Church Planting. Church announcements don't have to be the worst thing in the world. In this episode, share 4 tips to help your announcement slot go better during your services. Here are the tips we share: Keep them short Have 2-3 announcements max The 80% rule Don't...

Having information new visitors need most on the homepage of your website is vitally important. Welcome to welcome to episode 26 of Practical Church Planting. The people who visit your website the most are not the people in your church, it is people interested in visiting your church. Because of that, your homepage needs to have information that they need the most right away. Here are the three th...

Live streaming your services can actually have the opposite effect of what you are going for. Welcome to welcome to episode 25 of Practical Church Planting. There are good reasons to live stream a service, but we believe live streaming your services as a church plant can be and often is a bad thing. Why? Here are four reasons we discuss: Bad quality is bad for your church People aren't going to Fa...

Church planting should never be done alone. Let us a give you a few reasons why. Welcome to welcome to episode 24 of Practical Church Planting.  Church planting is hard. We all need help and encouragement along the way. In this episode, we share four reasons why you should join a church planting network and/or a denomination. Here are the reasons we discuss: Accountability Resources Having a Tribe...

Facebook Live is one way your church can connect and engage with more people. We've got some tips to help you utilize it more effectively. Welcome to welcome to episode 23 of Practical Church Planting. If you want to be more effective and engaging with Facebook Live, it takes more than winging it. In this episode we share 3 tips from what we have learned to help you utilize Facebook Live better. W...

Have a desire to plant churches but not be the lead planter? There is a (much needed) role for you to play. Welcome to welcome to episode 22 of Practical Church Planting.   It takes a lot of people with different talents and gifts to plant churches. In this episode we talk about how you can be involved in church planting even if you don't want to preach every week or be the main visionary. There i...

We all want to preach better sermons. Here are 6 tips to help us do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 21 of Practical Church Planting. Here are the 6 things we discuss to help you preach better sermons: Know what you are going to say Practice what you are going to say out loud Too short is better than too long Don't start with a welcome Know your bottom line No one cares how much you know u...

Want to reach more people with engaging content? In this episode we give you three resources to that will help your church do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 20 of Practical Church Planting. It can be confusing and overwhelming trying to navigate how to communicate clearly what is going on in your church and also trying to stay on top of what it looks like to engage people online. When ev...

Sermon based small groups are a great way to run your groups. Here's how you can do them. Welcome to welcome to episode 19 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. In this episode, we talk about how to do sermon based small groups and why they are so helpful for your church. We talk about: How to make it easy for people...

You're starting the process of planting a church. That's great! Here's why you shouldn't start Sunday gatherings right away. Welcome to welcome to episode 18 of Practical Church Planting. When you are in the early stages of raising money, building a team, and sharing your vision, there is also a desire to start meeting on Sundays right away. We would caution against that. We explain why in this ep...

Engaging content is king. We've got two strategies you can implement this week on Facebook to help your church be more engaging. Welcome to welcome to episode 17 of Practical Church Planting. Consistent, engaging content is crucial to helping your church reach new people. In this episode, we share our two most engaging posts (in terms of likes, comments, and shares) that we post  every week  on Fa...

We all want to be more productive. The good news? There is something you can do that will help do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 16 of Practical Church Planting. Ministry can be hard and unpredictable. However, it can be at least a little bit more predictable than we think. In this episode, we talk about what a block calendar is and how to use it. Here are the benefits and "how-tos" that...

First time guests are great, but what can we do to connect with them and significantly increase the likelihood they will return? Welcome to welcome to episode 15 of Practical Church Planting. Weekly tours of your meeting space following your service(s) is a fun and great way to connect with first-time guests. In this episode, we explain why that's the case, and how to do it. We discuss how: It's u...

What if you could impact your community in a big way every month without having to increase your budget? You can, with the $5 Give Club. Welcome to welcome to episode 14 of Practical Church Planting. The $5 Give Club is a great monthly outreach idea that doesn't cost the church any extra money and is something your people will love to get behind. In this episode, we share what it is, why you shoul...

We all want to grow our small groups ministries (whatever you may call them), however, we believe multiplying groups is not the best option. Welcome to welcome to episode 13 of Practical Church Planting. It sounds counter-intuitive and seems to go against most of the advice we hear about small groups, but in this episode, we give you 5 reasons why multiplying small groups may not be the best thing...

Should you have membership at your church? In this episode, we focus on the practical (not theological) reasons why membership is good for churches. Welcome to welcome to episode 12 of Practical Church Planting. While we would encourage membership from a Biblical perspective, it also has a quite a few practical implications as well. In this episode, we talk about how it helps you: Explain your mis...

Before your service begins, you should be intentional about when you open the doors to your auditorium.  Welcome to welcome to episode 11 of Practical Church Planting. Keeping your auditorium (worship center, sanctuary, etc.) doors closed until a specific time before you service starts is a great idea, and share how we do it at New City Church. In this episode, we discuss a few reasons why you sho...

It may not seem like you need parking lot volunteers, but in this episode, we explain why they are so important. Welcome to welcome to episode 9 of Practical Church Planting. There are a number of reasons why having volunteers in your parking lot helping to park cars is vital to a great guest experience. Here are some of the reasons we discuss: It creates energy It shows you are prepared and expec...

Every church needs more volunteers, but how do we balance that need with the need to make sure things are being done well? Welcome to welcome to episode 9 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. Even though all churches, and especially new churches, need all the help they can get. There is wisdom is still having a high...

Should you actually put out fewer chairs than you need for your weekend services? In this episode, we share why that is actually a good idea. Welcome to welcome to episode 8 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. Putting out fewer chairs than you need and then adding them as your seats fill up is really counter-intuit...

Small groups, community groups, life groups, etc. Whatever you call them, how do you start a strong groups ministry at a church plant? Welcome to welcome to episode 7 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. Launching groups in a new church is hard. We did something we called Dinners for 6 that allowed us to launch mult...

What should you do and what does it look like to meet with and grow your launch team prior to launch? Welcome to welcome to episode 6 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. What should you do in the months leading up to launching a church? It's a critical time to build relationships in and grow your launch team and to...

Raising money is a big part of planting a church. But what about raising money not just for your church, but also your salary? And if your not the lead pastor, can you raise support too? Welcome to welcome to episode 4 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episode. Raising support can be very intimidating, but it's something...

Everyone puts the scripture being taught from the sermon on your screens so everyone can follow along during the service? But is there a better idea? In this episode, we share why you should consider taking your main Bible passage(s) off your screens. Welcome to welcome to episode 4 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or  subscribe to the podcast  and never miss an episo...