6 to Seek Out in 2023

I love meeting new people, especially people that inspire and encourage me. And every year I try to connect, meet and learn from new people. As I am constantly meeting others and learning from them, I like to highlight them to others. That is why, ever since 2016, I have been highlighting some of those people each year that I think you should follow and learn from on social media. They are people/groups I've learned a lot from. You can find the previous years here: 2016 , 2017   2018 , 2019, 2020 , 2021  and 2022. 

My past criteria for this list is two-fold. For starters, these people have to be involved in Church Communications, Social Media, Student or Family Ministry or Online Ministry. Secondly, they also need to be producing great content on a consistent basis. And that's it. It's pretty simple but those are the important aspects of my criteria. This year I am highlighting a group of people and their podcasts. All of the people highlighted have an emphasis on online ministry in some way. 

In addition, Jeff Reed highlighted a He Gets Us Campaign that you and your Church can be part of. Click here for more info on that.

So, in NO particular order, here are the top 6 to seek out in 2023: 

Jeff Reed and The Church Digital Podcast. Yes, I have highlighted Jeff Reed before, but Jeff has taken on new responsibilities since COVID hit thus making him a MUST FOLLOW. As the founder of The Church Digital, the Director of Metaverse Church NEXT, Leadership Network and the Digital/Metaverse Regional Director, NewThing Network, Jeff has a ton of insights and connections to what is on the horizon with online ministry. It's great to hear him interact with his guests and share insights in online ministry.

Andy Mage , Mark Lutz and the Online Church Blueprint. This new podcast is your “how to” show for all things digital and online church. Hosts Andy Mage and Mark Lutz will be giving you tips, tricks, and best practices for online church services, digital small groups, discipleship, and anything else you can think of. Both have tons of online ministry experiences and this podcast will be a great one for you as you seek to learn how to best minister to others online.

Joey Santos , Jason Morris and Digital Pastor Community. Joey and Jason have been part of online ministry for years. They know what it is like to be an Online Pastor and can offer encouragement and support. Jason served as an Online Minister and now currently works with Resi. Joey coaches Digital Pastors. 

Stuart McPherson , Michael Uzdavines and Metaverse Church. Metaverse ministry got a huge kickstart when Facebook changed it's name to Meta and invested billions of dollars into VR in 2021. While people have been doing ministry in the metaverse for a while now, it is still relatively new. That is why Stuart and Michael have a podcast dedicated to how to do ministry effectively in the metaverse.

Jon Pyle and Better on the Inside. Jon podcasts regularly about how to work for a church without losing your soul. He also has a Facebook Group called, " Better on the Inside " where Jon encourages the community share their stories and encourage each other in their spiritual journeys. 

Hector Martinez , Sarah Kinzer and Pocket Pulpit Podcast. Hector and Sarah co-host a fantastic podcast about social media ministry. What is it and how can you do it very effectively? They bring in guests every episode as they talk about best practices in social media ministry.