What Is Digital Ministry? (Your Church Is Probably Already Doing It)

Digital ministry is any time your church uses online tools to do the work of the church. That's it, that's the whole definition... and once you have it, you start seeing digital ministry everywhere, including in the things your church already does every single week.

Quick question: when you hear digital ministry, what pops into your head first? If it was the livestream (and maybe the sermon video on Facebook), you are in very good company. That's where most of our brains go: livestream, end of story.

Here's the thing: digital ministry is so much bigger than that, like potluck-table bigger, where people keep bringing crockpots and somehow there's still room for more. And I'd bet a whole tray of casserole that your church is already doing more of it than you think.

What Is Digital Ministry?

Let me tell you about a church I consulted with a while back. Wonderful people, super dedicated, the kind of church volunteers who have been holding things together for years. And early on they told me, "Oh no, we don't do digital ministry. We don't livestream."

I just nodded... because I knew what was coming. As we kept talking, they mentioned their weekly email newsletter. Their Facebook announcements. The text chain their deacon runs for prayer requests. Oh, and the Zoom Bible study they ran all winter, because half the group goes to Florida.

I laughed right along with them, because that is digital ministry.

So here's my go-to definition: digital ministry is any time you use online tools to do the work of the church. If you like a fancier version, it's the intersection of ministry and technology. Same thing, more syllables.

If it happens online and it helps you connect, care, or create meaningful moments with your people, it counts.

What Counts as Digital Ministry? Real Examples From a Church Week

Digital ministry looks like a lot of ordinary things. It's the Facebook or Instagram post reminding people about Sunday. It's the Zoom Bible study where someone will always, always try to talk while they're muted (it still counts). It's the Instagram story of the altar flowers, given in memory of someone very special. It's the Monday or Tuesday text that says, "Hey, missed you in worship. You okay?" It's even the late-night email with the subject line test, because nobody is sure the mailing list still works.

That one counts too. :-)

And it's rarely only the livestream. By 2023, 75% of congregations offered online worship, up from 45% before the pandemic, according to the Hartford Institute's EPIC study. And churches are running so much more than the stream: virtual small groups, Zoom prayer meetings, Facebook birthday shoutouts, Google Forms for VBS signups, and Instagram posts from confirmation Sunday. Streaming is one slice. Digital ministry is the whole pie (and yes, I will keep using food metaphors, because I'm a church person and everything eventually comes back to food).

Why Digital Ministry Matters

The point of all of this is care. Digital ministry is how your church stays connected with people and makes sure they know they matter, all week long.

Accessibility is a big part of that. Online tools can make worship more accessible for people with mobility challenges or disabilities, and that is no small thing. For someone who can't physically get into your building, a livestream with captions is the difference between being included and feeling shut out.

It can be small, too: uploading the sermon audio as a podcast so someone can listen on their commute, or posting sermon notes online so the mom with three kids can catch up on Wednesday night after bedtime.

And let's talk money for a second. In the Ministry Brands 2024 State of Church Giving Report, churches that offered online giving saw donations grow 3.5% in a year, compared with 1.7% at churches with no online giving. More than double! A big part of that is how easy the path gets: click, give, done. That's digital ministry too, removing friction and making it simple for people to connect and support their church.

Here's a reflection question to sit with: what's one way you could make it easier for someone outside your building to still feel like they belong?

What If Your Church Feels Behind on Digital Ministry?

I hear this one all the time: "Leslie, our church is way too far behind to ever catch up." And every time, my answer is the same. You're not behind, and you are definitely not the only one.

When One Eighty Digital audited 2,725 churches in one denomination across an entire state, 46% had no website at all. Plenty of others have one that still says something like Join us for Easter 2017 (listen, we've all been there, the website is always the last thing to get updated). In that same audit, only 35% of churches counted as digitally healthy.

So if your church has been feeling behind, you have plenty of company. Where to focus your energy first is a whole conversation of its own, and it's exactly what I cover in You Are Not Behind on Church Communications.

Does Digital Ministry Replace In-Person Church?

Let's clear up the elephant in the Zoom room. Some people still worry that digital ministry is meant to replace in-person church. It isn't, and the research backs that up: in a 2022 Barna survey, 40% of Christians said they'd be unlikely to attend if the internet became their church's only gathering place.

Digital ministry extends in-person church. Sunday is the big family meal, and digital ministry is all the little snacks in between: the midweek coffee, the quick thinking-of-you text, the recipe swap on Facebook, the posts and emails that keep people connected all week long.

So here's the big takeaway: you are ALREADY doing digital ministry, you just might not have called it that yet. Once you name it, you can see it... and once you see it, you can build on it.

Frequently Asked Questions About Digital Ministry

What is digital ministry?

Digital ministry is any time a church uses online tools to do the work of the church. That includes the livestream, and it also includes email newsletters, social media posts, prayer chain texts, Zoom Bible studies, online giving, and any online moment that helps a church connect, care, or create meaningful moments with its people.

Is digital ministry just livestreaming?

No. Livestreaming is one slice. Churches that stream their services are often also running virtual small groups, Zoom prayer meetings, Facebook announcements, online signups and email newsletters, and all of that is digital ministry.

What are some examples of digital ministry?

A social media post reminding people about Sunday, a Zoom Bible study, an Instagram story of memorial altar flowers, a "missed you in worship" text, sermon audio posted as a podcast, captions on a livestream, and online giving are all examples of digital ministry.

Is digital ministry necessary for traditional churches?

For a lot of people, it's how they stay connected to their church at all. Online tools can make worship more accessible for people with mobility challenges or disabilities, help busy families catch up on a sermon, and make giving easier. Many traditional churches are already doing digital ministry through newsletters, prayer chains and Facebook, without calling it that.

Does digital ministry replace in-person worship?

No. Digital ministry extends in-person church by keeping people connected between Sundays. In a 2022 Barna survey, 40% of Christians said they'd be unlikely to attend if the internet became their church's only gathering place.

Where should a church start with digital ministry?

Start by naming what you already do. Walk through a normal week and list every email, post, text and online signup. Once you can see it, you can build on it. Where to focus your energy next is covered in You Are Not Behind on Church Communications.

My question for you: what's one thing your church does every week that you never thought of as digital ministry until now?