The Unstuck Church Podcast

"The best way to predict the future of the church is simply to look at the present." As many of us have learned in the last few years, predicting the future is hard. But what if current events could help us better understand (and prepare for) where we're headed?   In this bonus episode, Tony sits down with ministry thought leader  Carey Nieuwhof to discuss current and future church trends. For the...

Every quarter, The Unstuck Group releases The Unstuck Church Report to help church leaders monitor trends and benchmarks in key ministry areas. After all, a data point by itself doesn't tell you much, but that data point tracked over time and compared to other metrics can begin to tell a story. In this episode, Tony and Amy unpack the "story" this quarter's data is telling as well as some of the k...

Great leaders don't try to do everything themselves. But in order to delegate well, you have to start by identifying the key things only you can do. In this episode, Tony and Amy wrap up our series on Sharpening Your Executive Leadership Skills with a conversation around the final two roles a senior pastor can't delegate. Free Webinar:  How to Sharpen Your Vision-Casting Skills As your church grow...

Great leadership requires great delegation . If you're a senior pastor, you can't reach your potential (and your church can't reach its potential) if you try to do everything yourself.  In this episode, Tony and Amy continue our series on sharpening your executive leadership skills with a conversation on two of the four key roles a senior pastor can't delegate. Free Webinar:  How to Sharpen Your V...

In last week's podcast, we unpacked the first two roles an Executive Pastor can't delegate: making the vision actionable and driving core initiatives in order to free the senior pastor to focus on only the roles that they can be responsible for.  In this episode, we'll discuss the third and final role an Executive Pastor can't delegate—and unpack how that role plays out in their leadership. This E...

When senior leaders are clear on their roles and their giftings complement each other, the church is well positioned for health and growth. On the other hand, when those same leaders don't own the responsibilities they can't delegate, the vision and team begin to suffer.  This week, we're kicking off a brand new series on "Sharpening Your Executive Leadership Skills" with a conversation on two key...

If you knew that 90% of your congregation was struggling with an issue, how would you address it? Over the last four weeks, we've been talking about the common mistakes churches make when it comes to their weekend experience—including offering sermons/teaching that provide no real life application. In this bonus episode, Tony sits down with Pastor Rick Atchley ( The Hills Church in Fort Worth, Tex...

Nearly every pastor would agree that children's ministry is a key part of their church's ministry strategy—but oftentimes, we can unintentionally undermine our own efforts when we neglect this area or hire the wrong leaders to oversee it. In this episode, Tony sits down with Stephanie Moreno, Director of Ministries at Christ Fellowship Miami , to discuss five common mistakes churches make when it...

When it comes to creating a great experience for new people visiting our church, one of the most overlooked resources is our facility. Fortunately, this is one area where small intentional changes can make a big difference. In this episode, we're joined by Phil Taylor, Executive Producer of PlainJoe Studios , for a conversation about the five mistakes churches make when it comes to their space and...

A positive guest experience is one of the key areas that sets growing, healthy churches apart. That's why, this week, we'll continue our series on common mistakes churches make on the weekend with a conversation around creating an intentional guest services experience.   This Episode is Sponsored by BELAY   It's easy to feel like we have to do it all. But doing it all is not only impossible—it's a...

In this new series, we're unpacking "Mistakes You're Making in Your Weekend Experience"—helping churches identify 5 common mistakes in the areas of their worship service, guest services, kids ministry, and facilities and offering solutions to elevate their weekend experience.   In this episode, Tony and Amy discuss five common mistakes churches make when it comes to their weekend worship services—...

We've dedicated a whole series to "Pressing Questions for Pastors in 2023," answering some of the known questions pastors are wondering about in this season. Now, as we wrap up our series, we wanted to hear from you. In this episode, Tony and Amy answer the most pressing questions about ministry/ministry leadership our listeners are asking this year—from governance, to second-chair leadership, and...

We spend a lot of time talking about systems and strategies, but they're all a means to an end of achieving one goal: helping more people meet and follow Jesus, develop meaningful relationships with other believers, and get involved in the mission of the church.  This week, we're answering questions about how churches can do that more effectively by encouraging real engagement in their church and...

This week marks 300 episodes of The Unstuck Church Podcast, and we're grateful for the opportunity to continue the conversation about growing healthy churches every single week!  In this episode, Tony and Amy continue our series answering some of the most pressing questions we hear from church leaders by discussing digital strategy and volunteer engagement. This Episode is Sponsored by  PlainJoe S...

Our goal for The Unstuck Church Podcast is always to answer the most pressing and relevant questions that pastors are asking.  In this episode, Tony and Amy kick off our new series answering some of the most pressing questions we hear from church leaders in this season with a conversation on succession planning and making bold moves. This Episode is Sponsored by  PlainJoe Studios PlainJoe: A Story...

Every quarter, The Unstuck Group releases The Unstuck Church Report to help church leaders monitor trends and benchmarks in key ministry areas. In this episode, Tony and Amy walk through the data and trends from our Q2 2023 staffing-focused report, including staffing insights by ministry type, generation, and more. You can subscribe to receive the quarterly report for free, or, if you're subscribe...

On the surface, it might seem like churches with several thousands of people in attendance don't face any new barriers to growth— however, even very large churches can get stuck and hit a plateau.  In this final episode of our series, we'll discuss breaking the 10,000 barrier by exploring common growth barriers that affect churches with thousands in attendance. This Episode is Sponsored by Plannin...

Some common issues hold true for churches of all denominations and expressions as they grow beyond 1,000 and face an entirely new set of challenges as they near 2-3,000 mark. In this episode, we'll discuss breaking the 2-3,000 barrier by exploring the common challenges that hold large churches back from future growth with some practical ideas on how to approach them. This Episode is Sponsored by ...

Different churches wrestle with different issues, but many times those challenges are a reflection of the church's size. In this episode, we discuss breaking the 1,000 barrier by exploring what challenges get many mid-size churches stuck and providing practical wisdom for moving forward. This Episode is Sponsored by BELAY If you're overwhelmed trying to do it all, BELAY can help. BELAY, a modern c...

We want all churches, regardless of their size today, to be healthy and to experience growth. That's why in this new series, we're going to discuss how to break common growth barriers for churches of four different sizes: small, mid-size, large, and very large. In this episode, Tony and Amy will walk through seven common reasons that small churches get stuck and offer practical ideas for breaking...

As we conclude our series on the Challenges of the Church Lifecycle, we wanted to share the story of a real church that overcame the challenges of decline and got back to sustained health.  In this bonus interview, Tony sits down with David Emery, the lead pastor of Harvard Avenue Christian Church (Tulsa, OK), to discuss how they overcame decline, leadership change, and even the pandemic to find a...

The majority of churches today self-assess that their church is currently in decline and on the right side of the lifecycle in maintenance, preservation, or life support. In this episode, Tony and Amy wrap up our series by walking through the key challenges of the declining side of the lifecycle and offering next steps for moving back to health. Unsure where your church sits on the church lifecycl...

Rather than focusing on maintaining the status quo, the priority focus of churches in sustained health should be multiplying and reproducing at all levels. In this episode, Tony and Amy will break down the four key challenges of churches in sustained health and how to address them. Unsure where your church sits on the church lifecycle?  Take the free Unstuck Church Assessment . This Episode is Spo...

Regardless of their uniqueness, every church has the potential to go through a very similar lifecycle: Most churches start, grow, thrive, decline, and eventually end. But God's plan for our churches is to mature to a place of sustained health. In this episode, Tony and Amy are unpacking the challenges that come with the lifecycle phases of launch, momentum growth, and strategic growth, and how to...

When thinking about multisite expansion, most churches are not short of people to reach, new locations to open, or even money to expand. The biggest challenge impacting future multisite expansion is the lack of leaders to launch a new location—while still having leaders to serve existing locations. In this episode, Tony and Amy are wrapping up our multisite series with a conversation explaining th...