The Truth is #ChurchOnline Amplifies What You're Already Doing
Your online church will either amplify an existing well-executed strategy or highlight widespread issues. It won’t magically fix your church’s problems. If your church knows how to attract younger people then your online ministry will attract younger people. If your church is good at small groups then your online small group strategy will work. If your church is great at getting people to fill out response cards then your weekly digital response card submissions will be high. If your online ministry doesn’t grow most likely your church is lacking in evangelistic outreach.
A Bias Review of Two Thousand Eighteen for #ChurchOnline
I wrote thirty-eight posts about online ministry in 2018. I write what I’m passionate about or ideas kicking around in my head that I need to flesh out. I plan to continue to write better quality posts that I pray is helpful to you the reader or at the least, a way for my future adult kids, or grandkids, to understand who I was like in any given year.
Why I Cringe When People Say "Internet Church Isn’t Really Church"
All I can think about is the fallacy of equivocation when someone says an online church isn’t church. A great example of this argument is in a recent NY Times opinion piece where the headline was "Internet Church Isn’t Really Church.”
Online Ministry: Bringing Relational Healing For Those With Mental Health Struggles
Mental health for me often feels like a rabbit hole of a topic. How mental health is medically classified confuses me, how people get diagnosed is not clear, and treatment can be messy. I believe online ministries can offer hope not only through Jesus, but through relational restoration by inviting them to join the community of a church’s online experience.
First Steps for Online Campus Pastors
Getting started as an online pastor can be overwhelming. What is my first step? Do I switch to entirely Facebook streaming? How do you become a tech expert overnight? So many questions. I would suggest first reading over my Start Here page and digest what other churches do on my Funnel page. After getting caught up check out this podcast from the Social Media Church podcast on “Started as an Online Campus Pastor with Aaron Magnuson.”
Honest Conversation about VR Church with DJ Soto
Have you heard about Virtual Reality Church yet? It’s caused quite a stir in Christian circles. Check out his multiple features on Wired, CNN, and Today Show. I’ve gotten the chance to get to know the founding pastor DJ Soto over the last year. DJ is one of the most outreach focused guys I know and the stories coming out of VR Church back it up, but often that isn’t enough to make “Christians” happy. I’m a bit sarcastic with my use of “Christians” because many have embraced VR Church’s endeavors while others have criticized.
Featured Resources
The same four things, licensed for one reader. If you are buying this for a team, the Church License covers your entire staff and every volunteer for less than the cost of three copies.
What you get:
Online Church Is Not the Answer, the full book as a PDF. 227 pages, 15 chapters, each one ending in a big idea you can put in front of your team.
The complete audiobook in MP3. 5 hours 28 minutes, read by Jay.
A Guide to Digital Goal Setting and Online Ministry Planning, including the team assessment.
The Church AI Policy Template, an editable policy your board can approve. What staff and volunteers can and cannot use AI for, when it has to be disclosed, where the line sits in sermon prep and pastoral care, and how member data gets handled.
Read three chapters. If you do not walk away with at least one thing you can change this season, reply to your receipt and I will refund you. Keep the files either way.
Everything in the Digital Strategy Kit, licensed for your entire staff and every volunteer on your team. No seat counting and no per person pricing. Buy it once, download the files, and send them to everybody.
What you get:
Online Church Is Not the Answer, the full book as a PDF. 227 pages, 15 chapters, each one ending in a big idea you can put in front of your team.
The complete audiobook in MP3. 5 hours 28 minutes, read by Jay.
A Guide to Digital Goal Setting and Online Ministry Planning, including the team assessment.
The Church AI Policy Template, an editable policy your board can approve. What staff and volunteers can and cannot use AI for, when it has to be disclosed, where the line sits in sermon prep and pastoral care, and how member data gets handled.
Read three chapters. If you do not walk away with at least one thing your team can change this season, reply to your receipt and I will refund you. Keep the files either way.
Overview of Book: Digital is a confusing concept, and many churches struggle to understand it, with most limiting their digital experience to streaming their church services and nothing more. In this book, you’ll learn how to think strategically about digital strategy and how to best integrate digital ideas into your church that align with your ministry’s in-person objectives. The goal is to disciple more people and not just get an online audience. Readers of this book will learn to cut through the hype and discern the most critical, high-level concepts and find practical ideas they can implement in their church. You’ll walk away with a vision and a pathway to take your church’s digital strategy to the next level and beyond just streaming a church service.