Ok, I’m not going to lie. I’m pretty nervous about Friday… my first workshop on church communications.
I think I’ve rewritten it at least a dozen times, changed and deleted slides, lost some sleep…
BUT
I am totally excited at the same time.
It should be a blast, hopefully.
If you are heading to MinistryCOM, I’d love to see you at DIY Church Communications!
Where did the summer go?
I Tweeted about a week ago that I think September is the new January, especially in the church world… how do you all feel about that?
I don’t know about your churches, but at Park, September is when we officially kick off the ministry year. Summer is a major down time for us in the city… people are on vacation or just outside enjoying the three reasons why most people live in Chicago: June, July, and August.
So, September, rather than January has become our natural “reset” for the ministry year.
For me, it’s shaping up to be a wild month for a few reasons…
1 – I’m moving.
I’m moving from Lincoln Park to Wicker Park. From the land of the preppy “Chads” and “Trixies” to Hipsterville, I’m moving across town and I’m really excited. Wicker Park is an awesome neighborhood that has a lot of diversity and it’s literally like moving to a whole new city. So much to explore and experience, and I’m confident there’s new opportunities to minister. Catch is: I don’t move in my new place until September 15 and I have to be out of my place today… so today commences 15 days of couch surfing at some different places. Should be exciting!
2 – Park’s new website + Social Networking site launch.
It’s true. A year after a major website overhaul we are going to launch Park 2.0 in late September. We had a winning team working on the redesign… CHANGEffect on the design and Ekklesia360 on the implementation and CMS. We’re also excited to be one of the first churches to implement the Cobblestone Community Network, a resource I really is going to help the church be the church in MASSIVE ways! More on blog entries on why the change, the process and design coming soon! (And, bonus… we’ll be launching a mobile site, too!)
3 – My first speaking gig.
I posted about this last week but my first speaking gig on the topic of church communications is right around the corner. I’ll be presenting a workshop called Do-it-Yourself Church Communications at MinistryCOM. Super excited. REGISTER! BE THERE!!!
4 – Innovate
So excited for Innovate at Granger Community Church. It’s seriously one of the best experiences for your team. Hear from some of the best and see a church that’s doing some incredible things that are making a huge impact for Christ. The thing I love about Innovate is that you don’t just hear ideas, you see them in action and get a hear the heart behind it all.
And if all that weren’t enough don’t get me started on October… Catalyst, Cultivate, and Story.
(By the way… what’s with all the cool kid conferences being one word?)
I attended MinistryCOM for the first time four years ago. At the time I was a young buck who was still figuring out all of this church communication stuff. It was an absolutely phenomenal experience for me on many levels. I think the biggest take-away was realizing that I wasn’t alone.
I think all too often most people who do communications for churches are on their own. Be it a lack of staffing, resources, or volunteers, the majority of us are doing our jobs on our own… by ourselves.
And what MinistryCOM did for me is show me I’m not alone and what I do really matters.
So, it’s pretty crazy that in two weeks I’ll be attending MinistryCOM not as a delegate, but as a presenter.
I’ll be making my conference debut at MinistryCOM doing a breakout session called DIY (Do-it-Yourself) Church Communications.
The title DIY (do-it-yourself) is said a bit tongue in cheek, but the reality is that many of us do communications by ourselves. With a limited budget and resources, it’s oftentimes difficult to know how to successfully build a communications process and strategy to fit the needs of a growing church when you’re literally working on your own.
Whether you are new to church communications or if you’ve been doing it for years, this workshop will help to equip and encourage you to take what you are observing and learning from other churches and give you tools on how to apply it to your context.
You’ll also get an inside peek at the “renovation” Park Community Church has undergone over the past two years as Tim has taken their communications from 1.0 to 2.0.
To be honest, I’m a bit nervous but very excited. I certainly don’t feel like an expert (only if learning from your mistakes counts!), but am humbled to be able to share a bit about things I’ve learned… both working in a smaller church in a small town and a large church in the heart of downtown Chicago. I think after seven years of doing this gig I’d have a few things to share!
If you’re coming to MinistryCOM, I’d love some input about things you’d like to hear about, questions you may have, or anything else. Your input would be invaluable!
If you aren’t coming, why not?! It’s not too late to register… you should definitely check it out.
If you are more of a pro, been at this for awhile and want to take the conversation to another level, beyond bulletins, fonts and all that kind of stuff, definitely check out Cultivate, which is being hosted at Park in October.
Tim Schraeder is passionately committed to helping churches communicate the timeless message of the Gospel in a way that's relevant to our ever-changing culture. Read More >>
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