Fly on the Wall Podcast With Chris Sonksen
Be a “Fly on the Wall” as Chris Sonksen takes you behind the scenes on a coaching call with a ministry leader. In each episode, you’ll get to hear how a coaching call happens, practical tips on how to grow your ministry, and what it takes to be a healthy leader in today's culture. You'll get to be a "fly on the wall" and listen to a live coaching session between Chris and a church leader like yourself.
Episodes
229 episodes
222 | Don't Let Your Calling Become a Career
Most pastors don't wake up one day and decide to become complacent.It happens slowly.The passion that once fueled the calling begins to feel more like routine. The dreams get replaced with responsibilities. Before long, ministry c...
221 | The Leadership Systems That Actually Grow a Church
Growing a church isn’t usually about finding the next big idea.More often, it’s about building the right systems, developing the right leaders, and creating a culture where people move from simply attending to fully engaging in the missi...
220 | The Secret to Finding—and Keeping—Great Leaders
Every pastor wants great leaders.The challenge is finding them.And even when you do find them, how do you keep them engaged, growing, and committed to the vision God has given your church?In Episode 220 of the Fly on the...
219 | Why Some Leaders Stay Stuck While Others Keep Growing
What separates good leaders from great leaders?Is it talent? Experience? Opportunity?Or is it something deeper?In Episode 219 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, I sit down with my friend Greg for a fascinating ...
218 | Leadership Mistakes Every Pastor Makes (and How to Avoid Them)
What if the biggest thing holding your church back... isn't your strategy, your budget, or your attendance?What if it's a leadership blind spot you don't even realize you have?In Episode 218 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, I sat d...
217 | You Don’t Have to Be Type A to Build Something Great
Not every great leader is loud.And not every thriving church is built by a hyper-competitive, type-A personality.In Episode 217 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with Pastor Rob for an incredibly honest conversation ...
216 | The Mistake That Keeps Churches Stuck
A lot of churches don’t fail because they lack passion.They fail because they lose focus.In Episode 216 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with Josh from Denver for one of the most practical conversations we’ve had ye...
215 | Streamline What Matters Most
Busy doesn’t always mean effective.In Episode 215 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with Pastor Daryl for a conversation every pastor—especially bivocational leaders—needs to hear.Because one of the biggest mistakes ...
214 | Preparing Your Church for the Next Season of Growth
What happens when momentum starts building—but your systems, leadership structure, and culture aren’t fully ready for what’s next?In Episode 214 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, I sit down with my friend RJ Johnson for a p...
213 | How to Shape the Culture of Your Church
Culture isn’t built by accident.It’s shaped—intentionally or unintentionally—by what you emphasize every single week.In Episode 213 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with Brent to tackle one of the most important (...
212 | Change Your Thinking, Change Your Ministry
If nothing changes… nothing changes.That sounds obvious—but it’s exactly where a lot of churches get stuck.In Episode 212 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with JJ to talk about something deeper than strategy, syst...
211 | The Real Reason Your Church Feels Stuck
Ever feel like your church is growing… but not actually moving forward?You see new people come.You feel momentum building.And then somehow… it slips back again.In Episode 211 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris si...
210 | What Thriving Churches Are Actually Doing Differently
What separates churches that are truly thriving… from those that are just getting by?In Episode 210 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, Chris sits down with Justin to unpack what he’s seeing across churches of every size—and the patte...
209 | The Courage to Grow Into Your Next Level
Growth doesn’t just require new strategy… it requires new courage.Because the very things that helped you grow early on can quietly become the things that hold you back from your next level.That’s what we unpack in Episode 209 ...
208 | New Growth Requires a New Way of Thinking
Growth is exciting… but it also creates new challenges you can’t solve with old thinking.Because what got you here won’t always get you to where you’re going next.That’s the focus of Episode 208 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast
207 | Leadership Pain, Loyalty, and Finding the Right Leaders
Leadership can be incredibly rewarding… and incredibly painful.Because if you’ve led long enough, you’ve experienced it—people you invested in walk away, criticism hits harder than expected, and it becomes tempting to pull back inste...
206 | Developing Leaders and Planning for What’s Next
You don’t build a great church by accident—you build it by developing the right leaders.And just as important… knowing what happens next.That’s the focus of Episode 206 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, where I sit d...
205 | Why Churches Grow… But People Don’t Stay
Growth is exciting… but retention is where health is proven.Because once your church starts attracting people, the next question becomes:How do you close the back door—so people don’t drift out as fast as they came in?T...
204 | Resist Stability—Embrace Disruption
When momentum shows up, it feels amazing.But momentum can also hide what’s about to break.That’s why Episode 204 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast is such an important conversation.I sit down with my buddy Nathan (pastoring a g...
203 | Systems Beat Programs—Every Time
If you’ve ever felt like your church has good people… but the results feel inconsistent, this episode will help.In Episode 203 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast, I sit down with my buddy Alan for a coaching conversation on one of the most ...
202 | The Changes Required to Reach the Next Level
As Jeremy’s church moves from survival to sustainability—new building, construction, momentum—he asks a question that every growing leader must wrestle with:Which leadership habits that served me early on still belong in this season… an...
204 | Resist Stability—Embrace Disruption
When momentum shows up, it feels amazing.But momentum can also hide what’s about to break.That’s why Episode 204 of the Fly on the Wall Podcast is such an important conversation.I sit down with my buddy Nathan (pastoring a g...
201 | When to Start Ministries—and When to Stop Them
How do you know when it’s time to start something new… and when it’s time to finally stop something that isn’t working?That’s one of the toughest leadership tensions in ministry—because in church world, it’s easy to keep programs alive ...