Chapter 3 of 15 · Framework Thinking
Should Digital Transform or Enhance Your Church?
Chapter 3, “Understand the Objective,” from Online Church Is Not the Answer by Jay Kranda
Short answer: Digital is a means, not an end. Your job isn't to fill a room but to produce fruit in people's lives, so start by naming what you're actually trying to accomplish and then ask whether it has to happen in a room at all.
What is this chapter about?
Digital is a multiverse of shiny things, and the limitless pathways can paralyze a strategy. Paul had a clear objective. He wanted to go where there wasn't a church yet, which is why in Romans 1 he keeps putting off Rome. You need to say no to some digital things that other churches say yes to, because their objectives aren't yours. There's a clip of Peter Thiel making the point that every big company started narrow: Amazon with books, eBay with Pez dispensers, Facebook at Harvard. Start narrow. Start with the end in mind.
The starter question is simple: what are you trying to accomplish? The follow up is the one most church leaders never ask. Does that need to happen in a room, or can it fully or partly happen some other way? We were trained in a room, so we replicate the room. Think about the marriage night at your church. The objective isn't a packed marriage night. It's healthy marriages. Your busy couples might get more from a podcast series they listen to on a date night than from another Thursday at the building. Don't mistake the event for the outcome.
Then there's the question I borrowed from the book Beyond Digital: does digital transform or enhance your objective? Target got transformed. They sell products and don't care how you buy them, so drive up and delivery could replace the store. Marriott got enhanced. The app books the room and unlocks the door, but the objective is still for you to show up and sleep there. Most churches are Marriott, not Target. Some parts of your church will be transformed (volunteer training, maybe), and the in person gathering will be enhanced. Both are wins if you know which is which.
What are the big ideas?
Digital is a tool, the same way God used writing, roads, and gifted communicators. Focus on the outcome, not the method. Set the 30,000 foot objectives for the whole church first, then let each ministry and team work out their own objectives and decide where enhancement or transformation fits.
Who is this chapter for?
The leader who keeps adding digital things without a why, and the volunteer who needs to ask leadership what the church is actually trying to do before building anything.
What is the Big Idea of chapter 3?
Big Idea: Our job isn't to fill a room, but to help produce fruit in people's lives. Can digital aid in this objective?
What else do people ask?
Should a church be like Target or like Marriott with digital?
Marriott, for most churches. Marriott's app enhanced the experience but the objective is still showing up in person. Target was fully transformed because it only cares about selling products. Scripture keeps face to face community central, so the church is enhanced more than transformed.
What does "don't mistake the event for the outcome" mean?
A ministry exists to produce something in people's lives, not to fill a room. If the outcome is healthy marriages, a digital option might reach more couples than another night at the building.
Does digital transform every ministry area?
No. Some areas get enhanced, some get transformed, and a few things (like gathering in person) should never be replaced. The chapter asks each team to decide which applies to their area.
Where should a volunteer start?
By asking church leadership to clarify the church's overall objectives before working on ministry specific ones and how digital can help.