Hey, I'm Todd Thornton, and I am so glad you're here. Ministry looks different for everyone. Whether you're on staff, volunteering, or just trying to make a difference, AI can help you do it better. Two things I want you to know right up front. 1) Don't just lurk. Post (1) one word in the comments. An AI tool you use, something you want to accomplish, a hidden talent. Anything. I will personally respond to every single one with my best idea for how I can help. If I'm wrong, the egg is on my face and some responses might be hilarious. 2) This is a "public" community. Everything here is visible, searchable, and shareable, even to non-members. That's on purpose. We want people to find this content. But if that's not for you, no hard feelings at all. If you are not a member you won't be able to comment or track completion in courses, but if you find something you like, just grab the link and share it freely. Posts, course pages, anything. We believe in full transparency. This is just who we are. If you're still in, let's take it one step at a time. Step one is simple. Drop only (1) one word in the comments below and let's see how creative Todd can get with his response.

Have a question about anything covered in this course? This is the place to ask it. Drop your question in the comments below. Others in the community have likely run into the same thing, so take a scroll through before posting. You might find exactly what you are looking for. No question is too basic. Building a ministry membership from scratch comes with a learning curve, and that is exactly what this space is for. This forum is part of the free "How to Build a Ministry Membership From Scratch" course. Every lesson is publicly available and indexed online, so if you landed here from a search, welcome. You are in the right place. To post a question or comment you will need a FREE account, which also lets you track your progress through the course. Look for the yellow Join Group button to create an account or use the link above to start viewing content.

I keep hearing complaints about AI generated content and people calling to ban AI writing altogether. Here's the thing, there is no way to detect AI content with any real accuracy, unless the person behind it has no idea how to use it. I came up with the following quote, or maybe my AI did, 😉and I think it nails it. "AI is a tool. What you get out of it says everything about the person behind it. Always has, always will." Todd Thornton

As you know, I test everything in this public community in real time so you can see exactly how it's done. Google has now indexed all three of our existing courses plus several additional posts, which is a big milestone. Google rankings depend on a lot of factors, so I'd love your help with a quick experiment. If you have five minutes, search for the keyword terms below and let me know in the comments whether we show up on Google search in the first 3 pages. We'll most likely be the only Skool link you see. Search for: church visitor checklist Today is day 22 of building this community, and I honestly expected it to take 90 to 120 days before we started ranking for any term. If you're seeing us in the results, we are well ahead of schedule.👏 Drop your results in the comments and include the ranking page/position if you can spot it.

Here's a challenge that exposes what most churches get wrong about Easter church marketing. Mark MacDonald threw it out on Facebook: "Pitch me in 10 words or less why I should attend YOUR church in person this Easter." Spoiler: he wasn't actually looking for a church. He was highlighting something most Easter Sunday promotions completely miss. The typical Easter church invitation is a bright graphic, a bold font, and service times. That's it. No reason to show up. No hook. Just... "EASTER!" In that spirit, here are 15 last minute hooks worth considering for your Easter weekend ads and posts. - He came back. Maybe it's time you did too. - If it's really true, what do you do about it? - Come empty. Leave with something you can't explain. - Find your story inside His story this Easter. - He didn't just rise for history. He rose for you. - Come skeptical. Leave decided. - We don't need you to believe yet. Just show up. - Spoiler: the tomb was empty. Come hear why that matters. - Don't believe it? Good. Come anyway. - The resurrection either changes everything or changes nothing. Find out which. - Come as you are. Leave as you were meant to be. - Come broken. That's actually the point. - The empty tomb means your story isn't over. - He beat death. Your excuses can take the day off. - You're not unwelcome here. We genuinely want you here. -