The Small Church Ministry Podcast

Episodios

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  242: Your Church Wants to Reach New Families. So Why Aren't They Coming? 18.08.2026 28m

  Your small church wants to reach new families. You’re planning events, finding volunteers, inviting people, and trying hard, but sometimes the families you’re hoping to reach still aren’t coming. In this episode, we’re looking underneath the outreach ideas to question some of our assumptions about today’s families, what “successful” outreach actually means, and whether trying harder is really the answer. In this episode: ➡️ Why it matters that we want to reach new families ➡️ The assump...
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  241: Healthy Responses to Unhealthy Church Leadership 11.08.2026 49m

  Churches are made up of people, and people aren't healthy all the time. So what do we do when church leadership isn't at its best? In this episode, we're talking about how to recognize unhealthy patterns, respond wisely, and become healthier ourselves along the way. Inside this episode: ➡️ Why not every difficulty equals an unhealthy church ➡️ Common unhealthy patterns that often get normalized ➡️ Questions to ask before speaking up, staying, or stepping away ➡️ How to support your chur...
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  240: Is "We've Always Done It This Way" Keeping Your Small Church Stuck? 04.08.2026 38m

  Most churches don't struggle because people don't care. They struggle because they're trying to solve today's challenges with yesterday's ideas. In this episode, we share one of our favorite strategies for creating a culture of learning that helps overcome resistance to change, develop volunteers, and move our churches forward. We'll also pull back the curtain on why Small Church Ministry has invested so heavily in online events over the last six years, and why we hope they become more ...
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  239: Healthy Churches Grow by Developing Everyday People | Leading Well Conference 28.07.2026 38m

  What if one of the most important things your church could do isn't add another program, but intentionally develop the people you already have? Recorded live at our Leading Well in a Small Church Conference, Laurie Graham Ertl shares why healthy churches don't depend on one pastor working harder. They grow as everyday people learn to build trust, take ownership, solve problems wisely, and become the kind of people healthy churches are built on. RESOURCES MENTIONED Join the Eve...
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  238: Reaching the Churched, the Unchurched & the Dechurched | with Pastor Patrick Dailey 21.07.2026 43m

  Reaching your community starts with understanding your community. Pastor Patrick Dailey explains why the words churched, unchurched, and dechurched matter more than ever, what it means to minister in a post-Christian culture, and how small churches can create natural opportunities to build relationships with the people around them. In this episode: ➡️ What it means to minister to the churched, the unchurched, and the dechurched ➡️ Why "post-Christian" changes the conversation for today'...
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  237: The Future Of The Small Church: What Has To Change? | with Dr. K. Kale Yu 14.07.2026 39m

  The church is changing. The question is whether we're willing to change with it. In this conversation, Dr. K. Kale Yu shares why the future of the small church won't be built on better programs or bigger budgets, but on ordinary people who are equipped to live out their faith every day. In this episode: ➡️ Why today's church is facing more than a decline in attendance ➡️ The mistake many churches are making when trying to "fix" ministry ➡️ Why the future of the church depends on everyda...
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  236: How to Make Your Small Church Matter in the Community 07.07.2026 42m

  What if the future of your church isn't determined by how many people attend on Sunday, but by the difference you make the rest of the week? In this episode, Pastor Raymond Cabello shares how his church shifted from focusing inward to becoming a trusted, active presence in its community. You'll hear practical ideas for building partnerships, serving with limited resources, and helping your small church make a bigger impact right where God has placed it. In this episode: ➡️ Why ser...
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  235: We've Expected Too Much from Pastors - and Underestimated Everyone Else 30.06.2026 24m

  I've been told more than once that the real leverage point in a church is the pastor. Get the pastor healthy, and everything else will follow. I don't buy it. In this episode, we're talking about why pastors matter, why ordinary people matter too, and why healthy churches are usually built by lots of people growing, participating, and taking ownership together. In this episode, we're talking about: Why we've put so much pressure on pastorsThe role ordinary people play in a healthy churc...
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  234: Great Volunteers Need More Than Spiritual Gifts 23.06.2026 40m

  Great volunteers aren't just gifted. They keep growing. In this episode, we're talking about why practical ministry skills matter more than many churches realize and how growing yourself may be one of the greatest gifts you can give your church. In this episode, we're talking about: Why some volunteers create more impact than othersThe difference between caring and effectivenessWhy practical skills aren't competing with faithHow communication, conflict resolution, and leadership skills ...
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  233: "I'm Just a Volunteer" Might Feel Safer. But It's a Myth. 16.06.2026 32m

  "I'm just a volunteer." That one phrase - one we've all heard and many of us have said - reveals a bigger problem than we realize. In this episode, we're talking about what happens when churches concentrate growth, development, and learning into a handful of people while everyone else is expected to simply help. We'll explore why healthy churches aren't built by a few highly developed leaders. In this episode, we're talking about: Why "I'm just a volunteer" may reveal a deeper beliefThe...
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  232: The Most Influential People in Your Church Might Not Be the Pastor 09.06.2026 31m

  We spend a lot of time talking about pastors, church leaders, and people with titles. But what if I told you some of the most influential people in your church will never stand on a stage, lead a meeting, or sit on a board? In this episode, we're talking about the people shaping church culture every single week - and why the future of many small churches isn't sitting in the pastor's office. In this episode, we're talking about: Why influence and authority aren't the same thingHow every...
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  231: Why “Take a Break” & “Just Say No” Aren’t Fixing Ministry Burnout 02.06.2026 40m

  Burnout recovery goes deeper than just taking a break. In this episode, we’re talking about why surface-level burnout advice often isn’t enough, the deeper patterns underneath emotional exhaustion, and why so many people in ministry still feel depleted even after trying to rest, set boundaries, or “do less.” Listen in for: Why quick burnout fixes often don’t create lasting changeDeeper patterns underneath emotional exhaustion and overfunctioningHow chronic pressure and overresponsibilit...
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  230: You Can’t Help Everyone (And It’s Exhausting) 26.05.2026 41m

  A lot of people in ministry feel like they’re constantly choosing who to disappoint. The church needs something. The team needs something. People want access to you. Your family needs you too. And eventually, it starts feeling impossible to hold it all together without losing yourself somewhere in the process. In this episode, we’re talking about: The pressure to always be available in ministryWhy constant availability slowly drains usWhat happens when we keep leading without spac...
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  229: Ministry Burnout Is Real (But It’s Not Inevitable) 19.05.2026 34m

  Burnout is real … but a lot of the time, we’re not as stuck as we think we are. We say we’re overwhelmed, but we’re still saying yes, still filling gaps, still stepping in “just this once.” At some point, we have to get honest about where we actually have a choice. Because if we don’t use it, we slowly build a version of ministry we don’t even like being part of. Where we still have more choice than we’re acting as we doThe difference between real limits and self-created pressureW...
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  228: How to Get People to Step Up at Church (Without Asking for Volunteers) 12.05.2026 26m

  At some point, we have to admit that recruiting isn’t fixing our volunteer problem. We keep planning … and then trying to get people to care about it afterward. And that’s where things break down. But what if the real shift happens before anything is planned? When people are part of the process early, something changes. They don’t just hear the plan- they help shape it. And when that happens, ownership follows. In this episode: Why ownership starts before the plan is finishedThe simple shift ...
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  227: Why People Stop Volunteering at Church (And How To Fix It) 05.05.2026 33m

  Most people don’t say no to serving - they say no to how it feels. And often, that feeling comes from how ministry is built in the first place. When a few key shifts happen, things become more relational, more sustainable, and something people actually want to be part of. In this episode: Why people step back from serving (even when they care)The 4 shifts that change how ministry feels from the insideWhat happens when you move from managing people to building ministry with themHow small...
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  226: Why You’re Struggling to Get Church Volunteers (It’s Not What You Think) 28.04.2026 32m

  Most churches assume they have a numbers problem. They’re trying to get more volunteers, when what really needs attention is the experience people walk into. It’s rarely a recruiting problem. It’s a culture issue that started long before the ask - shaped by what people have seen, heard, and come to expect from “volunteering.” In this episode: Why “we need more volunteers” is often the wrong starting pointWhat’s really influencing whether people say yes - or quietly opt outThe hidden pat...
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  225: 4 Simple Intergenerational Ideas to Stay Connected This Summer 21.04.2026 27m

  When everything gets inconsistent, connection matters more - not more programming. Summer might actually be the easiest time to bring people together in simpler, more natural ways. Not perfect, not polished. Just real moments across ages that help your church feel like a community again. If you try one or two of these, you might be surprised what happens. Why mixing ages can actually make summer easier (not harder)Simple ways to create connection without extra volunteersLow-prep i...
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  224: Maybe Sports Aren’t the Enemy (And Neither Are Vacations) 14.04.2026 27m

  Every summer, we quietly start competing—with travel, sports, family time—and it gets exhausting. But what if the problem isn’t where people are going … It’s how we’re responding to it? People having full, busy lives isn’t a threat to the church. It might actually be the starting point for better ministry. The tension between church and real life in the summerWhy we feel frustrated (even when we don’t say it out loud)What changes when we stop competing and start noticingMeeting pe...
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  223: What If Summer Is Exactly What Your Ministry Needs 07.04.2026 30m

  What if the thing we keep trying to push through… is actually the thing we need? Summer changes the rhythm of everything - attendance, energy, schedules - and instead of fighting it, we might be invited to work with it. Not as a setback, but as a shift. This isn’t about lowering the bar; it’s about leading differently. Why summer always feels “off” (and why that’s not failure)The pressure to keep everything running the sameLetting go of school-year expectationsWhat it looks ...