Practical Church

Healthy small groups are vital to healthy churches. In this episode, we share 9 practical things you can do to help ensure you are writing and creating good small group leader discussion guides for your groups. Welcome to episode 269 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 9 tips we discuss in this episode: Sermon based is the easiest/most consistent People will already have done their homework (if sermon based) Start with a couple of announcements Do some ice breakers Break up Biblical text into multiple sections with a couple fo questions and a brief description Include questions about life and experiences, not just bible and theology Avoid inductive Bible study questions Keep it to 6-8 questions Send the guides out before Sunday   IMPROVE YOUR CHURCH WEBSITE This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

If we are not careful, the work of ministry can become busy and all-consuming. In this episode, we share some practical things you can do to ensure you are living at a sustainable pace for the long haul. Welcome to episode 268 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 6 tips we discuss in this episode: Schedule big rocks at the beginning of the month Solidify your boundaries Weekly calendar Bo ok with only doing what you can do Prioritize life-giving ministry moments Have a hobby Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

As New City closes in on 5 years as a church, we share 9 reflections we have learned about leading and pastoring. Welcome to episode 267 of Practical Church Planting. Here are the 9 reflections we discuss in this episode: It's better to have not than have the wrong people leading Be proactive in how you talk about money Faithful pastoring is much more than preaching Less is more Read more books from older people and/or older books It's better to focus on who you have than who you could have It's better to try new things that fail than never try anything new Sunday morning attendance isn't the best indicator of faith and dedication Having a high quality online presence is easier than you think. Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

While there are certain things that are contextual to churches in their given areas, there are also general principles all churches and leaders should have in place to ensure a healthy church. In this episode, we share 7 specific pieces of advice that are helpful to all church leaders regardless of context. Welcome to episode 266 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 7 things we discuss in this episode:  Eldership process in place Work boundaries Sexual guardrails Itemized budget Applying the Gospel before fixing the problem Clear, practical, and realistic launch plan Local friends Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

It is easy to miss things that new people see and care about. In this episode, we share 6 of those extremely important things churches should stay on top of that are easily missed. Welcome to episode 265 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch this episode below, or subscribe to the podcast and get our episodes delivered right to you.   Here are the 6 things we discuss in this episode: Up to date website Consistent social media presence Clean facility Smooth kids check-in process Acknowledgment new people might be there Proper follow up Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

When meeting with and counseling people in your church, there can be an internal pressure to think you have to have all the right answers. In this episode, we share questions to ask that are often more helpful than giving advice. Welcome to episode 264 of Practical Church Planting. Here are the 7 questions we discuss in this episode: What would you like to see happen? How would you want to go about doing that? How is this impacting what you think about God? Why do you think this upsets you so much? If you could do it over again, what would you do differently? Repeat a question if you didn't get a real answer Is there anything I can do to help you? Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

All preachers want to improve their skill in preaching but might not know the best way to go about doing it. In this episode, we share 6 practical things you can do to improve your skills. Welcome to episode 263 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 6 tips we discuss in this episode: Preach as much as you can Reduce your notes Listen to 3 people for 3 months Ask 3 people to give you feedback. Even better = ask 2 people for feedback once a month for 3 months. Listen to your sermon (audio only) Read books on communication Improve your church website This episode was brought to you by The Church Co. Get 40% off the first two years and have a fast, mobile-friendly, and well-designed website for your church. Use the promo code Practical at checkout to get 40% off and get a better website today. Visit thechurchco.com/practical for more info. CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

We all want our worship services to be as distraction-free as possible, but how do we turn that aspiration into a reality? In this episode, we share 7 things you can do to have smoother services. Welcome to episode 262 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 7 tips we discuss in this episode: Service run through Consistent service run through time Sermon slides ready before Sunday Print sermon notes for production volunteers Two minute pre-service countdown Confidence monitor Giving constructive feedback to production volunteers CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

James Clear writes, "you do not rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems." So how can we ensure we have the proper systems to hit our aspirations? In this episode, we shave six systems you should have in place to improve your ministry. Welcome to episode 261 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 6 systems we discuss in this episode: Preaching Follow up Task/request keeping Email Setting up meetings Daily calendar CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.

Free does not always mean you should use it. Sometimes free can cost you more money in the long run. But in this episode, we share 9 free resources that your church can use with confidence. Welcome to episode 260 of Practical Church Planting.  Here are the 9 free resources we discuss in this episode: Todoist Google Workspace OBS Logos Practical Church Planting resources: Sermon series artwork, newsletter, practical preaching course Anchor Calendly Mailchimp CONNECT AND NEVER MISS AN EPISODE Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get practical tips delivered right to you. For free resources to help you plant a church that thrives, check out practicalplanting.com.  You can also watch the video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group.