ChatGPT is an AI-powered chatbot that uses natural language processing to understand what you’re looking for and provide helpful responses. As I shared in part one of this series, there are several reasons why it’s essential for pastors and leaders to stay up-to-date with AI tools like ChatGPT.

1. AI Saves Time and Increases Efficiency

Using tools like ChatGPT can significantly increase productivity by saving YOU time and increasing the efficiency of your workflow. With AI, you can quickly get answers to questions without having to spend hours searching for the information yourself. ChatGPT can also help you automate tasks, such as scheduling appointments or sending reminders.

2. AI Improves Communication

As a pastor or leader, you likely communicate with a lot of different kinds of people, in a lot of different ways. ChatGPT can help improve communication by providing quick and accurate responses to questions, or reviewing something you have written to make sure you are communicating clearly. 

3. AI Makes Decision-Making Easier

Making important decisions can be challenging when you have limited time and resources. AI can help ease the decision-making process by providing relevant and reliable information. You can use ChatGPT to research a topic, gather opinions from others, or get advice on a particular issue. 

4. AI Adapts to Your Needs

One of the best things about ChatGPT is that it adapts to your specific preferences. You can customize your ChatGPT experience to suit your personal style. For example, did you know it’s not limited to only work-related tasks? Here are 5 prompts I’ve used in ChatGPT over the last month that returned results I loved:

1. Here are the ingredients I have in my house (insert ingredients), invent a recipe for me.
2. Invent a game I can play in the car with my 5-year-old son that involves cowboys, aliens, and road signs.
3. Write a bedtime story where my (insert child’s name) is a superhero.
4. Tell me riddle.
5. Here are the hobbies my wife and I share (insert hobbies), what is something we should try for a date night?

See? How fun (and time-saving) is this?!? 

Again, the possibilities are endless. And, just like any tool, the more you use ChatGPT the more you’ll learn to utilize all its facets and figure out how it can best work for YOU.

But, for now, I hope you dive in and love learning ChatGPT as much as I have. And if you need a little help to get started, check out this downloadable cheat sheet: 

Free Downloadable ChatGPT Cheat Sheet

The post How to AI in 2023: A Pastor’s Guide to ChatGPT appeared first on Ministry Architects.

Jump forward a couple months, and the situation is 100% different. By now, they have all heard of ChatGPT and other AI tools that are being rolled out almost daily. 

In our rapidly advancing world, the exponential growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has become an undeniable force shaping various industries. As pastors and leaders, I think it is important for us to consider how AI might impact our own roles and responsibilities.

I understand that the idea of using AI tools professionally may be a stretch for you, but I want to challenge you to go on a journey with me with an open mind. 

Understanding the Growth of AI

Before we dive into the specifics of AI’s potential role in pastoral work, let us briefly acknowledge the remarkable growth of AI in recent years. From self-driving cars to personalized virtual assistants, AI has revolutionized numerous sectors, making task completion more efficient and effective. And, yet, while AI offers immense possibilities for a variety of industries, it’s no secret that its use and implementation should be considered thoughtfully and with care.

There is a line...

As pastors and leaders, there are both spiritual and relational aspects of our job that we could outsource to AI tools. However, to do so would be a disservice to ourselves and the people we serve. For example, just because AI can write a sermon for us in under five minutes does not mean we should use the tool this way. Doing so removes sermon prep’s spiritual and relational components that make messages impactful and personable. 

So, while there are endless things AI tools can do for us, it is important to recognize that there is a line on what we should be using it for. 

That being said, what can AI do?

One way to view AI is as an administrative assistant, helping us streamline various tasks and enhance our overall effectiveness. Imagine having an AI-powered tool that can manage our schedules, analyze data for meaningful insights, and aid in sermon preparation. By delegating routine administrative duties to AI, we can free up valuable time and resources, allowing us to focus on deeper aspects of our ministry that require our unique human touch.

Embracing the Potential of AI

Let’s consider specific administrative tasks we do every week. Did you know AI can summarize articles, draft documents, analyze data, write reports, and manage schedules? Historically, these tasks have taken hours of my time, and yours, each week. But now, these can be completed in a fraction of the time. By letting AI attend to these tasks, we can focus on what truly matters. We can stay focused on nurturing relationships, guiding and supporting people in their spiritual journey, and building a vibrant community. It’s important to remember that technology, when used intentionally and thoughtfully, can enhance our work instead of replacing our calling. By using AI as a helpful assistant, we can navigate our responsibilities more strategically, ensuring that our impact as pastors continues to grow in this ever-changing world.

Getting Started with AI Tools

Using AI tools effectively is similar to using any other tool; it takes time and practice. I encourage you to sign up for a free Chat GPT account and see what it is capable of. Then, check out part two of this series, complete with a free step-by-step download.

Here are three prompts to get you started on your AI journey: 

1. “Write three tweets with relevant hashtags based on the following sermon.” Then copy and paste your sermon from the weekend into the box. 
2.  “Give me the most important three points the author makes in (insert book title)”
3. “Create a team building event that can be completed in (insert timeframe), using these items: (list items), that focuses on (insert team skill you want to work on).”

If you are already using ChatGPT and other AI tools, I would love to hear from you! And if you want to learn more about how I am using AI, don’t skip part two.

Check Out Part 2–
How to AI in 2023: A Pastor’s Guide to ChatGPT

The post Embracing AI: A Pastoral Perspective appeared first on Ministry Architects.

Full disclosure: I think leaders and pastors fall into the trap of focusing more of their time on building ministries than making disciples.

It is not that leaders and pastors don’t think discipleship is essential, but the reality is that discipleship does not pay the bills. The commitment to discipleship is time and energy-intensive, ultimately taking time and energy away from the ministries we are paid to oversee. As a result, discipleship takes a back seat to most everything else. 

Recently, I’ve been working through Devotional Classics as a part of my daily rhythm. After reading “The Cost of Nondiscipleship” by Dallas Willard, I found this reflection on the essay from Richard Foster:

“Perhaps the greatest malady in the Church today is converts to Christ who are not disciples of Christ – a clear contradiction of terms. This malady affects everything in church life and in large measure accounts for the low level of spiritual nutrients in our local congregation.”

As someone passionate about discipleship, words like these make me wonder how my neighborhood would look if I took discipleship more seriously. Likewise, how much different would cities look – worldwide – if their churches took discipleship seriously?

The last command Jesus gave his followers in Matthew 28:18-20 was to go and make disciples. And in Matthew 16:18, we learn of Jesus’ conversation with Peter about building the Church. This distinction between disciple-making and church-building is often overlooked and I think it is helpful for us to remember they are not always the same thing.

Making disciples is our job; building the church is Jesus’ job. 

In his book, Building a Discipling Culture, Mike Breen says it like this:

“If you make disciples, you always get the church. But if you make a church, you rarely get disciples.” 

I believe this is THE tension at the heart of today’s church leaders and those who find resolve are witnessing life on earth as it is in Heaven.  

• In this tension, I have wrestled with how my house and neighborhood would look different if I got serious about discipling others. 
• In this tension, I have wrestled with how churches would look different if pastors and leaders made discipleship their main focus rather than focusing 100% of their attention on programs and the weekend experience. 
• In this tension, I have wrestled with how communities would look more like the Kingdom if churches took discipleship seriously. 
• And in this tension, I have wrestled with a simple solution that pastors and leaders could implement immediately to have a sustainable kingdom impact:
  • Invite a strategic group of people to imitate us as we imitate Christ.
  • Send them out to do the things they have seen us do. 

Let me explain.

Inviting a Strategic Group

In 1 Corinthians 4:15-17 Paul is telling the church that they have countless “guides in Christ.” In the original Greek, the word ‘guide’ is paidagōgos which literally translates to ‘tutor.’ He goes on to state that what they are lacking is ‘fathers’. When Paul says ‘fathers’, he is talking to the people about lacking someone they are so close with they can model their lives after. Paul says that, through the gospel, he has become that father, and, then, Paul invites them to imitate his life as he imitates Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1.) 

If we are honest, not much has changed. In a world of podcasts, recorded sermons, and written devotions by incredible bible teachers, there is no shortage of ‘guides in Christ.’ However, there is a shortage of leaders who are brave and vulnerable enough to invite a small group of people to imitate their lives as they imitate Christ. 

What does it mean to invite someone to imitate you as you imitate Christ?

Ultimately, it means giving them access to every part of your life. 

• Inviting them into your home to see how you imitate Christ in the way you love your spouse and children.
• Inviting them into your relationships to see how you imitate Christ in serving, loving, and praying for friends.
• Inviting them into your conflicts and when someone is wronged to see how you imitate Christ when praying for those who might feel like adversaries or speaking hard truth in love.
• Inviting them into your finances to see how you imitate Christ in how you steward the things you have been given. 
• Inviting them into your physical routines to see how you imitate Christ in taking care of the temple.
• Inviting them into your spiritual rhythms to see how you imitate Christ when it comes to spending time with the Father. 

Integrated into all this witnessing is the invitation for your strategic group to go and do likewise in their own lives, just as they’ve experienced you to do. This particular invitation will eventually mean your strategic group will extend the same invitation of discipling others to their own strategic group. And, thus, the impactful work of discipleship grows.

Sending Them Out

In Mark 6:7-13, Jesus sends the disciples out to do the exact things they had been watching him do: proclaim the good news, heal the sick, and cast out demons.

In the same way, once we have journeyed with the people we are discipling for a season, we have to send them out to do the things they have been watching us do. 

Sustainable Kingdom impact, built around discipleship, only happens when there are disciples making disciples. 

Simple math says that if a senior leader invites eight people (staff, elders, key volunteers, etc.) to imitate them as they imitate Christ, and then sends each of them out to replicate the process with six others, who, then, send each of their six out to replicate the process with four others, the result is 248 people being discipled. 

Will they get it right the first time, every time? Absolutely not. We know from Matthew 17:14-20 that there was a time when the disciples were not able to do what they had seen Jesus do and cast the demon out of a child. Just like Jesus’ disciples, the people you are discipling will still need access to your life because there will be times when things do not go according to plan.

Discipleship is a journey and not a destination. 

So, leaders and pastors, are you ready to be brave and vulnerable? Are you ready to live out the good, the bad, and the ugly of your life, in front of a strategic group of people? 

Ready or not, your church/ministry needs you to take discipleship seriously. And if you’d like to talk more about what this could look like in your context, I would love to help in any way I can.  Send me an email at james.warren@ministryarchitects.com and we’ll set up a time to talk. 

Tips for getting started

1. Saying yes to discipling people will mean saying no to other things. Take some time to look at the list of your weekly tasks and decide what items you need to stop doing or let someone else do. 
2. Pray and ask the Lord to put the names of eight strategic leaders you could disciple on your heart. 
3. Invite those eight to imitate you as you imitate Christ and give them access to your life needed to do that. 

Love the tips but still need some help?
We’ve got an amazing discipleship co-lab starting soon–
Check it out here!

Recommended Resources 

1. Building a Discipling Culture
2. The Spirit of Disciplines
3. Spiritual Classic 
4. Multiply: Disciples making Disciples

The post <strong>Building Ministries vs. Making Disciples</strong> appeared first on Ministry Architects.