The average American now spends more time talking to screens than to neighbors, and a growing number are turning to chatbots for the kind of connection they used to find in a pew, a small group, or a Wednesday night potluck. This isn't a distant cultural trend. It's already shaping who walks into your church on Sunday and what they're hoping to find when they do.

In a recent piece for Gloo, "How Church Leaders Can Lead Faithfully in the Age of AI," Ed Stetzer argues that AI is accelerating the loneliness crisis already reshaping American life, and that AI companions are becoming a thin substitute for the embodied community people were made for. Stetzer, Dean of Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, makes the case that the church's mission hasn't changed because the technology has. Jesus didn't send a message; he came in person, and he sent his disciples to do the same. "As the Father has sent me, I also send you" (John 20:21). The local church remains the one place in our culture offering regular, multi-generational, in-person formation centered on Christ. No app can replicate that. No chatbot can sit with someone in grief, pass them communion, or remember their kid's name three years running.

Here's what's worth sitting with: your people are already using AI, and many of them are quietly substituting it for the relational work that used to happen in the body. They're processing hard questions with a chatbot at midnight instead of bringing them to a friend, a small group, or you. The pastoral opportunity isn't to rail against the technology. It's to name what the church offers that nothing else can, and to help your people feel the difference.

Three things to try this week:

Dave Ferguson on Why "Lead With a Yes" Beats Lead With Control | Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast

In a conversation with Carey Nieuwhof at Exponential, Dave Ferguson (founding pastor of Community Christian and CEO of Exponential) makes the case that the biggest obstacle to multiplication isn't strategy or budget. It's the mixed motives sitting inside pastors: control, fear, and a zero-sum mindset that treats every leader sent out as a loss. Ferguson tells the story of Rick, a salesman in his small group who felt called to start a church for the all-abilities community. Instead of redirecting him, Ferguson's team trained him in ten weeks and commissioned him over a coffee table. Two years later, the church is thriving, and Rick is now mentoring others to do the same. Ferguson's challenge: try leading with a yes. It costs you almost nothing, and it gives your people permission to do what God is already prompting them to do.

This week: Identify one person in your congregation with a quiet dream you've been hesitant to greenlight. Have one conversation. Ask what they'd need to take the first step.

Why Great Leaders Must Embrace the Chaos | Outreach Magazine

Krish Kandiah, founder of Sanctuary Foundation in the U.K., shares what he learned when the Home Office called him to help resettle Afghan refugees after the fall of Kabul. His answer ("the church is everywhere") set off months of chaotic, on-the-ground coordination, and reshaped how he thinks about leadership. His three takeaways are worth chewing on: lead with faith rather than fear, lead with agility rather than activity, and lead with praise rather than criticism. The deeper insight is that polished, systematized leadership often fails in moments of real human need. What people actually need from us is presence, flexibility, and the willingness to head toward the mess rather than away from it.

This week: Name one situation in your community or church where you've been waiting for more clarity before acting. Ask whether the delay is wisdom or avoidance, and take one small step toward the people in the middle of it.

What would you like to see more of? Hit reply and let us know.

You're receiving this because you care about growing healthy churches. Forward this to a fellow pastor who could use some encouragement.