Messages: Culture is intentionally shaped as the right messages are consistently and clearly communicated to the staff, church leaders and membership

Ten Steps for Building Church Cultural Values

There is no silver bullet for building a church culture, but culture savvy church leaders recognize culture shaping requires an intentional process. Church culture is complex, but in its simplest form consists of a set of underlying cultural values. Viewing church culture building through the lens of cultural values can be a helpful approach. What might the intentional building of... Continue Reading

Clarifying Communication Using a Common Language

Every profession has its own language. Lawyers, electricians, plumbers and auto-mechanics all have terminology unique to their profession. They use these common terms to create mutual understanding and shape behavior. A common language is especially critical with doctors, firemen, policemen and the military who are in life and death situations where even the slightest misunderstanding can have tragic implications. A... Continue Reading

5 Ways To Improve Church Communication Effectiveness

Each week churches disseminate a wide variety of information through announcements, slides, web sites, bulletins, brochures, posters, videos, email and social media.  A continual challenge is to communicate in a way that the reader or listener both understands and retains the information. Immediately upon receiving incoming information the brain starts to categorize it, therefore, it makes sense to order communication... Continue Reading

Developing a Communication Plan for Your Strategic Plan

The suffix “ate” is of Latin origin typically meaning “possessing the characteristics of or denoting a certain function.” A comprehensive plan for communicating your church’s Strategic Plan must possess certain characteristics and functions. Below are 30 functions and characteristics of a successful plan for communicating to the congregation the church’s Strategic Plan. Include answers to the following questions in your... Continue Reading

A Simple Formula for Inculcating a Message Into Church Culture

“Inculcate” is defined as instilling an idea, attitude, habit or value into a culture or organization through persistent instruction. Therefore, if you want to weave a message of importance into the fabric of your church culture you must be intentional in words and actions. There is no silver bullet for imbedding a message into a church culture, but rather requires... Continue Reading

Do You Have Plumb Lines for Your Church’s Decisions?

A plumb line is a simple but accurate tool used for determining whether or not something is perfectly vertical or upright. Used since ancient times, a plumb line consists of a line and weight of some sort, usually a stone or piece of lead.  References to the use of a plumb line in the Holy Scriptures are usually that of... Continue Reading

Does Your Church Have a Common Language?

Policemen, firemen, air traffic controllers, emergency room personnel and the military teach us the importance of a common language to mitigate confusion. These professions are in “life and death” jobs where their decisions can literally mean the difference between life and death. Any miscommunication can have disastrous results. Church leaders are in a “life and death” vocation as well. The... Continue Reading