Okay, church communicators, let’s get real. You’re busy. You’re trying to connect with people, share important messages, and keep everything running smoothly. You’ve probably heard about “AI” – Artificial Intelligence – and maybe thought, “That’s for Silicon Valley, not for our church!”
But guess what? Some of the most innovative business leaders in the world are using AI every single day to make their lives easier and get more done. And if it helps them, it can definitely help us in the church!
Think of AI not as some robot overlord, but as a super-smart assistant that can help you with your daily tasks. It’s growing huge (trillions of dollars, seriously! – Business Insider says so), which just means it’s becoming a regular part of how people work. And if people are using it, we should know how it can help us share God’s message better!
Let’s look at how these big-shot CEOs are using AI, and how you can steal their best ideas for your church team:
1. Drowning in Information? AI Can Help You Quickly Understand.
- What big bosses do: Imagine getting a TON of emails or having to read long reports. Guys like Satya Nadella (Microsoft) and Tim Cook (Apple) use AI to summarize everything for them. Instead of reading a 20-page document, they get a quick summary. Sam Altman (OpenAI) utilizes it to comprehend lengthy emails or documents quickly. Even the head of Zillow, Jeremy Wacksman, uses it to catch up on meetings he missed! (Yep, all from Business Insider.)
- How you can use it at church: Think about all the reading you do!
- Newsletter Ideas: Got a long sermon transcript or notes from a church board meeting? Use AI to extract the main points for your weekly email or bulletin. No more sifting through pages!
- Volunteer Info: Need to tell volunteers about a new event or policy? Instead of a super long email, use AI to make a short summary with just the important stuff.
- Quick Research: Wondering what younger people are interested in, or how other churches are reaching out? Ask AI to summarize articles so you can grasp the main idea without reading the entire text.
2. Want to Learn New Things? AI Can Be Your Smart Study Buddy.
- What big bosses do: Jensen Huang (Nvidia) uses AI like a personal tutor. He tells it, “Explain this to me like I’m 12,” and then asks it to explain it in more detail later. He learns new things every day with it! (Business Insider confirmed this.)
- How you can use it at church: Help yourself and your team learn new skills without going back to school!
- Bible Study Help: Need a quick explanation of a Bible story or a theological idea for your social media post or a small group lesson? AI can give you a simple breakdown.
- Tech Support: Stuck trying to figure out a new feature in your website builder or design software? Ask AI to give you step-by-step instructions. It’s like having a tech expert always ready to help!
- Communication Tips: Want to learn new ways to write catchy headlines or make better videos? Ask AI to explain different communication tricks in easy terms.
3. Too Many Small Tasks? AI Can Help You Get More Done.
- What big bosses do: Sam Altman from OpenAI says he uses AI “constantly” for the “boring stuff.” Tim Cook from Apple says it saves him a lot of time every day. These little time-savers really add up!
- How you can use it at church: Imagine having more time for important stuff, like connecting with people, instead of being stuck at your computer!
- Drafting Messages: Need to write a quick announcement, social media post, or even a welcome message? AI can write a first draft for you. Then, you can just add your church’s special touch and make it sound like you!
- Brainstorming Ideas: Can’t think of a good theme for your next sermon series or a fun event for families? Ask AI to give you some ideas to get your creativity flowing.
- Organizing: AI can help suggest hashtags for your social media posts or even help you structure surveys to gather feedback from your church family.
4. Let’s Play! Encourage Your Team to Try New Things with AI.
- What big bosses do: Jeremy Wacksman (Zillow) actually encourages his team to play around with AI. They even have “AI days” to showcase what they learned and celebrate new ways to use it! (Business Insider talks about this too.)
- How you can use it at church: Get your team excited about trying new things!
- “AI Playtime”: Set aside a little time in your team meetings or tell everyone to spend an hour just trying out different AI tools. See what cool things they discover!
- Share What Works: When someone on your team finds a great way to use AI, share it with everyone! It builds excitement and gives others ideas.
- Start Small: Don’t try to change everything at once. Pick one small task, try AI, and see if it helps. If it does, great! If not, try something else.
- Learn Together: Provide simple guides or quick chats about how AI works. Help your team understand what it can and can’t do (it’s not perfect!).
So, What’s Your Next Step with AI at Church?
AI isn’t about replacing the warm, personal touch that makes your church special. It’s about giving you tools to be even better at what you do. It can help you save time, learn new things, and connect with people more effectively.
So, go ahead! Experiment, learn, and use AI to help your church’s message shine even brighter. You’ve got this!
Schedule a free AI Consultation so we can help you get started:
Original Article (where these ideas came from):
Edmonds, L. (2025, June 27). How CEOs are using AI in their daily lives. Business Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/how-ceos-use-ai-apple-tim-cook-openai-sam-altman
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