Practical Church

We all want to preach better sermons. Here are 6 tips to help us do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 21 of Practical Church Planting. Here are the 6 things we discuss to help you preach better sermons: Know what you are going to say Practice what you are going to say out loud Too short is better than too long Don't start with a welcome Know your bottom line No one cares how much you know until you tell a story Connect and never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group!

Want to reach more people with engaging content? In this episode we give you three resources to that will help your church do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 20 of Practical Church Planting. It can be confusing and overwhelming trying to navigate how to communicate clearly what is going on in your church and also trying to stay on top of what it looks like to engage people online. When everything seems to change so quickly, what should you do? In this episode we share three resources that are particularly helpful in giving tips, advice, and ideas in how to do it. We talk about: Brady Shearer with Pro Church Tools The Church Communications Facebook group Gary Vaynerchuk Connect and never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play Have questions or want encouragement from other church planters? Join the Practical Church Planting Facebook group!

Sermon based small groups are a great way to run your groups. Here's how you can do them. Welcome to welcome to episode 19 of Practical Church Planting. You can watch the episode below, or subscribe to the podcast and never miss an episode. In this episode, we talk about how to do sermon based small groups and why they are so helpful for your church. We talk about: How to make it easy for people who missed the weekend service to still follow along The types of questions you should create How to make it easy for your small group leaders to facilitate How it helps people pay more attention during the message in your weekend services Never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

You're starting the process of planting a church. That's great! Here's why you shouldn't start Sunday gatherings right away. Welcome to welcome to episode 18 of Practical Church Planting. When you are in the early stages of raising money, building a team, and sharing your vision, there is also a desire to start meeting on Sundays right away. We would caution against that. We explain why in this episode.

Engaging content is king. We've got two strategies you can implement this week on Facebook to help your church be more engaging. Welcome to welcome to episode 17 of Practical Church Planting. Consistent, engaging content is crucial to helping your church reach new people. In this episode, we share our two most engaging posts (in terms of likes, comments, and shares) that we post every week on Facebook. The good news? You can also begin using these this week. We talk about: Posting pictures from your weekend services and how we do it People of New City: what it is and how you can do it. Never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

We all want to be more productive. The good news? There is something you can do that will help do just that. Welcome to welcome to episode 16 of Practical Church Planting. Ministry can be hard and unpredictable. However, it can be at least a little bit more predictable than we think. In this episode, we talk about what a block calendar is and how to use it. Here are the benefits and "how-tos" that we discuss: It makes you more productive It helps you feel (and be) more accomplished Helps other people respect your time Give yourself breaks in your schedule Adjust when necessary Set your schedule ahead of time Never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

First time guests are great, but what can we do to connect with them and significantly increase the likelihood they will return? Welcome to welcome to episode 15 of Practical Church Planting. Weekly tours of your meeting space following your service(s) is a fun and great way to connect with first-time guests. In this episode, we explain why that's the case, and how to do it. We discuss how: It's unexpected It's fun It allows you to share some of your mission and vision It allows new people to meet each other It helps people familiarize themselves with your space (which is important even if it is small) Those a part of your church will know that when they invite their friends, there will be a space to ask any questions Never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

What if you could impact your community in a big way every month without having to increase your budget? You can, with the $5 Give Club. Welcome to welcome to episode 14 of Practical Church Planting. The $5 Give Club is a great monthly outreach idea that doesn't cost the church any extra money and is something your people will love to get behind. In this episode, we share what it is, why you should do it (or something similar) and how you can make it happen. We discuss: How it increases generosity How people get to see the impact they made every month How people who are not part of your church can (and in our case have) participate How your people will love it and be proud of their church How it increases your outreach potentially without having to spend extra money or creating more systems Never miss an episode Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

We all want to grow our small groups ministries (whatever you may call them), however, we believe multiplying groups is not the best option. Welcome to welcome to episode 13 of Practical Church Planting. It sounds counter-intuitive and seems to go against most of the advice we hear about small groups, but in this episode, we give you 5 reasons why multiplying small groups may not be the best thing for your groups ministry to grow and thrive. We also share our approach at New City. Here are the 5 reasons we advise against multiplying groups: It breaks up continuity It doesn't allow for deep relationships to develop People today need friends and friendships are hard to develop if you are always splitting groups apart It penalizes healthy groups Multiplying groups is extremely hard to do well, and very few churches do it successfully The show releases every Monday and Thursday morning Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play

Should you have membership at your church? In this episode, we focus on the practical (not theological) reasons why membership is good for churches. Welcome to welcome to episode 12 of Practical Church Planting. While we would encourage membership from a Biblical perspective, it also has a quite a few practical implications as well. In this episode, we talk about how it helps you: Explain your mission and vision more effectively With accountability among your people Know who is truly committed Financially Because people desire to be a part of something Create ownership for your people The show releases every Monday and Thursday morning Did you know that you can also subscribe to the podcast version of Practical Church Planting? Subscribe for free and never miss an episode! Appreciate the podcast? Please leave a rating and review, and even share it to help spread the word! Here’s where you can subscribe: iTunes Google Play