Author: Patrick

  • Demographics that Affect Your Church Plant

    The results of the 2010 Census are finally starting to trickle out. Here are some interesting findings as outlined in a CNN blog post: “America is older and more middle-aged-looking than ever before Young people [are ] choosing to stay single longer and have kids later The Northeast is generally much older than the Southwest.…

  • Relational Mapping for your Launch Team

    I was at the Exponential Conference last week and got to hear from many great speaker and practitioners. A big ‘aha’ moment for me was listening to Rob Wegner from Granger Community Church. He was relating to us the journey that Granger is taking toward nurturing the missional impulse in their small groups. They believe…

  • FREE Church Plant Resource: WorshipPlanning.com

    The advent of  ‘freemium’ pricing plans has been a boon to church plants. There is a lot you can do on the free version of many software solutions before you bump up against having to pay for the premium service. WorshipPlanning.com is designed specifically for churches. For established churches they offer a 30-day trial, but…

  • New FaceBook Tool Your Church Should Use This Week

    FaceBook unveiled a new feature – Questions. Sounds simple enough. It allows you to ask a question, send it to your friends, and have them respond back. Similar to online surveys or polls, it’s meant to be social in nature. But you should immediately see the benefit of using it to learn about your community,…

  • FREE Church Plant Resource: Live Stream Your Services

    For years, large churches have used media like radio and television to get their message out. But you’re a new church plant with limited resources. What’s the Problem? You sense the need to have an online campus; at least more than just podcasting your sermons. You know that there are people in your congregation that…

  • Podcasting Your Worship

    It is a great idea to record your sermons and podcast them from your website. It will give pre-visitors a chance to get a feel for the church and make an early connection with you. What’s the Problem? Recording the sermons is one thing, but recording and “publishing” your worship set is almost certainly a…

  • The Secret Every Fast Food Chain Knows

    How do you get great results out of an ever-changing workforce? Think about it – whether you go to a McDonald’s in California or Ohio, you get the same product, often produced by entry-level workers that have little or no prior experience. The secret? Good systems! Churches experience similar workforce situations: a near-constant turnover of…

  • Oops, Forgot to Let my Prayer Team Know…

      Every church planter needs a group of people praying for him, his family, and the new church. There will be spiritual opposition to this advancement of the Kingdom. Count on it. I help all of my planters set up a prayer team system to recruit people and keep them informed of praises & prayer…