Steeple Sites Blog

How to Upgrade Your Church Website Plan at SteepleSites.com

Buddy — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:23:43 +0000

Now that you can upgrade or downgrade your SteepleSites.com account through your website manager, we thought it would be good to give you specific instructions on how to do so. Follow the steps below to upgrade your SteepleSites.com church website account.

Step 1:

After logging in, hover over the WEBSITE button at the top of your admin screen and select BILLING.

Step 2:

Select a new plan by clicking UPGRADE in the appropriate column.

Step 3:

Enter your personal information, payment method, and billing address and click UPDATE INFORMATION at the bottom.

That’s it. If you have any questions about billing, contact us at SteepleSites.com/contact.

New Church Website Designs Added to Design Gallery

Buddy — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 22:50:52 +0000

I wanted to let you know that I’ve added 3 new design themes to the design gallery. This means you have 3 more options for the design of your website. Don’t like the design you have now? Shoot me an email with the design you want to apply to your website, and I’ll integrate it for you – FREE!

25 Of the Best Church Website Designs

Buddy — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:50:10 +0000

Since I’m always interested in the latest church website design trends, and church websites in general, I thought I’d put together a small sampling of some of my favorite church website designs. This will also help my clients to give them some direction when deciding the type of design to go with for their church website.

Christ Community Church

College Park Church

Crossroads Church

East Valley Bible Church

The Life Church of Memphis

Lufkin First Assembly

Manchester Chrisitan Church

Manor Church

Mars Hill Church

North Point Community Church

Northstar Church

Oasis Baptist Church

Paradise Church

Scottsdale Bible Church

Sevier Heights

Bayside Church

Bethlehem Baptist Church

Canyon Creek Church

Central Christian Church

Before you hire a church website designer

Buddy — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 04:06:04 +0000

Before you hire a church website designer, it is critical to know what you are receiving for your money. I have developed a four phase plan I use with my clients so they know exactly what is happening throughout the website design process.

A website is much more than just a website, and you should know what you are receiving. Any web designer can throw together a site in a few days and make it look good to the naked eye. But if you are not receiving all of these basic services that go with a custom church website design, it’s time to think about finding someone else. I wouldn’t ask the designer if they do “x, y, and z”, just ask them what is included. I think you’d be hard pressed to find a church website designer that lists all of these as basic services for every website design.

Phase 1 – DISCOVER

Gather information about the company and industry as well as the goals and purpose of the website
Understand design specifications and style, look and feel, and layout of the site
Develop a wire-frame that lays out the site structure including number of pages and navigation
Logo and other necessary artwork is collected from client
Client signs off on wireframe so design phase can begin

Phase 2 – DESIGN

Design the site in Photoshop per the design specifications, navigation, and wireframe structure
Allow the client to make up to 3 minor design revisions
Client signs off on the design so development phase can begin

Phase 3 – DEVELOP

Develop the site in DreamWeaver using standards compliant XHTML/CSS markup
Build out and fill in content for approximately __ pages
Content to include text and 2-3 images per page of content (to be provided by client)
Integrate basic search engine optimization techniques within the code and structure of the site to maximize exposure on search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Live, etc.

Phase 4 – DEPLOY

Beta test and debug the site to confirm it is in perfect working condition before official launch
Confirm that the site looks perfect and functions correctly in all major modern browsers including Internet Explorer 7+, Firefox 2+, Safari, & Opera.
Confirm the site is standards compliant for maximum usability and to protect the integrity of the design and functionality against future changes in browser rendering (more info)
Publish the website on the Internet
Provide a free 1-year warranty on all design code created by me. This means that if the site “breaks” (doesn’t look right or function correctly due to future browser changes), then I will fix it at no cost

Note to website designers: Feel free to use this for your clients, but please email me first to ask permission. Thanks.

How to add online giving to your church website

Buddy — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 04:18:12 +0000

UPDATE: Our sister site, MinistryPath.com, now has online giving with PayPal built in. All you have to do is enter your PayPal email address and the rest is automatic! It’s super easy…check it out!

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, PayPal has a great solution for accepting donations or offerings on your church website. You don’t pay any signup fees or monthly fees, so it only costs you money when someone actually makes the gift. PayPal takes about 3% of the gift, so I can understand if this solution is not for you, but many churches provide this to their members for a lot of different reasons – reasons we won’t get into right now.

This post will show you how to easily add an “Online Giving” module to your church website using the payment processor PayPal. See an example here before you get started.

Step 1

If you don’t have a PayPal account, go to PayPal.com and sign up for a Business Account. Select “Website Payments Standard” as your option for the account. Follow the signup procedure step by step. It’s pretty self-explanatory.

Step 2

Once you get your account set up and approved by PayPal, copy and paste the large chunk of code below into the html on your church website. I recommend setting up a separate page for your online giving module. The only thing you have to change in the code is your paypal e-mail address in each of the three sections and the URL for your 3 images. To change the email address, scan the code below for the line that has this code:

<input type="hidden" name="business" value="your paypal email address goes here">

Remember, that line will appear three times, so add your paypal email address to all three locations/sections.

To change the URL for your payment images (there are three), look for this line (again, three separate times):

<input type="hidden" name="currency_code" value="USD"><input class="paypal_submit" type="image" src="http://www.yourwebsite.com/images/give-once.gif" border="0" name="submit" alt="Make a One-Time Gift">

Update the URL to match the URL location of your payment images. You’ll have to create those on your own and upload them separately.

Here’s the code to copy and paste:


        
    Make
                      a ONE TIME gift of $
                      

                      .00 
                      your paypal email address goes here">
                      
                       
                      
      
      
      
          
           Set up a recurring WEEKLY gift of $
                      
                      .00 
                      your paypal email address goes here">
                      
                      
                       
                       
                      
                       
                       
              
           
              
        
    Set up a recurring MONTHLY gift of $
                      
                      .00 
                      your paypal email address goes here">

If you have any questions, contact me at info {at} steeplesites(.)com and I will help you out. UPDATE: Head on over to MinistryPath.com to see how we’ve done this work for you already. All you need to do is enter your PayPal email address…no coding required!

How to add sermons to your church website using Sermon.net

Buddy — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 03:23:08 +0000

UPDATE: Our sister site, MinistryPath.com, now has websites for churches with the sermon.net sermon player built it. Now your sermons will automatically be posted to your website’s sermons page instantly! Check it out.

Sermon.net offers a wonderful free service to churches. They give you unlimited storage and bandwidth for your sermons, along with an awesome flash-based sermon player for your website. In this post, I’ll cover how to get your free sermon.net account, how to upload a sermon, and 2 different ways to add your sermons to your church website.

Step 1: Sign Up

Go to http://sermonstudio.net and create your free account by filling out the short form.

Step 2: Login

Next, go to http://sermonplayer.com to login.

Step 3: Upload a Sermon

Now that you are logged in, click the ADD button to upload your first sermon.

On the next screen, fill out the fields for the details of your sermon.

Field #1 is the title and date. Make sure you put the date the sermon was preached. The player will automatically archive the sermons by date.

For Field #2 select “Speaker” and Add New. Then type in the name of the speaker in the field. When you add another sermon later, the speaker’s name you just typed in will automatically be a choice for you to select, so you don’t have to type the name in every time.

For Field #3, choose a Label and fill in the blank with the content. I usually use Field #3 for the sermon series, if applicable.

For Field #4, I usually use the main Scripture reference for the sermon and put it in that field. The sermon player includes a Bible so listeners can follow along in Scripture as they listen to the sermon.

For Field #5, fill in a description and keywords. This field is very important for archiving purposes. As your sermon archive grows, people can search for a particular topic or keyword and locate the sermon easily. Now click Save.

On the next screen, the Record Details page, you have several options at the top. You can use the toggle checkboxes to show this sermon in the player, make it a podcast, and allow user comments. Each of these selections can be set to on or off.

Scroll down to the bottom of that screen to upload all the media associated with the sermon. In the first field, you can upload notes for the sermon. The system accepts many different formats including ppt, doc, pdf, txt, jpg, gif, xls, opt, rtf, htm, & html files. It will convert them into a pdf after uploading is complete. Use the second field to upload the audio file of your sermon. It will accept mp3, wav, wma, flv, ram, mp4, & m4a files. It will convert them into an mp3 file after uploading is complete. I recommend selecting 32kbps for the audio compression. It combines quality sound and a small file size. If you have a video, you can upload that, as well as artwork. The artwork will display in the iTunes store and on iPods when listening to the message.

After you have selected all your media associated with the sermon to upload, click “Begin Upload”.

Depending on the size of your audio file, it will probably take between 2 and 10 minutes to upload. After the upload finishes, the system will process the files and you are free to navigate away from the page while the processing takes place. Processing usually only takes a couple minutes.

Step 4: Two ways to add your sermon(s) to your website

METHOD #1 – Add the sermon player (includes complete archive of all sermons)
This is the easiest and best way to add your sermons to your website. You only have to do this step one time, and every sermon you upload from here on out, will automatically be archived inside the player on your website.

Navigate back to your dashboard home by clicking the “HOME” icon near the top of the page. Then click “Install Your Sermon Player”. This screen will give you a preview of what your sermon player will look like, and it will also give you several methods of installing your sermon player depending on the system on which your website was built (ie WordPress, FaceBook, MySpace, TypePad, etc). If you don’t see the icon for your particular system, use the embed code. Click copy to copy your embed code.

Now, go to your website code where you would like your sermon player to appear and paste in the code. If you are not sure how to do this, just contact me and I will help you out. Save the file and upload your webpage (html) file to your web server and you are done.

METHOD #2 – Add a Mini-Player for a particular sermon
This method involves manually adding each sermon to your website after you upload the media to your Sermon.net account. The result will be a very small sermon player for that particular sermon.

The first step is to click on the Archive button (has a CD icon) on the top of your account dashboard. Select the sermon for which you would like to add a mini-player, and click View next to the sermon listing. Scroll to the middle of the page and click the Audio tab if it is not already active. You will see two types of mini players: one with details and one without. I like the one with details, but the choice is yours.

Then, simply select the code for the mini player, copy it, and paste it into the code on your web page where you would like the mini player to appear. Again, if you are not sure how to get access to your website html code, contact your webmaster or contact us and we will help you.

Questions? Contact us at info {at} steeplesites(.)com.

Is online giving more biblical than passing the plate?

Buddy — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 04:16:56 +0000

I was developing a website for a church last year and I asked the guy in charge of the site if he wanted me to set him up with online giving through PayPal (see example). His response was, “Nah, I was searching the Scriptures in regards to that, and I found a verse that says to bring your tithes so I don’t think it is really biblical to do online giving.” I assume he was talking about Deuteronomy 12:11 – “Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD:”.

Now, we could get into a discussion about biblical tithing and whether or not is mandated for New Testament Christians, but that is outside the scope of this post (maybe in the future!). The main question I’d like to answer is this: “Is online giving more biblical than passing the plate?” I can only assume that at this gentleman’s church, they traditionally “pass the plate” like most Baptist and mainstream churches do today. In fact, my church passes the plate, usually near the end of the service.

When I introduced online giving on my church website, I expected some mild resistance from a member or two. I didn’t have anyone in mind, but the general demographic of our church is probably 40’s-60’s, so naturally I expected some push-back against the technology of online giving. I was wrong. I didn’t get any push back or resistance, and my pastor, who is in his 60’s, welcomed the idea.

Now, back to the gentleman I spoke about above. Obviously, being a 28-year old technology and web-nerd, I am inclined to appreciate the convenience and simplicity of online giving. But let’s see what Scripture has to say about how we should give our offerings. First off, the word tithe is only mentioned twice in the New Testament, and both references are spoken of by Jesus – and He is ridiculing the Pharisees for being hypocritical with their tithes (see Matt 23:23 & Luke 11:42 – they both refer to the same incident, I believe). The only reason I bring that up is that I will use the word “offering” when talking about our voluntary gifts to the local church for God’s work.

I don’t think it is very wise to build any doctrine using a single verse. It is even more dangerous when you use a verse from Deuteronomy. As New Testament Christians, we are no longer under the law (hallelujah!), and therefore the laws of Deuteronomy are not directly applicable to our lives today. Sure, we can derive inspiration for Christian living from certain of the commandments, but the general idea that we can pull a verse from Deuteronomy and apply it to our lives today can be dangerous.

So what does the New Testament say about offerings and giving? Let’s take a quick look at a few key passages:

2 Cor 9:7 Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

This verse gives us a good, general idea of how a New Testament Christian should give: not of necessity (not mandated), not grudgingly (with a good attitude), but cheerfully. So it doesn’t really give us a proper means or method of giving, but no matter how we are to give, we must be giving out of a cheeful heart because we love God.

Mat 6:1-4 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. (2) Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. (3) But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: (4) That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

Now we are getting somewhere. From this passage, which is spoken by Jesus Himself, we can summarize three key thoughts:

1. When you give, don’t do it in front of people (v 1)
2. Don’t produce fanfare and bring attention to yourself when you give (v 2)
3. Do your giving in secret – and be so secretive, that your left hand is hidden from your right hand (v 3-4)

2Ki 12:9 But Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one cometh into the house of the LORD: and the priests that kept the door put therein all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD.

In this OT passage, we see King Jehoiada put an offering box in the temple so the priests could collect the money for the special building offering that was needed to repair the temple. This is one allusion to church goers bringing their offering to the church, but rather than passing a plate around while everyone watched, they gave their money to the priests, who then deposited the money in the offering box “on the right side as one cometh into the house of the Lord.”

I cannot find anywhere in Scripture (correct me if I missed it) where it says to pass an offering plate around so everyone can put their money in. I don’t see any direct or indirect references to this practice. If anyone knows the origin of this, please comment below and I will update the post (please provide a reference). Based on the limited passages I’ve described above, it seems that the most biblical way to give to God through your local church is through online giving. A case could be made for mailing in a paper check, or discreetly giving the money to the church accountant or administrator, but the latter two methods are not generally acceptable practice.

My point is this. Online giving, in my opinion (which is based on my limited knowledge of Scripture alone) is 100% biblical, and a case can be made that it is way more biblical than passing an offering plate or bag. I would love to see churches today offer several modes of giving such as: online giving, offering boxes in the back, mailing in a paper check, or even depositing into the church bank account directly at the bank. ALL of these methods seem more biblical to me than passing the plate.

As the offering plate/bag is passed, how in the world can we keep it a secret (Matthew 6:4)? This is out in the open, for everyone to see – which is directly contradicting the mandates of Christ in Matthew 6. My hypothesis is that pastors grew up in churches where the offering plate was passed, then they became pastors themselves and guess what they do – they pass the plate! I’m not even sure they think about a biblically acceptable practice for receiving offerings, but maybe they should think about it.

Another reason they may pass the plate is that they might think the offerings would be less if they didn’t. This is obviously the wrong attitude because God wants Christians to give cheerfully, not grudgingly (“here comes the plate again, I better put something in so Deacon Maddog, who is standing right next to me, doesn’t think that I don’t give”). If a pastor wants to pass the plate so he can keep the offerings up, then where is the pastor’s faith to provide the needs of the church? I’m not accusing every pastor who passes the plate of having a lack of faith, but you have to think that is a viable reason why the plate is passed in churches today.

So, what do you think? Are you a pastor? Do you pass the plate in your church? If so, why? I’d love to hear some constructive criticism and alternative points of view. Please leave your comments below. Thanks.

UPDATE: After the original post, I found this article on the history of giving offerings in American churches.

Free website for new church plants and existing churches

Buddy — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 00:41:49 +0000

Whether you are planting a church, or your existing church needs a new website, the time has never been better. We would like to give you a website for free. It will have all the features you need to get started – topped off with an exceptional design. There are no cookie-cutter templates here. Just head on over to our sign up page to get started.