I hear stories about churches doing radio shows in which the pastor would simply field questions about life, the Bible, and theology – a conversation with regular people from their local community who would call and ask questions of the pastor.

Worship leaders, do you have a process for deciding what songs you are going to sing this Sunday? I was recently asked how I decide what to sing. Here is some insight into what has worked for me.

On May 10, 2023, over 260 pastors and ministry leaders from across the Alberta and Northwest Territories gathered for a round table for a family forum-styled conference to discuss what it means to “Belong, Grow, and Serve” together in the PAOC family in our region. The day was buzzing as people made new connections, visited with old friends and dialled into the day's agenda. Here are seven things that we learned at this past District Conference.

How can we make the most of the summer schedule? The summer is often the time when you’ll get guests visiting. This is not a time to dial back. It’s a time to get the most out of your summer ministry season. You can hack your summer in the following ways.

Did you know that the next biggest Sunday of the year is similar to Easter Sunday? Here are some great Mother’s Day ideas for the second biggest Sunday of the Year. People who don’t usually attend church might come on this Sunday too.

What are some practical ways to invite in more guests and for them to have an awesome experience at Easter? Imagine starting an Easter chain reaction. See lives transformed. Entire families coming to know Jesus. Building relationships with guests. All because you designed your Easter service to be about more than Easter.

Ready to think about spring outreaches? Here are four fantastic outreaches you can do this spring. The sky is brightening. The air is warming. The snow is melting – well, not quite yet. But spring is coming, and this is a great opportunity to reach your community in the coming months. Your church can make a difference in your community by meeting the needs of your community. Building bridges of relationship and connection to the people who are not yet a part of your church but will be one day.

Is your church stuck? Do you find yourself in the tension of organizational structure and relational equity? Once you decide to focus on these seven things, you can begin to work and develop them as you go forward. The blend of organization and organism embedded in each of these areas will keep you growing in numbers while also growing in depth of relationship and commitment to Christ.

Would you consider your church relentlessly outbound? Most Canadian churches are not relentlessly outbound. Most church budgets are focused on staff salaries and building costs. Most pastors and staff spend the majority of their time with Christians. We’ve turned into “Christian Training Centres” or “Clubs for Christians” rather than a Missional Movement; a force of Christ-followers on a mission to reach a lost world.

Your church website is the front door of your church. If anyone is thinking about checking out your church, they will go to the website first. Here are 5 things your church website needs now.

We know how difficult it can be to stay encouraged and find affordable resources when you are a small church. At the same time, we believe that small churches are essential to the mission God has for his Church in our local communities and around the world! We have listed and linked some resources that we have found useful, and we hope you will benefit from them too!

Returning to "normal" will mean setting new priorities and parameters of fruitfulness.

Millions of Canadians are coming out from house arrest. They are excited to be out. They are a little nervous. Some of them are learning what it means to have real-life conversations again. And all of this new interaction makes for a great opportunity to look at your community with fresh eyes.

Here is how you can build a community profile to really understand who your neighbour is and how you can reach them.

The church has an amazing opportunity to be a voice of hope in the midst despair. A voice of peace in the midst of chaos. A voice of credible faith in the midst of fear. However, you need to get outside of your church and actually speak to your city.

It’s never fun to realize that there were things that you thought were working, actually weren’t working. The recent pandemic exposed weaknesses and brought out realizations amongst churches and church leaders all over the world.

The paid advertisement world of social media is becoming a necessity. Social media algorithms will only allow 30% - 40% of the content coming from your church to reach its’ intended audience. If you want to reach more people, you’ll need to pay.

What if every Pastor and Board seizes the moment and leads the way in celebrating the Church as who we are, not where we gather. Return stronger by celebrating God’s Church on Pentecost Sunday at home.