The Unstuck Church Podcast with Amy Anderson

Our data consistently contradicts the broader trends of declining religious affiliation and church engagement in our country. In fact, we personally know many churches that are experiencing major momentum right now—in terms of attendance, engagement, professions of faith, giving and all kinds of metrics of church health. Clearly, there’s something different about the churches that are part of our tribe. So, in the final episode of the series, we’re going to share a few other things that make a church unstuck—more things those churches have in common. For the full episode transcript, links mentioned during the show, and to download the Leader Conversation Guide, visit this episode's Show Notes at theunstuckgroup.com/episode362. This episode is brought to you by The Six Types of Working Genius: Working Genius is the fastest way to increase productivity, improve morale, and decrease turnover on your team. It takes ten minutes to discover the work that gives you joy and energy, and the work that is leading to staff burnout.  Take the assessment. Discuss your results. Engage the geniuses of the people around you.  Get started today: Use code UNSTUCKWG for 20% off at workinggenius.com.   Join the Conversation on Social Media If you're listening on Wednesday when the episode first releases, join the live conversation The Unstuck Group's team will be having on social media about this week's topic. We use hashtag #unstuckchurch on X. Or you can join in on Facebook.

Discover how some churches are thriving despite the overall decline in religious participation. Learn about the clear vision and mission-driven strategies that set these successful congregations apart. Hear insights on intentional church programming and how community engagement can transform a church's impact. Evaluate key strategies for church leaders to assess vitality and tackle growth challenges. Explore real-life examples that illuminate the path from stagnation to revitalization!

Alan Cooperman, a representative from the Pew Research Center specializing in religious participation data, shares surprising insights into church attendance trends. Contrary to the common belief of decline, recent studies show a 17% year-over-year increase among certain churches. The discussion also explores the growing demographic of 'nuns,' individuals identifying as religiously unaffiliated, and the nuanced nature of their beliefs. Cooperman emphasizes the need for church leaders to adapt engagement strategies to connect with this evolving group in American spirituality.

Chris Hodges, a transformative pastor from Church of the Highlands, shares insights on the impactful 'Growth Track' program that has inspired many churches. He emphasizes the importance of identifying personal spiritual gifts, which enhances satisfaction and community involvement. The conversation highlights how serving others fuels spiritual growth and the need to rekindle passion for service. Hodges also discusses fostering discipleship, leadership development, and building connections through in-person gatherings, all essential for a thriving church community.

Pastor John Thomas from Mariners Church discusses The Rooted Experience, a program integrating serving into spiritual formation. He shares how Rooted connects people to faith and the church, encourages serving opportunities for spiritual development, and highlights the impact of intentional discipleship strategies within churches.

Author Daniel Im discusses the importance of serving in spiritual growth, balancing evangelism and discipleship, empowering lay leadership, awakening sleepers, and nurturing committed disciples towards Jesus in a post-pandemic church landscape.

Discussing the decline in volunteer engagement in churches post-pandemic. Exploring structural mistakes that hinder volunteer participation. Emphasizing the need for churches to focus on team structure for effective volunteer engagement as a spiritual formation issue.

Exploring the challenges of volunteer engagement post-pandemic, the podcast delves into the decline in volunteering and the importance of integrating serving into spiritual formation. Strategies include one-on-one invites, sermon messages on serving, and quality volunteer environments. The discussion also focuses on assessing mistakes in volunteer engagement, prioritizing challenges, and casting vision to effectively engage volunteers in church ministry.

We know from our research and conversations with clients that finding great people for the ministry staff team is very challenging right now.  As an addedumn to our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," we bring you this bonus interview with Tim Foot of Slingshot Group for some timely insights into church staffing in 2024. In this conversation, Tony and Tim discuss topics like: The positions churches are having the hardest time filling Insights into how churches find great people for their staff teams on this side of the pandemic Distinctives about churches who are attracting and retaining younger people on their teams Best practices for raising up leaders from within Learn more about Slingshot Group Connect with Tim Foot  Planning a Restructure? People-problems are uniquely challenging on a ministry staff team. Leading your people through them is hard. Through our Staffing & Structure process, you can go from feeling overwhelmed by the weight of the people-problems to feeling confident in your ability to structure and lead your team for health and high performance. Learn more at theunstuckgroup.com. Join the Conversation on Social Media If you're listening on Wednesday when the episode first releases, join the live conversation The Unstuck Group's team will be having on social media about this week's topic. We use hashtag #unstuckchurch on X. Or you can join in on Facebook.

Leaders know it's true: Not having the right people on the team hinders the impact of your church. So what do you do when it's clear you need to remove someone from the team—when it's clear they are not a fit? In the last episode of our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," Tony and Amy discuss the very real reasons why letting someone go is so hard for ministry leaders, the ways you need to be effectively evaluating performance as an organization (and specifically, managing people who are underperforming), and how you can approach it all with wisdom and grace. Planning a Restructure? People-problems are uniquely challenging on a ministry staff team. Leading your people through them is hard. Through our Staffing & Structure process, you can go from feeling overwhelmed by the weight of the people-problems to feeling confident in your ability to structure and lead your team for health and high performance. Learn more at theunstuckgroup.com. This Episode is Sponsored by The Church Lawyers The Church Lawyers’ Client Member program was created for organizations just like yours. Their team of Christian legal professionals are personally called to empower and protect churches, ministries, and their leaders to fulfill their mission by providing biblically informed and ministry-focused legal solutions. Whether governance, employment, litigation, or other matters, let The Church Lawyers walk alongside you as you navigate legal issues facing your ministry.  Sign up for the The Church Lawyers’ Client Member program today at thechurchlawyers.com. For the full episode transcript, links mentioned during the show, and to download the Leader Conversation Guide, visit this episode's Show Notes at theunstuckgroup.com/episode354.   Join the Conversation on Social Media If you're listening on Wednesday when the episode first releases, join the live conversation The Unstuck Group's team will be having on social media about this week's topic. We use hashtag #unstuckchurch on X. Or you can join in on Facebook.