Why I STILL Don't Recommend Live Streaming For Smaller Churches

Here's one of my most unpopular beliefs: church live streaming is overrated - especially for smaller churches. And there are three big reasons for this. Let's dive in.
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Table of Contents:
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0:00 - Intro
1:06 - How I Arrive At Beliefs Like This
2:11 - Why Am I Identifying Smaller Churches?
4:45 - Problem No. 1
9:41 - Problem No. 2
13:36 - Problem No. 3
18:36 - Why Am I Even Making This Video?
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Show Notes:
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- Start your 30-day free trial (no credit card required) of Nucleus here: www.nucleus.church/
- Start Here Playlist: prochur.ch/3HUFnyB
- Why Live Streaming For Churches Is Overrated [Older Video]: prochur.ch/2sRTmRR
- The New Rules For Church Growth: prochur.ch/2ECPxc1
- 44 Social Media Post Ideas For Churches: prochur.ch/38LulgS
- ONLINE Church For SMALLER Churches - Casual vs. On-Stage: prochur.ch/2xur9pt
- INSTAGRAM REELS FOR CHURCHES - Why It's SO Important: prochur.ch/3GjAte2
- SOCIAL MEDIA FOR YOUTH MINISTRY - What Most People Miss: prochur.ch/2Jz1zW1
- Facebook Ads For Churches | How To Make A Successful Ad: prochur.ch/3nflYRf
- How To Create A Stunning Church WELCOME Video: prochur.ch/3d52Wps
- The State Of Church 2016, Barna (Church Size Statistics): prochur.ch/3nfwPdA
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Connect With Brady:
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The Pro Church Tools Show [Podcast]: prochur.ch/3dWF9dr
Instagram: / bradyshearer
TikTok: / bradyshearer
Twitter: / bradyshearer
#ChurchLiveStreaming #OnlineChurch #ChurchOnline

[@prochurchtools]

Make sure to check out all of the additional resources linked in the description - especially The New Rules For Church Growth here: prochur.ch/2ECPxc1

[@joshc1291]

Bro I’ve never watched your videos before, but we are remodeling our small church right now, and people want us to get a better livestream. Long story short, everything you said in this video is absolutely on point. We’ve made our churches replications of other churches instead of seeking God and making disciples. Man this was so refreshing for me thank you

[@royjhildebrandt]

We are a small church in a rural community. We were wanting to livestream before covid however we took the plunge on a very tight budget. Our objective was to minister to our elderly who no longer are able attend church and to those that were traveling or had moved away. It has been greatly appreciated. Secondarily we were also hoping to reach those in our community that do not darken the door of an evangelical church and that has happened as well. For our church it has been a great experience and a success.

[@RuslanKD]

Always love your perspective Brady, but I think the ROI on live streaming is MASSIVE. Especially in a more competitive content space. Problem 2 is completely mute. $10k can serve the current audience and expand to a new one. You can future proof with 4K camera’s and upgrade your switcher later. And live streaming can be used to expand IG REELS, and micro content (as you mentioned) with regards to #3, why would you NOT want to offer that as an option. IMO any church that can afford it, should pull the trigger much sooner than later.

[@prochurchtools]

I’d say your remark that “problem 2 is completely mute” underrates just how stretched smaller churches already are. Every day I get comments from churches saying something to the effect of, “if only I had the time!” They don’t lack skill. They’re just stretched for time. You’re right, gear can be repurposed - but we both know time is the more valuable commodity. The time cost of running a live stream in a smaller church is considerable. And in my experience, it often comes at the expense of other digital projects 🙏

[@RuslanKD]

@@prochurchtools thanks for the shout back, I hear you, I think where I disagree is "The time cost of running a live stream in a smaller church is considerable" I'm not sure how. Most of the time investment is on the front end, the set up and optimizing the stream. after that, it's autopilot. Yes it requires some curiosity and time commitment on the front end but SAVES TONS of time location scouting, recording, transferring files, editing, exporting, and publishing micro content (other digital projects). I know several pastors that are bi or tri vocational running youtube channels to stream their Sunday sermons and provide supplemental content for their congregation and audiences beyond their area. I think the issue is NOT prioritizing or believing a pastor or tech head can learn simple things like OBS, Thumbnails and how to use a stream deck. I agree churches are stretched, but often times in areas that don't create actual ROI (and I don't mean cutting back on shepherding and caring for people) as having watched several pastors build incredible youtube channels (which allowed them to either generate more revenue for the church OR for themselves and leg of their salaries) leveraging live stream (myself included) I don't think live streaming is the future, I think it's the now. and can be used to scale on other platforms. yes this requires some work, but so does learning tik tok, ig or how to shoot mini docs.

[@theofbc]

@Ruslan KD ​ @Brady Shearer , If I may add my two cents. Our church is the epitome of a "small church". I have no one that is able to run the livestream behind the scenes. But we manage fairly well with it. Our monthly expense is $75.00 for highspeed internet. I am looking at adding another $30.00 to that so we can stream to YT and our website in addition to FB. (Still praying about it). As to equipment, we have an old camcorder hooked up to a ATEM Mini that I plug into my laptop at the back of the auditorium. We feed the audio into the laptop from the soundboard, and we use OBS as our software. I have a cheap tablet ($80.00) on the pulpit, and I use Touch Portal to control the stream from the pulpit. I am able to have the video feed move to the corner and display the Scripture in a larger window, or just have the Scripture show as a lower third. During the offertory I have an announcement video play for the people at home. My point is it can be done on a budget. The initial set up was somewhat time consuming. Setting up each stream (4xs weekly) is pretty simple and takes me about an hour on Saturday night. (That is only because I want to have the Bible verses displayed and I have to create the slide and set it up in Touch Portal). Would I like to have a PTZ, or multiple cameras? Sure. Would I like to have someone else run the system behind the scenes? Sure. But I do not care what others who have larger budgets can do. I will do my best with what God has given me. I do not need to compare myself with other ministries. So, with that mindset, I do not desire to "keep up with the Joneses". My desire is to do the best I can with what God has given and with His help.

[@RuslanKD]

@@theofbc isn’t it interesting that limited resources can often force into needing to innovate and be creative.

[@tdresbach]

@@RuslanKD Yes, if you have someone who has prior experience in this stuff. I had none, and when my small church was forced into livestreams it fell on me to get it going. I'm part time with the church with another full-time job, and I have never put more hours in per week than when we were getting that going. Now, I spend more time training volunteers on it so that I don't need to be running it every Sunday, so I can fulfill my other duties. It's definitely not auto-pilot. Just because it's possible doesn't mean it's worth it. I look back on that time and struggle seeing the value, because there are so many other ways I'd rather be spending my time with the church. And my church will soon move to no more livestream, and I am very happy about it! While I struggle seeing the value of it, I know that for at least a few months there was the impression of connection still happening, but now that things are much more normal for our church, I see that it was really just a band-aid to help us get through that time.

[@ParramattaBaptistChurch]

Really appreciate and value your voice into this space Brady, thank you. When the pandemic hit, your past video on livestreaming being overrated was instrumental in us adopting a pre-filmed, post-produced offering to help our church navigate the various lockdowns in Australia. We're still working out what some of the gold in this video will mean for our strategy into the future, lots of things to wrestle with and agree that what we're aiming at must be key! Bless you.

[@victorwhite4396]

Thanks for this informative video. You’ve answered some of the questions I’ve had concerning live streaming. I actually recommended to my church that we do not livestream but we are using digital technology to enhance our strategies for discipleship.

[@wadebishop5495]

this video def supports a convo i had with a team member about how people don't know what it feels like to "miss church" anymore. What did it feel like 15 yrs ago when you couldn't go to a sunday gathering b/c you were sick or out of town, and see your friends, worship, take communion, go to the altar and have ppl pray for you...etc.?? We've lost that "loving feeling"! haha! I am seriously planning to kill our Sunday Live Stream and post our gathering on Wednesday/or maybe just post sporadically, while continuing to focus on our other digital avenues of reaching people and connecting. To be clear, this idea isn't because no one is coming to church or that I don't think live streaming "can be" helpful. But rather because I value the aspect of FAMILY more than FB/YT views. You just can experience "family" as deep when you're watching online, having kids screaming in the background! I want people to miss their people. I want people to miss the sound of worship LIVE. I want people to miss the conversations they have in the lobby, the high fives they give in the parking lot, the tears they share at the altar, and I want them to miss the silence that happens when we are quite...listening for God to speak together. Okay, I'm done rambling...all that to say this: We've livestreamed for 7yrs...we are a church of 150...in a rural context...we don't have a lot of resources or $$ tied up in it....but I want people to be participants, not passive consumers. Thx Brady

[@everynationmarseille7215]

I really appreciate your pushback and good solid questions! It reminds me of what churches should ask whenever they are thinking about doing any new program or project. Thanks!

[@rebuildinglifeafteraddiction]

Great video Brady, enjoyed when you talked about this on the podcast. We renovated and cut our stream during sanctuary renovations in October. Still have the equipment but didn’t rush back. We stream now only to our private Facebook group from an iPhone, it’s set to auto delete after 30 days. It’s specifically for the older members and those having to quarantine. The next couple weeks we’re going to set the equipment back up and still stream to the group, but also get a quality video of the sermon for our KZbin channel and have the content to break down into stories, reels, and Tiktok videos. Funny, when I was a church member I pressed my pastor to do better on the live stream…now that I’m pastoring and realizing the effort and expense it takes to do it well, with not a ton of return I really don’t have a desire to put much work into it. 🤷🏻‍♂️

[@ricardolinares5648]

GOOD to see you these new year, God bless you and your family

[@hannah_brzozo]

thank you so much for this! Literally researching how to do live streaming today (opposed to recording ahead of time and posting it) and this insight was a Godsend.

[@ydupraz]

Hello, Thank you for this video and reflection. You managed to put into words what has been in my head for so many years. Congratulations. Very good questions to ask yourself to create even better. A beautiful call to creativity with a goal that touches our hearts. Bravo and thank you.

[@prochurchtools]

You are so welcome

[@davidvinas4353]

Great information Brandy. Thank you. May God bless you and prosper what you do.

[@troymillerpgh]

Really thought provoking, challenging stuff Brady. The lack of innovation has been something I've struggled with for sure and I appreciate you calling this out as it is.

[@TreyVanCamp]

You’re always asking better questions. Grateful for you, bro 👊

[@Nujja1967]

Wow - lots to challenge me in this video. You are talking sense and telling it like it is and I appreciate that. As a leader in a small Church this has challenged me - THANK YOU

[@TutoraAriadna]

Thank you, Brady. God bless you and give you the reward for your support for churches.

[@jcizthe1]

Great stuff Brady! I’ve moved from a medium/large church to a small church and this has helped me focus on what matters most moving forward. Thanks!

[@Vegesaurus7]

Hey Brady, excellent explanation. And I’m with you, it’s all about next steps. I really appreciate your experience and the way you drill down to what is our mission. I too am working to escape the homogenisation of church. We have had online worship since the beginning of COVID in Australia. But I record a do it yourself you tube video encouraging people to take responsibility for their own home worship. They can do it when it suits them, they pick the songs, they can even do their own reflections. I provide the bible reading and message. So I avoid putting my worship teams online or facing copyright drama. And the videos are much easier to prepare and edit. I really appreciate the other ideas you share. There is so much more to discipleship than just worship. But it’s so tempting to be doing what others are doing.

[@PastorVaughn]

Great points raised here. We streamed our service a couple years before the pandemic hit. When we had to close for a few weeks we simply improved the sound by tying it into our soundboard. The major purpose for the stream has always been primarily for our congregation. In case someone is sick or misses worship for some reason, the stream is available. We have had a few people check us out online before coming in person but not a ton. The biggest way people find us is still through google and our website.

[@spencermeisner]

Thanks for this, Brady. This is great. I'm showing this to my leadership ASAP.

[@andreanicole2006]

Thx for once again expressing what I feel intrinsically inside about this topic…a smaller church has so many more options for digital presence - our pastor started a five minute daily devotional segment online at the beginning of COVID that was only supposed to last a few weeks but we are now two years in and have a faithful little following that truly values these daily morsels. It has also allowed us an opportunity for creativity in designing little sets based on theme, without needing to spend a lot of money - it’s stunning what you can create with cardboard and some paint! We still record the Sunday message in studio for folks who cannot come to Sunday service, but it’s a more personal, intimate “talking right to you at home” experience rather than observing a service happening somewhere else, from a distance. Great for keeping up with a message series if you are away, without trying to replicate something that will just never be the same watching online over actually being there.

[@stmarybythesea]

Thanks for your input. Some great questions to reflect on. I appreciate your prompting

[@TrunxKraft3000]

Brady, you’ve been hitting the iron! I see you boy! And great video as usual! As the creative director at my church, your videos really help me execute our church’s mission more effectively and efficiently.

[@bernardedehomonministries]

You are 100% right. I will share this video with our media team and make a u-turn to doing the right thing for the right reasons. Thanks for sharing this!

[@stevansheets]

I (we!) appreciate your willingness to vocalize the unpopular, Brady! Keep holding that tension, brother - you're making us better!

[@FrankLopezz]

Such an awesome video! Thank you and cant wait to Re-Prioritize our digital strategy and focus 🙏

[@ItsJustTedd]

Amazing. Very well said and timely. As a creator and someone who runs the Live streaming service for my "church", this became a concern of ours. We are now exploring ways to encourage and implement "next step" actions.

[@nickislearning]

When you say "next steps", are you considering moving away from the Live-stream? Thank you

[@darrelladcock]

Thanks, Brady, for your serious thought on this. As a church leader leading a "breakaway" from the traditional western church model, your wisdom is very helpful. Keep it up! D

[@jeffstormer2547]

Another truly thought provoking video, Brady. I'm going to have to re-watch it, of only to better see what your several better options are. Just can't see enough on the phone screen

[@VictoryChurchGP]

Stinking INVALUABLE. Thank you Brady! literally my job to make our digital presence more meaningful, this is so helpful.

[@laurelwaller]

Brady as always this is very interesting and insightful... so much to think about and pray about.

[@sarahjones337]

Alway appreciate your perspective & wisdom! Informative video- 2 scoops Brady! You rock da block!

[@nelsonnissley6748]

We began streaming our sermon only 2 years prior to March 2020. We continue to do that, even though we have upgraded our gear. The only exception is weeks we cancel the entire service because of weather. We also transmit our entire service on a small FM radio transmitter to our parking lot for those who feel uncomfortable to coming inside. For a time our service was in the parking lot, with the Pastor preaching outside with a wireless mic. We are now mostly inside.

[@frankseydel9428]

Thanks for this rather honest analysis. I also like what you're saying especially concerning point no. 3 to connect with people directly than just putting a service on their screens which is not something personal. It's good to hear someone being involved in the technic department not losing the view for the overall purpose. Bless you and keep it up!

[@MosaicDubai]

Right there with you Brady! We don’t live stream because in-person and online are created differently. There are some things online is better at doing like reach and convenience for people and in person is better at community and God feeling moments. They are not created the same but yet we as churches treat them like they are. We currently create a unique service for online. Less than 30 minutes, one message and a one song but we are stoping that soon because I’m not satisfied with the results. I would rather experiment and find something more effective. Not sure what that is at the moment but I’m going to experiment until I find something better.

[@prochurchtools]

Great mindset 🤝

[@andy_in_taiwan]

Amazing video. Thanks for your input. Very helpful. We were able to plant a church in taiwan in large part due to instagram reels! More churches need to take advantage of the non-livestream opportunities!

[@pithvinegar8975]

Thank you for this. We started pre-recording our services during the pandemic and posting a few days or a week after on KZbin and FB. Yes, it took a lot of set-up and hours and hours and hours for our small church. We did it and now continue to do so. We don't have enough people to run the show. We have one person who does the recording every Sunday. The only other person who can do it is our worship leader, who learned how to set up all of the equipment in the first place. He is also the one that mixes the sound for the videos every week. If we went to live-streaming it, he'd have to set up a booth for someone to mix during the service and we don't have enough space or people on the team who can do that. We are very stretched in this department and all of the learning curve is a huge investment in time and finances for our small team. We have avoided the live-stream for this reason. Just plain old recording is tough enough. Thank you for this video and for validating our feelings of overwhelm when someone mentions going to live-streaming. (We did try it one Sunday for a FB live and realized our internet was junk and had to have all of that switched to another company....) I appreciate all of your videos-thanks.

[@emmanueltemilade2547]

VERY wise content in this video! Thanks so much Brady 🙏🏾 God bless you brother

[@prochurchtools]

I appreciate that 🙏

[@pastortlwilson]

Glory to God!!! I literally had a meeting with Subsplash yesterday regarding obtaining their services including a new website and a mobile app. After watching a couple of your videos, and evaluating the cost and potential duplication of services provided by our existing website, I am re-evaluating my decision to move forward with the proposal. I am now open to looking at other options to ensure that our online presence is causing the audience to increase their love for Jesus and others, and to increase discipleship. Thank you for providing an “on time” word to a Pastor who wants to walk in His ordered steps. We were streaming online even before the pandemic, but we want to be more effective in our online ministry. I plan to watch more of your videos to prayerfully determine our next steps for our ministry. Thank you for your diligence in upholding the Great Commission, and providing information that is contrary to the bystander effect. God bless you! Sincerely, Pastor T.L. Wilson

[@dannystebeck]

Great challenge Brady. Well timed as I work on my budget. 😀

[@just1as2i3am]

This is good stuff brov I love the out of the box ways that you come over I am now looking at mobile worshippers. Thanks brov I will check out more of your videos. God bless and stay safe. Barbados I come from.

[@hdfloyd]

Spot on Brady, thanks for the integrity in the mission of this channel!

[@lukequanbeck]

Brady, you continue to surprise me! When I first came across your channel, I pegged you as another ultra-modern voice advocating for everything internet and technology in the church. Since, I have come to appreciate you as a much more moderate contributor to the whole media and church conversation. Thank you.

[@prochurchtools]

Thanks for sticking it out with me enough to hear some of my different perspectives

[@betocris]

Thank you Brad it was very enlightening and answer to doubts, God bless

[@faithlutheranchurch7476]

I think the passivity you speak of exists in both in person and livestream worship. However, I appreciate your comments on introducing and applying "Next steps". I think in all circumstances we should be encouraging, teaching, offering and leading people to those "Next steps" Thanks for sharing Brady!

[@chrisgoodchild]

Right with you on this. We're a church of +/-50 people inc children. When we started livestreaming at the start of the pandemic lockdowns we made a conscious decision to not try and replicate a "normal" in-person meeting. We completely changed format to create a "meeting" that would encourage people in the situation we found ourselves in. Made big use of live comments too so people could bring scripture readings that the host could then read out etc and followed up with Zoom calls etc. We're back to in-person now, with no intention of livestreaming what we do.

[@CarlosAMolina]

Excellent perspective! I am working with a congregation recovering from pastoral trauma. It is a small and somewhat isolated, but with great potential. I plan to record the sermons and archive them in KZbin and as a result of watching this an another one of your videos, I will create the 15 minute version with an alternate title to reach the community at large. Thanks and May God bless you!

[@prochurchtools]

Sounds like a great plan to me!

[@ryankaguru]

Thank you so much for this, Pastor Brady!

[@dspersonal7205]

Bro, spot on!! I’ve served as a worship pastor full time at smaller contemporary churches with basic livestreaming and I’ve always felt what you’re saying but never been able to convey to the staff all the reasons why it may not be a great idea for us to dive into it headfirst. Especially because just about every new technology idea gets passed onto me as more work and more volunteers needed, which is…. Awesome.

[@emilyphillips6048]

Thank you for posting this. I recently became aware that a member of our small church is live-streaming to their own youtube channel- no notice to those attending. My privacy feels very violated to the point that I stopped receiving communion to be out of the frame of video and I'm now contemplating leaving this church to attend another. This is the one place I hoped to have sanctuary from the rest of the world. Sad.

[@ABCTEKNOLOJI]

God bless you my brother! You probably don’t know the final goal of your video but trust me is a wake up call for the church of God .🙏🙏🙏

[@nirnito]

hey budd I learned so much from you! kinda change the way of creation of mine! I pray GOD lead you more and give you more wishdom!

[@timgage8972]

We're a smallish church in the UK of approx 60 people. Online has massively opened up our ministry. New people have come after trialling us through our online services. Lots are still hesitant to come back all the time or have complicated family arrangements. We've done prerecorded and live stream definitely serves our parish.

[@pastorvictorgimenez4865]

👍🏽 dude thank you I needed to hear this would love to get more info and talk with you. You are balanced grounded and you have a lot of wisdom. We are a small church and would love to get more insight from you personally.

[@WutPlank]

Thanks for video brother. I’m a pastor and missionary in Thailand with under 1% christian. Our church is only 20-30 members and only 3 years old. I’ve been fighting with livestreams for the church in my church for sometime and some people already left because they wanted to have fb live or KZbin live. But I didn’t felt it’s the right time for the church as we don’t have team and equipment to do it. But I understand our members who could not come to the church on some weekend so we have zoom meetings instead of other platforms so we still connecting with them. I like one thing you said about the welcoming video to have presence and inviting people instead of investing a bunch of money and time into the livestreams for the small churches. I really appreciated your thoughts and honesty. Blessings brother.

[@JoeMicalizziMPC]

Excellent and very valid points about the best reason to do "View on Demand" with shorter polished videos vs. a live stream.

[@BrianA-du3nw]

you just gave me a ton to think about. thank you for this perspective i haven't considered before

[@joelwolski]

Masterfully communicated. You articulated so well thoughts that have been running through my head over the last year or so. I've so many churches in my area that implemented livestream over the pandemic that are now struggling to get people to reengage in person. So many YT channels out there are built around making big church tech available to the smaller church, no body has seemed to ask whether that's a good idea. Thank you for not following the leader.

[@theofbc]

Well done. Very thoughtful and thought provoking. We are a small, small church. :) We have limited resources, but I do believe after much prayer that God would have us continue livestreaming. That being said, I share your concerns. Paul said that he had learned in whatsoever state he was in, to be content. So as tempting as it is to "copy" other ministries, we must be content with the ministry that God has given us. This would include the mindset of "keeping up with how the Joneses do livestream" mentality. I will be looking at your other resources that you have linked. Thank you again and God bless!

[@stonechurch5514]

I love it. Perfectly said. Love your heart behind it.

[@sammyheins]

Amen, Amen, Amen & Amen. Beautifully said!!

[@neilhendricks544]

This was really insightful. Thank you so much

[@michaelrobertson1028]

Thought-provoking! Your point regarding the evaluation of how we are leveraging social media and technology to further the mission of the church really resonated. Thank you for boldly putting forward what God has laid on your heart. I love your vision and passion for the western church. Let us be leaders that follow the Master and not mindless clones that try to repeat the success of others.

[@WarriorsPhoto]

Another powerful video about connecting with people vs. allowing church ⛪️ to be another form of entertainment.

[@VictorMainaKinuthia]

Your color-grading is so good, though! 😍

[@Earlybird_712]

This video brought to you by the word “ubiquitous”. 😂 Appreciate the reality check and constant drumbeat to pull back to mission. I’m attempting to use some of your rhythms for us in 2022. Praying the Holy Spirit does his thing through our efforts, whether they be the best or not that week.

[@gmcb7521]

Awesome message. Thank-you.

[@spaghettiman2734]

Great video! Your thoughts on the homogenization of the church are spot on. Every church is basically the same. We are not innovating. Way too many of us are overly-influenced by a very small percentage of churches (that we can't imitate anyway!). Keep challenging us to think differently, innovate, and take risks. God bless!

[@lornamcdougall6593]

Really great food for thought in this video - thank you Brady!

[@prochurchtools]

My pleasure 🙏

[@rjkora]

This is an interesting take on live stream. I do agree that livestream making most people into consumers but the church was already doing that before covid with in person services. As a small church we used a combination of strategies ( front this channel) and others to get more people engaged and connected to the church while doing our Sunday service livestream for our older congregation who isn't on social media.

[@MatthewEnsign]

Amazing content. Keep it up brother.

[@andreas.ediger]

Thank you so much. This is unbelievably helpful for me.

[@ministrymediajourney]

I agree with you @BradyShearer We teach that Livestream is not all that you should do (like you should consistently create content during the week) and even WITH Livestreaming, you still only reach about 35% of your full potential online. And I think there has evolved an online Church during Covid and now we have perhaps also an online campus, where in some cases warrants appointing an online or digital Pastor. The potential for online and digital, international communities have increased and we have a bigger reach and impact because of it.

[@boahandarrowsproductions4326]

This is a great point and topic. Especially about the innovation.

[@leinad024]

Great video 👍🏽🙏🏽

[@gilzaragoza2792]

THANK-YOU!!!!!!!!! This was very helpful!!!!

[@l8Wh33l3R]

I'm truck driver for me life streaming is good to keep following and feel connected with my church. I'm still feel the main point. Exelente way to think through thanks

[@beerbilly]

great video btw, so valuable

[@NikkiBrown4theLord]

Thank you Brother!. Our church's facebook page got hacked today and now our Pastor wants to give up livestreaming. I was sort of freaking out, but, Im going to let God guide my Technologically challenged, Pastor!

[@rudypineda3294]

I have to commend you Brady there are some wonderful theologically based arguments on what is the church’s mission and drives them to do certain things.

[@kenkroohs4856]

Thanks as always for your challenging thought! I frequently recommend your stuff although I point out you come from more of a large church, evangelical position. In the Episcopal church 350 IS a large church 😄. Your most important point is to know your goals. That’s why I would say your “next steps” examples are for a small group of people. If their next step is a commitment, baptism or even regular attendance they are much further along the path than most people! I see a major next step as sharing contact info so we can GENTLY begin a conversation. Even that step is a big one and follows being willing to look at what we provide. I am not disagreeing with your central premise to know what your goals are and then choose the method Thanks!!

[@Jnicholss11]

Yeah I’m with you on this. I prefer the idea of recording a sermon and posting later as supplemental. Fellowshipping together on Sunday is important. Hard to be in community when you stay at home alone.

[@DESmith-ek7rf]

One of the things that we've done to help create an extended relevance of our services is to create a "Deep Dive" study source for the sermon content. We include related passages of scripture, brief historical context (sourced & cited,) word study definitions/resources, etc. Honestly, I created it for myself at first. Switching scenes, prepping and showing graphics/lower thirds, etc. meant I got little from the sermon. So as a 3-4 day prep going into the sermon, I'd research side scriptures mentioned quickly in the notes...or research passages the pastor didn't reference at all. I provide a copy of all of these passages (10-20) and folks use it in-service and during the following week to turn the sermon into study material. It's something that 10-25% of the attendees seem to do--both in the hard copies of the Deep Dive being taken and the re-watch of our archived video online. The hard copies are typically gone when the Sunday School crowd comes in. So it is helping keep the engagement of members we've reached up and keep them active.

[@andreanicole2006]

We have considered doing something liek this as well. The Pastor always feels there is "so much more to say" that can't fit into Sunday morning, and helps the message sink in and be retained longer with some deeper study throughout the week.

[@tommycarreras9642]

I can’t express how much I LOVED this. All of it. So we’ll handled. ALSO, I can’t help but wonder: when most of us hear “bring the good news to people online,” are we only hearing “preach a 40-minute sermon online.” That worries me. Which is why I loved this. 🎉

[@Hellyers]

Love it. Well worth asking the question... there are certainly plenty of downsides to live streaming which aren't getting enough attention.

[@michaelburns6915]

100% Agreed, love how you break it down.

[@BobAllenEAf]

LOL! At @1:30, the subtitles read "… live dreaming …". I'm all in favour of live dreaming. Funny goof in a very good video. Thanks.

[@TyroneLT]

My church was close to 1000 regular attendees (pre-covid that is) so for us it would be a pretty hard sell to get rid of livestreaming altogether. That being said I think we are experiencing what you said about the the "livestream" becoming online church itself rather than just one part of it. The big issue I see is our audience rentention. People are on average only watching 20-25% of the service (roughly an hour and half to 2 hour service). That to me is a sign it is not the best way to engage our members, new or 1st time viewers. I find livestreams to be too long-form to be truly engaging for everyone. Especially when 70% of our audience is watching from a phone. To expect people to watch anything on a phone for a long period of time is a bad strategy. I've honestly been thinking livestreams might be better served as an audio podcast that people can listen to while driving, cooking or working but still feel engaged rather than having to watch it. I've been doing a few things to help my church leaders understand there are many other effective things we can be doing online to reach our audience and move them towards next steps: - I meet with my Pastor after every Sunday service and record 2 short 1-minute videos based on his message focused on practical life applications that get posted to IG Reels and TikTok during the week. - We have two college students otherwise run our TikTok account and make content specific to the young people who are currently not watching Sunday livestreams at all. - I recently produced a Prayer and Fasting guide to preceded our week of prayer and fasting to start the year. It's a 15 minute video so it's much shorter, easier to consume and our rentention numbers are over double what our Sunday services are which means there's a good chance people are getting something out of it rather than just "watching" 20-30 minutes of a 90 minute service. What Brady says towards the end of this video is vital. Now is not the time for media teams and churches to run on autopilot just doing a livestream on Sunday and calling it a day. Not when there are so many other ways to connect, inspire and minister to our members and beyond.

[@PastorVaughn]

Great ideas for supplimenting the livestream with content for other social media platforms!

[@kpgolfer3]

Wow this is thought provoking! As a creative for my church this is a big decision to make.

[@andreanicole2006]

but OH the creative possibilities it opens up for OTHER stuff online that can serve to entice people to come and check you out in person for teh actual service experience!

[@jmharris23]

I enjoy your videos and find them very helpful! Question.....If live streaming isn't the best option for a smaller church, and I agree that it isn't, what is your opinion on the best way in this digital age to provide those who are still at home or unable to come with the weekly teaching?

[@nickislearning]

In my opinion and experience, there are so many ways to engage people by uploading the taped message later. You can create a more interactive experience for people at home or long-distance attendees: rather than have people passively watch a screen or a live service. Obviously, with more funds and a larger church, you can do more during an actual live service to make things interactive in real time.

[@apprenticesofjesus]

When COVID hit, I doubled-down to my church on why we shouldn't live stream. They looked at me like I was crazy. "Everyone else is doing it" and "It's our only option to connect with people" they said. I was forced to set up an expensive live stream for them. After I left that church, the analytics and next steps processes will show that Brady and I were 100% right. It's very hard for churches to admit though. After spending thousands of dollars on live stream, it's hard for a pastor to explain to donors why they made this bad financial decision. It's easier for them to show the wrong analytics to appease the minority. Thank you for this video, Brady. I hope more churches will open start asking the right questions when it comes to this topic.

[@christchapelmd5512]

Do you think the thousands spent on lifestream will be worth it if juts one person watches the livestream services, gets saved and make it to heaven?

[@apprenticesofjesus]

@@christchapelmd5512 this is a bad argument. Here’s a better question, “Won’t it be a better investment in the kingdom (more people saved and baptized or served) if we put those thousands of dollars in training people to make disciples, service projects and other things that Jesus actually told us to do?” So option A, invest in live-streaming for 1 person to be saved. Option B, invest in BETTER ways that are actually proven for more people to be transformed by the renewing of their minds. I choose option B any day. But it’s not just a binary approach. This is complicated. But if we ask the right questions, I believe God can get us closer to his will. God bless. I hope this answer helps.

[@tee2462]

@@apprenticesofjesus thanks for your response. It’s not a bad argument. It’s simply to point out to you that money is not needed to save souls. You seem to be basing the premise for your argument on money. Let me tow the line of your argument for a minute and l do agree there us no binary perspective to it. First off, more souls can be save without both options and for far less money spent. Then granted the funds spent on life stream could be used to train folks and who will do the job. But what is the guarantee that a trained personnel can win a soul? Isn’t it The Holy Spirit who wins a soul? Life stream always end up recorded and store online for more access to a wider view ship for many more years. How many years can a trained personnel go for? I understand your point perfectly well and do agree with you. The point l am making is life stream has its on advantage too and should not be discouraged whether it’s undertaken by a small or large church. Money is irrelevant compared to a soul. There is no difference if option A saves one soul and option B saves 1 million souls. No option is better than the other. What counts is the soul. What if the single soul God will save through life stream becomes another Paul. It’s not the money, it’s the soul and it’s not the number of souls won but the soul won. See the difference. It’s all joy in heaven whether it’s 1 soul or 1 million souls

[@apprenticesofjesus]

@@tee2462 Hmm. I don't think you see what Brady and I are arguing. I agree with everything you just said. It's about the soul, not the money. Maybe a better word to describe the money part would be "stewardship." Brady and I are saying we can still utilize live streaming by a pastor going live on his phone and interacting with viewers. This is more effective and dramatically less expensive than long-form rebroadcasts where the average user only watches 10-20% of the live stream. This, my friend, is why it is better STEWARDSHIP of our resources - time, energy, money, and volunteers.

[@tee2462]

@@apprenticesofjesus Yes my friend, l understand you perfectly well. Maybe, what’s better is not to make small churches feel guilty of wasting resources as terrible stewards for life streaming. Yes, using their phone is as effective and less expensive but not every church can be effective with using phone. And if the church can afford a solid life stream equipment and still have enough resources for option B, l ‘ll go for it pastor. Like you guys mentioned earlier, the church is always playing catch up in all things. The best and quality should always come from the church even life-streaming. By the way, l am sure you guys know that a small congregation does not mean a sparse resources. I have seem many churches under 200 with huge budgets running into millions. I love your input in the kingdom. Many blessings

[@daniels8579]

Great video.

[@MelCJ]

This was very helpful and something to consider

[@prochurchtools]

Worth adding to how we calculate these kinds of big projects in our churches 🙏

[@PatrickTugwell]

Thank you for this video, Brady. Very helpful points for the smaller-mid size church.

[@sjcoc]

dude this is super insightful

[@samuelcrane8686]

Love this Brady, so on the money. A comment on language. You use mindfulness a few times where I think thoughtful would have been better. I'm not opposed to mindfulness which I understand as a meditative and reflective space for mental, spiritual and emotional wellbeing, but I think that isn't what you were on about. Hope that's helpful, all the best. Thanks again for your videos, this one made my heart sing for saving so clearly that we need to measure effectiveness in our mission. AMEN. Peace from Australia.

[@leojclarke]

"mindfully evaluate why you're live streaming"... genius... such a valuable collection points and communicated in a sensitive way.

[@nickislearning]

I'm blessed to have come across this video. I also have a thought and would love any input: I'm part of a small church that's a fairly new plant. We host a livestream each week. From my observation and opinion, our livestream isn't all that engaging (my background is in strategic communications). We have 2 main cameras pointed to the front of the church. What you see is what you get, that's pretty-much it. However, I've been wondering, what if we took B-roll footage and added it into the livestream leading up to the actual message. This could be interviews, work in the community, announcements, footage of ministry programs etc. What are your thoughts about that approach? I'll add that my first reaction was to suggest that they move away from the livestream. I just don't see the return in terms of engagement being comparable to uploading messages after the fact and incorporating interactive content. However, since the church is growing, it could be more of a issue telling online attendees that Live services have ended and then phase them back again in the future.

[@biblesonabudget213]

What would advise for a church that is less than 20 members? We use live streaming for those people who follow our ministry from outside of the state we are in. My pastor used to go around and preach at different churches that invited him, but we just got our current and really first church and so he doesn’t go anywhere anymore especially since he and his wife are in their 70s. Also the majority of our church are older folks as well. I am really the only sub-30 year old guy there.