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On The Rise: Four trends shaping ministry + why promotion is pverrated
Published 4 days ago • 3 min read
Welcome to the On The Rise newsletter, where I feature fascinating, helpful, and sometimes curious content that caught my attention this week.
Today, four trends that the Barna Group is keeping an eye on, including an emerging discipleship gap.
Also, a thoughtful piece from Seth Godin on why you're probably doing too much promoting and missing what really spreads the word about an idea. Plus, TED Talk secrets on public speaking and a fascinating conversation with legendary music producer Jimmy Iovine.
Four Trends Shaping Ministry Right Now
Discipleship isn’t keeping pace.
The Barna Group released a mid-year report outlining four trends that they've got their eye on:
– The good news front: spiritual openness is growing, and Gen Z is seeing conversions.
– The not-so-good news front: discipleship isn't keeping pace.
– Also, nearly one-third of U.S. adults say that spiritual guidance from AI is as trustworthy as guidance from a pastor. Among Gen Z and Millennials, that figure rises to 40%.
A few weeks ago in this newsletter, I linked to a Tim Ferriss article that showed that overall book sales and his book sales are way down.
The link to that piece is inthis new postby Seth Godin.
Seth takes the thought further and says that too many authors (and I would suggest also pastors) spend all their time promoting. We've seen it a million times and probably done it. We've got a brand new series starting this Sunday.
The problem with promotion is that it doesn't last and probably doesn't translate into action
What Seth talks about is the importance of building conversation into whatever content you're developing. If you can create content that people talk about, people will do the marketing for you.
I would encourage you to take some time to discuss not only how you write your sermons (to bake in conversation-worthy points) but how your social media team thinks about marketing.
Is Your Church Prepared for Mental Health Conversations?
Anxiety, depression, grief, loneliness, and thoughts of suicide are showing up everywhere – affecting church members, pastors, and ministry leaders alike. Yet many churches feel underprepared to address these issues.
Hope for the Heart created a free 68-page resourceto help. Caring for Your Mental Health gives you clear answers from God’s Word and practical guidance on seven of the most common mental health struggles that you or your people may face.
It’s the kind of tool you’ll actually use – and share with someone in need.
If anyone knows a few things about public speaking, it's Chris Anderson. He's the founder of TED, or at least the one who took it over in 2006 and made it what it is today. Here he shares the exact method that TED uses to prepare its speakers for an event.
David Senra interviews legendary music producer Jimmy Iovine.
You may not know the name Jimmy Iovine, but you definitely heard his music if you like anyone from Bruce Springsteen to Tom Petty or Stevie Nicks, and Dr. Dre, to Snoop Dogg or Tupac. Perhaps you're wearing a pair of Beats headphones. Jimmy’s fingerprints are all over all of that. Jimmy is one of the biggest music producers alive; in this fascinating interview, he talks about the creative genius behind every artist he works with. The idea I can't get out of my head is that Jimmy said, "Look, everybody that I've worked with is bent." By bent, he means they often had a tough childhood or some trauma that shaped them.
Then he dropped this:
"When you combine bent and gifting, you get genius."
I'm going to continue to work on how my "bent" hurts or impacts other people, but it's a fascinating take on why most of us who end up in leadership or even in the arts usually have something wrong with us that is at the heart of our impact.
Cheering for you,
P.S. Weekend Watching
Will Guidara
Winning Back Lost Customers: Will Guidara on Customer Service Pet Peeves, What Simon Sinek Taught Him About Speaking, and Whether AI Will Harm (or Help) Hospitality
Carey Nieuwhof Communications, PO Box 160, Oro Medonte, Ontario L0L 2X0
Carey Nieuwhof
Where 100,000+ leaders get top insights to thrive in life and leadership.
Don’t settle for an impact smaller than you’re called to make. It's time to unlock your potential and lead confidently into a future filled with growth — for yourself, your church, and your mission. Get access to some of my best leadership content, only published in my newsletters.
