The Pro Church Tools Show with Brady Shearer

Latest Episodes:

How To Evangelize in 2019 And Beyond Jul 23, 2019

Show notes

The prospect of evangelism in today's tension-filled culture can feel intimidating. Yet as a practicing Christian, you and I both know that being a witness about Jesus is a crucial element of our faith. So how do we reconcile this? In this episode of Pro Church Tools, we'll examine how to evangelize in today's world - and I'll even share with you my exact talking points that I use when sharing with someone why I believe in Jesus.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/how-to-evangelize-in-2019-and-beyond/

What's In This Session?

Almost all practicing Christians believe that part of their faith means being a witness about Jesus (95%-97%) - Barna, Reviving Evangelism (0:35)
Millennials in particular feel equipped to share their faith with others. (0:59)
Almost half of Millennials (47%) agree at least somewhat that it is wrong to share one's personal beliefs with someone of a different faith in hopes that they will one day share the same faith. This is compared to a little over one-quarter of Gen X (27%), and one in five Boomers (19%) (1:33)
#1: Acknowledge that evangelism is rarely effective outside of relationship (5:00)
#2: Realize that evangelism is about many decision(s) not a singular decision - spectrum versus on/off switch (8:40)
#3: Don't feel obligated to "defend" your faith - In the same way that Jesus didn't need Peter to defend him against the guards that came to arrest Jesus (13:26)
#4: On Earth as it is in Heaven (18:42)
"Out of 100 people, one will read the Bible, the other 99 will read the Christian." ― D.L. Moody (18:50)
#5: When I do use words, I use this framework: I believe I was put on the Earth to make a difference, I believe the best way to make a difference is through love, and I believe the greatest example of love is Jesus - laying down his life for the goodwill of others - transition into Christianity being about a selfless life and dying to self (19:50)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

5 Things Every Church Service Should Include Jul 18, 2019

Show notes

There are a lot of moving pieces when it comes to planning your church's services. From scheduling volunteers, to determining what songs you want to sing, announcements, sermon prep - so much goes into a Sunday morning. So what are we missing? In my experience, there are at least five things many churches overlook on a weekend - and by the end of this video, you'll know what each of those five things is and how to begin incorporating them into your next church service.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/5-things-every-church-service-should-include/

What's In This Session?

#1: Acknowledgement of people who are new (1:45)
#2: Set expectations (5:05)
#3: Next steps promotion (6:43)
#4: Defining of terms - Christianese/theological terms are okay - just make sure it gets defined when used (10:08)
#5: Reiterate vision (13:38)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

Why Millennials Make Such Terrible Employees Jul 16, 2019

Show notes

There's a new crop of leaders volunteering and working in churches - and they're unlike any prior generation to come before them. And this is causing tension with the senior leadership across every denomination and brand of church. So what do we do about it? By the end of this video, you'll have a greater understanding of how to lead young people in a rapidly changing culture.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/why-millennials-make-such-terrible-employees/

What's In This Session?

The Deloitte Global Millennial Survey 2019 (1:29)
#1 - Age: Age 17 to 36 in 2019: Largest living generation, largest in workforce, largest voting group (2:18)
#2 - Young people are disillusioned and untrusting (3:43)
#3 - Delays: Home ownership, marriage, parenthood, putting down roots in a job (11:11)
Only 27% of millennials are married (11:27)
More millennials than we have ever surveyed—49 percent—would, if they had a choice, quit their current jobs in the next two years. In our 2017 report, that number was 38 percent (12:11)
Response #1: Talk it out (13:07)
Response #2: Acknowledge the imperfect system and demonstrate empathy and belief (16:45)
Response #3: Build trust and set expectations on both sides (20:18)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

What To Do When Your Church Can't Remember Event Date And Times Jul 11, 2019

Show notes

Stop me if this has ever happened to you: Someone from your church comes up to you after service in the lobby and asks, "Hey, what time and date is that event again?" Even though you've been announcing it for two months - your church still can't remember important details! Here's the thing though…in my experience, this is usually the church's fault - not the congregation. Thankfully, you can fix this! And by the end of this video, you'll know exactly how.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/what-to-do-when-your-church-cant-remember-event-date-times/

What's In This Session?

Meme in Church Communications FB Group (0:37)
Problem #1: The assumption that just because you announced an event, people will remember what you're saying (1:39)
Problem #2: Posting event information everywhere to compensate - because announcements apparently aren't enough! (2:13)
Analogy: Going to the movies (3:00)
How do movies actually work? Inspiration OVER information with movie trailers (4:51)
#1. The Central Hub - One destination for every single next step in your church (6:18)
#2. The 50% Rule For Church Announcements - Stop conditioning your church to ignore announcements (8:18)
#3. The 2-Part Church Announcements Formula - Inspiration over information (9:31)
#4. One Next Step Every Single Time - Head to lifeabundant.info or visit the lifeabundant.info kiosk in the lobby. (10:28)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

15 Secular Books Church Leaders Should Read Jul 09, 2019

Show notes

Today, I want to share with you fifteen books that will benefit every church leader. The twist? None of these books are written by church leaders themselves. Instead, the authors are business leaders, financial experts, FBI hostage negotiators, NAVY Seals, and more. And while their vocations may differ from yours, that's the point! Because the wisdom within these books is applicable anywhere. And by the end of this episode, you'll surely have a couple of new books to add to your reading list.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/15-secular-books-church-leaders-should-read/

What's In This Session?

Moneyball example (0:39)
Everything Is A Remix (2:02)
#1. Tuesday's with Morrie, Mitch Albom (3:21)
#2. Extreme Ownership, Jocko Willink (4:08)
#3. One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard (4:54)
#4. The E-Myth Revisited, Michael E. Gerber (5:25)
#5. It Doesn't Have To Be Crazy At Work, Jason Fried (7:18)
#6. An astronauts guide to life on earth, Chris Hadfield (7:57)
#7. Atomic Habits, James Clear - Habits determine your destiny (9:00)
#8. The Power Of Habit, Charles Duhigg (9:02)
#9. Never Split The Difference, Chris Voss (10:10)
#10. I Will Teach You To Be Rich, Ramit Sethi (12:14)
#11. The Latte Factor, David Bach (13:40)
#12. The Little Book Of Common Sense Investing, John Bogle (15:30)
#13. Steal The Show, Michael Port (17:49)
#14. Abundance, Peter Diamandis - A case for optimism (18:57)
#15. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis (19:38)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

5 Ways To Host Better Church Meetings Jul 04, 2019

Show notes

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/5-ways-to-host-better-church-meetings/

If you're like most people, you probably don't enjoy meetings. Why? Well, because they're often poorly planned and just waste time without actually accomplishing much. But it doesn't have to be this way! So in this episode of Pro Church Tools, you'll learn five ways to truly improve your church's meetings.

What's In This Session?

Disclaimer: Pro Church Tools doesn't really have meetings because they suck (1:35)
47% of workers complain that meetings are where productivity goes to die. Furthermore, workers consider roughly half of their meetings to be a waste of time, and 73% confess to sneaking in some real work during meetings. (2:23)
#1: Before a meeting ever begins, be ruthless with determining whether or not something deserves a meeting and be ruthless with who you invite (3:35)
#2: Set the meeting's agenda and send it to everyone ahead of time (5:04)
#3: Deal with the devices (6:33)
#4: Set a start time and end time (regular team meeting? 15 to 30 minutes according to Slack)(7:33)
#5: Be inclusive and fun (rank the Marvel movies, elimination game, etc.) (10:07)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

The Ultimate 7-Day Social Media Calendar For Churches Jul 02, 2019

Show notes

Today, you're going to learn The Ultimate 7-Day Social Media Calendar For Churches. This is the same framework that hundreds of churches around the world are beginning to embrace - and they're seeing their engagement skyrocket because of it. So buckle up, because by the end of this video, you and your church will have a complete social media posting strategy for every single day of the week.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/the-ultimate-7-day-social-media-calendar-for-churches/

What's In This Session?

7 out of every 10 Americans adults is active on Facebook (Pew Research) (1:06)
Millennials and Gen X spend ~7 hours on social each week (Nielsen) (1:12)
The second largest demographic on Facebook is people ages 55+ (Statista) (1:23)
Boomers spend about ~4 hours on social each week overall (Nielsen) (1:29)
Compare social media to traditional media for a moment. Now, these costs will vary per region, but on average an outreach tool like a billboard will cost about ~$3,000/month. Circulating radio ads will set you back about ~$5,000/month. And if you want to do regional television and run a single thirty second ad just once a day you're looking at north of ~$7,500/month (2:10)
This is what makes social media so amazing. Not only is the barrier to entry zero - but even spending just couple hundred bucks a month on your social efforts can actually outpace anything you could do with traditional media that costs 10X-20X more money. (4:24)
THE 3 RULES FOR UNDERSTANDING HOW SOCIAL MEDIA WORKS
Rule #1: Attention is all that matters on social media (4:28)
Rule #2: Stop The Scroll (5:01)
Rule #3: Repeat Equals Defeat (5:14)
The "1-in-5 Rule" (6:51)
Day #1: The Countdown (7:38)
Day #2: The Bible Reading (11:34)
Day #3: The Question (16:00)
Day #4: The List (18:29)
Day #5: The Engagement Booster (21:35)
Day #6: The Church Invitation (25:52)
Day #7: The Sunday Story (28:38)
Question: Is repeating this over and over contrary to repeat equals defeat? (29:30)
Question: How do you create these? (30:05)
Social program promo (32:18)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

7 Shot Setups For Better Church Videos (NO MORE BORING CLIPS) Jun 27, 2019

Show notes

Creating dramatic and cinematic videos for your church is what this episode of Pro Church Tools is all about - as we breakdown seven eye-popping shot setups that you can copy and start using right away. By the end of this video, you'll have a bag full of tricks that you can reach into next time you've got a camera in your hand.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/shot-setups-for-better-church-videos/

What's In This Session?

#1: Sunbeam at edge of frame - makes shot more dynamic; create lens flare; manufactured light leak; wash the entire scene with a lens flare pinkish color; Time Of Day: Golden Hour (1:51)
#2: Block out sun with object - Creates silhouettes and lens flares; makes shot more dynamic; Time Of Day: Golden Hour (Exception: Point up with tall trees) (5:10)
#3: Background/Foreground -Create movement within shot (landscape); Create depth within shot (cross); Time Of Day: Any (7:05)
#4: Wide angle facing up with movement - Exaggerate compression with wide angle lens; unique perspective like gazing up at the sky; walking with a gimbal or driving with a gimbal or walking handheld slow-mo warp stabilize in post (9:38)
#5: Blue hour -Need clear sky/canvas; hands raised in service; Time Of Day: Blue hour (only about 10-15 minutes) (12:19)
#6: Small people/Big canvas -Contrast small vs. big - visual appeal comes from extremes on both sides of spectrum coming together; Time Of Day: Any (14:20)
#7: Color block (16:10)

How To Get Any Idea Approved By Your Pastor [3 Steps] Jun 25, 2019

Show notes

Many churches I know struggle with quantifying "success" when it comes to their digital efforts. Maybe a pastor asks, "Hey, why do we have a podcast?" Or, "What's the point of a YouTube channel anyway?" So if you hear a question like that and struggle with the thought of how to answer it - you're not alone. But by the end of this video, you will know how to answer those questions and you'll have a three-part framework to measure every digital decision you make.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/how-to-get-any-idea-approved-by-your-pastor/

What's In This Session?

"We are starting a Podcast here at the church and have been asked by lead pastor to present some metrics on how we will measure 'success' in year one. Any thoughts?" (0:38)
"That would largely depend on what you're trying to achieve and how your church measures success." (1:02)
3 part framework (3:18)
The Goal: Every Christ-following church exists to help people: love God, love others, and make disciples (3:44)
The Resource: Attention; the most valuable commodity your church can possess (5:07)
The Action: Next steps (submit a prayer request or talk to a pastor, church announcements at the top of the episode, infrequent next steps focusing on building authority wherein you track listens and subscribers) (5:24)
23% of adults listen to podcasts, 42% of millennials listen to podcasts, and 17% of practicing Christians listen to podcasts every single day - Barna Trends 2018 (6:28)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

Abnormal Social Media Ideas For Your Church Jun 20, 2019

Show notes

If you've ever been involved with your church's social media accounts, you probably know how easy it is to be repetitive. It can feel like you're just posting the same stuff over and over again. So we want to help you with that. By the end of this video, you'll learn five social media ideas for posts that are anything but ordinary - and we'll show you real examples of what this can look like.

***VISIT THE FULL POST HERE: https://prochurchtools.com/abnormal-social-media-ideas-for-your-church/

What's In This Session?

THE GOAL: Stop the scroll, start a meaningful conversation, provoke spiritual practice (1:17)
#1. 20-Second Bible Lesson (2:17)
Promote Biblical literacy (2:20)
#2. Would You Rather with examples (4:26)
#3. Bible Lottery (6:58)
#4. "How To" (8:04)
One of the best frameworks for blog posts when it comes to ranking in google is a "how to" post - we took this idea and applied it to social (8:07)
Taking the truths of scripture and shaping it into frameworks that are clear and actionable (9:23)
#5. Prompt To Spiritual Practice (9:48)

Show Notes & Resources Mentioned:

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

The Pro Church Tools Show with Brady Shearer

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected