Moving Mountains Podcast

How can I have a more balanced life? For Jenn Alexander, Pastor with Hosanna Church, that perfect place of “balance” does not exist. In this episode, she shares her experience balancing ministry, leadership, motherhood, and family time. In doing so, she explains the journey we all go on to grow and become all that God has made us as leaders. Pushpay helps churches connect and engage with their community, through church management software, digital giving, and custom apps. To learn more about how Pushpay can help your church’s ministry, click here: https://bit.ly/3l8K9QT

“There is a great adventure that awaits when we step out and say ‘yes’ to God. Courage presupposes the existence of danger and we want to write music that resurrects Christian courage.” In this episode, Pastor Mike shares how, in the midst of the most challenging times in their ministry, they created songs that inspired believers of their God-given authority in Christ to be overcomers. There are songs within the hearts of Believers that have yet to be written. We hope that you and your teams will be inspired to step out and see what awaits! Make sure you check out Awaken Music’s album, Lionheart, available on multiple streaming platforms. And if you’d like to download a copy of their sheet music, including their new single Come What May, go to https://grow.pushpay.com/lp-pdc-moving-mountains.html

Have you found yourself in a place where you’ve struggled to love well and lead faithfully? In this episode, Pastor Glenn Packiam addresses the most pressing questions for today’s leaders, and shares personal experiences and practical strategies pastors can use to become resilient and avoid burnout in a rapidly changing world.

For more resources and help around burnout in the church:
glennpackium.com
Pastor Carey Niuewhof on Burnout
Can Technology Solve Church Staff Burnout?
How ChurchStaq Can Help with Pastor Burnout

Pushpay helps churches connect and engage with their community, through church management software, digital giving, and custom apps. Click here to learn more about how Pushpay can help your church’s ministry.

In this episode, Pastor Will Marotti with New Life Church, Connecticut shares their heart for the differently abled community, and how digital giving has allowed them to create a facility and environment serving differently abled children and their parents. Pastor Will also shares why communicating the various giving environments is important for sustainable ministry, even through a pandemic. Pushpay helps churches connect and engage with their community, through church management software, digital giving, and custom apps.

Click here to learn more about how Pushpay can help your church’s ministry.

In this episode, Jeff Whye, Online Campus Pastor for Sandals Church, shares how they went from 2,000 people watching online sermons to having tens of thousands of people connected and in community through online church and Church Anywhere. Sandals Church has been able to create an amazing online community, utilizing tools such as Roku’s Streaming platform, and Forms and Processes in Pushpay’s ChMS.

Pushpay helps churches connect and engage with their community, through church management software, digital giving, and custom apps. To see how you can empower volunteers to make a profound impact on the lives of people, click here to learn more.

Have you ever wondered how your church can make an impact on the Nations? In this episode Mark Shetler, Executive Pastor of River City Christian shares the creative idea God gave them that led to them touching the lives of people of all cultures and nations, all in their own backyard.

Pushpay provides software features that allow pastors and church leaders to impact their church and community through dynamic digital giving and robust volunteer management tools. Let us show you how you can empower volunteers to make a profound impact on the lives of people like River City Christian. Click here to learn more.

Whether you want to make a lasting impact on a generation or be inspired with fresh ideas for your ministry, this podcast will undoubtedly do both. Damon Strom, Children’s Pastor with ChurchHome in WA, shares the vital importance of vision, risk taking, and fostering an entrepreneur spirit in ministry for creative innovation. Check out their newest technology by simply saying, “Alexa, enable ChurchKids Story”, you will be glad you did!

How do you make sure you keep new guests from slipping out the door? Pastor Mark Bofill with Calvary Worship Center in Colorado Springs, CO shares how they overcame this problem by creating a DNA Process within their ChMS solution, where guests can Discover the heart of the church, Navigate and learn their spiritual gifts and servanthood, and Activate by plugging in and starting the discipleship journey so they can grow deeper in their relationship with Jesus Christ.

In this episode, Hailey Roberts, Director of Veritas Foundation, shares how the Lord is faithfully providing for blind and visually impaired children at Paul School for the Blind in Sierra Leone. Through the generosity of donors, children who once were so malnourished they couldn’t stay awake are now learning, thriving, and celebrating a personal relationship with Christ.

Join us for our second episode of Move Mountains Pastor Podcast where Dave Sauer, Executive Pastor of Adventure Church, shares how their church truly lives for the adventure! The Pandemic brought increased ministry challenges, yet in the midst of those challenges, creativity also increased. Dave really believes that Jesus would take full advantage of today’s technology to touch the lives of people, and Adventure church leaders and staff do too, reaching people in their church and community in creative ways to make a powerful impact on the Kingdom!

Whether it be a natural disaster like Hurricane Michael, the number three most powerful storm in U.S. history, or a Pandemic that suddenly closes churches, how do we respond when these mountains seem immovable? When suddenly we can no longer meet in our churches, how do we BE the Church? In this Podcast, Josh Street, Finance and Operations Pastor of Northstar Church in Panama City, FL shares how we can serve others outside the four walls of the church, and when we come together again in the church, how we can do so in a much safer way.

When it comes to technology within our churches, the time isn’t yesterday. It’s now. And the online, mobile, and digital spaces aren’t where our “second-tier” efforts should be. A physical church and its digital touchpoints are one—one community, one team, one heart, and one soul. Discover how your church can build first-class online communities.

No matter how big your church is, if it isn’t healthy, you’re likely not going to be around for very long. You can host thousands of people every weekend, but if your staff is burned out, or you run your church like a dictatorship, your church likely won’t be doing all that it could be. Listen in as our guest digs deeper on this topic.

In this episode, Chris shares how a management platform can support your member journey, how to find the balance between engagement and pushiness, and why it’s not actually about the data. Listen in to discover why digging into member engagement data is a necessary part of reaching people with the good news in this digital age.

Chris Ames and Ryan Van Sickle from North Point Ministries join us to give an inside look at how North Point has made a digital transformation and the impact it has on building a connected and engaged community. This is part 1 of a 2-part series.

We often hear stories of thriving, growing churches that suddenly experience a culture shift. All at once their focus shifts from reaching people to paying bills. And in almost every one of these stories you can tie this shift back to a decision that was made involving buildings and debt. Nathan Artt, Owner and President of Ministry Solutions, shares his expertise on how churches can make sound real estate decisions that lead to a thriving church community.

What happens when a church grows its attendance numbers, but not its leaders? The church is prone to collapse at a foundational level. On this episode, hear from Kevin Cotter, the Executive Director of The Amazing Parish, as we discuss how to empower church leaders the way Jesus did. As church leaders, are we authentically living the life that we want the people we lead to live? Are we investing in teams of leaders who fully trust and support one another? Listen in to discover what your team can do to better model Jesus’ leadership.

On this episode, a retrospect, as Kent Woodyard, the season one host of The Nurtured Church podcast, shares some of his biggest takeaways after 26 episodes. The way we engage with one another as human beings has changed dramatically in the last decade, but many churches are still playing catch-up. How can churches leverage existing technology to build stronger and more interconnected communities? Find out by listening now!

As the fallout of the Coronavirus pandemic continues to impact church operations around the country, how is your team reacting? Has it been a challenge to maintain the same productivity you had when you were working together in the same office? On this episode, join Lisa Zeeveld, the COO of Belay, as she shares her advise for maintaining your church team’s cultural identity when you can’t be together. Lisa even shares easy ways to make your video calls more engaging and enjoyable for all involved.

People remember who shows up for them in a time of crisis. During this time of uncertainty and instability, people need help, and local churches all over the world have an opportunity to rethink what they’ve done historically to love and serve in new ways. On this episode, listen in as Erwin McManus, the Founder & Lead Pastor of MOSAIC, shares why he thinks churches that adapt today are shaping a more connected future. This moment is an opportunity to champion changes that lead to deeper community and a greater sense of belonging.

When the coronavirus made its way to the United States, church life started changing—fast. For many churches, it’s been over a month since they were last able to gather in-person. With Easter weekend just around the corner, Mark Venti, the Executive Pastor of Churchome, joined us to share how his team is leading differently in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak. Some of their engagement tactics are brand new (like daily video hangouts), while others go back to pastoring 101. Listen in to learn more.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, church as we know it is being disrupted. Just weeks ago, most churches thought of the digital world as the new frontier. Now, it’s the city we all live in. With everything going on, we want to resource you with practical tips from some of the churches leading the way during this all-digital chapter of the Church’s story. On part one of “Church During COVID-19,” listen in as Chad Zollo, the Online Pastor of Elevation Church, shares his advice for churches going digital for the first time.

What would you change if you only had 8 times a year to communicate with somebody? Today, that’s quickly becoming the reality for most churches. The average church-goer is showing up for a physical church gathering less than once per month. Simultaneously, the average person sees up to 10,000 branded messages every single day. Against that backdrop, we invited Phil Bowdle, the author of Rethink Communication, on to the podcast to share practical ways churches can clarify and communicate what matters most.

Physical church attendance in the United States has been declining for years. First, it was the cultural Christians who stopped attending. More recently, committed church members are showing up less frequently. Are there encouraging trends amidst all the negative data? Thom Rainer, founder of Church Answers, says “Yes!” Thom joined us on the most recent episode to discuss declining attendance patterns, new trends in worship participation, digitalization, and the increasing challenges of pastoral ministry.

While every church has a unique beginning, Passion City Church’s origin is particularly fascinating. The church grew out of Passion Conferences, leading them to do things a little differently. Listen in as Jake Jelinek, the Executive Director of Operations, shares aspects of their unique church culture. Have you ever wanted to know what it’s like to shut down a whole church for two weeks? Well, Passion City does it every year, creating a respected rhythm of rest for their entire staff team.

Pastors in America are aging, and more and more, founding pastors of past generations are having a hard time letting go of the churches they’ve devoted their lives to. But we know that church leadership needs to be handed over to the next generation before the church declines into irrelevance. Whit George, Lead Pastor of Church on the Move (Tulsa, OK), has unique insight on pastoral transitions, having just taken over the helm from his father. On this episode, listen in as he reflects on the recent transition and what he has learned along the way.

If you want to change your team’s culture, the first place to start is with yourself. Maybe you don’t pull the strings that could help make a change for the whole team, but you do have a circle of influence right now—starting with you. Today’s guest, in our first ever live recording, is Jenni Catron, Founder and CEO of 4Sight Group. Jenni shared her experience in the Christian music industry, as an Executive Director at vastly different churches, and some of her views on the state of church leadership today.

It’s not a matter of the church not wanting to do more; it’s a matter of the church not having the resources to do more. We agree with Greg. That’s why we invited him on the show to share how pastors can inspire a spirit of generosity in their congregations. And generosity isn’t just about money. When inspired well, a generous congregation will give your church more time, more prayer, and more commitment to the future.

There are roughly 385,000 evangelical churches in the United States today. Of those, fewer than 15,000 churches broadcast their Sunday services online. And of those, only a handful are actively making disciples and building community in the digital space. For Jeff Reed, that’s not good enough. And that’s why he started The Church Digital. On this episode, discover how church online can be just as life-changing as church in-person.

Big data is a big deal in 2020. Tech giants like Google, Facebook, and Amazon are constantly innovating ways to use data to personalize ads and experiences to each of us. We know what they’re trying to sell. But doesn’t the Church have something better to offer? On this episode, we sit down with Ryan Moore, the Principal of Clever Marketing, to hear how churches can leverage marketplace strategies to cut through the noise with a message of faith, hope, and love—a message of Jesus.

When Michael was pastoring a church in Atlanta, they were reaching many people and growing quickly. But he realized something about a year into the journey of planting his church: A crowd and a church are very different. On today’s episode, Michael walks us through why getting your church to invite new people on Sunday morning has become so difficult. And, he’ll give us practical strategies to try as we equip our churches to grow the ministry.

When it comes to being strategic about nurturing community, your website plays a critical role. So, we invited Aimee Cottle, Director of Marketing, and Shayla Kenworthy, Communications Strategist, onto The Nurtured Church podcast to share their thoughts on the role that a church’s website plays in creating meaningful connections.

Often misunderstood is the idea of stewardship. How is it different from giving? And what does stewardship have to do with building community? We addressed these concerns and more on this episode with Dave Briggs. Dave is currently Director of Stewardship at Central Christian Church and previously, he led the stewardship ministry at Willow Creek Community Church.

When it comes to technology, there’s a common criticism: it’s an obstacle to real relationships. But Thomas Road Baptist Church sees it differently. They’re actually leveraging technology to deepen relationships and expand their ministry. We caught up with Scott Pleasants, Chief Information Officer at Thomas Road Baptist Church, to discuss how they’re using technology to nurture engagement.

Community doesn’t just happen. It has to be created, nurtured, and pursued. So, as you know, we’ve been looking at how different churches and different ministries are creating community within their congregations. With our guest Jared Romano from Focus Ministry, we continue that thread by looking at how you can create engagement opportunities through your missions ministry.

To many, generosity a sensitive issue. If you’re in this boat, you’re not alone. But we hope you’ll be encouraged by the conversation we recently had with Greg Gibbs, Lead Navigator at AUXANO, who regularly consults with churches on generosity development.

Stephen Lenahan, Director of Development & Communications at St. Anthony’s, came on the latest episode of The Nurtured Church podcast to share the story of St. Anthony’s and to talk about how they’re using their communication efforts to build engagement among their parishioners.

In this episode, we interview Haley Veturis, Director of Digital Engagement at Bayside Church in Sacramento, CA. Prior to that, she was the social media manager for years at Saddleback Church. Listen in to hear Haley share a three-part framework for engaging your church on social by paying attention to the needs of the individuals in your community.

Bobby Bogard has decades of experience building community. Bobby has served as Executive Pastor at Gateway Church and currently works with Bogard Group Ministries and LINC. He came on the show to talk about the keys to setting a great foundation that blossoms into an engaged congregation.

Your church staff culture will have a trickle down effect on your congregational culture. That’s why it’s so important to think about nurturing engagement as you hire, onboard, and integrate your staff members. We talked with Holly Tate from Vanderbloeman about how churches are thinking about staffing, particularly with new pastoral positions focused on the member journey.

While Katie Allred was on staff as Web Content Manager at Brentwood Baptist Church, the church scaled from one location to eight. During that time, Katie says the biggest challenge they faced was branding. In this episode, Katie, who’s now an Assistant Professor at the University of Mobile, talked about why church branding matters and how you can achieve excellence in your own brand strategy.

What does a church leader do when they get punched in the mouth? You can ask Tyler Reagin. Reagin is the president of Catalyst, a development organization focused on raising the next generation of church leaders. Reagin joined us on The Nurtured Church podcast recently, and shared his thoughts on church leadership, current and future.

On this episode of The Nurtured Church, we pick up where we left off with our guests Ryan Van Sickle and Chris Ames from North Point Ministries. Ryan and Chris share their expertise and lessons learned along the way on building connected communities. See what you can take away to use in your congregation and beyond.