What if you could get three months of planning done in about an hour? What if you had a research assistant, a proofreader, a brainstorming partner, and a writing coach — all rolled into one tool — available to you any time you needed it?

That’s exactly what our team has been discovering as we’ve started using AI to help manage the behind-the-scenes work of ministry.

I know what you might be thinking. AI? At church? Stay with me here, because what I’ve learned over the past several months has genuinely changed the way I work — and it might do the same for you.

Why We Started Looking at AI in the First Place

Back in January, I took on some extra responsibilities — specifically, overseeing outreach, assimilation, and data management. After talking it through, we realized I was looking at anywhere from an extra eight to fifteen hours a week to manage that effectively. So the question became: where is that time going to come from?

That’s when our pastor challenged me. He said, “Figure out — see if there’s a way that AI can help you with your scheduling, with planning music, with database management and planning services.” That’s where I started.

Before we even began using it, our pastor did a significant amount of research on the ethics of different AI platforms. The one that kept coming up number one across all of his research was Claude, owned by a company called Anthropic. That’s the one we use, and we’ve been intentional about why.

Understanding the Tool: It’s a Conversation, Not a Command

A lot of working with AI comes down to something called a prompt — basically, what you say to it. And the best way to think about it, at least at first, is just as a conversation. You express the need you have, what you need help with, and whether you need it to completely plan something or simply be a collaborator.

I find the best approach is to use it as a collaborative tool. In my personal experience, this has been the most eye-opening thing — it helps me think of things I’m not even thinking of.

Here’s a simple example of how I started. I typed:

“Good morning, Claude. I’m a music director at a church who has many other responsibilities besides being over the music program. I need you to help me know how you can assist me and help me work more efficiently, while at the same time challenging me to be more effective. Is this something you can help me with?”

I didn’t say, “Help me make a music schedule.” I started broad. And what came back included ideas I hadn’t even considered yet.

Real-World Application: Planning Three Months of Music in an Hour

Here’s where things get practical. My next prompt was: “Right now my biggest issue is I need help planning the next three months worth of congregational singing.”

I uploaded a spreadsheet I had exported from our planning software. I had already organized it — song titles, categories (traditional, contemporary, hymn), and a position number (1, 2, or 3) based on how our pastor likes the flow of the service to go:

  • The first song is always familiar and upbeat
  • The second song is our big song
  • Then we have a break to release tension
  • Then a third or sometimes fourth song to bring things back down before special music

I gave Claude that data, and it read every column. It recognized style, tempo, key, and even my usage tracking. Then it started building a plan — and it even brought in Christmas music for December without me asking. It analyzed what I gave it and ran with it.

The first time I did this, from beginning to something I was happy with, it took about three hours — and that included time I spent tweaking my spreadsheet to make sure I was giving it good data. Before AI, if I dedicated an hour to it every day, planning a quarter’s worth of music was taking me the better part of a week.

Now I can plan a quarter’s worth of music in about an hour.

It Learns You — And That’s Actually a Good Thing

One important thing to understand: the AI wants to please you, so much so that it can make mistakes. Claude itself will even tell you, “Claude can make mistakes — double check your work.” So always read what it gives you. Don’t ever go in blind. Don’t just copy, paste, and send. Always review it.

But here’s the encouraging side of that: when you affirm its work, it learns what’s acceptable and what you want. I’ve learned to compliment it when it does something well. I’ll say, “This is great, and I appreciate what you have done. However…” and then redirect it. By affirming its work, it’s learning what’s acceptable and what I want.

Our pastor uses it for bulletin content. He’ll take a paragraph he used last week and say, “I need to say this again, but in a different fresh way.” That’s another great use. Others on our staff use it to draft parent emails, bulletin blurbs, and event planning details.

Our pastor views it as another employee. Because of what it can do, it’s like all of us having our own research assistant, our own proofreader, our own “make this better” person, our own brainstorming team — everything.

A Word About Ethics and Caution

I want to be straightforward here: there are real dangers to using AI, and we don’t take that lightly. We dropped other subscriptions to make this one work, and we’ve been very careful to make sure our team understands both the power and the pitfalls.

If you have spiritual convictions about using it — I understand that completely. But if you have a library of things you use and track, all you’re really asking it to do is some of the grunt work, while you remain the one making the intentional, Spirit-led decisions.

Putting It Into Practice

If you’re curious about getting started, here are some practical next steps:

  1. Start simple. Use AI to help you write letters, emails, and communication. That’s a very basic level that everybody can learn from, and it will also allow the AI to begin to learn you.
  2. Start a conversation. Don’t overthink your first prompt. Just express your need, and let it respond. Then keep the conversation going.
  3. Give it your existing data. Whether it’s a spreadsheet, a document, or even a past email you’ve written — upload it and let it learn how you think and communicate.
  4. Always review the output. Never copy and paste without reading it first. It can make mistakes, and you are still the one responsible for what goes out.
  5. Use it to brainstorm. Even if you have deep convictions about making your own final choices, let it help you think outside the box. Ask it, “Help me brainstorm ways I can do this better.” Sometimes our brains get stuck in a box, and a fresh set of ideas — even from a machine — can get things moving.

The work of ministry is sacred. The tools we use to support that work don’t have to be. If AI can free up hours in your week so you can pour more of yourself into people, into prayer, and into the calling God has placed on your life — that’s worth exploring.