The One Thing

Church buildings and meeting spaces communicate long before anyone hears the sermon. A confusing entrance, poor signage, or awkward gathering areas create unnecessary barriers, while thoughtful spaces can help people feel more relaxed, welcomed, and ready to connect.

In this episode:
Why physical space matters for ministry and hospitality
Common mistakes churches make with arrival, signage, and flow
How spaces can reduce friction and help newcomers feel at ease
Improving connection before and after the service
Quick wins churches can make without major renovations

Toolbox:
Build to Last Ebook 
How to Fund Your Church Building ChurchStarter Booklet

Credits: 
This episode was brought to you by Safe Ministry Check
The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠
To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠
For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠
Support Reach Australia's online library

In this episode, Derek Hanna is joined by Paul Young (planter of Providence Church Bayswater, Perth) to think about how church teams reflect on Sundays, and whether those debrief conversations are actually helping the church grow in mission, or just recycling obvious feedback.
They explore how different churches approach Sunday debriefs, what often goes wrong when they drift into planning or post-mortems, and how teams can use that time more effectively to focus on big-picture strategy, prayer, and gospel priorities.
Rather than tweaking slides or reviewing logistics, Paul argues that this time is best used to step back, pray, and work on the larger questions of mission, growth, and where God is at work in the life of the church.
In this episode:
Why many Sunday debriefs don’t add much value
The risk of turning debriefs into planning meetings or critique sessions
How to shift from details to big-picture strategy and prayer
Questions that help teams focus on mission and gospel growth
How to use shared team time for decisions you can’t make alone
Toolbox:
Dangerous Calling by Paul David Tripp (Chapter on Glory)
The Church by Edmund Clowney
The Church on Mission by Craig Ott
Planting the Word by Erin Crider
Working Genius by Patrick Lencioni

Credits: 
This episode was brought to you by Lending Hands Mortgage Brokers
The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠
To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠
For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠
Support Reach Australia's online library

Church life can get messy quickly. In this episode, Scott Sanders chats with Chris Rooleht about why having a simple serve chart can help bring clarity to ministry, showing who’s doing what, where responsibilities sit, and where people might be carrying too much.
They discuss how serve charts can help churches care for people well, identify gaps in ministry, and plan for the future.
In this episode:
Why every church should have an serve chart
How to spot ministry overload and unclear responsibilities
Practical tools to help you map your teams
Using serve charts to plan for growth, staffing, and church planting
Toolbox:
⁠Lucid Chart⁠
⁠Miro Chart⁠
⁠Guide to Church Staffing by The Unstack Group Blog Post⁠
⁠Contact Us for More Resources⁠

Credits: 
This episode was brought to you by ⁠Exdia⁠
The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠⁠
To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠⁠
For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠
⁠Support Reach Australia's online library⁠

Most staff meetings feel like a drain. Too long, unclear, and full of talk that changes nothing. But what if your weekly meeting could actually strengthen your team, sharpen your culture, and leave people encouraged? 
In this episode, Andrew Mitchell (Executive Pastor at EV Church on NSW's Central Coast) joins Pete Hughes to unpack why great staff meetings are one of the most overlooked leadership tools in ministry, and how to run them well.
• Why the best staff meeting may not be about decisions at all
• How healthy meetings shape culture across the whole church
• A simple framework that creates energy, clarity, and momentum
• The common mistakes that make meetings frustrating and ineffective
• Practical ideas for small teams, not just large churches

Key points: 
Why the main weekly meeting isn’t for making decisions
How to structure a Monday meeting, from lunch to prayer to training
The hidden cost of mixing decision-making with culture-building
Why encouragement and shared stories aren’t optional extras
What smaller teams can actually apply without copying everything

Toolbox:
Andrew Mitchell’s terms of reference staff meeting document 
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
Death By Meeting by Patrick Lencioni
How Do I Create a Culture of Trust In My Team? | Ep 316
Three dysfunctional types of teams and how to fix them | Ep 404
The One Thing Episode 166 – Refresh Your Staff Meetings (Part 1)
The One Thing Episode 167 – Refresh Your Staff Meetings (Part 2)

Credits: 
This episode was brought to you by Safe Ministry Check
The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠
To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠
For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠
Support Reach Australia's online library

The Point Community Church in Port Macquarie, NSW was growing at 10% a year, but barely anyone was actually becoming a Christian. When they benchmarked themselves against other churches, the gap was stark: other churches were seeing 5–7x more non-Christians come through their evangelistic courses.

So they asked hard questions about what was actually happening, and made a series of deliberate changes, especially around how they invited people into their evangelism course.

Registrations jumped from 5 to 37. Around seven people came to faith, with ten more still exploring.

Derek Hanna talks with Steve Covetz (Lead Pastor) and Kate Stace (Director of Ministry Operations) about facing brutal facts, mobilising a whole church to invite, and what actually moved the needle.

Toolbox:
Discover Magnet used by Kate and Steve
Mission ebook by Dave Jensen
Evangelism in the Local Church by Dave Jensen and Paul Brennan
Previous Reach Australia Conference Resources
Mission Consults by Reach Australia

Credits: 
This episode was brought to you by Safe Ministry Check
The One Thing is brought to you by ⁠⁠Reach Australia⁠⁠
To pray for Reach Australia, join our ⁠⁠WhatsApp Group⁠⁠
For ideas or questions please email ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠
Support Reach Australia's online library