AI and the Church: Where Wisdom Meets Opportunity

As we count down the final weeks to the Elevate Church Conference, our Road to Elevate series continues with a preview of the practical breakout sessions headed your way on September 21 and 22, 2026. This time, Dillon Sherlock sits down with Darrel Girardier to talk about AI and the church: where the real opportunities are, where leaders need wisdom, and how to use these tools without losing sight of what matters most. Darrel breaks down what AI actually is in plain terms, why churches have always been slow to adopt new technology, and what the printing press can teach us about how the church responds when a piece of technology reshapes it. He and Dillon also get honest about where AI is helping churches most right now, why a human always has to stay in the loop, and how to respond to the team member who says AI is the devil. They close with a preview of this year's Elevate breakout: a hands-on look at building a full AI workflow, built for every seat on a church staff, not just the communications team. In this episode, you’ll learn: - What AI actually is in plain terms: a prediction engine trained on a massive amount of data, more like a really smart Mad Lib than a crystal ball, and why that distinction matters for how churches use it - Why churches have always been slow to adopt new technology out of fear, and what the printing press can teach us about how the church responds when a technology reshapes it (it doesn't die, it reforms) - Why this shift is moving faster than any before it, with new capabilities showing up week to week instead of unfolding over decades - Where churches are seeing the most success with AI right now: offloading the administrative, non-instinctively-human tasks like forms, emails, and meeting notes so staff can focus on the flesh-and-blood work of ministry - Why AI should never be fully hands off, and how keeping a human checking the work at every step (AI still gets things wrong) keeps the tool trustworthy - How to respond to a team member who says "AI is the devil": you're allowed to hold that belief, but only after you've actually taken the time to understand what the tool is and how it works Meet the Guests - Dillon Sherlock is the Digital Strategy Director at Brentwood Baptist, where he leads how the church puts digital tools and AI-powered workflows to work across marketing and communications. - Darrel Girardier is the Executive Director of Ministry Resources at Brentwood Baptist, where he oversees the team and resources that help equip pastors and ministry leaders across the church.