In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Pete Mitchell is joined by Ed Stetzer and Corey Alderin for a conversation on artificial intelligence, church planting, and how pastors can use new tools without losing what matters most.

Ed shares why AI can help smaller churches and church planters multiply their message, especially when they do not have the same staff, budget, or media team as larger churches. Corey, founder and CEO of Sermon Shots, explains how AI can help churches repurpose sermon content for social media while still keeping humans in the loop.

Together, they talk about the opportunities and dangers of AI in ministry, why content creation requires wisdom and caution, and how church leaders can think carefully about what should and should not be handed over to technology.

The conversation also explores how AI may level the playing field for smaller churches, how it can help leaders work more effectively, and why the church has a unique opportunity to lead the conversation on what it means to be human in an increasingly technological age.

If you are a church planter, pastor, or ministry leader trying to understand how AI fits into the future of ministry, this episode will help you think practically, carefully, and missionally.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Sermon Shots

NewBreed Training

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In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones and Pete Mitchell return to the “church planter diary” format with a real-time update from The Abbey.

Peyton shares what happened on a Sunday when almost everything looked like it was working against them: most of the core team was gone, the room was smaller than usual, a disruptive visitor came in, and Peyton had very little left in the tank after a difficult week.

But instead of becoming a throwaway Sunday, it became one of the most powerful gatherings The Abbey has experienced so far.

Peyton unpacks how the church leaned into open testimony, interactive teaching, Psalm 131, prayer, and honest participation from the whole room. The conversation highlights why church planting can’t be reduced to attendance numbers, polished services, or perfect conditions. Sometimes the most meaningful moments happen when leaders are weak, the room is small, and the Holy Spirit is given space to work.

If you are a church planter who has ever felt discouraged by a low-attendance Sunday, an unexpected disruption, or your own exhaustion, this episode is a reminder that Jesus can still meet his people powerfully in the middle of it.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Simplify Church: simplifychurch.com

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones is joined by Andrea Jones and Pamela Nelson for a conversation on ministry burnout, emotional health, and the inner life of a leader.

Pamela brings her experience as a pastor, biblical counselor, coach, and spiritual director to help church planters recognize the warning signs they often ignore: anxiety, numbness, overwork, isolation, unprocessed grief, and the pressure to keep performing when their soul is running on empty.

Together, they talk about why emotional health is not optional for leaders, how identity can become tangled up in ministry success, and why pastors need safe people, honest confession, rhythms of rest, and space to bring hidden beliefs into the light.

The conversation also gets personal as Peyton reflects on his own experience with exhaustion, anxiety, and the cost of pushing too hard for too long. If you are planting, leading, or carrying the weight of ministry, this episode is an invitation to slow down, pay attention to your soul, and let God restore what has been depleted.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Pamela Nelson: pamelanelson.org

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones and Pete Mitchell introduce a new “church planter diary” style conversation where they discuss personal updates in the field of disciplemaking.

Peyton gives an update on The Abbey, the church plant he is leading in Carlsbad, and shares what God has been doing through house gatherings, a new meeting space, team leadership, Sunday discussion groups, communion, micro-testimonies, and everyday disciple-making in the neighborhood.

The conversation unpacks what it looks like to plant a church that is not just built around a Sunday service, but around people being formed, equipped, and released into mission where they already live. Peyton also talks about using Discipology in the church to pair people off, strengthen disciple-making, and help believers step into their own “micro mission.”

If you are a church planter trying to build from the ground up, rethink Sunday gatherings, train leaders, and mobilize everyday believers, this episode gives you a real-time look at the messy, practical, and encouraging work of planting from the trenches.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Simplify Church: simplifychurch.com

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones sits down with Dr. Michael Cooper to talk about his new book, Gods, Emperors, Philosophers, and a New Movement.

Building on his work in Ephesiology, Michael explores how archaeology helps us better understand the early church, the spread of the gospel, and the world Paul and the first Christians inhabited. From Ephesus to Laodicea, they discuss house churches, public gathering spaces, Christograms, the Hall of Tyrannus, and the evidence of Christian movement in the first centuries.

The conversation also challenges church planters to think beyond simple church growth formulas and recover the kind of patient, contextual, culturally engaged mission we see in the New Testament. The early church adapted to real places, engaged real people, and took the time to make disciples who could carry the gospel into new spaces.

If you want to understand first-century mission, think more deeply about church planting, and learn how history and archaeology can sharpen disciple-making today, this episode is for you.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Gods, Emperors, Philosophers, and a New Movement

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones and Pete Mitchell put on the tinfoil hats and talk through aliens, AI, faith, science, and why none of it has to shake a biblical view of the world.

The conversation moves from UFO files and government disclosures to C.S. Lewis, quantum physics, angels, demons, creation, evolution, and the way people interpret evidence based on the assumptions they already bring to it. Peyton and Pete wrestle with why Christians don’t need to panic every time a new headline claims it will “change the way we read the Bible.”

Instead, they point leaders back to a grounded faith that can think clearly, ask honest questions, and stay rooted in Scripture while engaging the strange and confusing conversations happening in culture.

If you’re a church planter trying to lead people through a world of AI-generated content, conspiracy theories, spiritual confusion, and big questions about reality, this episode will help you think with more clarity and confidence.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones and Pete Mitchell talk about why most churches never multiply—and why the issue usually starts long before a church is ready to plant again.

Peyton explains that churches can do a lot of things right and still fail to multiply if they are not mobilizing people on mission. Instead of building everything around Sunday gatherings, leaders need to slow down, invest in people, call out gifts, and help everyday believers take real steps into disciple-making.

The conversation unpacks the difference between addition and multiplication, why mobilization has to come first, and how pastors can begin creating a culture where people are equipped, sent, and ready to lead others.

If you want your church to move beyond gathering people and start multiplying disciples, this episode will help you focus on what matters most.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Simplify Church: simplifychurch.com

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.

In this episode of the Church Planter Podcast, Peyton Jones and Pete Mitchell are joined by Luke Mitchell for a special pop-culture episode on The Mandalorian and Grogu.

After seven years without a Star Wars movie in theaters, they break down what worked, what didn’t, and whether this film helped bring Star Wars back. From Mando’s upgraded fighting skills to Grogu’s loyalty, puppet effects, deep-cut Easter eggs, and the long shadow of The Last Jedi, this conversation is full of honest reactions, ridiculous banter, and plenty of Star Wars nerding out.

If you love Star Wars, church planter humor, or just want to hear Peyton and Pete argue about huts, puppets, and whether Grogu is better than CGI, this one is for you.

Resources and Links Mentioned in this Episode:

Simplify Church: simplifychurch.com

NewBreed Training

Thanks for listening to the Church Planter Podcast. We’re here to help you go where no one else is going and do what no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching.

Make sure to review and subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast service to help us connect with more church planters.