Ministry At Scale

About Ministry At Scale

The Ministry at Scale Podcast brings you the latest trends, interviews with experts and practical tips to help your ministry multiply it's impact. Brought to you by Five Q a digital agency with a kingdom impact. If you want to know how to grow your ministry in the digital space this podcast is for you.

Publisher

Chad Williams - Five Q

Category

business · religion & spirituality · technology

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

26 Aug 2020

Latest episode

25 Jun 2026

Latest episodes

100 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   25 Jun 2026

   #103 - How Ministries Are Using AI Effectively| Nathan Chappell

   Most nonprofits are using AI — but only 7% are seeing real strategic benefit from it. Nathan Chappell (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanchappell/), Chief AI Officer at Virtuous (https://virtuous.org/) and founder of Fundraising AI (https://fundraising.ai/), has spent years studying what separates the organizations that thrive with AI from those that stall. In this episode, he shares the six-step framework drawn from the 2026 Nonprofit AI Adoption Report (https://virtuous.org/blog/2026-nonprofit-ai-adoption-report/) — and it's more practical than you might expect. Key Takeaways The 7% aren't spending more — they're doing things differently. Out of 346 nonprofits surveyed in Virtuous's 2026 Nonprofit AI Adoption Report, 92% are using AI, but only 7% are seeing major strategic benefit. The difference comes down to six specific, disciplined steps — none of which require a large budget. AI governance isn't a legal document — it's a values document. Nathan makes the case that a lightweight, one-page governance policy is the foundation on which everything else is built. It doesn't constrain your team — it actually frees them to experiment with confidence, knowing where the guardrails are. The human-first framework isn't optional for ministries. Nathan draws a sharp distinction between the "AI first" posture of the private sector (like Shopify) and why that model doesn't work for mission-driven organizations operating in the currency of trust and generosity. Humanity must always be greater than utility. "Human at the helm" replaces "human in the loop." As agentic AI moves autonomously by design, the traditional idea of human review at every step is no longer realistic. Nathan reframes accountability: someone must always be at the helm — responsible for what the AI is doing, even if they aren't approving each action. The biggest mistake leaders are making right now? Treating AI as a line-item tool expense rather than a horizontal enabling layer that reshapes how the entire organization operates. Nathan draws a compelling parallel to the early days of the internet — and where that thinking eventually leads. The AI Olympics experiment at Virtuous. Nathan shares how Virtuous challenged every single employee — not just the engineering team — to build an agentic workflow that would meaningfully improve their job or a customer's. The results? The top submission came from the podcast and marketing team, who automated a full day's worth of post-production work. The lesson: transformation often comes from the most unexpected places. As AI accelerates, the church's moment is coming. As everything becomes faster and more synthetic, Nathan believes people will increasingly ask the deepest human questions — Who am I? Why am I here? What happens when I die? He sees this as a profound opportunity for the church to be exactly what it was built to be: a community rooted in truth. Ready to Move from Experimenting to Thriving? If your ministry is still in the "experimenting with tools" phase of AI, this conversation is your permission — and your roadmap — to go further. Nathan's framework is practical, proven, and built for organizations that lead with mission, not margin. Listen to the full episode and start asking what it would look like to move from experimentation to transformation. RESOURCES Nathan Chappell on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanchappell/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanchappell/) Nathan's Books: - The Generosity Crisis: The Case for Radical Connection to Solve Humanity's Greatest Challenges (https://www.amazon.com/Generosity-Crisis-Connection-Humanitys-Challenges/dp/1394150571) - Nonprofit AI: A Comprehensive Guide to Implementing Artificial Intelligence for Social Good (https://www.amazon.com/Nonprofit-Comprehensive-Implementing-Artificial-Intelligence/dp/139431664X/ref=pd_lpo_d_sccl_1/130-2529423-3456647?pd_rd_w=YBTGR&content-id=amzn1.sym.4c8c52db-06f8-4e42-8e56-912796f2ea6c&pf_rd_p=4c8c52db-06f8-4e42-8e56-912796f2ea6c&pf_rd_r=R1DYE5NSVKSS7178V8S7&pd_rd_wg=TiBeU&pd_rd_r=348263c1-3af5-4761-9961-79d552c751d5&pd_rd_i=139431664X&psc=1) Nathan's Website: https://nathanchappell.com/ (https://nathanchappell.com/) Virtuous: virtuous.org (https://virtuous.org/) — Nathan serves as Chief AI Officer Fundraising AI: https://fundraising.ai/ (https://fundraising.ai/) 2026 Nonprofit AI Adoption Report: Published by Virtuous — includes a downloadable AI governance policy template — https://virtuous.org/blog/2026-nonprofit-ai-adoption-report/ (https://virtuous.org/blog/2026-nonprofit-ai-adoption-report/)

2. 

   19 Jun 2026

   #101 - 115,000 Beliefs Tracked | Matthew Ward

   Most Christians know that they believe — but far fewer can clearly articulate why. Matt Ward, founder and CEO of BeliefTrack (https://www.belieftrack.com/), built a free web-based platform to change that — and what started as a personal faith inventory has grown into a powerful discipleship and leadership vetting tool for churches. In this episode of Ministry at Scale, Chad Williams sits down with Matt to explore how a simple question — "What do I actually believe?" — became a tool that has tracked over 115,000 individual Christian beliefs. Key Takeaways A personal faith journey sparked a ministry-sized tool. Nearly 10 years ago, Matt began wrestling with his own beliefs as a young adult — not what he was taught, but what he could confidently own. That process of honest self-reflection became the foundation for BeliefTrack's nearly 300 theological questions, spanning beginner to advanced doctrine. The confidence rating is one of BeliefTrack's most disarming features. Rather than simply asking "do you believe this?", users rate their confidence on a scale from 1 to 10. It's a simple mechanism that creates honest self-awareness — and opens the door to deeper study, better conversations, and more confident outreach. BeliefTrack has nearly 800 registered users and has tracked approximately 115,000–116,000 individual Christian beliefs — a number Matt says far exceeded his expectations, driven by people's genuine hunger to go deeper with their theology. Churches are using BeliefTrack as a leadership vetting and discipleship tool. The recommended church rollout starts with the pastor crafting their core beliefs, then having leadership go through the same process — creating a transparent, side-by-side comparison that surfaces theological alignment and gaps before someone steps into a teaching role. The platform reveals a surprising reality: congregations aren't as theologically aligned as pastors assume. Matt's experience with users from across denominations shows that even within a single church, meaningful doctrinal diversity exists — particularly on topics like eschatology and inerrancy. BeliefTrack helps pastors see those gaps clearly and respond with targeted discipleship rather than assumptions. AI played a supporting role in refining the platform's questions. As a software engineer, Matt used AI tools to help audit his question bank for unintentional bias — ensuring that users are genuinely guided toward reflection rather than nudged toward a predetermined answer. BeliefTrack is free — and Matt wants to keep it that way for small churches. Church accounts are available now, and the long-term vision is for small churches to always have free access to the platform as a discipleship resource. Does Your Church Know What It Believes? If you've ever wished you had a window into what your congregation actually believes — or if you're a ministry leader wanting to equip your people with tools for deeper theological engagement — this episode is for you. BeliefTrack is the kind of simple, mission-aligned tool that could transform the way your church approaches discipleship. Listen now, then head over to BeliefTrack.com (https://www.belieftrack.com/) to set up your church account and see it for yourself. RESOURCES Connect with Matthew — matt.ward@belieftrack.com (mailto:matt.ward@belieftrack.com) Matthew Ward, Founder and CEO — BeliefTrack (https://www.belieftrack.com/) BeliefTrack YouTube Channel — https://www.youtube.com/@BeliefTrack (https://www.youtube.com/@BeliefTrack) Book Recommendation: Living on Target (https://www.amazon.com/Living-Target-What-Are-Aiming/dp/0979319242) (https://www.amazon.com/Living-Target-What-Are-Aiming/dp/0979319242)— a discipleship book Matt's church is currently using; focuses on prioritizing relationship with Christ, family, church, and the world. Online Resource: Gavin Ortlund / Truth Unites (https://www.youtube.com/@TruthUnites) YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/@TruthUnites) — accessible theological discussions on a wide range of topics Five Q Launch AI — Ready to turn AI experimentation into real ministry impact? Learn more at fiveq.com/launch (https://fiveq.com/launch)

3. 

   19 Jun 2026

   #102 - Better Text Marketing With AI | Aaron Dolton

   What if the content your ministry already has — sitting untouched on a shelf — could reach more people, deepen engagement, and activate brand-new donors, all through a channel with a 98% open rate? In this DMC 2026 (https://digitalministryconference.com/) session, Aaron Dolton (https://www.linkedin.com/in/aarondolton/) of Powered by Text (https://poweredbytext.com/) shares a real-world case study with Jack Graham's PowerPoint Ministries (https://jackgraham.org/) that proves ministry-first strategy doesn't just honor the mission — it funds it. Key Takeaways "Money follows mission" is more than a ministry philosophy — it's a proven fundraising strategy. PowerPoint Ministries built their entire SMS strategy on a 90/10 rule: 90% ministry content, 10% fundraising. The results speak for themselves. Text has an open rate of approximately 98% compared to 20% for email. Aaron unpacks why SMS is one of the most underleveraged channels in ministry today and how delivering existing content through text dramatically changes engagement numbers. Repurposing content you already have is a game-changer for under-resourced teams. PowerPoint Ministries had 30 years of devotional content on the shelf. Powered by Text helped them repackage it for daily SMS delivery — no new content creation required. The results were remarkable. After launching a daily devotional text series, PowerPoint Ministries saw their monthly video views jump from approximately 4,000 to nearly 70,000 — driven solely by a change in delivery channel. Additionally, their average donation via text rose from approximately $80 to approximately $202, and they activated 89 brand-new first-time donors. Their subscriber file grew 27% organically. Without any paid acquisition, the file grew from 60,000 to 76,000 contacts — driven by subscribers sharing devotional content with others. AI-powered sentiment analysis is helping ministries respond to their audiences with greater care and stewardship. Powered by Text is using AI to surface prayer requests, flag urgent responses (including crisis situations), and cleanse subscriber lists — ensuring every dollar spent on outreach is stewarded wisely. Teaching your audience to text — especially older donors — is worth the effort. Aaron shares how a simple video tutorial for PowerPoint Ministries' "Last Seven Words from the Cross" Easter campaign helped even first-time texters engage with confidence. Your Content Is Already Written — Are You Sending It? If your ministry is sitting on years of great content while struggling to reach and retain donors, this episode will show you a better way forward. Aaron's session is a practical, data-grounded reminder that when you lead with mission, the resources follow. Listen now and start thinking differently about the channels you already have access to. RESOURCES Connect with Aaron — https://www.linkedin.com/in/aarondolton/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/aarondolton/) Aaron Dolton — Powered by Text (https://www.poweredbytext.com/) PowerPoint Ministries — jackgraham.org (https://www.jackgraham.org/) Text WISDOM to 59789 to experience a sample monthly devotional series Five Q Launch AI — Ready to turn AI experimentation into real ministry impact? Learn more at fiveq.com/launch (https://fiveq.com/launch)

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