Hey,
Tyler here.
As we head toward the end of the year, I’ve found myself reflecting on the conversations, projects, and partnerships that have shaped 2025. One thing keeps rising to the surface: deep gratitude.
I’m thankful, but that’s what everyone says these days, right? I wanted to be more specific:
I’m grateful for the churches that have invited us into their mission.
I’m grateful for the leaders we work with who show up every week with courage and creativity.
I’m grateful for this community that believes the local church can thrive in a digital world without losing its heart.
Serving you this year has reminded our whole team why Apollos exists. We aren’t building technology for its own sake. We’re equipping ministries with tools that strengthen discipleship and make space for God to work in people’s everyday lives.
Thank you for trusting us and for letting us walk alongside you. We’re excited for where God is leading your church in the year ahead, and we’re honored to play even a small role in that story.
The Church 3.0 Podcast: Entrepreneurship and the Church
Ministries can learn a lot from business operations. The reverse is true, too.
Luke Dooley, President of Ocean Accelerator and co-founder of Banded, recently joined the Church 3.0 podcast to talk about entrepreneurship principles in the church. What I like about Luke is that he brings practical advice to church operations without losing the humanity and faith that brings us together in the first place.
Luke talks about faith-driven entrepreneurship, digital transformation, and spiritual formation in the same breath. We talked about things like breaking out of hustle culture mindsets and innovating with purpose.
One of my favorite things he shared was a mission-focused shift from MVPs (Minimum Viable Product) to an SLC (Simple. Lovable. Complete.) framework. When we roll out new products and initiatives in the church, we need to give our people complete, impactful experiences, even if they’re simple to start. This is how we build meaningful impact and lasting change from start to end with each initiative.
If you want to hear more, you can hear the full conversation with Luke here:
Maintaining Heart and Vision With Church Technology
I wanted to highlight a pair of articles we posted on church culture a couple of months ago. Both of them focused on how to integrate church technology into a larger faith-focused, mission-driven setting. The takeaway?
Let the technology fit your church, not the other way around.
In How to Maintain Heart and Vision During Church Technology Initiatives, we dig into targeted steps that help you reinforce (and not derail) mission when you bring in a new technology, things like:
What is your “why”?
Consider emotional journeys.
Repurpose, amplify, and be intentional.
In New Church Technology Incoming? Here’s What You Need in Place First, we shift gears from purpose to practicality. We go over what needs to be in place before a rollout — things like process, culture, and time — and provide step-by-step recommendations for your timeline.
Church technology is a powerful tool for the church. But it’s still just a tool. It isn’t meant to take us off course. Look for ways to use your technology to amplify and accelerate your mission-driven calling.
That’s it this time. Keep an eye out for more podcasts, updates, and resources in the weeks ahead.
During one of the busiest times of the year for the church, I just want to say thank you for taking the time to be a partner in the work Apollos is doing and for being an invested part of this community.
Let’s go build the future of the church together.
