UU Video Sermon Survey – still collecting data

Thanks to the congregations who have completed the UU Video Sermon Survey so far.  If you are filming and sharing videos please take the survey. The more responses the better.  Thanks! Peter

Happy Thanksgiving and a question

Friends, have a great Thanksgiving.  The UU Growth Blog is powering down until next week…

I’ll leave you with the following video message from the Rev. Michael McGee of our Arlington, VA congregation, and this question.

What would happen if you purchased one of those tiny Flip Video video cameras,  tripod, and periodically recorded an abbreviated message based on one of your sermons?

What if you recorded a simple video each week stating what the upcoming sermon was going to be about – yeah, you need to know first — and invited people to come to church?

Maybe even share the videos via youtube and a church facebook fan page.

I wonder if  you’d start to turn your church inside out.   Hey, that just so happens to be what I’m talking to Rev. Nate Walker about in the episode #2 of the UU Growth Podcast, coming soon to a pod near you.

Episode #1 of UU Growth Podcast will be “Creating the Sanctuary Without Walls”

The podcast may not be set up yet, but the guests are lining up.  Tomorrow I record the first episode with guest June Herold.  She is one of the masterminds behind the Arlington, VA congregation’s website.

Take a look at the site — social networking, video, blogs.  June talks about it as a sanctuary without walls.

From what I understand it is a massively customized ning based site.  I want to know how hard it was to customize – can you and I do it or do you need to be a social media ninja / rocket scientist?  Also, what has the impact of the new site been?  And what does June recommend smaller congregations do with their websites.

What would you like to ask June?

UU Growth Talk Radio

As I’ve been doing research into what different congregations, leaders/ministers are doing I’m struck by how much passion and talent we have in our movement.  That and how far behind we are in using technology and learning from our most talented people.

I love that the UUA has had audio DVDs and online audio of essays for leaders, the Drive Time Essays.  Revisiting this  — it came up in a couple web searches for resources — it has left me hungry for more talk with minister/leaders.  But not so much the voice actor reading a polished essay.  I want live, honest talk with our leadership.  More of a talk show / podcast with leadership.

Those who are growing congregations need to be heard.
Those who want to grow need support and mentoring.

Here’s what I’m going to do.  I have a couple of people I’ve lined up to talk to about media, technology and growth.  Instead of a private call I’m going to invite them to conduct our conversation like an hour “UU Growth Talk Radio” show…  Its not live, there are no callers (yet).  But the call can be recorded and shared for almost no cost.  Just our time.

Not sure what I’m talking about?  Years ago when I was working more exclusively with small group ministry I did this with the Rev. Glenn Turner. The result was an audio CD as this was pre-pod.  It has since been placed online. You can listen to this interview here.

Do you like the idea of a UU Growth podcast / talk radio show?  If so, who would you want to be interviewed?

I’d love to talk with…

• Rev. Peter Morales, our new UUA president, on the urgency of growth
• Ministers and lay leaders of previously identified breakthrough congregations
• the people behind the Arlington, VA congregation’s website
• Ministers who are doing great things with media like Rev. Nate Walker and Rev. Tony Lorenzen
• Rev. Christine Robinson and others working with multi-site congregations
• Volunteer, part-time and full time membership coordinators

Who would you like interviewed?  Also, if you have something great to share / teach others related to UU growth and leading amazing congregations,  speak up. Volunteer.  We need far more voices in the UU growth conversation.

3 days, 12 ministers, 1 conversation – UU Growth

Once upon a time the UUA’s Growth Team invited twelve UU ministers to talk to each other about their congregational growth. The Rev. Alice Mann of the Alban Institute was invited facilitate. For  three days participating ministers reflected upon six questions – these are listed over each video below. Though a couple years old, this is still worth a watch. Enjoy and let me know what you think.

1) Listening to Experience – Introduction

2) Listening to Experience – Q1 What draws people? part 1

3) Listening to Experience – Q1 What draws people? part 2

4) Listening to Experience – Q2 What is your role as minister?

5) Listening to Experience – Q2 What is your role as minister? part 2

6) Listening to Experience – Q3 Help on the spiritual journey?

7) Listening to Experience – Q4 What needs to be in place for growth?

Listening to Experience – Q5 Helps and Hindrences Part 1

9) Listening to Experience – Q5 Helps and Hindrences Part 2

2009 UUA Membership Statistics

The following summary statistics are from the UU  World magazine  article Membership growth in UUA slows down (5.11.09). Also available as MP3 – listen now.

February 2009 Statistics

Member congregations
1,050 – no net change from previous year

UUA adult members (including international congregations)
164,656 members, down 74 members from previous year

UUA adult members (U.S. only)
159,732 members, up 28 members from previous year

According to the UU World article, “the previous year the UUA grew by 0.7 percent, or 1,099 members, in the United States. In the past five years U.S. membership increases have ranged from 851 to 1,812 annually.”

The Rev. Harlan Limpert says this may be due to congregations cleaning up their membership data.

Book of the month: The Almost Church Revitalized

I really like the idea of a book of the month.  Why not let you know what I’m reading and invite discussion?  That’s it. Its official!

The “UU Growth Blog Book of the Month” for December 2009 is  The Almost Church Revisited, by Michael Durall.  Perfect for some inspired action come the new year.  This title is not a reworking of the original Almost Church but an entire new edition.

You can order it from the UUA Bookstore here or directly through Durall’s Vital Congregations website with great discounts for bulk orders.

Have ideas for a future book of the month?  Comment below.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. A Public or a Private Church?

Chapter 2. Why Unitarian Universalism Hasnít Grown and How To Turn That Around

Chapter 3. Leadership Makes It or Breaks It

Chapter 4. Creating Committed Members: New Ideas, Lasting Results

Chapter 5. Focus on Things That Are Important

Chapter 6. Making the Annual Pledge Drive Obsolete

Chapter 7. Five Helpful Heresies

Afterword: My Plea to Unitarian Universalism

New blog from Almost Church author Michael Durall

Michael Durall

Today I learned that Michael Durall (website), parish consultant and author, has a new blog.  Titled “Ten Minutes Or Less“  Durall describes the blog as featuring “Helpful hints for busy clergy and lay leaders. Readers are welcome to add their own ideas about things that work well in church.”

As someone focused on helping our congregations learn, evolve and meet the ministry challenges of the 21st century, I have been a fan of Durall’s for years.  Now I don’t always agree with him,   but I absolutely love that he does his best to hold a mirror up to our congregations, challenges us to do better, and calls on us to take our congregations where few  UU congregations have gone before.

From the conversations I’ve had UUs love his work, hate it, and everything in-between.  This is great. I love challenging purposeful debate. Without a doubt Durall’s writing gets us talking and reflecting.

For this  reason I highly recommend subscribing to Durall’s blog.

You may visit and read the blog at http://www.tenminutesorless.blogspot.com/ or, if you use a blog or RSS reader, subscribe to it here.

Do you know of other blogs that UU Growth Blog readers would appreciate?  If so, please comment and share links below.

I will be sharing thoughts on Durall’s latest title Almost Church Revitalized: Envisioning the Future of Unitarian Universalism over the next month.  In fact, wouldn’t it be fun to identify UU growth oriented books we can read each month.  Sort of a UU Growth Book of the Month Club?

UU Video Sermon Survey, How are you filming and sharing services?

Welcome to the 2009 UU Video Sermon Survey!

Friends, I’ve been getting a growing number of questions from congregations either video taping their sermons or thinking about it.

2009 UU Video Sermon Survey

They want to know how  others congregations are doing this. What gear? What video sharing service? You get the point.

I’ve set up a form so  you can  share  your congregation’s approach, gear, and sharing strategies with us.

Public Results
All results are visible to the public.  There is a place to list your name and email, but this is OPTIONAL  Again, its all public. Only tell us what you want the entire Universe to know.

Take the Survey
http://www.tinyurl.com/2009uuvideosurvey

Share the Survey
Please help spread the word about this.  Its a smaller number (though growing) of congregations video taping sermons. If you have a colleague or friend working on this, send them the link.  You can also click here to share this post using any of the top social networks and bookmarking services. You can also just cut and paste the following URL into your Facebook status to link to this post:
http://wp.me/pFKTX-a5

Processing Results
When it seems like the results are in, I’ll digest and share the results  here and with Don Skinner of the UUA’s Interconnections e-newsletter and tipsheet blog and Shelby Meyeroff, primary author of the UUA’s new media blog.

Get posts via EMAIL

I’ve had a few growth oriented UUs who aren’t using blog/rss readers ask for a way to keep in this blog’s loop.  Ask and you shall receive!  I’ve set it up so you can get posts from the UU Growth Blog via email. You may also follow me (and get notification of new posts) via Facebook and Twitter.