BOOST BIBLE READING PLAN SUCCESS IN YOUR CHURCH
By the Church Base Team ┃Read time: 4.5 minutes
With a new year comes New Year’s resolutions. The people in our lives (perhaps even us) list goals and dreams we hope to accomplish in the coming 365 days.
For many people in a faith community, this often includes a recommitment to discipleship, prayer, and Bible reading. Whether it’s to read the Bible in a year, or read for 20 minutes a day, ministry leaders can make a significant difference in the success of their congregants’ Bible reading goals.
So how can you, as a ministry leader, encourage and support your congregants in these resolutions?
Here are just a few ways:
- Create a survey to get a feel for interest.
With your Church Base account, you can create a form through the Community Module to gauge interest. Set up surveys, polls, multiple-choice options, and more! Customize it to fit your congregation.
Here are some ideas for Bible reading plan options:
- Old/New Testament Bible Reading Plan
- Chronological Bible Reading Plan
- Historical Bible Reading Plan
- Read the Gospels in 40 Days Plan
- Book of Common Prayer
- Verse of the Day Bible Reading Plan
- J. Vernon McGee’s Bible Reading Plan
Check out a whole list of options here.
Once you’ve created your form, you can share it right to your website or app, or embed it somewhere else. You’ll be emailed directly when you get responses to your form. You can use this information for your next step.
Additionally, having your church members select a Bible reading plan will boost their chance of follow-through. Did you know that we’re 42% more likely to accomplish a goal if we write it down? Just the action of filling out the form could lead to more successful Bible reading plan participation.
- Post the reading plan on your app and website.
By this point, you should have a pretty good idea of what interests your congregants. You can select one option, a few options, or all the options to promote throughout the year.
The first step is posting the Bible reading plan somewhere accessible to your congregants in their daily lives. They live their life on-the-run, so it’s helpful to have their preferred reading plan where they can easily find it.
We recommend you post it on your website (free with Church Base) and your branded church app (also free with Church Base). The Content Module makes it quick and efficient to publish your Bible reading plans—just click one button and the content is everywhere at once.
- Send daily/weekly encouragement texts and notifications.
As we get distracted and busy, we often need reminders to continue on the path. That’s where you come in.
Thanks to Church Base’s SMS texting option, you can send out daily, weekly, or occasional reminders to your congregants—spurring them on in their discipleship. Whether it’s an encouragement or a snippet of the daily reading, you can send a heartfelt thought to your church members right where they’re at.
But more than that, Church Base also offers push notifications through the app. Once you’ve created your free church app, and encouraged church members to download it, you can send out reminders and encouragement through your app. This is a nice option if you hope to boost your app engagement.
Through SMS and push notifications, you can provide the structure and encouragement the people in your congregation most likely need in their Bible reading plan.
- Use group chats for small group participation.
Who says Bible reading needs to be a solo activity?
Through group chats (available through your church app), each small group leader can facilitate conversations within their group. People can send their favorite verse from the daily reading, organize a prayer or reflection on the Bible passage, or plan to meet up to read the Bible together.
Group participation also adds a level of accountability. Studies show that making a decision to pursue a goal will have a success rate of 10-25%. Making a plan increases that rate to 50%. But when we tell someone else about our goal, we have a 65% chance of meeting that goal.
Accountability is an invaluable part of a Bible reading plan, and with Church Base, you have the tools to provide it.
Begin your Bible reading plan campaign today!
Around 58% of Christians wish they read the Bible more. We encourage you to take advantage of this inspiring time to dig more deeply into discipleship. Your congregation will appreciate the effort you put into supporting and encouraging them in their Bible reading plan.
Get Started with Church Base to boost Bible reading plan success in your church.