Church Innovation Insider • DEC 2021

1 Big Thing: Virtual Preaching Monks a smashing success

Big picture: When the Virtual Preaching Monks experiment was launched last month, TryTank expected a few dozen congregations to take part. Instead, as of this writing, 460 congregations have signed up to use this resource, representing more than 22,000 people on an average Sunday.
What's next: Based on this success, the monks from the Society of Saint John the Evangelist have committed to offering a similar resource during Lent. They will cover:

• Ash Wednesday
  
• The Sundays in Lent
  
• Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday
  
• Good Friday
  
• The Great Vigil/Easter Day.
  

The bottom line: To stay informed about this and other resources offered for smaller congregations, be sure to sign up HERE.

HeartEdge USA forming peer learning cohorts around the 4 Cs

Big picture: With the support of TryTank, HeartEdge USA is forming a peer-learning cohort in support of the HeartEdge model of congregational renewal.
Go deeper: This small group is for those ready to begin experimenting with a group of other excited leaders while learning from each other. The cohort will meet have 9 monthly meetings over a year facilitated by a mentor and will be a place for:

• incubation of ideas
  
• implementation
  
• accountability
  
• and reflection on lessons learned
  

The bottom line: To quickly implement and advance the HeartEdge approach in your congregation, join this cohort. TryTank is covering the expenses, but space is limited, so click HERE to apply today. 

Faith in the Future to host a conversation about “Church in the Metaverse”

What's next: In January, noted futurist Bob Johansen, a distinguished fellow with the Institute for the Future, will join a small audience from around the church to imagine the church in the metaverse.
Go deeper: Our guests will be joined by an expert on philosopher, theologian, and priest, Teilhard de Chardin who will help us compare the metaverse to de Chardin’s concept of the divine milieu and the noosphere.
Yes, but: Other practical voices will join the discussion to assess the implication for the church at large, especially those who are at the margins and may lack access to technology.
To view the conservation when it’s made available on January 14, click HERE.

Looking for signals of the future

Big picture: Part of TryTank’s work relates to foresight, the ability to spot signals and drivers of change to then develop plausible futures.
Go deeper: Think of a driver of change as a big wave.

• It will be seen and it will move things in a certain direction.
  
• In the mid-1990s, for example, the internet was that wave.
  

A signal is a real vision of the future today.

• Using the wave analogy, a signal would be a surfer on the wave.
  
• In the mid-1990s, the signal would be a little start-up called Amazon. When you first saw it you asked, “is that the future of how we’ll buy books?”
  

Why it matters: As you look out into the world today, what are some signals of the future, especially of the church?
Where have you seen the church of the future today? If you have some answers, let us know HERE. 

Experiment update: Episcopal Pulse

Here’s an update from the Rev. Ken Howard, the experiment manager for Episcopal Pulse: “We have made significant progress toward the 2022 kick-off of the Episcopal Pulse Experiment:

• Recruiting Volunteer Survey Respondents: 1,037 people have committed to responding to our regular micro-surveys within 24 hours at a frequency of at least once per week over a 6-9 month period.
  
• Recruiting an Advisory Panel: 15 people have agreed to serve on our advisory panel, making recommendations for survey themes and questions.  
  
• Representative Diversity: Both groups were selected with the intention of creating a representative cross-section of the denomination.
  
• Kick-Off Date: We expect the first surveys to go out in early January.”
  
  

Experiment update: Christmas Evangelism

Here’s an update from the Rev. Ken Kroohs, the experiment manager for the Christmas Evangelism: “It’s going great!  The churches’ enthusiasm, energy, and commitment are inspiring and contiguous!

• This experiment’s goal is to build long-term relationships with new people that can make true evangelism possible.
  
• The 30 participating congregations are being provided with resources and training.  For example, they received a list of possible social media posts each week.
  
• They received training on using Facebook ads as well as 9 non-social media outreach techniques.
  
• The final, and most important phase is communicating with a new person once they have shared their contact information. 
  

Our thought bubble: If you would like access to the resources let us know HERE.  

Prayer Puppets experiment seeks the wisdom of the crowd

Big picture: Last year, we wondered how we could bring Christian formation closer to home. Our solution, and then experiment, was to create a Christian version of Sesame Street. And thus were born the Prayer Puppets.
We created three episodes and tested them on a streaming platform where the conversion rate (from those who landed on the website to subscribe for a dollar) was around 8% which is very high.
The bottom line: We figured if people were willing to pay to subscribe, they’d be even more likely to subscribe to a free YouTube channel. We were wrong. Of some 29,000 times that our 15-second ad was seen only 43 subscribed.
What's next: So now this experiment is stuck. Here is the question: what would you do with the Prayer Puppets? Click HERE to submit your ideas.

You are now reading our newsletter experiment

Looking for market study participants

Big picture: TryTank is looking for ten active members of the clergy to be interviewed about professional and executive education for clergy. 
Why it matters:  In an ever-changing world, clergy are often called to take on tasks that they were not trained for in seminary. At the same time, there is new learning about leadership, finance, and other fields that affect ministry.
Go deeper: Selected participants will commit to a 20-30 minute interview. For their time, you will receive a $25 Amazon gift card. 
To apply to be a participant, send us an email and you’ll hear from us soon.