Episode 53 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Pastor Jon Pyle, host of Better on the Inside and associate pastor at CityChurch. Jon and Charlotte Elia discuss serving Jesus without burning out, attending to personal and social grief, and finding joy in some of their favorite podcasts.

"People are defining church by where they get their care and not their content." - Pastor Jon Pyle

Listen to the full episode as Jon talks about these topics:

Better on the Inside [1:05] 
Changing Church Landscape [5:52]
Why a Podcast? [13:01]
Unattended Grief [19:31]
A Little Podcast Joy [31:49]

You can find Pastor Jon Pyle online here:

• https://twitter.com/jonpyle
• https://anchor.fm/betterontheinside

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 52 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Dr. Karen-Marie Yust and Dr. Erin Reibel from Real Kids Real Faith. Karen-Marie, Erin, and Charlotte Elia discuss nurturing children's spirituality online, growing in faith through questions rather than dogma, and seizing this opportunity for innovation. 

"The combination of the diminishing Sunday school and the reliance on online resources means that children's ministry needs to move toward providing those more direct resources to families, even if families are still intersecting with the church. Because on a Tuesday afternoon, when a parent is thinking, 'My child is asking this question and I don't know how to explore this issue with them,' they're not going to wait until the next Sunday they're in church to ask their pastor about that. They're going to Google it." - Dr. Karen-Marie Yust

"Your traditional Sunday school lesson is about putting information into a child, and what we are opting to do instead is to open up an avenue for them to explore their own spirituality." - Dr. Erin Reibel

Listen to the full episode as Karen-Marie and Erin talk about these topics:  

Growing Spiritually Through Exploring Questions [2:55] 
Changing Landscape of Children's Ministry [6:12]
The Innovation Hub [9:53]
Children's Ministry in the Digital Space [13:39]
A Word to Congregations [18:26]

You can find Real Kids Real Faith online here:

• https://www.realkidsrealfaith.org

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 51 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Rev. Ryan Dunn, Minister of Online Engagement with United Methodist Communications. Ryan and Charlotte Elia discuss creating digital content for seekers, focusing on your particular audience, and discerning which tools and tactics best suit your congregation.

"The future of the church is niche, and that doesn't mean all of our congregations are gonna be like very focused on one segment of the population. But I think ministry as a whole is going to be niche, that we're leaning more into a time where the way that we make meaning and create meaning for ourselves is very individualized." - Rev. Ryan Dunn

Listen to the full episode as Ryan talks about these topics:

Platform vs. Engagement [5:45]
Digital First Culture [9:23]
Leading Through Conflict [14:02]
Working With Limited Resources [21:24]
The Future is Niche [29:30]

You can find Rev. Ryan Dunn online here:

• https://digitalministrynotes.com
• https://www.tiktok.com/@theunitedmethodistchurch

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 50 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Pastor Nathan Webb from Checkpoint Church. Pastor Nate and Charlotte Elia discuss the origin of this online ministry for "nerds, geeks, and gamers," finding and building your community online, and the value of streaming for digital ministries. 

"That's the redemption happening is that I'm taking this media that's already being seen in a negative light and allowing even that media to point towards some kind of relationship with God or some kind of betterment with ourselves." - Pastor Nathan Webb

Listen to the full episode as Pastor Nate talks about these topics:

A Three-Platform Approach [3:04]
Introduction to Discord [11:48]
Building a Niche Community [15:32]
A Collaborative Future [19:41]
Work/Life Boundaries [26:10]
Experimenting with Streaming [31:05]

You can find Pastor Nate Webb online here:

• https://www.nathanisbusy.com
• https://www.checkpointchurch.com
• https://linktr.ee/checkpointchurch
• https://www.facebook.com/groups/digitalhivemind

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 49 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features The Rt. Rev. Dr. Shannon MacVean-Brown, Bishop of The Episcopal Diocese of Vermont. Bishop Shannon and Charlotte Elia discuss praying with The Green Mountain Online Abbey, facilitating difficult conversations on Zoom, discerning the future of the church through loss, and using digital tools to make the wide world a bit more intimate.  

"As a church, I think we need to do some work around loss. What does it mean to let go of things? And that will also ultimately help us understand how we are going to be the church in the future." - The Rt. Rev. Dr. Shannon MacVean-Brown

Listen to the full episode as Bishop Shannon talks about these topics:

First Experiments in Digital Ministry [1:08]
Having Hard Conversations Through Zoom [5:31]
The Green Mountain Online Abbey [13:47]
Grieving Loss to Find the Future [24:18]
Experimentation and Collaboration [29:37]
Words of Encouragement [34:42]

You can find Bishop Shannon online here:

• https://diovermont.org/2022/06/21/online-prayer-with-bishop-shannon/
• https://diovermont.org

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 48 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features The Rev. Dr. Karyn Wiseman, Professor of homiletics at United Lutheran Seminary and Lead Pastor at Gloria Dei Church in Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania. Karyn and Charlotte Elia discuss congregational vitality through entrepreneurial ministry, the importance of public witness, and the urgency of preaching in this moment.

"A church has to be permission givers, and church leadership have to be permission givers. So when somebody comes in and says, I have this great idea, it's like, go for it. It doesn't have to go to six committees. It doesn't have to be approved in the budget a year from now. It's go for it. We'll find the money and the resources. Let's do it. Let's try it. That's what I wanna see in the church. And I think those are the churches that are being successful right now. They've just been giving permission to these new ways to be church." - Rev. Dr. Karyn Wiseman

Listen to the full episode as Karyn talks about these topics:

Training Pastors for the Church That Will Be [0:50]
Importance of Public Ministry [5:54]
Congregational Vitality and Viability [11:16]
Being a Christian Without Being a Jerk [15:16]
Witnessing Online [19:51]
The Urgency of Preaching Now [24:04]
Listening While Challenging [32:56]

You can find Karyn online here:

• https://twitter.com/txpreach
• https://www.instagram.com/txpreach/
• kwiseman@uls.edu

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 47 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Rev. Dr. Rachel Kessler, Harcourt Parish Rector, Kenyon College Chaplain, and @nerdypriest on TikTok. Rachel and Charlotte Elia discuss the phenomenon of her TikTok popularity, the challenges of navigating negativity, and the perceived demands of being a female pastor online.

"It's fairly easy to block people, and it's fairly easy to know what is not going be productive engagement. I think what's a lot more challenging is when is it worth time to really invest in the energy in engaging with someone, trying to figure out whether they are a troll or not?" - Rev. Dr. Rachel Kessler

Listen to the full episode as Rachel talks about these topics:

(1:30) From Shrove Tuesday to 45K Followers
(5:08) Managing Time on Social Media (8:49)
NerdyPriest’s FYP
(13:53) Navigating Negativity
(29:48) Supporting Others on TikTok
(31:10) The Gift of Just Being Yourself

You can find Rachel online here:

• https://www.tiktok.com/@nerdypriest
• https://twitter.com/revrachelk

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.

Episode 46 of the How We Do Digital Ministry podcast features Tom Trenney, Minister of Music to First-Plymouth Congregational Church in Lincoln, Nebraska and Assistant Professor of Music and Conductor of Choirs at Nebraska Wesleyan University. Tom and Charlotte Elia discuss music ministry in the hybrid environment, the impact of the digital sphere on sacred song, and encouragement for our future together.

"It doesn't have to be perfect to be good, and it sure doesn't have to be perfect to be meaningful and heartfelt." - Tom Trenney

Listen to the full episode as Tom talks about these topics:

(0:54) Checking in with Church Musicians
(6:25) Affirmations from a Broader Reach
(10:54) Singing Apart and Singing Together
(20:09) Expanded Access to Sacred Music
(23:28) Recent Lessons for Musicians
(28:35) Encouragement for This Moment

You can find Tom online here:

• https://www.firstplymouth.org
• https://www.youtube.com/c/FirstPlymouthChurchLincolnNebraskaVideos
• tomtrenney@gmail.com

How We Do Digital Ministry is brought to you by Faith Growth, a small business dedicated to helping churches do digital ministry through coaching, consulting and website development. When you’re ready, sign up for a free consult at www.faithgrowth.com/call

For now, join pastors and church communications from around the world in our How We Do Digital Ministry Facebook group.  Thanks to Presbyterian Media Mission for spreading the word about How We Do Digital Ministry.