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.

Is there a place I can find trustworthy support for the call of God in my life? We increase the opportunity for success by surrounding ourselves with those who raise us up.

Why does it seem that I am unable to break through to a place of worship? What is preventing us from actively worshipping when we are assembled with other believers? Here are some thoughts from Al Downey’s logbook.

Are you kid-friendly? During a time when Jonathan DuHumal and his family were looking for a church home, they tried out many well-meaning churches and just never stayed. These are the three things those churches didn’t that you CAN do.

Were you able to join us at Ministers Gathering 2023? Over 500 ministers and their families joined us for a time of connection, renewal and equipping at the Banff Park Lodge in Banff, Alberta. This is a valuable family connection time and helps us support and encourage one another as we endeavour to reach the 4.1 million souls in our region.

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!

Go through each one of these items and ask yourselves how are we doing on this? Close the gaps. Remember, intentionality is the key to becoming a welcoming church.

I’ve asked a similar question to pastors who have seen their ministries and churches grow over the years … “what is one reason you can think of as to why your ministry grew?” Their answer shocked me.

Some churches have reported that engagement in their online services has decreased over the past few weeks. We all want as many people engaging with us as often as possible. Here are five ways to increase online engagement.

Online church has seen church viewership increase over the past month. This is good new for many but how will we turn viewers into members?

Many of us pastors have a “Sunday to Sunday” mentality. We prepare all week for the one hour (approximately) in the week. The problem is, there are 167 more hours in the week and your congregation is engaging many of them online through social media.

Many of our churches have moved to having their services online and have discovered that many non-believers have begun to watch their church online. These are people who may have no connection to church or any Christian spiritual understanding.

Easter is coming soon and this is a great opportunity for you and your church to reach out into your community and invite people to join you.

Look at our worship experience through the lens of a non-Christian. Church is soooo boring and irrelevant. Especially our music. We want people to meet Jesus, but if they check out in the first few minutes of a service because they’re disengaged, you likely will not win them back.

Teenagers can sometimes seem like they are disinterested in church and are not wanting to get involved. If we learn to meet them where they are at and engage them, we will have an unstoppable group behind us, helping us grow and reach more people…

Culture trumps vision every time. If your church has a vision to reach the unchurched, yet your culture is not not conducive to outsiders, your culture will win. One of the biggest influences on our church culture that can easily repel the unchurched is the order of our services.