TL;DR: Digital Ministry News Recap 

This edition of the Digital Ministry Journal recaps news of interest to the digital ministry community, with a theme of stewardship. Smart Church Management shares insights on accepting cryptocurrency donations. Parable shares risks from using popular cash-moving apps for accepting church donations. Worship Facility shares a take on a large church’s decision to stop live streaming. Finally, ChurchTrac demonstrates use of ChatGPT for streamlining ministry tasks.

Accepting Cryptocurrency Donations

Smart Church Management shares “How To Accept Cryptocurrency Donations For Churches” (7-minute read) outlining legal, tax, and security considerations as well as risks and benefits for U.S. churches accepting crypto donations. The article includes a “Crypto and Bitcoin 101” podcast (22-minute listen), to give readers a basic understanding of cryptocurrency. This article is significant for ministries that serve younger givers.

Using Cash-Moving Apps

ICYMI, Parable shared “The dangers of using Cash App, Zelle, and Venmo for churches“ (6-minute read) which discussed the pitfalls of using popular cash-moving apps for Church donations. Concerns raised include auditability, increased risks of theft, and problematic tax implications. The article advocates using dedicated church-giving platforms to enhance security and administrative efficiency, with a link to recommended platforms for different sized churches, circa 2024.

To Live Stream Or Not…

Worship Facility shares “Is Live Streaming Still Necessary for Your Church?” (4-minute read) exploring the ongoing relevance of live streaming for churches. It discusses a large Portland church's decision to cease live streaming to reduce digital distractions and promote in-person attendance. The article includes various viewpoints on whether live streaming should continue, highlighting its benefits for those unable to attend due to illness or distance, and its potential downsides like reduced community engagement and high operational costs. Finally, it offers questions for churches to consider when deciding their live streaming strategy.

ChatGPT For Streamlining Ministry Tasks

ChurchTrac shares “ChurchTrac Livestream - 4/10/2024: Chat GPT for Churches” (58-minute watch), highlighting how ChatGPT can be used for streamlining tasks across various church roles, including sermon preparation, administrative work, and social media management. Demonstrations include generating content for Facebook posts from sermon outlines, creating children’s ministry lesson plans and crafting donation request scripts to aid in fundraising.

Closing

Thank you for your time. We trust that this information was useful. Please consider sharing via the links at the top of the post. Finally, please take our brief Reader Satisfaction Survey to help us understand how to serve you better. Thanks and be blessed.

Disclosures

In the interest of “shunning the appearance of evil” resulting from undisclosed relationships and/or potential conflicts of interest, we disclose our relationship(s) with the providers mentioned.