Party With the Pastor: The Fun Way to Connect New People

Party With the Pastor: The Fun Way to Connect New People

What are your first-time guests talking about on the drive home? Pastor Victor Ehiemere says his entire goal is to "hijack the conversation on the way home," and it's one of the biggest reasons The Well Church has grown so fast. In this episode of the Build the Church Podcast, host Josh Roberie sits down with Pastor Victor Ehiemere, a trained medical doctor turned church planter who leads The Well Church in Maryland. Since launching in 2022 with around 470 people, The Well has grown to 1,300 to 1,400 every weekend, with 2,800 this past Easter, largely because they've become experts at connecting first-time guests and helping them take a next step. At the center of it all is a simple, fun idea Victor calls "Party With the Pastor." If you've ever struggled to move people from the crowd into your Growth Track, next-steps class, or small groups, this conversation will give you a practical, repeatable strategy you can start using right away. In this episode, you'll learn: How to "hijack the conversation" so guests talk about your church all the way home What a "Party With the Pastor" is, and the exact 15-minute (5-5-5) formula that makes it work Why Victor tells his church, "We're here more for the first-time guests than we are for you" How to naturally feed your Growth Track every single month without begging people to sign up The in-person and online "feeder" systems that get guests to the party (cards, texts, personalized videos) Why "nothing makes a person stick to a church more than finding a friend" How a doctor from Nigeria ended up planting one of the fastest-growing churches around This is a masterclass in church connection, guest follow-up, and assimilation for pastors, church planters, and ministry leaders who want people to move from attending to belonging. About our guest: Pastor Victor Ehiemere is the lead pastor of The Well Church in Maryland, which he planted with his wife, Pastor Amby. He's a trained medical doctor, a communicator, and the creator of resources to help people take their next step of faith. 🔗 The Well Church: https://www.mywellchurch.com [https://www.mywellchurch.com/] ▶️ Pastor Victor TV (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/@victorehiemere [https://www.youtube.com/@victorehiemere] Resources mentioned in this episode: This episode is brought to you by Your Team Church, an online personality and spiritual gifts assessment that's fun to take and easy to administrate. Get your own branded URL so people can scan a QR code in your next-steps class and get matched to a team. Take it free, or try the full platform free for 30 days: 👉 https://yourteam.church/disc [https://yourteam.church/disc] ⏱️ Chapters (adjust timestamps to your final edit) 00:00 Intro 00:00 From medical doctor to church planter 00:00 The Well Church's growth story 00:00 Why they're obsessed with connection 00:00 What is "Party With the Pastor"? 00:00 The 15-minute formula (5-5-5) 00:00 Hijacking the conversation on the way home 00:00 The feeder systems: cards, texts, and personal videos 00:00 Following up into Growth Track and groups 00:00 Why finding a friend is everything 00:00 Pastor Victor TV and next-step resources Connect with Build the Church: 🌐 Website: https://www.buildthe.church [https://www.buildthe.church/] 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/build-the-church/id1637368624 [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/build-the-church/id1637368624] 🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5evaiz9zBcH34YeFAeh5Gw [https://open.spotify.com/show/5evaiz9zBcH34YeFAeh5Gw] 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buildthe.church/ [https://www.instagram.com/buildthe.church/] If this episode helped you, subscribe and share it with a pastor who needs it. Let's build the church together. #churchconnection #churchgrowth #firsttimeguests #growthtrack #churchplanting #pastors #ministry #nextsteps #assimilation #buildthechurch #guestexperience #discipleship Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1976889/support]

101 Simple Outreach Ideas for Churches (Many Are Free!) with Dave Thomas

People can doubt your faith and disagree with your theology, but they can't deny it when you're serving them. In this episode, Josh Roberie sits down with Dave Thomas, pastor of Courageous Church in Charleston, SC, to share 101 simple outreach ideas your church can start using today—many of them completely free. You'll hear how one school breakfast transformed an entire church-community relationship, why a single bottle of water led to a changed life, and the best practices every church should follow before serving (including how NOT to get chased by the police). Want the full list plus 101 BONUS ideas? Email josh@build.church [josh@build.church] or DM Josh the word "outreach." Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1976889/support]

Why Your Church Should Be on TikTok with Pastor Chris Moore

"Grandma is on TikTok." And according to Pastor Chris Moore, she might just be the cheapest person your church can reach online. Most churches are completely ignoring TikTok, and according to Pastor Chris Moore, that's exactly why it's one of the cheapest and most fruitful places to reach new people right now. In this episode of the Build the Church Podcast, host Josh Roberie sits down with Chris Moore, ARC church planter, lead pastor of Valley Church in Phoenix, Arizona, and founder of Good and Faithful Studio. Chris pulls back the curtain on the TikTok ad strategies he's used to help churches reach their communities for a fraction of what they're spending on Facebook and Instagram, plus a few "gatekeeping secrets" he's never shared publicly before. If you're a pastor or ministry leader who feels behind on social media, this conversation will give you practical, doable next steps to get the word out about your church. In this episode, you'll learn: Why the cheapest audience to reach on TikTok is actually 50+ (yes, grandma is on TikTok) How Chris's TikTok ads performed 3x better than Meta, with "plan your visit" costs as low as $7 to $11 What makes a scroll-stopping church ad (and why over-producing it can hurt you) The simple daily ad budget sweet spot for the best return on investment Whether your church needs its own TikTok account or can just run ads Why a pastor's personal account often out-performs the church's account The Facebook group strategy Chris used to build an audience of 25,000+ people in his city Chris's wild journey from youth pastor, to selling bulldogs online, to digital marketing About our guest: Pastor Chris Moore is the lead pastor of Valley Church in Phoenix, AZ, and the founder of Good and Faithful Studio, a creative agency providing done-for-you social media, photo, and video for churches. He's also the creator of Blessed Babysitting, a new app helping churches and families book faith-aligned childcare. Good and Faithful Studio: https://goodandfaithful.studio [https://goodandfaithful.studio/] Resources mentioned in this episode: This episode is brought to you by Your Team Church, an online assessment that helps you place every volunteer where they thrive. Create your own branded assessment URL in seconds and give each person a one-of-one personality portrait. Take the test for free at https://yourteam.church/disc [https://yourteam.church/disc] Prefer to watch? Catch the full video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/rHwmKJevnxY [https://youtu.be/rHwmKJevnxY] If this episode encouraged you, subscribe and share it with a pastor who needs it. Let's believe again for what God can do through your church. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1976889/support]

Faith-Based AI from Gloo

In this episode of the Build the Church podcast, host Josh Roberie speaks with Brian Ayers from Gloo about the transformative role of artificial intelligence in ministry. They explore the intersection of AI and human flourishing, discussing research on AI's impact on spiritual growth and the development of tools like Church.tech and Glue AI Chat, designed to empower pastors and enhance their outreach efforts. The conversation emphasizes the importance of aligning AI with Christian values and the potential for technology to support meaningful connections within the church. https://church.tech/ [https://church.tech/] https://chat.gloo.com/api/auth/authorize-anonymous-user?redirect=/ [https://chat.gloo.com/api/auth/authorize-anonymous-user?redirect=/] https://gloo.com/resources/blog/introducing-the-flourishing-ai-benchmark [https://gloo.com/resources/blog/introducing-the-flourishing-ai-benchmark] Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1976889/support]

From Prison to Purpose: Your Story's Not Over with Donnell Mann

In this episode of the Build the Church podcast, host Josh Roberie speaks with Pastor Donnell Mann, who shares his incredible journey from a life of addiction and incarceration to becoming the lead pastor of Your Story Church in Houston. Donnell emphasizes the importance of personal stories, the transformative power of faith, and the role of community in recovery. He discusses the challenges he faced, including serious legal charges and the impact of his past on his family relationships. Through his experiences, Donnell highlights that God is always writing our stories and that hope can be found even in the darkest times. Support the show [https://www.buzzsprout.com/1976889/support]