The 95 Podcast: Conversations for Small-Church Pastors
95% of churches in the U.S. are under 500 in average attendance. Small and mid-size churches truly are the backbone of the Church in America. Join 95Network Executive Director Dale Sellers as he hosts conversations that specifically relate to the small and mid-size church context.
The 95 Podcast: Conversations for Small-Church Pastors
AI Guardrails for Churches: Practical Guidelines for Ethical, Safe Ministry Use (w/ Shelby Black) - Episode 341
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
With 13 years of working in and alongside ministry, Shelby Black is the co-founder of Bellwether, an AI-powered platform built specifically for ministry leaders. Shelby brings both personal conviction and operational experience to the conversation around AI in the church.
Her work with Bellwether started from a simple belief: no one should feel forgotten by their church. That conviction is now the foundation of a tool helping ministry teams see their people more clearly. Alongside Bellwether, Shelby serves as Director of Growth at Clever, a digital marketing agency serving churches and nonprofits.
Together with her husband Andy — a technical co-founder with deep ministry roots of his own — they bring 28 combined years of ministry experience to the question of how AI should be developed, adopted, and stewarded in faith communities.
She lives in the Denver area with Andy and their two young kids.
Dale Sellers and Joseph Bennett talk with Shelby about 10 practical AI guardrails for churches—data privacy, transparency, pastoral boundaries, automation risks, and how pastors can lead congregations already using AI.