Founder + CEO
Jeff Reed
Jeff Reed is the founder and CEO of The Church Digital, where he equips and releases digital missionaries to make disciples in connected spaces. He has been writing on digital missiology, hybrid church, and the future of online ministry since 2018 — 448 posts and counting. Jeff also leads Humble Disruption, a digital agency working with church and missional clients.
Writes about:
- digital missiology
- hybrid church
- online discipleship
- VR / metaverse ministry
- church online strategy
- digital missionary equipping
- Posts
- 448
- Words written
- 730,287
- First post
- Sun Jun 17 2018 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)
- Most recent
- Sun May 24 2026 20:00:00 GMT-0400 (Eastern Daylight Time)
All posts by Jeff Reed
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Welcome to the new The Church Digital
We've rebuilt the site on a modern stack — faster, editable, and ready for what's next.
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The moment I realized I couldn’t keep doing digital ministry like this
When you realize you can’t keep going like this… what do you do next? I didn’t get there slowly. I crashed. Hard. ### The crash I stepped away from…
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The lie I believed about digital ministry almost burned me out
I need to say something I didn’t realize I believed until it almost took me out.
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Equipping Digital Missionaries: Breaking the Rules to Share the Gospel Online
## Are you ready to break the traditional mold and join a digital revolution for Jesus? The world is shifting, and ministry has to shift with it. And…
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What if You Stopped Playing It Safe? A Rebel's Guide to Niche-Casting for Digital Missionaries
## What if you stopped trying to reach everyone and focused on reaching someone? Connection in the digital age is about someone specific—the person who…
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25 theChurch.digital Promises for 2025
## Was 2024 the year of theChurch.digital? New website. A fresh community launch. A laser focus on digital missionaries. Lausanne Congress in Korea.…
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Revolutionizing Digital Churches: Embracing Community Over Pulpits
## Have you ever felt like today’s church is missing out on something big? The conversation around digital ministry and the rise of digital churches is a…
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The Future of Faith Beyond the Four Walls
## Is your understanding of discipleship stuck in a building? In a world that's constantly evolving, digital discipleship isn’t a trend—it’s a revolution.…
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Social Media Is NOT Digital Community
## What social media is perfect at! Don’t hear me wrong. Social media is vital! Social media is good at connecting with people. But its weakness is…
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What Exactly Is a Digital Missionary?
## The Potential of a Digital Missionary ## One of the largest unreached people groups in the world today can be found digitally. The stats surrounding…
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Digital Missionaries and the Future of theChurch.digital
This past week, we unveiled the ninth version of theChurch.digital. Since I acquired the domain name in February 2018, theChurch.digital has been on a…
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Overcoming the Scrutiny of Digital/Meta Churches: Let's Multiply Disciples
Planting a digital-only/metaverse church is a controversial proposition. We've all had those conversations. Frustrating just begins to describe them. To…
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Achieving Movement: The Heart of theChurch.digital
We personally started theChurch.digital because of a simple idea: We wanted to see the idea of digital church & digital discipleship multiply. What I love…
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The Case for Digital and Meta Churches
We're launching something different. The first of its kind, theChurch.digital will champion digital and meta church movements here in the US and around…
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How You Can Learn in Community
2024 for The Church Digital has been incredible. When I started The Church Digital in 2018, the goal was to help the big “C” church better understand…
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EP293 - Andy Mage & Building Deeper Relationships Embracing Asynchronous Community
In this episode, Jeff Reed and Andy Mage discuss the concept of asynchronous community and its potential for churches. They define an asynchronous…
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EP291 - Jeff Celebrates The Church Digital Podcast's Fifth Anniversary
## The Evolution of Digital Ministry: Celebrating Milestones and Embracing the Future The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside. Check out…
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EP290 - Jeff Talks New Website, Discord, and a New Online Era
## Navigating Digital Transformation: TCD Unveils a New Online Era The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside. Check out how Riverside can…
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EP289 - Jeff Talks Beer, Multiplication, and the Digital Church
## Navigating Digital Multiplication and Fostering Global Church Leadership The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside. Check out how…
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EP288 - Navigating Asynchronous Community: Gabe DeWalk & The Kingstide Journey
## Connecting Faith and Technology: The Kingstide Journey and Its Digital Aspirations ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside. Check…
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EP287 - Innovating for Impact: Jeff Reed looks at Digital Church Movements
## Exploring Tradition and Innovation in Church Movements: TCD's Vision of Digital Discipleship ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by…
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EP286 - Jon Pyle on Disappointment, Timing, and Authenticity in Faith
## Dive into Unfiltered Chats on Disappointment, Integrity, and Keeping It Real in a Hyper-connected World ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to…
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The Challenges of Innovating in Church Culture
jeff • March 5, 2024 embed In the latest chat with Jeff Reed's Live Stream, we're diving deep into the heart of where tech meets faith. Jeff's got this…
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EP285 - Quintin McGrath & The Ethics Around Sora, Text-to-Video AI
In this conversation, Jeff Reed and Quintin McGrath discuss the ethical implications of OpenAI's Sora, a text-to-video technology. They explore the…
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EP284 - Simon Diercks & German Digital Church Planting
## TCD EP284: Digital Frontiers - A Conversation with Simon Diercks on German Digital Church Planting ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by…
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EP283 - Pushpay's Aaron Senneff on AI, Virtual Ministry, and Digital Communities
## The Surging Intersection of Tech and Church: A Journey into Hybrid Worship and AI Ethics ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside.…
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EP282: Andy Mage & The Apple Vision Pro
## The Future of Tech and Church: Augmented Dreams and Community Realities ### The Church Digital Podcast is brought to you by Riverside. Check out how…
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EP281: Barbara Carneiro, Generational Communications, and Targeted Audience
## Navigating Generational Conversations in Your Church's Digital Mission: The Secret to Effective Communication Lies in Understanding Your Audience ##…
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AI Will Change the World, But it Shouldn't Touch the Church
Recently, Adam Bourg posted on his personal blog a response to Eric Swanson post about Chat CPT. Both Eric and Jeff Reed shared about AI recently and it…
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EP280: Crisis, Trauma, and Digital Ministry
In digital spaces where the need is significant, the theological and pastoral landscapes of churches are expanding beyond the physical realm. EP280 of the…
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EP279: Evan Connelly, Intercom.com, and Chat 2.0 for Churches
## Leveraging Live Chat for Enhanced Church Connection Creating Community Through Digital Ministry The recent episode of TCD podcast EPA 279 featured Evan…
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ChatGPT: 'If you love it so much, why don’t you marry it?'
Recently, Eric Swanson posted on his personal Facebook page about Chat CPT and how faith leaders should respond to it. It is something that all Church…
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EP278: Kenny Jahng, Bacon, and What's Next in AI?
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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"I'm Back" - An Update from Jeff Reed
Hey Fam! I’m back! After about a six-month break from The Church Digital (and the Internet in general), I’m excited to be back! Let me take a minute and…
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EP277: Dan Tebo & A Dissertation on Digital Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP276: Bernie Mapili, Andy Mage, and The New "The Church Digital"
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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The Challenge of "All is Well"
As we wrap up the 2023 Christmas season, if I'm honest, the song "All is Well" haunts me. The Christmas song All Is Well is an annual staple for me, all…
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Bringing Evangelism into our Communities and the Metaverse
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . The innovators doing ministry in virtual reality have discovered that evangelistic conversations…
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EP275 - Jay Kranda & Getting Your Church to Experiment
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Not Your Mother's Mission Field
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . Digital is not going anywhere. What if we, the Church, viewed digital as a mission field? We…
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EP274 - Dave Ferguson, BLESS, Digital Missionaries & Next Level Ministry
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP273 - Tyler Sansom & Next Level Digital Discipleship
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Gaming is a Digital Mission Field
Did you know that over 227 million people in the US play video games one to a few hours per week? That there are over 3.2 billion "gamers" in the world?…
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EP272 Stuart McPherson & Planting a Metaverse Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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How Do We Disciple Artificial Intelligence
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . Let’s stop here for a second and recognize how far the technology has come, really, in the past…
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EP271 - Season 5: Metaverse Mission Trip, Relevant Magazine, and Next Steps in Metaverse Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP270-James Emery White Talks Hybrid Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP269 - Neil Cole & Applying Church 3.0 to Digital Churches
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Why Churches Should Utilize Personas and Target Audiences on the Digital Mission Field
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . Pastor, are you tired of thinking It’s not working! when trying to reach people online? Do you…
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EP268: Gen Z, Gen A, and the Benefits of Gamer Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP267: Gaming Church, APEST, and Biblical Collaboration
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EP266 - Women Streamers, Trolls, and the Struggle of Female Content Creators
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Rediscovering Your Church's Digital Why
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . The digital age has revolutionized the way we communicate church, but in many ways it has yet to…
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EP265: DJ Soto and Churches Inside Video Games
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP263: Flatcap, Physical Pastors, & Twitch
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EP262: Exponential and the Gaming Church
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EP260: Aki & Family Streaming
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP258: Jate the Gaming Digital Missionary
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Here are the Digital & Metaverse Tracks for Exponential Orlando 2023
Coming to the Exponential Orlando Conference in March? We've got some incredible Digital and Metaverse Courses lined up that you will want to be a part…
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EP256: Johno and Esports
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Does Virtual Reality Church Compete with Physical Church
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . There’s a misconception that virtual churches compete with physical churches. The fear is that…
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EP254: Bubba Stallcup & Love Thy Nerd
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Helping You Achieve Movement: The "Why" of Digital Church Network
## In 2020, We Created Digital Church Network so that One Day We Could Write This Blog Announcement We started Digital Church Network because of a simple…
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EP252: Mark Lutz, Season 4: Jesus, Gamers, & Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP251 - Brad Brisco, Digital Ecclesiology & Deconstructing Church
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Mental Health Obstacles in Virtual Reality
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . The mental health implications of the metaverse are untested and scary. Virtual reality (VR)…
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AltspaceVR is Closing: Why Should the Church Care?
For the most part, it came unexpectedly on Friday. I had heard rumors for a month or so that it was coming, but it was Carl Barnhill from 12:30 Media who…
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EP250 - Dr. John Harris in Book Launch: Sharing Jesus Online
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Shared Experiences: The Key to Understanding Digital and Metaverse Discipleship
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . As COVID restrictions continue to relax, most churches have returned to physical buildings. Did…
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EP249 - Jason Shepperd & Volunteer Accountability
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP248 - Patrick Miller, Podcasting, and the Role of Content in Digital Discipleship
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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The Strength of Anonymity in Virtual Reality
This article originally appeared on Leadership Network . Doing virtual reality ministry is, simply put, ironic. There are many things within virtual…
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EP247 - 5 Things You Need to Know Heading Into 2023
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP246 - Leonard Sweet talks Digital Church
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EP245 - Your Digital Church's Local Missions Department
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EP244 - Starting a Barbecue Church
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EP243 - Surviving the Creative Christmas Church Service
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP242: Jeff’s Book on Churches in Virtual Reality Launches (and We Talk VRchat)
So, listen to the podcast, and grab a copy of Jeff’s book over at http://thechurch.digital/vrbook ## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're…
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EP241: A Digital Missionary Strategy that Works w/He Gets Us and Alpha
## Looking for a Playbook for Digital Missionaries? Look no further. If you've not signed up for He Gets Us yet, get 12 months of He Gets Us, FOR FREE, at…
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EP240: Jonathan Song & Churchome’s Pastor Chat
## PASTOR OVER TEXT? There are plenty of ways to pastor someone digitally, through Zoom or even through Avatars in virtual reality. But text-only? Surely…
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EP239: Global Research Surrounding Digital Discipleship
## GET THE INSIDE SCOOP What does Digital Discipleship look like? Get the inside scoop on Sprout Digital’s 2022 Digital Discipleship Research Report with…
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EP238: DAOs, NFTs and Decentralization
## ARE DAOS AND NFTS LEGIT? As the Church looks to Blockchain & Crypto, are DAOs and NFTs legit? Are these gimmicks, or is there a future for the church…
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EP237: How To Turbo Charge Your Digital Outreach For Free!
## GET YOUR CHURCH SIGNED UP FOR HE GETS US, AND GET 12 MONTHS FOR FREE... http://thechurch.digital/hegetsus One of the largest Christian Technology…
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EP236: Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies, and the Church
## ARE DAOS AND NFTS LEGIT? As the Church looks to Blockchain & Crypto, are DAOs and NFTs legit? Are these gimmicks, or is there a future for the church…
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EP235: Christ-Centered Recovery with Nate Graybill
## Christ-Centered Recovery is so important in digital and metaverse spaces, so why are churches hesitant to do Christ-Centered Recovery digitally? There…
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EP234 - Michael Beck & The Rural, Digital Church
## RURAL CHURCHES HAVE STRUGGLED WITH TECHNOLOGY... Is there an opportunity to do something different? Enter Michael Beck, one of the loudest voices in…
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EP233: Patrick O’Connell, Missional Imagination & The Digital Church
## ## DOING SOMETHING DIFFERENT WILL HELP US REACH DIFFERENT PEOPLE. Fortunately, God has equipped us with imagination, allowing us an opportunity to come…
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EP232: Joey Santos, A Virtual Reality Bar, and the Church
Looking for more information on Church in a VR Bar? Check out http://churchinavrbar.com ## A SELF-PROCLAIMED "PASTOR AT THE BAR" Joey Santos has been on…
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EP231: Tables Turned - Jeff interviewed by Doug Bursch
## TABLES ARE TURNED THIS WEEK. Jeff is getting interviewed by Pastor and Author Doug Bursch. Virtually complete strangers, Jeff and Doug meet for the…
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EP230: Seacoast's Secret Project
## Seacoast gets it. Seacoast gets it. To reach different people you have to do something different, and Seacoast is doing something different. What are…
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EP229: Eric Metcalf & Apprenticing in Your Church
## THE NEGATIVE TREND CONTINUES IN 2022, AS .... post-COVID churches are closing quicker than we can open them. In this decrease season, it is important…
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EP228: Anne Bosarge & A Digital Church Discipling Africans
HAVE YOU EVER GOTTEN ONE OF THOSE EMAILS WHERE .. . the prince of Nigeria is looking for some money in order to restore his kingdom? All he needs from you…
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EP227: Lucas Pulley & Unique Expressions of Church
It was a quick throwaway line from Lucas Pulley with Metaverse Church NEXT… Wait, what? Dungeons and Dragons Church? Is that allowed? Evidently, yes, it…
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EP226: Ezequiel Fattore & Global Reach of a Hispanic Church
WHAT WOULD IT LOOK LIKE IF YOUR CHURCH ACHIEVED GLOBAL REACH, DIGITALLY? This is what Casa Church Miami is wrestling with. A Hispanic Church in the heart…
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EP225: LMichelle Salvant & The Opportunities of an Digital African American Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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A Pop-Cultural Examination of World-Destroying Artificial Intelligence
Humans have been dreaming of artificial intelligence for over 100 years . One of the earliest references is a favorite film of mine, Fritz Lang’s…
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EP224: Taylor McCall & How a Decentralized Microchurch Impacts the City
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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GUTENBERG’S HERESY AND THE METAVERSE PRECURSOR
As near as I can tell, Helen Keller first said , “ The heresy of one age becomes the orthodoxy of the next.” To be honest, it surprises me a bit to read…
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EP223: Leonardo Blair & the Next Future Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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Seth Muse & Ministering to Rude People, Digitally
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP221: Jay Kranda & the Decentralized Church
## SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts |…
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EP220: Brianna Heida, Overcoming Medical Issues, and the Strength of Weakness
## DIGITAL CHURCHES ARE REACHING PEOPLE WITH HEALTH ISSUES We talk about how Digital Churches reach different types of people. This week we’re talking…
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EP219: Michael Beck: Missional Imagination & Following the Holy Spirit
## THE CHALLENGE OF CHURCH INNOVATION & HUMILITY What if what the church needs isn't more of the same. What if it really needs something different. The…
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EP218: Dave Ferguson, Digital Missionaries, and the Power of Shared Experiences
## Can We Really Be Digital Missionaries? This is the heart of the conversation with Dave Ferguson today. Dave, and his brother Jon, recently released a…
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EP217: Chris Caputo, Internet Addictions & Digital Ministry
## How are We Supposed to Stay Healthy When We're Literally Ministering in Addictive Spaces? Internet Addiction is actually a thing. So wait, we're trying…
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Psalm 139 is True, Even in the Metaverse
(This article was originally published on Leadership Network - https://leadnet.org/psalm-139-is-true-even-in-the-metaverse/ - For more information on…
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EP216: Jon Ferguson: Can BLESS be Framework of a Digital Missionary
## Could Everyone in Your Church Become a Digital Missionary? What if your Physical-, Digital-, or Metaverse- Church used Digital as the training ground…
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A Web 1.0 Church In A Web 3.0 World?
This article was originally published on Leadership Network . For more information on LN's work on churches in the metaverse, check out Metaverse Church…
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EP215: Tyler Sansom & the Influencer as a Digital Missionary
## What Could Digital Missionaries Look Like for your Church? We’re talking digital missionary today, with my friend. I love hanging out with my friend…
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EP214: Mark MacDonald & Creating Your Church's Content Strategy
## What Does Your Church's Content Strategy Look Like? What is the role of content in the church, and how can we maximize this content. Yes, our weekend…
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EP213: The EPIC Church Experiment
If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts | RSS Feed | Anchor | Overcast | Spotify |…
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Achieving Movement: The Heart Behind DigitalChurch.Network
( This article was originally posted in DigitalChurch.Networks FAM - https://fam.digitalchurch.network/posts/22642577?utm_source=manual ) We are so…
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EP212: Steven Barr & 9 Non-Tech Pivots Your Church Needs To Consider
If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts | RSS Feed | Anchor | Overcast | Spotify |…
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EP211: Digital Ministry Doesn't Have to be WEIRD!
If you're enjoying this episode , subscribe for free using your favorite podcast app below: Apple Podcasts | RSS Feed | Anchor | Overcast | Spotify |…
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EP210: Chestly Lunday's Launchpad to Digital Ministry/Church
It's 2022. If there's ever a time to start something new, this is it. Some of us are looking to launch digital or metaverse churches. Many of us are…
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Decentralized Church & The Digital Analytic That Matters
I'll be the first to admit it, analytics in digital environments can be confusing. So many numbers they sometime cease to have meaning? Is this a view, a…
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EP209: Jared Hughes & Bi-Vocational Approach to Ministry
There's a new type of Pastor coming, who's engaging in a different type of ministry. It's funny. I'm not actually sure how "new" this really is, but as…
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Season 3, EP208: Dr. John Harris, Jared Hughes, and Reaching the De-Churched, Digitally
The US church has lost 25% of attenders over the past 20 years. Many churches are reporting 50-60% pre-COVID attendance is back in the building. 43% of…
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Can we Experience God in the Metaverse? What does Henry Blackaby think?
jeff • March 18, 2022 Editor Note: This article was originally published over on Leadership Network's website. For more information on LN and their work…
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EP207: Jeff Reed & The State of the Digital Church Address
We're kicking off Season 3 with The Church Digital Podcast this week, talking about the State of the Digital Church, and from where I sit, we are looking…
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EP206: Metaverse Church 101, or Jeff Takes Over His Own Podcast
So, way back in January (seems like eons ago) THECHURCH.DIGITAL started a podcast network, and it's been a blast bringing the team together, and featuring…
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Regaining Trust: The Cultural Shift Away from Event-based Evangelism
"More than 100 students walked out of a West Virginia public high school on Wednesday [February 2, 2022], saying school officials infringed on their…
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EP205: Andy Mage, Gamer Culture, and the Breaking the Fifth Wall Takeover
A people group unto themselves, gaming culture is taking over. From video game consoles, to computer games, mobile games, tabletop games, card games…
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EP204: Which Platform is Right at Your Church: The Chestly Lunday Experience
I first met Chestly early in the COVID season. He was working at a Church in Student Ministry, but had some passionate ideas centered around digital…
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Overcoming the Scrutiny of Digital/Meta Churches: Let's Multiply Disciples
Planting a Digital-Only/Metaverse Church is a controversial proposition. We've all had those conversations. Frustrating just begins to describe them. To…
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EP203: Social Media, Holiness & The Pocket Pulpit Podcast Takeover
It's time for some new voices in Digital Church. It's been said recently (on Twitter) that "listening" is the new "reading", and I've loved in this recent…
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EP202: Staff Soulcare, Jon Pyle & Better on the Inside Takeover
Confession hour here on The Church Digital Podcast. I say something in this podcast that I've not publicly admitted to in maybe twenty years. So listen…
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Starting A Movement at Your Church
In recent months, we've been spending a TON of time talking Digital/Meta Movements. As many of you know, we're starting up the Digital Church Network…
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EP201: Guest Engagement, Tom Pounder & The TCD Sidekick Takeover
So THECHURCH.DIGITAL is rolling out it's Podcast Network, and I gotta tell you, I'm excited about the Content Creators we're platforming here on The…
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Five Reasons You Might Be a Digital Church Planter
There’s a disruption happening within the Church, and it honestly has very little to do with technology. As churches are re-opening their physical doors…
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The Case for Digital & Meta Churches
We're launching something different. The first of its kind, Digital Church Network will champion digital and meta church movements here in the US and…
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EP200: So, We're Launching a Digital Church Network
200 Podcasts has brought us to this point... Have you heard yet? We are launching a Digital Church Network . Over the years we've had so many…
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That Time Jesus Taught Us How To Do Digital Church
My head exploded a little bit last week as I was reading the Bible. People often are negative towards digital expressions of Church because scripture only…
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EP199: So What's Going On with Jeff & THECHURCH.DIGITAL
2021 brought a lot of changes, which brings opportunities in 2022. So, here we are. THECHURCH.DIGITAL, in an attempt to better equip churches that are…
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The Controversial Metachurch: Fighting the Wrong Battle
I’ve said a lot of controversial statements in my life surrounding church and technology. Comes with the territory. Truthfully, I’ve seen probably 10x…
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EP198: Todd Wilson & The Challenge of Today’s Metachurch
As a Church Futurist it’s not often when I talk with someone that is ahead of me, and my conversations with Todd Wilson historically have blown my mind.…
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EP197: Jason Shepperd & Developing a MicroChurch Network
Today we're not going to be talking much about technology. In fact, it doesn't come up at all. Today we're going to be focusing on more of leadership, the…
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EP196: TCD Podcast Network Presents Top Podcasts of 2021
Pandemic or not, 2021 was a chaotic year for the church and its leaders. Before we get back to 2022, let's reflect back on 2021 and the positive…
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Episode 195: Are Digital Pastors Ever Off?
Deck the halls with late night hours // Fa la la la la, la la la la // December, time for superpowers // Fa la la la la la la la la // Don we now our lack…
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Episode 194: Lee Coate, Complementary Content & an Experimenting Culture
For the love of all, let’s focus on doing something other than the weekend service! We’ve heard it time and time again, let’s do something different. Have…
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How Your Church Can Launch a METAVERSE Campus in Four Easy Steps
Pastor, the reality is that the Metaverse isn’t coming. It’s already here. Facebook/META and countless other corporations are working hard to make the…
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Episode 193: Jason Poling & The Multiplying META Church
So, what you’re telling me is you met some people in virtual reality and now you want to fly across the country and meet them in person? What are you in…
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Episode 192: Research Findings on Digital Church
What challenges are you facing in Digital ministry? You’re definitely facing challenges. We all are! What’s fascinating to me, in this post-COVID culture…
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Episode 191: PastorBrock & The Metaverse Missionary
So you want to be a missionary in Belize? Awesome. Learn the language. Understand the culture. Meet some people. Listen. Pray. And eventually talk about…
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Episode 190: What a Disney Castmember Church can Teach Me about Digital & Discipleship
So happy the Facebook algorithm connected Steven Barr and I together. Being a Disney freak, I was sure Facebook connected us because of my obsession with…
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What's Wrong with this Picture? Digital Community Edition
Hey alright. Let's play a game. I'm going to put a picture here in the blog, and I want you to tell me what's wrong with this picture. Ready to play? Here…
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Episode 189: Matt Engel & The Uberization of Church
Uberizing Church. Yeah, at this point we’re just making up words here. That’s a good thing, though, cause we get to define each word. Ulitmately, with…
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Episode 188: The Future Church in the Metaverse
Zuckerberg did it. With the announcement of the new parent company, META, Zuckerberg has made Facebook extremely relevant as they announced their dreams…
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Episode 187: The Perceived Threat of a Digital Church
Why is a digital church perceived to be so threatening to a physical church? Rather than see a digital church as complementary to what’s happening…
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What's THECHURCH.DIGITAL's Big Announcement?
We've been hyping up the "Big Announcement" for a while now, and we just broadcast it live online. Miss the announcement? Check it out on YouTube . When…
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Episode 186: Jason Morris - Established? ✅ Micro-location? ✅ Why Not Do Both?
We often talk, here on the podcast, about the idea of churches doing multiple strategies. At Stadia, we call it multimodal churches. Instead of running…
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Episode 185: Tom Pounder & Encouraging a Digital Missionary
The idea of a digital missionary may seem almost foreign to some. Can we really empower people to be on-mission digitally? What is that process to get…
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Episode 184: Tyler Sansom & Discipleship via Mobile App
It is amazing to me how controversial the words “digital” and “discipleship” are, especially when they’re in the same sentence. The truth is that these…
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🔔🎁It's Beginning to Look Like a Phygital Christmas🎄❄️
Hey there, are you thinking Christmas yet? We're less than 90 days from Christmas. Let that one sit in. If you and your church leaders are not talking…
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Episode 183: Sam Chacko, BiVo/CoVo, and a Not So New Approach to Funding Ministry
Fun stat. 49% of Church Budgets, Pre-COVID, went to salaries. Payroll. Almost 1/2 of every dollar given went to pay an employee. (Almost 25% went to pay…
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How to Start a Minecraft Small Group
Yes, you read the title correctly. But you’re probably wondering, “Is this a small group for Minecraft lovers… or a group that takes place in Minecraft”?…
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Season 2, Episode 181: Theo Davis & Minecraft Small Groups
Season Two is upon us. As we’re launching this next season at THECHURCH.DIGITAL, we are telling the story of the innovators, the out of the box thinkers…
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BETA42: Tips for Better Online Small Groups
Trying to take your small groups to the next level, digitally? Get some quick tips on how to lead and engage digital groups better using some quick and…
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TCD Season 2: Let's Get Crazy
Make no mistake, we’ve been doing digital ministry for a while now… like decades. With THECHURCH.DIGITAL, you are not getting someone who pivoted to a…
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BETA41: Why My Church Should Think Digital First
Whether you do ministry in an established church, or looking to start something new, in this mid/post-COVID world our churches need to think “digital”…
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BETA40: How Do I Plant a Phygital (TM) Church (in 3 Not So Easy Steps)
Wanting to plant a church? In this mid/post-COVID culture we live in, there are many complications when it comes to doing physical ministry, much less…
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BETA39: Digital Discipleship - AFFINITY is the new VICINITY
Looking to take that next step in your digital ministry? Recognize that Digital Community is not located by physical boundaries, which leads to new…
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BETA38, Nashville: What Waffle House Taught Me About Digital Church
I was in Nashville last week, and had an incredible experience (over a cup of decent coffee) that brought me some insight on Digital Ministry. What did I…
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BETA37: Creating a Digital Discipleship Pathway
We’ve got all these people, digitally? What are we supposed to do with them? If our churches really expect to exist digitally, then we need to be…
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BETA36: My Church is Reverting Back to Physical-Only. HELP!?!
We get this a lot these days. Coming out of the COVID season many churches are trying to push back towards a physical-only process, while ignoring many of…
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BETA35: How Do We Staff This Phygital Church Thing?
What does it look like to staff a church to have a phygital impact? Let’s kick around some staffing concepts to maximize your staffing structure for…
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BETA34: Questioning a Social Media Church
As churches are rushing to get back to the building, let’s stop... pause... and ask the question: “Do we really need a building?” Can a church “be the…
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BETA33: Five Foundations of a Phygital Church
Is your church wrestling with Phygital? Trying to figure out if hybrid is for your church? What does our mindset need to be? Learn the foundational…
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BETA32: Four Types of Digital Only Churches
The idea of digital-only churches... churches without physical footprints, are not new by any stretch. As a matter of fact, there are healthy examples of…
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BETA31: Digital Broadcast, Digital Discipleship, Digital Campus, Digital-Only Church
Pastor, you’ve got an incredible responsibility to create disciples. Why not use every tool available to make that happen? Like the BETA SHOW? Check out…
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BETA30: Three Reasons Your Church Needs To Go Multimodal
Stadia is championing a new word here. PHYGITAL was so much fun, let's talk MULTIMODAL, multiple models of church... in this new, post-COVID culture we…
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PODCAST 137: Resi & Analytics of Online Church Services
Are our physical services effective? Typically, we measure butts in seats to get that number. Did more people come this week than last week? You’re…
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PODCAST 136: Brandon Arndt & First Days of a Digital Pastor, Post-COVID Edition
In this new, Post-COVID society, the role of Digital Pastor is becoming more and more complicated. How do you push digital when so much pressure is going…
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PODCAST 135: The New Mission Field - So What Exactly is Going on with Rey?
As a general rule, it’s tough being a Pastor. This COVID season has been tough on the church. As a result, a number of churches are shutting down… also…
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BETA29: Five Reasons You Might Be A Digital Church Planter
There’s a disruption happening within the Church, and it honestly has very little to do with technology. As churches are re-opening their physical doors…
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PODCAST 134: Rob Wegner & Helping People Find Their Personal Mission
Potentially, what can separate a Physical Church from a Digital-Only Church? The ability to disciple people to the point of getting them on-mission… to…
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BETA28: Four Reasons Your SMALL Church Can Thrive, Phygitally
“Jeff, we’re just too small of a church to take advantage of what Digital has to offer.” Many pastors have shared this perspective with me, but their…
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PODCAST 133: Steve Pike & New Streams of Funding for Your Church
75% of the people I talk with, who are interested in planting a Digital-Only Church, are interested in being bi-vocational or co-vocational. They’re not…
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BETA27: 6 Reasons We Need Digital-Only Churches
As social distancing relaxes, and churches re-open their buildings, what lessons have we learned from these digital-only churches? These ecclesia's…
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PODCAST 132: Altar Live: Stopping Church in Isolation by Meeting Your Online Attenders
There are lots of solutions out there for digital churches. In my opinion, none of them is a game changer like Altar Live. The biggest problem in all of…
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BETA26: 7 Reasons Your Church Still Needs Phygital
Masks are finally loosening up. Social Distancing guidelines are weakening. Yay! It’s time for physical church again!!! Let’s not forget the lessons of…
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PODCAST 131: Transformation’s Multicultural Church, Digitally
If you are reading this, if you are connected somehow to THECHURCH.DIGITAL, then you probably realize this already. If not, let me tell you… you are more…
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BETA25: Nils Smith, Crypto & The Church
Is it gambling or is it the future? Get a better understanding of what Cryptocurrency is, and how your church can benefit from it. Join Jeff, Rey, and…
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PODCAST 130: Pastor SouZy - Understanding the Twitch, Streaming, Video Game Culture
There are some that consider Video Gamers to be one of the largest unreached people groups on the planet. While it can be discussed that Gamers may not…
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BETA24: Kids Church Online - Won’t Someone Please Think of the Children
2016 we were doing Kids Church Online at Christ Fellowship Miami. What a crazy idea! Well, the idea was certainly before it’s time, and Kids Online was…
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PODCAST 129: Church Plantology - A Convo with Peyton Jones
The Church Planting Textbook for the Modern Era has been released. Peyton Jones’ Church Plantology is out, and with it comes years of insight and…
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PODCAST 128: Jared Roth & Defining the Success of a Physical, Digital and/or Multimodal Church
How do we measure success? Are metrics important? Where is the Holy Spirit in a world where data is king? Look, we know the rules of engagement have…
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PODCAST 127: Dave Ferguson & The Ecclesiology of a Phygital, Digital-Only and/or Multimodal Church
I ran into Dave on Twitter, talking similarities between Micro-church and Digital-Only churches. But what started out as a digital/micro convo quickly got…
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PODCAST 126: Jared & Angie Hughes and the Co-vocational Approach to a Digital Only Church
I thought I knew what to expect with Jared & Angie. Leading one of the largest (if not the largest) digital only expression of church in America, I was…
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BETA23: Digital Revival - Seeing God Move Phygitally
Our churches know what it looks like when God moves in a physical space, but maybe we’re so busy producing the digital elements that we miss what God is…
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BETA22: Greg Atkinson & Tips from an Online Secret Shopper
Founder of The First Impressions Conference, and one of the early Church Online guys, Greg is an expert in Church Guest Services, physical & digital. What…
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PODCAST 125: Planting a Digital Church through Stadia
We talk often here at THECHURCH.DIGITAL about digital-only churches, interviewing these innovative pastors that run churches that exist in digital-only…
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PODCAST 124: Disciples Making Disciples in a Multimodal Church
The Bible calls us to go and make disciples … no one questions that. How we define discipleship? While the church doesn’t challenge to make disciples…
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PODCAST 123: Justin Murff & Digital Lessons to Learn from the Global Church
Let’s come to clarity. The Western church has done some things right over the years. That being said, there’s still a lot to learn. The mass accelerator…
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BETA21: The Future of Physical Church Services Starts Today (Clubhouse Edition)
COVID accelerated culture, but how has this cultural shift influenced physical church services? Look beyond masks & social distancing and find…
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PODCAST 122: Millennials, Evangelism & Digital Church
For the podcast here, Clivane has a unique perspective of church online. She’s Canadian (okay, that’s not unique). She’s a millennial (once again, not…
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BETA20: Rethinking Church Small Groups, Peloton Style (Clubhouse Edition)
In the year 2021, Small Groups may becoming old hat. Crazy to think, right? How these smaller, church-based biblical communities operate has evolved over…
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PODCAST 121: Matt Anderson & Developing One Community’s Phygital Strategy
Pre-COVID, One Community Church was a force to be reckoned with. Located in Plano, the multicultural church was highly effective utilizing physical…
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BETA19: Effective Easter Follow Up with Jeanette Yates
Easter is right around the corner, and while “what is the experience going to be?” is a big question, equally important is, “how are we going to follow…
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BETA18: Defining a Digital-Only, Location-Independent Church (Clubhouse Edition)
Can a church exist without a building? Sure. Hear stories how God is moving through digital-only, location-independent churches. Join Jeff and other…
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PODCAST 120: Sam George, Diaspora Ekklesia & A Mobile God
I’m guilty of many things in life. I admit before you publicly that I occasionally overstate things to prove a point, but when I tell you here that there…
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BETA17: What the Church can Learn from WandaVision (Clubhouse Edition)
WandaVision has taken the world by storm. With it’s unique storytelling approach, are there lessons for we the church? Dive into this recording of a…
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PODCAST 119: Phygital Groups that Multiply
Pre-COVID, very few churches were doing groups online. Now as a result of social distancing, churches had to onboard their groups very quickly to digital…
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BETA16: Differences Between Physical & Digital (Clubhouse Edition)
We call it The BETA Show. Of course we're going to experiment... Here with THECHURCH.DIGITAL we have been testing the waters with this new Clubhouse…
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PODCAST 118: The Church, Mindy Caliguire, and Mental Health
## Come join the conversation on The Church & Mental Health ## Tuesday, March 2, 2021 at 5:30pm on Clubhouse - click here As stressful as the world is…
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BETA15: Churches Thinking Above the Funnel Digitally (Clubhouse Edition)
We call it The BETA Show. Of course we're going to experiment... Here with THECHURCH.DIGITAL we have been testing the waters with this new Clubhouse…
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PODCAST 117: The New Digital Pastor
I can remember a conversation I had with a Lead Pastor back in early 2019… “you know, there are probably only 20 people in the country who actually serve…
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BETA14: Six Tips Towards Marketing Easter
Cough Cough, we’re 45ish days until Easter. How’s your communication plan? In this Mid/Post-COVID environment, it’s going to be important for our churches…
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PODCAST 116: Collin Jones & Owning Your Platform
When COVID hit, the majority of churches did not have a digital strategy, at least in context of broadcasting services or making disciples online. March…
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BETA13: Defining a Successful Church
Butts in seats. Nickels and noses. Unfortunately, this is how the Church has historically gauged its success. COVID did many things, and thankfully the…
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PODCAST 115: Digital Discipleship thru Timothy Initiative
Discipleship means a lot of things. At it’s core value, though, there are two different ideas: 1) Knowledge-Based and 2) Obedience-Based. Many churches…
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BETA12: Clubhouse and the Church
Have you made it to Clubhouse yet? The new, up-and-coming Social Media Network has been taking the world by storm... well, a slow storm. The audio-only…
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PODCAST 114: Jay Kranda and the Constant Evolution of an Online Church
Of course COVID caused a radical shift for churches. I think it’s important to notice that, even for the guys doing Online Ministry for years COVID…
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BETA11: Tips for Better Speaking Online
We’ve been preaching and teaching to a camera for about a year now. What have we learned? How do we get more effective communicating to a digital…
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PODCAST 113: Justin Nava & Modern Evangelism by Pastor Google
Research December 2020 tells us that 80% of people cold to Christ don’t care about our worship services, physical or digital. Event-based evangelism has…
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PODCAST 112: Jason Morris, Heidi Tompkins, Micro-locations & the Acts 2 Revolution
It’s always a good podcast when Jason Morris is involved. Jason, along with being the Global Innovation Pastor at Westside Family, has been actively…
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BETA10: Making the Most of a Phygital Easter
80 days and counting until Easter 2021 is upon us. If your church is like most, you’re currently avoiding thinking about the massive stress that is a…
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PODCAST 111: Futurist Churches & The Virtual Reality Multisite Campus
Stadia has group of churches we call the “Futurists”. These churches are focused on experimenting phygitally. Understanding the heart of disciple-making…
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BETA09: Facebook Groups Best Practices
One of the most under-utilized tools online, Facebook Groups allows for incredible engagement digitally. In this COVID season (and beyond), how can…
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Most Read THECHURCH.DIGITAL Resources of 2020 #PHYGITALCHURCH #CHURCHONLINE
2020 was eventful for churches, thank you very much COVID. As churches across America were forced to move their ministry digital, THECHURCH.DIGITAL spent…
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PODCAST 110: Top 6 Episodes of 2020
2020 huh. Painful doesn’t even start to describe. COVID brought a run of painful, culture changing events. The church, the country, the world may never be…
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PODCAST 109: Multiplying Churches Until There’s No Place Left
Check your tech brains at the door for this conversation. We’re wrapping up 2020 not talking about anything tech as much as a core component of what a…
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PODCAST 108: DJ Soto - Virtual Reality, Final Fantasy XIV, and the Church
I love conversations with DJ Soto. DJ challenges me, regularly, and this conversation once again pushes the limits. As Lead Pastor of VR Church, DJ is…
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BETA08: Five Options Better than the Connection Card
It’s the most difficult part of Church Online. You’ll have hundreds, maybe thousands of viewers online. But who are these people? How can your church…
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PODCAST 107: Jate Earhart, Twitch, & Reaching a Different Type of Person
For most Online Ministry people, Twitch is probably not on your radar. For Jate Earhart, broadcasting has become a regular event. Jate streams on Twitch…
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BETA07: Experiment - Learn to Fire BBs before Bullets before Bombs
Can you relate to this question by a church volunteer? “I talked my church leadership into trying a live, viewer-interactive service this Dec 20. I’m a…
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PODCAST 106: Liberty University & the Academia of Online Ministry
We got Episode 106 here and have brought in Professor Steve Lowe from Liberty University to have a great conversation around the theological implications…
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PODCAST 105: Savannah Kimberlin & Barna’s "6 Questions about the Future of the Hybrid Church"
As church leaders in the midst of this COVID season, there are certainly questions on this whole Digital Church thing. Is this effective? Is it working?…
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BETA06: How Can I Help Leadership See Bigger, Bolder Ideas?
I cannot tell you how many times I’ve had this conversation: “Leadership doesn’t understand. They’re wanting to play it safe. How do I get them to see…
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Five Things The Church Can Learn From Wonder Woman 1984
For some reason I couldn't sleep tonight. Thought I'd binge some more Friends Episodes on HBO Max. The Hero Image stopped me cold. Wonder Woman 1984 is…
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PODCAST 104: Does the Holy Spirit Move Online?
Remember back when churches met in large gatherings. Those physical services were so powerful, you could just feel the spirit of God moving across the…
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BETA05: Small Steps Towards Effective Digital Strategy
It’s easy to feel underwater with this whole phygital thing. Physical strategy is one thing... now a digital strategy is complicating things greatly.…
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10 Ideas For Your Church's Phygital Christmas
Well, you're doing physical & digital Christmas services. How in the world are you going to make that happen? Here's 10 creative ideas to help you get…
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PODCAST 103: Jason Poling & The Virtual Reality Multisite Campus
I love talking with people who get it. People that you don’t have to convince of a good idea. People that are usually already running down the road about…
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The Battle to Save Our Disenfranchised Church? It's Not in Our Buildings. It's Online.
David Kinnaman of Barna quoted the stat, and he’s way smarter than me. 30% of people will leave the church during this COVID season. Mathematically, a…
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BETA04: It's Christmastime
We got past Halloween. It's not even Turkey-time yet, and here in America we may not even know who the President is, but dang it, it's Christmas-time.…
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PODCAST 102: Essential Ecclesiology Enabling Digital Church Planting
We’ve talked a lot here about the idea of multiplying church, which can be difficult to understand sometimes since the idea of multiplication is so, well…
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PODCAST 101: Jim Tomberlin & The Goal of Physical Church
Jim’s words kinda shocked me. Having worked with Jim Tomberlin at Christ Fellowship Miami, and studied his multisite movement materials over the years, I…
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BETA03: Church, We Forgot the Why
Couple questions on the docket this week on BETA SHOW: Jeff, can you talk about ways that your attendees can engage that’s outside/beyond a physical…
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PODCAST 100: Kranda, Atkinson, Nils: The Joys & Difficulties of Online Ministry
Well, we got here quicker than we thought. Episode 100 of The Church Digital Podcast launches this week, and we’ve got a solid podcast for you. We’re…
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BETA02: Pushing Church Online While Managing Reopening Transitions
We’re going back to the building, right? But we’re not supposed to go back to February 2020. How exactly are we supposed to do that again? Lay the…
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PODCAST 099: Korey Deck - Shepherding, Pastoral Care, & Mourning Digitally
How do we pastor people phygitally? How do we care for people in digital space? Great question, and I honestly thought I had an answer to that until I…
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BETA01: Get More Value From Your Online Church Services
Wrestling with your church's PHYGITAL approach to online + physical services? Jeff & Rey are diving in, answering YOUR QUESTIONS on how to get more impact…
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PODCAST 098: Patrick Holden & The Potential Simplicity of Online Church
Episode 97 was incredible! We did a deep dive into Creative Online Services with lead creative Craig Dockery at Crossroads Church. Incredible…
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BETA00: How Do We Do Creative Digital Church Services & Physical Church Services at the Same Time?
You got questions. You're new to this whole digital church thing, and you need some help. You're heading back to the building, but 50-70% of your…
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PODCAST 097: Craig Dockery & Crossroads Creative Church Services Online
As churches start to head back into their buildings, Pastor, we have the opportunity to continue to blur the lines of Phygital. We have an incredible…
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PODCAST 096: Churches That Want to be the Next Christian Netflix
Pre-COVID I don’t think I heard much about the idea of a church becoming the “Christian Netflix”… but thank you very much Coronavirus for once again…
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PODCAST 095: Launching & Elevating Church Communication Teams
COVID is teaching us, the church, many lessons. Obviously, there are many lessons about the value of Church Online or Discipleship Online. But why stop…
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PODCAST 094: The Challenge of Church Discipline in Digital Spaces
This is not going to be your typical The Church Digital Podcast. What does church discipline look like at your church? I want to be clear with the…
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PODCAST 093: Rick Rusaw & The Standard of Church as Platform
The idea of Church as Platform has been resonating for a while here at The Church Digital. Through recent blogs & podcasts we’ve been unpacking this idea…
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PODCAST 091: Tyler Sansom - Building & Using Influence as a Digital Missionary
To do digital ministry you need to think outside the box. What works in the building won’t necessarily work online. We know this. But oftentimes our…
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PODCAST 090: Greg Nettle & Digital Lessons Learned in this Global Pandemic
Hey, it’s my birthday podcast! And for the second year in a row, we’re bringing in a special guest to celebrate my birthday. Last year it was my mom…
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PODCAST 089: Steve Fogg & Ministering to People on Google’s Dime
As we get further and further into this COVID season, how are we finding new people? It’s so easy to default back to our 99s and to forget about our ones.…
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That Time Jesus Taught Us How To Do Church Online
My head exploded a little bit last week as I was reading the Bible. People often are negative towards digital expressions of Church because scripture only…
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PODCAST 088: Matt Lombardi - What Do You Mean Your Church Won’t Experiment?
Thank you very much, COVID. That long-term vision? That playbook? Your church’s strategy? It’s all trash. Every church is in startup mode, and we’re…
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Defining the Digital Church: Tomorrow's Approach Starts Today
There is only one Church… the Bride of Christ… Ekklesia.... Pre-COVID there were different models of church. Giga-church, Mega-church, Micro-church…
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Losing the Church Online Attendance Battle, but Winning the War
I get it. I hear you. No one is watching your Church Online service. We’re hearing it from all over. Churches have seen a drop in online attendance since…
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PODCAST 087: Stories & Strategy of a Digital-Only Expression of Church
Thanks to COVID, lots of churches are operating digitally. They’re broadcasting their services online. Trying to start up Online Small Groups. As a…
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PODCAST 086: Ali Roohi - My Church is Healthier Because of COVID
I’ve talked with hundreds of Pastors in this COVID season. Easily. Not an exaggeration. If I count emails, texts, social media, direct messages, pings……
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Church as Platform: Lessons Learned from AirBNB
Here is the church. Here is the steeple. Open the doors. Where are the people? Well, for the past 120+ days they’ve been stuck in their homes, of course.…
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PODCAST 085: Doug Parks, Church as Platform, and Moving Beyond the Institutional Model
What can we, the Church, learn from Uber? AirBNB? We’re 100+ days into this COVID thing. Our buildings aren’t getting much usage. In some areas (like…
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PODCAST 084: Christopher Benek, Virtual Reality, & Beyond Church Buildings
What does the future hold for Virtual Reality?... for Artificial Intelligence? Talk to the business world and they're chomping at the bit to take…
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PODCAST 083: Dave Adamson & Ten Commandments of Church YouTube
YouTube is powerful. Incredibly powerful... if you use it right. In this COVID-19 season, churches have been jumping onboard the YouTube bandwagon. But…
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PODCAST 082: Stan Rodda, Tyler Sansom & the Different Flavors of Microsites
As reports show COVID-19 is spiking, churches are starting to engage more and more with the idea of micro-locations as a short-term solution. It's…
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The Real Reason Why Jeff's Zoom Looks So Much Better Than Yours
"Hey Jeff, what camera are you using?" To be honest, it’s humbling the amount of times I get asked this question. Even pre-COVID I started assembling a…
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PODCAST 081: Craig Whitney & Moving Beyond the Church Service Business
How do you start a church movement? Sure, there's probably different ways we can answer that question. If we looked at Christ's example, well, he started…
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PODCAST 080: Angela Craig & Planting a Digital-Only Church on Facebook
The idea of a Digital-Only Church was quite controversial pre-COVID. Truthfully, it's still controversial today. What we're discovering, though, is there…
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PODCAST 079: Dave Ferguson - Multiplication, Micro-locations, & TCD's 10,000th Play
I love the Internet. Dave Ferguson, Leader of the Exponential Conference/Movement and Lead Pastor at Community Christian Church in Chicago... over the…
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PODCAST 078: Kristel Acevedo, Women's Ministry Online & Creating Community Around Content
Church, we are content beasts... I actually had a friend of mine tell me once, "The only people that create more content than Churches is the Porn." He…
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PODCAST 077: Tim Celek & Defining Matthew 28 by Focusing on the One
Church, why do we do this? Why do we do 'church'? I don't mean physical church, or digital church. I don't mean weekend services, or small groups. I…
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PODCAST 076: Lee Coate & Digital Engagement Pathway for Your Church
So, who are these people who are watching our Churches Online and what are we supposed to do with them? COVID-19 has brought us tons of traffic, and maybe…
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PODCAST 075: Adrienne Feldmann & Launching Watch Parties Quickly
Depending on your location, gathering restrictions are starting to loosen, and churches are considering meeting together again. Some restrictions remain…
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PODCAST 074: Scot Mendenhall - Gaining & Using Influence on YouTube
Pastor, if there's one thing you've learned in this COVID-19 season, it's that you want to have influence online. For most churches, that means putting…
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VLOG 003: Online Pastor Job Profile
(00:00): Hey Jeff here with THECHURCH.DIGITAL. Remember, last time we were talking, we were talking about church online and basically how it needs to get…
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VLOG 002: Church Online Staffing Framework
(00:00): Hey Jeff here with THECHURCH.DIGITAL and I gotta tell you I am loving the reports that we are starting to gather together, that people are…
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PODCAST 073: Greg Aukerman, Microchurches, & Stairstepping Back to Buildings
Well, we're going back into the building. Or at least a small percentage of us are. Many, though, are opting to take a slower approach heading back into…
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PODCAST 072: Greg Atkinson: Why Toothpaste Won't Go Back in the Tube
If there's a lesson the church needs to learn in this Global Pandemic: Physical Church & Church Online need to learn to play together nicely. In the…
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PODCAST 071: Nils Smith & A Futurist's View of an Innovative, Entrepreneurial Church
In the midst of this pandemic, we're taking a moment to talk with one of the pioneers of the Church Online movement. Nils Smith was there from practically…
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VLOG 001: Engagement vs Reach for Your Church, Online
( 00:00 ): Hey Jeff with THECHURCH.DIGITAL here. One of the top questions I get any given week, and by the way, this is also one of the largest searches…
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PODCAST 070: Ray Hudson & Church Planting, Digital First
COVID-19 has brought a lot of confusion into the church. It's hard enough to be an existing church navigating this season. Try being a church that hasn't…
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Help: My Church Wants to Shut Down Church Online
Okay, hopefully your lead pastor hasn't looked you in the eyes and said these words. Church Online has stepped up in a big way for a lot of churches in…
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PODCAST 069: Thinking Digital First Even When We Get Back to the Building
When we look at the idea of a Phygital Church, one that truly utilizes digital and physical, there is going to be a tension of who is priority? The…
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PODCAST 068: Greg Nettle, DJ Soto, and The Foundation of a Virtual Reality Church
What does a church look like in Virtual Reality? Greg Nettle, President of Stadia Church Planting and DJ Soto, Lead Pastor of VR Church... who's…
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PODCAST 067: Tyler Sansom & the Relational Approach to Church Online
In the hectic-ness to build a Church Online, we often forget the biggest part... okay, Jesus is the biggest part. Didn't mean to Jesus juke you there. So…
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PODCAST 066: The Stuff the Church Didn't Do When COVID-19 Hit, or Biblical Functions of a Digital Church, Part 3
We're wrapping up here on our our 3rd part of the Biblical Functions of a Digital Church. We've covered the easy stuff coming into this episode. What's…
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PODCAST 065: Fellowshipping Digitally, or Biblical Functions of a Digital Church, Part 2
What is a Digital-Only Church? Well, thanks to COVID-19 we've got maybe a couple hundred thousand of them right now in America. Pre COVID-19, though, the…
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PODCAST 064: Patrick Holden, Meeting & Mobilizing People on Facebook
The hardest thing in Church Online is meeting people. I recently had an online pastor tell me that he had over 500,000 people attend Easter services…
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PODCAST 063: Mindy Caliguire, Soulcare, & the Freedom of Letting Go
Covid-19 is challenging, stretching the Church. As we've discussed... the Church has responded well, but at what cost? Our newfound love of Digital Church…
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The Four Pillars, and the Question of a Phygital Church?
Church, I'm proud of you. The challenge of Covid-19 stepped up, and many of you stepped up as well. Coronavirus downed your buildings. Your Queen was…
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PODCAST 062: Jay Kranda & Tomorrow's Phygital Strategy
Church, you should be celebrated. You survived Easter 2020 Church Online. A month ago most of you weren't even broadcasting online, and now you just…
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PODCAST 061: Kids, Students, and Church Online
Don't forget about the Kids & Students. In the midst of the Coronavirus season, with the pressure of Easter looming, what are we doing with Kids and…
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Content Overload, Conversation Scarce
Well, Church, we’re a month into this whole Covid-19 Pandemic here in the US. Let me just say up front, I’m proud of you. Church Online Platform has…
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Six Things We Can't Forget Heading into Holy Week (or Any Sunday).
Easter is here, and it’s going to be online. Pastor, you can do this. Breathe deep. Let’s go. Here’s some tips that can help you along your way. ##…
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PODCAST 060: Larry Walkemeyer & Getting People On Kingdom Mission
My favorite part of this podcast episode is that it is everything I expected it to be and I had set the standard very, very high. Larry Walkemeyer is the…
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Thank You, God, For Breaking Your Church
It took a global pandemic to break the church. Not God's Church, mind you. But the more prevalent model of church found in America today. All these…
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PODCAST 059: Ben Stapley & Church Communication During Coronavirus
You know that playbook you had? The strategy that you built for your church? For the foreseeable future it's trash. Not to mention, when the dust settles…
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PODCAST 058: What Does It Mean to be On Mission During Coronavirus?
What is the role of the Church? In this Coronavirus season, that is a difficult question. How do we broadcast our church service online? By far this is…
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PODCAST 057: Heredes Ribeiro & Easter Services Online
Evidently, even the Easter Bunny has to worry about Social Distancing. So, have you come to the realization yet that Easter is only going to be online…
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PODCAST 056: Daniel Im - No Silver Bullets & How to Disciple Online
Need a break from coronavirus? I hear you. Hopefully this podcast is what you're looking for. My favorite book so far in 2020 has been Daniel Im's No…
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PODCAST 055: Stadia Church Planting & Virtual Officing
The Church [Office] has left the building as well. But how do we office, how do we as a church staff function digitally? This is the heart of today's…
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The Day We All Became Digital-Only Expressions of Church
So, for a couple of months now we, THECHURCH.DIGITAL and Stadia Church Planting, were on an experiment to develop a new model of church. One that was not…
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What If Church Online is the Answer, But We're Asking the Wrong Question?
What a crazy run. We’re only two weeks, maybe three, into Coronavirus. Look at how the American Church has changed. Tens of thousands of churches are…
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PODCAST 054: I Streamed a Church Service, What's Next?
Well, church, we survived. Coronavirus took its shot at us, and we made it. We survived. We figured out how to stream the service. How awesome. We did it!…
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Hey Small Church, Church Online Is For You! Don't Let Coronavirus Win.
Small church, I feel you. I do. 80% of the Churches in America are under 200. Average Church in America is 72 people. Culturally, America is lost if our…
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PODCAST 053: Stadia & How The Church Can Survive Coronavirus Culture
"Reducing large gatherings." - President Trump said it in his broadcast Wednesday night. Whether Coronavirus gets to a full-fledge pandemic here in…
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PODCAST 052: Coronavirus & Preparing for Emergencies
Whether coronavirus is a legitimate fear or not is not the topic of conversation here. Fact is, we face all sorts of city-wide emergencies on a regular…
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Coronavirus & Simple Setups to Live Stream Church Services
"I can guarantee this. You'll have a lot of people calling you this week." This is what a pastor told me just a couple days ago. He wasn't wrong. With…
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PODCAST 051: Ed Stetzer & Defining a Successful Church
What makes a successful Digital Church? Church Online? Church overall? What is it? I'll tell you what it's not: our Sunday morning attendance numbers...…
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PODCAST 050: Biblical Function of a Digital-Only Church, Part 1
Can a digital-only expression of church hold up to the Biblical standard of a church? This is the question that we, here at The Church Digital and Stadia…
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PODCAST 049: Aaron McClung & The Why of Personal Mission
The hardest lesson I've learned in my technology-based ministry life can be boiled down into five simple words: it's not about the tech. What is it about…
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What Seth Godin & The Beatles Taught Me About Disciple-Making
I am, if nothing else, an eclectic podcast listener. Miami traffic is brutal, and many hours stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic are spent listening to…
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PODCAST 048: Mike Christian & The Global, Missiological Impact of Church Online
What if we ran Church Online not like a Pastor would run a church, but like a missionary would run a missional movement. Crazy idea, I know. But that's…
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Dreaming of A Digital Church
Exciting news for Church Online fans out there. I (Jeff) have accepted a role with Stadia Church Planting as Director of Digital Church Plants. For Stadia…
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PODCAST 047: Jon Crabtree & Why Churches (Big and Small) need a Mobile App
It’s 2020. Do churches really need a mobile app? Isn’t my website good enough on mobile devices? The answer for many churches today is, unfortunately…
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PODCAST 046: Matt Welty & Creating Community via Mobile App
Can a mobile app create community? Most people would accuse the mobile app of tearing down community, at least physical community. But can the mobile app…
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PODCAST 045: Church In A Bar & Other Innovations
Sometimes innovation is overly complicated and very costly. Sometimes innovation is just looking at what you have differently. What you’ll discover here…
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How Are We Going to Replace the Steeples?
It occurred to me the other day that churches, for the most part, don't have steeples anymore. Well, some do. Ironically, the church where my family and I…
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PODCAST 044: Jate Earhart & Constructing a Digital Church
This Episode of The Church Digital Podcast may challenge some established norms. If so, that’s cool. They probably need to be challenged. A small, but…
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Understanding The Models of Today's Church
Church, we have an interesting dilemma. Our physical locations are losing effectiveness , and as our giving and attendance drop as cultural Christianity…
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Our Discipleship Pathway Isn't A Checklist
My 2020 started off with a bang, reading Daniel Im's No Silver Bullets . Daniel's Five Small Shifts That Will Transform Your Ministry hit home for me in a…
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PODCAST 043: Kyle Schultz & Deconstructing Kids Church Online
One of the greatest untapped resources in Church Online, I believe, is the Kids Church Online. There’s huge potential here to reach kids in unique ways.…
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PODCAST 042: Church Online Cohort // The Beginning
One of the things that I (Jeff) love about Church Online is that we are basically learning about all of this, together. Big churches, small churches…
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Expanding THECHURCH.DIGITAL to Serve You Better
2019 felt like a flash. Blink and it’s gone. As we reflect back on the year, but also the close of the 2010s, let’s stop and pause. There’s something…
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PODCAST 041: Six Lessons Learned from 2019's THE CHURCH DIGITAL PODCAST
2019 has come and gone, and with it, 40 podcasts recorded on the many different facets of Church Online. Each podcast offering many lessons and insights…
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PODCAST 040: Daniel Herron & The Robloxian Christians, or doing Gen Z Church in a Video Game
I (Jeff) used to consider myself innovative. Then I met Daniel. While most kids were running away from church, Daniel at age 11 was trying to figure out…
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PODCAST 039: Greg Ligon & Behind the Screens - The State of Church Online
Hey Church! This is your podcast. Two incredible organizations… Living As One and Leadership Network… got together and created a survey to discover how…
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PODCAST 038: Jay Kranda & The Natural Way to Build Microlocations @ Saddleback
One of the pioneers of Church Online jumps on the podcast here, Jay Kranda, from a small little SoCal Church called Saddleback. No stranger to the…
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PODCAST 037: Joe Radosevich & “Small Church” Church Online
Stat time, are you ready? Here we go. The average church in America has 73 people attending a week. 80% of churches in America today are under 200 in…
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PODCAST 036: Evan Connelly - Redefining Chat Hosts & Community
I’m (Jeff) going to be honest here. I’ve never really enjoyed chat hosting. Maybe I never did it right. Recently, I had a conversation with Evan Connelly…
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PODCAST 035: Brandon Catoe & Pop-Up Church
I’ve been hearing whispers of this new concept in church. Jeff, you got to talk to these guys. They’re doing Pop-Up Church. Honestly, I had no idea what…
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PODCAST 034: Jim Tomberlin - Trends of Multisite & Church Online
The idea of the multisite church was born in the 1990s as church attendance was growing faster than the church buildings could sustain. Even in those…
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PODCAST 033: Rob Wegner & the Mission of Microchurch
I (Jeff) believe this to be true: In the future, bigger churches will continue to get bigger; but smaller churches will continue to get smaller. And that…
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PODCAST 032: CITN & Redefining the Why of Church Online
Why do we do Church Online? I’m willing to bet that you’ve asked this question of yourself, and of your church’s leadership… maybe even asking some of…
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PODCAST 031: Jennifer Miles & Marketing Church Online
How do you market Church Online? I used to think SEO, SEM, SMM. Gotta love acronyms! All of these are valid, and helpful in ministry, but at the end of…
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Six Things Your Church Needs to Know About TikTok
The TikTok Revolution is here! Church, in case you haven't heard, the #1 Downloaded iOS App is TikTok. Never heard of it? I bet your kids have. TikTok is…
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PODCAST 030: Andy Mage & The TikTok Revolution
I love a church that takes a risk. That’s what Bay Hope Church has done. Evidently, there’s this thing called TikTok. It’s currently the #1 app downloaded…
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PODCAST 029: Mark Venti & Churchome's Digital Culture
One of my favorite podcasts to date, Mark Venti from Churchome lays it out. “We’re experimenting…” “We’re following the Holy Spirit, but learning from…
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PODCAST 028: Seth Muse & Redefining Engagement
Engagement is one of those words that no longer has meaning. It’s been used and misused so often in recent years that the heart of the word has been lost.…
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PODCAST 027: CITN & the Community and Camaraderie of Ministry
Working on a Church Staff has been one of the greatest joys and greatest burdens in my life. Confession: I spent many years on staff feeling alone and…
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PODCAST 026: Tom Pounder in Apple, Innovation, & Discipleship
Remember when Apple was an innovative company? Steve Jobs would be speaking at a keynote, flash that sly grin, and then say to the audience: “Oh, one more…
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PODCAST 025: Ryan Sharp & The Value of an Individual @ Life.Church
This episode we’re honored to talk with someone from the organization who essentially created Church Online. Life.Church is one of the pioneering churches…
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PODCAST 024: Ken Schafer & The Challenge of Equipping Using Online Technologies
Church Online definitely has strengths and weaknesses, but the power to train and to equip someone is unparalleled. But why do we struggle with the…
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PODCAST 023: Tom Pounder & Developing a Digital Missionary
Before my wife and I got married, we were praying about becoming missionaries. Challenges like learning new languages, adapting to new cultures and new…
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Podcast 022: Jeff's Mom & The Heart of Online Groups
I love hearing stories from people who have been impacted by Church Online. Sometimes it feels like the stuffy shirts and the academics argue about what…
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PODCAST 021: Danielle Hicks & Elevation’s Watch Parties
The challenge before Church Online is that it is guilty of being church in isolation, allowing people to abandon biblical communities. These views are…
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PODCAST 020: Jeff Moore & The Strategy of Discipleship
We’ve talked a lot about Church Online and the potential power that it has to be a strategic force for the church. Today’s church online has many…
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PODCAST 019: Church Anywhere, Jared Kirkwood, & Discipleship
We’re in Week 3 of this deep dive into the Online Ministry at First Capital Christian Church. Church Anywhere, as it’s called, utilizes its Church Online…
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Let's Lower The Standard on Church, & Raise The Standard On Disciple-Making
Before you freak, hear me out. Let's expect less from our buildings. Let's expect more from our people. Church, we've made a mistake. For years we've…
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The Challenge of Discipleship Thru Church Online
We've talked a lot about
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The Challenge of Discipleship in Small Groups
Most churches today have some sort of discipleship pathway.
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Humility Before God Defeats My Anxiousness
I'm at this weird place in life. Maybe you can relate... Since I started THECHURCH.DIGITAL a year ago I've managed to have a lot more control in my life.…
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Your Bricks Are Not Your Church
I'm stuck. I admit it. I'm told I need to get past this point. Yet I can't. Let's pause here for a second, and briefly unpack this: Church isn't a…
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Church Online isn't About Technology, It's About Relationships
Let's be honest. Today's American church has a problem. It's very easy for us to create "consumers of content"... but God didn't call us to create…
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PODCAST 018: Randy Kirk, Church Anywhere, & Not My Kingdom
Church Online has so much potential, but oftentimes casting vision to leadership is problematic. How do we overcome this? What can happen when a church…
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PODCAST 017: Stories from Church Anywhere
Church Online needs to grow up. While thousands of our churches are broadcasting our services online… very few are integrating Church Online into their…
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PODCAST 016: Anthony Coppedge & What exactly is Online Church Membership?
So if we’re doing Church Online, does that mean we should be doing Church Membership Online? This begs the question “what is church membership overall?”…
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PODCAST 015: Rey DeArmas & How to Impact the Workplace
The world is changing. It’s time for the church to as well. Like it or not, we’re moving into a post-christian society. As a church, we can lament what…
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Church, Here's To The Crazy Ones.
Here's to the crazy ones. The online church guy. The digital discipleship girl. Those bleeding-edge tech people. Doing virtual ministry in the physical…
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PODCAST 014: DJ Soto & Planting a Church in Virtual Reality
Here's my question: "Can 'church' work in virtual reality?" To be honest, I (Jeff) went in a skeptic. To find out the truth, we interviewed DJ Soto, the…
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PODCAST 013: Jate Earhart & Creating Disciples While Playing Video Games
Love video games? Love discipleship? Sharing your faith? Thinking outside the box? This is your episode. Until Jate Earhart, I (Jeff) don't think I've…
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3 Steps To Make The Video Of Musical Worship More Engaging Online
In a recent The Church Digital Podcast, we talked a lot about how to improve our video and audio quality to make our online content more engaging . And…
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PODCAST 012: Living As One & Advanced Church Broadcast
You've been broadcasting your church services for a while now, but for one reason or another you feel stuck. How do you improve quality? How do you…
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PODCAST 011: Steven Kaminsky & Church Broadcast 101
As we've discussed, there's more to Church Online than broadcasting services online, but broadcasting services is a necessary piece. And while technology…
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Church Online Is More Than Your Sunday Service, Online
Confession is good for the soul, right? In a recent The Church Digital Podcast, Eric Geiger dropped a term on me that I had never heard before, but one…
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PODCAST 010: Eric Geiger & Talking To Leadership About Church Online
Plenty of people can see the positives of Church Online, and how Church Online can complement their church's ministry at physical campuses. Some can see…
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So, Seriously, Why Do Pastors Have Issues With Church Online?
"While the world looks at the digital disruption as an opportunity, the church looks at it as an obstacle." - Clay Scroggins, 2019 Pushpay Summit, Dallas…
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Podcast 009: Eric Geiger & The Theology Of Church (Ekklesia) Online
What started as a simple podcast with the goal of a strategic conversation on Omnichannel Communication and Unified Commerce quickly went another (and far…
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Modeling Community: It Takes a Crowd to Gather a Crowd
There's an interesting challenge before the Church today. How do you create community online when you don't have an existing community, Ekklesia, online.…
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Is Technology Reshaping Community? Praying for Ekklesia Online
For generations, "community" was based on physical location. That being said, technology is changing. The world isn't big anymore. It's quite small. As a…
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PODCAST 008: Ben Stapley & Communicating thru Church Online
The strength of Online Technology (and Church Online) is in our ability to communicate. But are we communicating effectively? Throughout the service…
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My Yellow Bricked Road, or the Day I Gave Up on the iPhone
Confession: I'm a slave to my iPhone. Apple is too good, and Screen Time has confirmed my worst fear... I'm addicted to my phone. I'm not going to drop…
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Facebook Sees the Importance of Both Physical & Online Community. Why Can't the Church?
Facebook announced some big changes recently at their F8 Developer conference. And while I finally think I'm going to make the jump into VR with the…
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PODCAST 007: Kevin Lee, Biblical Community, and What Church Online Is Not
The number one argument we hear about why Church Online isn't Church is that it causes the abandonment of Ekklesia, the gathering together of Church . But…
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8 Questions Church Ministries Should Be Asking About Digital Technology
As much as we talk about Church Online, it's only the tip of the iceberg surround church and technology. And while I love the idea of churches doing…
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Amazon's Jeff Bezos Gave the Solution to Church Online in 1999
So I was flipping through Linked In recently when I ran across a Jeff Bezos interview on CNBC from 1999. Twenty years later, Amazon is one of the top…
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Online Experience or Church Online? Can't I just broadcast my services online?
Every Sunday morning, Facebook Live explodes with churches broadcasting their services online. Honestly, Facebook makes broadcasting services online so…
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The Primer to the Philosophical Shift of Church Online
We've talked a lot lately about the philosophical shift coming by way of Church Online. In addition to just broadcasting church services online, the…
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Seven Ways to Prep Your Church Online for Easter
So, here are Seven Ways You Can Prep Your Church Online for Easter . #### 1) Ask Questions #### 2) Take Advantage of Extra Services Most churches run…
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PODCAST 003: Jay Kranda and Creating Healthy Biblical Community
## ## INTRODUCTION Can Biblical Community exist in Church Online? We sit down with Jay Kranda, Online Pastor at Saddleback, and asked him that question.…
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PODCAST 002: Six Things You Wish Pastors Knew About Church Online
## ## INTRODUCTION There's no way around it... Church Online is a new concept. With the newness comes uneasiness and doubt, especially from people…
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PODCAST 006: Jason Morris & Creating a Discipleship Pathway Online
## What does it mean to disciple someone Online? Let's back up and ask another question first... what does it mean to disciple someone? In this Episode we…
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PODCAST 005: David Urzi & Pastoring an Online Church
## What exactly does an Online Pastor do? This episode explores in greater detail the life and ministry of Online Pastors, people who wrestle with…
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LifeWay Research & Effective Evangelism in Surprising Places
It's not new news, but it's news to me! Going back to 2016, LifeWay Research released a study: Unchurched will talk about faith, not interested in going…
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PODCAST 004: Tyler Sansom and Church Anywhere (Small Church, Microsites and Church Online)
## ## Introduction I first heard of Church Anywhere about a year ago, meeting Tyler on Facebook. I immediately fell in love with his Church. First Capital…
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PODCAST 001: Rey DeArmas & The Strength of Church Online
## ## Introduction Welcome to The Church Digital Podcast! We'll be hosting an ongoing dialogue here on Church Online, sharing stories and challenges…
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Start With Why: The Church Online Picture Storybook
Why do we do Church Online? Great question. Let's back up. There are three types of people who engage Church Online any given Sunday: FRONT DOOR : these…
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USA Today, The Lonely Teen, and the Reaiming of Church Online
Technology and Social Media are in the news once again as USA Today runs the article " Teens aren't socializing in the real world. And that's making them…
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Can We Disciple Online? A Deep Dive on Send's Church Planting Manifesto
Well, Church, we're wrapping up our little academic experiment. Ed Stetzer & the Send Institute released a "Church Planting Manifesto" , with guidelines…
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Church Planting via Church Online? A Closer Look at SEND's Manifesto
Hey Church, we're on a little bit of an academic exercise here. Send Institute recently released a Church Planting Manifesto for 21st Century North…
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A Church Planting Manifesto... applied to Church Online.
I haven't blogged about the Exponential: Made for More Conference last week. It was AWESOME. I personally love conferences, ESPECIALLY one that gives me…
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Dave Adamson, FoxNews, and Why The Nay-Sayers are Right.
Do not merely listen to the word ONLINE, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says IN THE REAL WORLD. - James 1:22 It's a great time to be a fan of…
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How An Online Small Group Leads to Real Life Change
So I met Andrea in a Facebook Group when she said she had documented examples showing the success of Online Groups. Andrea is the Online Community…
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Nieuwhof's Inside Scoop of North Point's Digital Groups
Don’t know if you’re a regular listener of The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast , but it’s easily one of my Top 3 Podcasts right now. Today, while…
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The Blurry Finish Line, or Figuring Out The Why of Church Online
I was talking with a Church Online staff person recently. He is new in his role, and wanted to talk about how to take some next steps for his Church…
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Church Online in 2020: Local Missions, Decentralized Ministry, & Teaching People to Fish
I remember the conversation vividly. I was a Communications Director on staff at a multisite church. I'm sitting with the Local Missions Pastor, talking…
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The Historically, Gospel-Minded, Technologically Aggressive Church, or Three Takeaways from Judah Smith's Fox News Article
I'm enthralled with Judah Smith's Churchome movement, mainly because it's so cutting edge. Well, "cutting edge" by Church standards. Sure, the business…
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Judah Smith, Fox News, and the Importance of Overcoming Church-in-Isolation
Thank you Judah Smith! The somewhat controversial pastor hit news this week, writing an opinion article for Fox News. Why is Judah Smith controversial?…
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Church Online in 2020: An Effective Online Pastor Job Profile
Editor note: Friday, April 24, 2020 - In the midst of the COVID season, the rules of Pastoring Online are changing. Even the Online Campus idea is…
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Who Really Attends Church Online?
Plenty of churches broadcast their services online. Take your service and put it on Facebook Live. It's super-easy. Why not do this? Our traffic reports…
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NEW PODCAST: Creating an Online Discipleship Pathway for Church Online
Recently I was a guest on Youth Ministry Sidekick, a podcast hosted by Tom Pounder. Tom is a huge supporter of Church Online, as many churches across…
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Church Online in 2020: The Goal of Social Media isn't Likes
As part of an ongoing blog series "Church Online in 2020" we're taking an introspective look into the changes Church Online needs to make in 2019 for it…
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Church Online in 2020: More Than a Church of Weirdos
As part of an ongoing blog series "Church Online in 2020" we're taking an introspective look into the changes Church Online needs to make in 2019 for it…
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Church Online in 2020: Open More Than Sundays
2019 is here! 2018 is in the rearview mirror and we have a blank slate ahead of us. With the new year comes this challenge: let's make 2019 the year of…
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Church Online in 2020: Everyone's Church, Including the Guy Next Door
As part of an ongoing blog series "Church Online in 2020" we're taking an introspective look into the changes Church Online needs to make in 2019 for it…
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Church Online in 2020: Not Competing with Physical Locations
The future is here! It's 2019, and with it comes time to question things anew. Because the answers we got yesterday may not be the right answers today.…
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Online Christmas Services happened... now what?
So, you had Christmas Services online. Chat host chatted. People engaged. It was awesome. But, now what? What's next? We've talked about this in the…
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Nine Blogs That Will Help Your Church (Online) Grow in 2019
As 2018 comes to a close, we look forward to the New Year. Let's make 2019 the year of Church Online, where we intentionally focus on expanding our circle of influence beyond the 20 miles surrounding our physical campuses. Here are nine blogs that can help you take intentional steps to grow your Church Online in 2019. NY Times Slams Internet Church, and They're Not Wrong Are You a Church Online? The Difference Between Digital Communications and Digital Missions Five Roles That Will Take Your Church Online to the Next Level I'm Not Saying Facebook Has Become the Titanic, But... Church. Heads Up. There's Only One Blockbuster Video Left in America. What My Mother Can Teach You About Online Small Groups How Church Online Impacted Multiple Generations of Churches on the Other Side of the Planet Five Ways Church Online Can Help You Launch Your Next Multisite or Church Plant Seven Things You Can Do to Improve Your Online Church ServiceBONUS: Well, we couldn't really cap it at nine, could we? Here's an additional two for churches who are just getting started in Church Online. Ten Things You Want Your Pastor to Know About Online Church Five Questions You Should Ask Before You Launch Your Church Online
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Six Ways Chat Hosts Can Better Engage Church Online This Christmas
It's a well-known fact to the Church Online world: Chat Hosts serve as the Guest Services of Church Online. If you've ever been a Chat Host, you've…
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NY Times Slams Internet Church, and They're Not Wrong...
A couple days ago the New York Times published an opinion on the Internet Church movement . Simply titled, Internet Church isn't Really Church, writer…
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Five Ways to Grow Your Church Online this Christmas
Christmas is here! Churches across the country are prepping final details for their Christmas Eve services, making sure that everything is right. After…
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Five Roles that will take your Church Online to the Next Level
It's relatively easy to experiment with Church Online. Broadcast your services on Facebook Live and count the views! The challenge here, Church, is not to…
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Being Thankful, or the Time I Made God Perform
This weekend I was volunteering as a Video Director for one of my church clients, when the Lead Pastor said something that stuck with me for a couple days…
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NEW PODCAST: What could a Kids Church Online service look like?
I had the opportunity to be on another podcast this week, talking about a fun topic for me... What does it look like to do Church Online specifically for…
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The Digital Mission of Church Online: Halloween Edition
Many of the churches I work with do something during the Halloween season to actively engage within the community. Fall Festival, Trunk or Treat, Block…
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What Church Online can learn from Eugene Peterson
If you didn't hear, Eugene Peterson, Pastor/Christian Author, died this week. Words cannot express the impact Eugene had on me. Books like Eat this Book…
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How Church Online Impacted Multiple Generations of Churches on the Other Side of the Planet
A while back, when I was an Online Pastor at Christ Fellowship Miami, I received an email from someone in Kenya. We've all been there, right? The Prince…
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What saving that Butterfly taught me about God's Will
If you know me, you know I'm a driven, type-A guy... one to jump first and ask questions later. That being said, I've been told: "Confession is good for…
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Create a Healthy Volunteer Culture by Leading Volunteers Technically, Personally, & Spiritually
One of my favorite parts of the job here at THECHURCH.DIGITAL is helping churches take the next step technologically. We can always upgrade cameras, or…
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I'm not saying Facebook has become the Titanic, but...
Hey Church Communicators. We all love Facebook, right? What's not to love? It's easy to engage users through comments on posts and Facebook Messenger.…
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Church, Heads Up. There's Only One Blockbuster Video Left in America
Blockbuster Video? Remember them? At one point Blockbuster was a large, flourishing entertainment company in America, peaking in 2004 with over 9,000…
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Six Things the Church Doesn't Understand, and One Thing It Must.
Church, online is hard. I get it. It's new, it's weird... Truthfully it operates by a different set of rules. While its so easy to look at the online…
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What My Mother Can Teach You About Online Small Groups
There are roughly 384,000 evangelical churches in America today. Experts guesstimate there are only 100 of them that are doing some form of Online…
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How do you know your communications is working? Or the time I almost spit on a Pastor.
"How do you know communication is working?" I was at a restaurant recently, helping a church communications team develop a communications strategy. One of…
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Making Content, or Making Disciples
We've got a Guest Blogger on the blog today. Rey DeArmas is the Online Pastor at Christ Fellowship Miami , the church that I serve at and call home. Rey…
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Marketing or Ministry? What's your Strategy Online?
In a tweet, Nona Jones and Pushpay clearly encapsulated an idea that I've been wrestling with for years. Pastors, utilizing social media is vital to your…
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Megaphone or Telephone? What Billy Graham taught me about Digital Communication
Is your church a megaphone or a telephone ? It's an old adage heard around communication circles, but especially important into today's digital world.…
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Six Things Today's Church Online Doesn't Understand, and the One Thing It Must
#### Online Church isn't a replacement of the Physical Church. it is a very strong complement to the Physical Church (when done right). #### The 70 minute…
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How Aunt Judy will become the HERO of your church's social media
Church, the rules changed on us. They always do, mind you. But this is a substantial shift that many churches have yet to overcome. The New York Times was…
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New Podcast: The Digital Mission Field
So last week I was on another podcast. Tom Pounder of Digital Bootcamp and YM Sidekick brought me on to talk about Church Online, and the digital mission…
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IS YOUR NEXT MULTISITE CAMPUS ONLINE?
Andy Mage • July 1, 2018 We've got a guest blogger here at THECHURCH.DIGITAL today. Jim Tomberlin is the Founder and Senior Strategist at MultiSite…
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TAKING RISKS, OR THE EFFECTS OF TRUSTING GOD FOR 30 DAYS
For the past month, God has set me on a journey. Since resigning my position as Digital Strategist at Christ Fellowship Miami , it has been a thrilling…
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FIVE WAYS CHURCH ONLINE CAN HELP YOU LAUNCH YOUR NEXT MULTISITE OR CHURCH PLANT
Are you part of a healthy, active, growing church actively launching multisite campuses or church plants? Church Online is a viable, untapped resource for…
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TEN THINGS YOU WANT YOUR PASTOR TO KNOW ABOUT ONLINE CHURCH
We get it. Church Online is a new frontier. It's untapped. It's scary. And it's huge potential for the churches that are willing to take a chance. So…
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ONE MONTH IN... HOW LONG IS THIS DOCK?
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New Podcast: Exit Interview with an Online Pastor
Well, as a former Radio DJ I've always been told I had a face for Radio, I guess I can add Podcasting to the list. This past week I was interviewed by Jay…
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ARE YOU A CHURCH ONLINE? THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS & DIGITAL MISSIONS
Church, there is a big difference between Digital Communications and Digital Missions . Church, if you are serious about taking the next step in your…
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CHURCH ONLINE: THE MANURE FOR CHURCH PLANTING
Forgive the metaphor, but if the Church Plant is like a "plant" needing resources to grow, then the Church Online is almost like fertilizer that helps the…
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HOUSE CHURCHES, MICROSITES & POP-UP CHURCHES: THE GROWN-UP VERSION OF CHURCH ONLINE
Broadcasting church services online is exciting. It's fun creating the services and seeing how your weekend services expand. But questions exist with the…
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ONLINE TO OFFLINE RELATIONSHIPS: CREATING COMMUNITY FOR THE CHURCH ONLINE
One of the largest arguments against church online is that of isolation. I had a pastor once tell me that "church doesn't happen when avatars meet…
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A NEW BRAND WORLD, OR WHY MY BUSINESS CARDS ARE AWESOME
Okay, it's getting real. I am happy to announce the brand launch of THECHURCH.DIGITAL - all of this is coming together quickly. If you see me in person…
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ENGAGING ONLINE, OR THAT TIME THE BIBLE GAVE THE CHURCH A SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY
I've been reading through James lately, and had quite the revelation. Almost 2,000 years before Facebook became a household name, James provides us an…
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ENGAGING THE VCR, OR 3 THINGS THE CHURCH ONLINE CANNOT BE
Church Online has been a fascinating cultural development. For many churches, Online Church has become almost a “digital missions”, allowing people to…
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FIVE QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD ASK BEFORE YOU LAUNCH YOUR CHURCH ONLINE
Interested in starting an Online Church? Ask yourself these questions before you get started. Better to know the answers to these questions now than…
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SEVEN THINGS YOU CAN DO TO IMPROVE YOUR ONLINE CHURCH SERVICE
Online Church Services are a growing phenomenon. An estimated 5,000 churches are doing services online regularly, and necessary for the church to achieve…
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SUBMITTING TO GOD IS ONE THING, BUT DO I HAVE TO SPEND TWO YEARS IN JAIL?
”In all your ways acknowledge Him.” Or that’s how I’ve memorized Proverbs 3. Somewhere along the way the word changed on me. Don't get me started. Today…
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THE FRUITS OF FAITH, OR WHY I THANK GOD FOR GEOMETRY
Last week I wrote The Vertical Line, or the Day God Slapped Me in the Face . Of course, the slap was more metaphorical than physical, but it hurt…
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THE OWNER OF MY FAILURES, OR WHAT 30y/o JEFF IS TELLING 40y/o JEFF.
I can’t even start to explain how this happened… I used to blog on an old site called RUNwithGOD.com. It was a fun opportunity to express myself a long…
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THE VERTICAL LINE, OR THE DAY GOD SLAPPED ME IN THE FACE
I cried. All because of a vertical line. I heard a pastor preaching recently about why we should not fear. Having heard messages like this before, I…