First person: Don’t let 2027 be the same blur of church busyness

Understatement: November and December are a blur for church communicators.

Thanksgiving plans. Christmas services. Special events. Endless graphics, emails, social posts, and last-minute requests. Everyone has something important to communicate, and somehow, it all becomes your responsibility.

You love the church. You want to help. But somewhere between the Christmas Eve announcement and the next ministry request, you wonder if all this communication is actually accomplishing anything.

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Here’s the uncomfortable truth: Your church may not have a communication problem. It may have a clarity problem.

And 2027 doesn’t need to be more of the same. Whew!

More content won’t fix confused communication

Most churches aren’t struggling to produce content; they’re struggling to connect it to their audience.

Every ministry has something to promote. Every event has a deadline. Every leader has a message they want people to hear. And I’ve learned that whoever comes up with the idea believes it’s the most important. The result? A steady stream of announcements that compete for attention without building a recognizable story.

Random acts of content

I call it “random acts of content.” SPOILER: They don’t work for long.

People may remember your Christmas program, your sermon series, or your next event. But do they understand what makes your church meaningful to them? Can they explain why someone in your community should take a closer look? If everything matters, nothing stands out.

The answer isn’t another communication channel, a bigger content calendar, or working longer hours. It’s getting clear about what matters most.

3 ways to prepare your church for 2027

CAUTION: You don’t need to add another overwhelming project to your holiday schedule. So, start small. Use your Christmas season to learn, so you can act later for the New Year.

1. Evaluate what people actually understand

Don’t just review analytics. Instead, ask members, recent guests and people outside your church what they believe your church is known for. Their answers may surprise you. What you intend to communicate and what people actually understand aren’t always the same.

2. Discover your brand rhread

Your thread is the central idea that connects your church’s message with the people you’re called to reach. It’s the meaningful thing you want your church to be known for, expressed in 5 words or fewer.

Discovering your thread helps you make better decisions about what to communicate, what to prioritize, and what you can (should) stop doing. It gives every ministry a shared direction without making every ministry identical. We call that repeating the refrain (your thread) while ministries have unique verses.

3. Align your communication around what matters

Once you have clarity of a thread, use it to guide your website, email, social media, ministry promotions and weekly communication process. Instead of letting every ministry compete for attention, help everyone communicate toward the same mission (the refrain).

Remember our simple formula: Say Their Name. Speak Their Pain. Solutions to Proclaim. Show Their Gain. Repeat the Refrain.

When people recognize their needs in your message and understand the difference your church can make, communication becomes more than information. It becomes an invitation.

Permission to prepare, not just produce

Church communicators and pastors, we know November and December are demanding. You don’t have to solve everything before Christmas. But you can decide that 2027 won’t simply be another year of doing more.

Start with clarity. Discover what your church should be known for. Then build a communication strategy that helps people understand why it matters.

Let’s make 2027 the year your church communicates with greater clarity, consistency and purpose. All for the sake of the gospel.

Be clear, be known, help somebody take their next step.