In this series, we’ve talked about how to evaluate your in-person weekend experience. But there is another aspect to the weekend that we don’t want to overlook—the online service experience. Evaluating your online service can be tricky; it’s both part of the weekend and not. How do we measure the quality of it? In this episode, Sean and Amy close out our Weekend Quality Check series by discussing how to evaluate your online service experience. Aaron Bennett from Stonecreek Church in Milton,...

You’re ready for first-time guests. You’ve planned your sermon series. You’ve prepared your message. But how do you know if it’s working? How do you evaluate your weekend experience? Throughout the “Weekend Quality Check” series, we’ve shared some practical ways you can increase the quality of your weekend planning, preparation and execution. Now, it’s time to evaluate it.  In this episode, Sean and Amy talk through some ways to evaluate our weekends. Plus, we have another great interview...

How do you teach in a way that engages insiders without alienating the outsiders? How do you develop teachings that are relevant, relatable and truly transformational? Sean and Amy address these questions and more in Part 3 of the “Weekend Quality Check” series. In this episode, we dig into the core tensions pastors face in developing transformational messages that engage both insiders and outsiders, sharing practical solutions to navigate that tension while preparing messages. We also host...

Weekend quality is about more than creative excellence. It’s about how well you leverage that time to engage both insiders and outsiders—for people who know Jesus and people who don’t. The sermon is a core component of any weekend experience. In this episode, Sean and Amy break down strategies for planning a sermon series that really connects with both church-goers and newcomers. Joel Thomas from North Point Ministries also joins us to share some insights and tips to help make your sermons...

Weekend Quality Check (Part 1) - We’re hearing it from churches across the country: More and more people are showing up on the weekend, and it’s really encouraging. When you have that kind of momentum, it’s easy to start coasting. It’s easy to stop noticing what needs attention, which is why now is a really good time for a quality check. Weekend quality is about more than creative excellence, though; it’s about how well you leverage that time to engage both insiders and outsiders. So, in...

Is the leader of your family ministry included at the leadership table?  In the final episode of our series on "What It Really Takes To Reach Young Families," we had a conversation with Christie Penner Worden. Christie is a strategic leader, speaker, preacher and writer who is passionate about discipling children and equipping churches to raise this next generation with courageous faith.  For the full episode transcript, links mentioned during the show and to download the Leader...

One thing is often overlooked when it comes to engaging kids and families—the environment. Creating compelling ministry spaces is crucial for reaching the next generation. Justyn Smith from PlainJoe Studios has 22 years of experience in kids’ ministry. He works with some of the most innovative and creative churches in the country to develop compelling ministry spaces for children. In this episode, we invited Justyn to share what he’s learned about reaching the next generation through dynamic...

Who is responsible? When kids’ attendance numbers are down, senior leaders can tend to blame the kids’ pastor. But the truth is that the children’s pastor has very little control over creating the necessary environment for reaching young families. The church’s leadership and vision are big factors. Before Tony Morgan’s tragic passing in early September 2024, we had recorded the remaining podcast episodes in this series on “What It Really Takes To Reach Young Families.” Tony was passionate...

Many of you have already heard of Tony Morgan's passing on the morning of Wednesday, September 4, 2024, after suffering a heart attack two days before and battling with all his strength. But we wanted you to hear it from our voices. This is a tribute to the best boss we ever had, the leader who practiced what he preached, and the man who loved Jesus and His church. In this short episode, Sean, Tiffany, and Amy share the statement released by The Unstuck Group, along with some updates on the...

If a church is engaging young families, it’s pretty easy to see. What’s less obvious to the outside observer is all the decisions they have made to become a church that parents and kids want to attend—what it really takes. There’s much more to it than curriculum, facilities or finding the right staff, and through this series, we are going to unpack all of what goes into it. In this first episode, we explore why reaching young families needs to be a priority and the tensions we know pastors...

Every quarter, The Unstuck Group compiles all the data we’ve collected to monitor trends in churches in the United States.  In this episode, Amy and I discuss findings from the Q3 2024 Unstuck Church Report and take a targeted look at key differences between growing churches and churches that are plateauing or declining. You can subscribe to receive the quarterly report for free, or if you're subscribed to the podcast show notes, we'll send it out to you for free, as well. This Episode is...

Organizational health impacts the overall health of churches.  When there are gaps in strengths, trust and accountability in staff teams, stuckness soon follows. Here at The Unstuck Group, we've found an effective way for our team to identify their strengths and close gaps in their leadership through Working Genius by The Table Group.  In this BONUS episode, Tony Morgan interviews Beau Johnson from The Table Group about the importance of organizational health in churches and how Working...

Our data consistently contradicts the broader trends of declining religious affiliation and church engagement in our country. In fact, we personally know many churches that are experiencing major momentum right now—in terms of attendance, engagement, professions of faith, giving and all kinds of metrics of church health. Clearly, there’s something different about the churches that are part of our tribe. So, in the final episode of the series, we’re going to share a few other things that...

People are often surprised when they read our reports for the first time. Our data shows contradictory trends to much of what we read in general research. For example, in our most recent edition of The Unstuck Church Report, the average year-over-year attendance increase was 17%. There’s clearly something different about the churches engaging with our surveys. Despite the headlines, we know 100s of churches that are NOT in decline. So, are U.S. churches stuck or unstuck? Over the next two...

New data, same headlines. The surveys and studies always seem to repeat the same refrain: Church attendance is in decline. Religious participation is phasing out of American life. Except…our data shows the opposite. In our most recent edition of The Unstuck Church Report, the average year-over-year attendance increase was 17% across churches of all sizes. There’s clearly something different about the churches engaging with our surveys. In this series, we’re going to try to explain what’s...

When people discover their gifts, they begin to feel more connected and fulfilled. But few churches know how to help people discover the unique wiring God has given them—and fewer still have a plan to help people leverage those gifts once discovered. We wrap up this series on "Serving as Spiritual Formation" with an interview with Pastor Chris Hodges from Church of the Highlands to unpack the success they've had with "Growth Track," which has inspired thousands of churches across the...

It is possible to integrate serving into your spiritual formation strategy in a practical and effective way. We’re seeing churches all across the country do it. In recent years, churches we serve have been telling us they love The Rooted Experience. So, in part four of this series on Serving as Spiritual Formation, Tony interviews Pastor John Thomas from Mariners Church in California about The Rooted Experience. John shares how Rooted is helping people connect to faith and the church, why...

Spiritual formation is less about what we ask people to do and more about who we’re equipping people to become. In this episode, Tony interviews Pastor Daniel Im, author of The Discipleship Opportunity: Leading a Great-Commission Church in a Post-Everything World, about the role serving has in helping people grow closer to Jesus. This episode is brought to you by Planning Center: An all-in-one software to help you organize your ministries and care for your church. With an...

Before the pandemic, we typically saw 45% to 50% of all adults and students serving on a volunteer team at least monthly. Our most recent data shows churches reporting only 35% are serving today. In the first episode of this series on "Serving as Spiritual Formation," we talked about some of the most common mistakes churches make with their volunteer engagement strategy that are contributing to that shortage of volunteers. But in this second episode, we’re going to look at the structural...

Most churches say they need more volunteers. But answer this honestly: What is your theology of serving? How well is your church discipling people to offer their spiritual gifts as part of the Great Commission? Many churches have gotten further away from viewing serving as an integral part of spiritual formation than they’d likely admit. In this series, Tony and Amy and special guests will share best practices on the strategy side of engaging people in serving, as well as critical elements...

We know from our research and conversations with clients that finding great people for the ministry staff team is very challenging right now.  As an addedumn to our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," we bring you this bonus interview with Tim Foot of Slingshot Group for some timely insights into church staffing in 2024. In this conversation, Tony and Tim discuss topics like: The positions churches are having the hardest time filling Insights into how churches find great...

Leaders know it's true: Not having the right people on the team hinders the impact of your church. So what do you do when it's clear you need to remove someone from the team—when it's clear they are not a fit? In the last episode of our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," Tony and Amy discuss the very real reasons why letting someone go is so hard for ministry leaders, the ways you need to be effectively evaluating performance as an organization (and specifically, managing people...

This part makes a leader's stomach drop. We've laid the groundwork, and we've taught you the wisest order for processing restructure decisions. But now, we’re going to dive into wisdom that has more to do with how you make decisions about specific people. In the third episode of our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," Tony and Amy focus on people who really are the right people for the team, but they are not in the right roles—and they share how to approach things when you...

Do you believe your current senior leadership team offers you your best chance to achieve the vision and mission God designed for your church to accomplish right now?  Before you start restructuring departments of your ministry, you need to clarify the role of the SLT and get the right people leading on it. In the second episode of our series on "Staffing Wisdom for Church Leaders," Tony and Amy talk about stacking your leadership team with gifted and qualified people. FREE WEBINAR: How...