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Dec 09, 2020

Thank Your 2020 Volunteers

Every church in every state had a radically different 2020 story. Maybe your church shut down your campus and hosted exclusively online services and events. Maybe you tried a hybrid. Maybe your church was business as usual. One thing every church shares, though, is that it took people to make your ministry happen. Before the end of the year, maybe make time to tell them how much you appreciate the role they played in making it through the last twelve months of ministry. It doesn’t have to be

Jeff Berg

3 min read

May 27, 2020

What’s Next: Phasing Into Gathering Again

When it comes to church, "How do I limit attendance?" isn't a question we often (or ever) ask. We are much more likely to find ourselves saying, "The more the merrier!" or "Can I find you a seat?" But as we phase into gathering again, limiting attendance for social distancing is necessary for many of us. While some of you are trying to determine when and whether to gather, others may be figuring out how to gather. Today, we're sharing some of our best practices for facilitating smaller gatherin

Allie Rice

Product Manager

4 min read

May 21, 2020

Invite Your Congregation to the Conversation

Many churches are struggling with the tension between desperately wanting to be together in person and wanting to be responsible and safe. As with our initial response to COVID-19, we are not suggesting any specific course of action for your church beyond following the recommendations of health and government officials. But we want to help. In each phase of transitioning back to meeting in person, there are a few key Planning Center tools you can leverage. This post is about connecting with y

Jeff Berg

2 min read

Apr 16, 2020

Make Online Giving Easy for Your Church

Online giving might be unfamiliar territory for some of your congregants, and the unfamiliar is always a little intimidating—no matter how many times you promise people it’s easy. We want to help you make this transition smoothly by providing a guide on how to make the world of online giving more approachable to your congregation. Get the Word Out Although you may have already shared details about online giving on social media or during announcements, it’s a good idea to reach out to the peo

Jeff Berg

4 min read

Apr 13, 2020

Create New Opportunities for Community

I haven’t seen my small group friends in over a month. I miss them. Thankfully, we have our weekly video calls to catch up, pray, and talk about the sermon. It isn't the same, but it's good to have something. You and your church might be in the same boat—missing your people, and trying to figure out how to stay in touch as best you can. Nothing can replace being face-to-face, but community is still possible, and we want to show you how to lean on Groups to help your church find it. First, we’

Jeff Berg

4 min read

Mar 25, 2020

Coronavirus: Connecting with the needs of your congregation

The ripple effects of COVID-19 are relentless, and we are all feeling it as the days pass and we work our way toward a new normal alongside the rest of the world. Still others (like you) are figuring out how to continue carrying the unique burdens of your entire congregation. You are in the business of caring for the well-being of souls—challenging work in the most normal of times. But in this abnormal time, when you can’t be physically present with your community, the task can feel overwhelmin

Jeff Berg

4 min read

Mar 13, 2020

Coordinating Community during the Coronavirus

If your week was anything like ours, you might be feeling a little whiplash from so many major life changes in such a short period of time. Events canceled, schools closing, travel plans postponed—all because of the spread of COVID-19. Many health officials and city, county, and state governments across the country are making recommendations for how people should handle large gatherings of people, which we know impacts you, the church. We are not here to advocate for any kind of action apart f

Planning Center

6 min read

Mar 05, 2020

Pro Tips for Easter Prep

Easter is just around the corner, but it’s never too late to plan—even one step towards getting organized can make a huge difference! This post is a collection of some of our best-practices and pro tips as you prepare for what might be one of your busiest and most important Sundays of the year. No matter what area of ministry or what stage of planning you’re in, there is something here to help make your Easter Sunday a success. Create a unique Easter service plan In some ways, planning for

Jeff Berg

6 min read

Oct 08, 2019

Make sure people are prayed for and cared for

Right before the Sunday morning service, someone shares a prayer request with you. You quickly type it into your phone, promising to follow up with them. But soon, it's buried under shopping lists and work memos, and when you rediscover it weeks later, you can't remember who you're supposed to be praying for or how to follow up with them. Losing track of notes happens to the best of us, but it doesn’t have to happen to your congregation’s prayer requests. It is possible to pray for and suppor

Jeff Berg

4 min read

Apr 24, 2019

Building Relationships with Families in Children’s Ministry

Children’s ministry is often where families form their first impression of a church—you want to give families an amazing experience at your church's weekend gatherings, and you also don't want it to stop there! What you do on Sundays and between Sundays to reach out and connect with families are equally important, and go hand-in-hand. Here are some best practices for how to create opportunities for connection on Sundays, as well as how to continue building those relationships throughout the wee

Jeff Berg

7 min read

Apr 10, 2019

Volunteer Care and Coordination for Children’s Ministry

Volunteers are often the front line of children’s ministry—the people on the ground welcoming families at check-in stations, leading craft time, answering tough questions, and cleaning caked Goldfish crackers out of the carpet after snack time. Finding people willing to do this work, scheduling and communicating with teams, and equipping them to serve well is hard. This post outlines some best practices for how you can use Planning Center People and Services to care for and coordinate your volu

Jeff Berg

6 min read

Sep 06, 2018

How to Create a Volunteer Pipeline

Once your volunteers are in Services and you have them organized into teams, communicating and coordinating with them is easy… but how do you find volunteers? How do you move people through the application and training process before assigning them to a team? In this video, Matthew shares how you can use our free application, People, to create a volunteer pipeline. If you want to get started, go into Services and click the logo in the top left hand corner and find Peop

Jeff Berg

3 min read

Aug 22, 2018

How to use Planning Center for Youth Ministry

If you work in student ministry you probably have a diverse job description—from sermon writing and student counseling to camp planning and van cleaning. You juggle all these responsibilities because you want your students to feel welcomed and wanted by both you and God. But sometimes all that craziness means missed opportunities. Planning Center has a number of tools designed to help you capture every opportunity to connect with students. Here are six ways you can start creating a sys

Jeff Berg

4 min read