Frequently Asked Questions General questions What is the vision behind find a preacher?
For churches Are the preachers on find a preacher vetted?
For preachers / speakers How can I submit my details?
General questions – answers What is the vision behind find a preacher? Our primary vision is to link churches with preachers. It became apparent there were two needs: firstly, churches without ministers can find it hard to find preachers. And whilst undoubtedly, the best way to find a good preacher is by recommendation, we realise this isn’t always easy. Secondly, we recognise that whilst every preacher would prefer to be recommended, it can be difficult to get the opportunity to preach in a new area or circle of churches that simply don’t know of the preacher’s existence. So find a preacher helps make church's aware of potential preachers and gives the preacher or speaker more opportunities to use the gift that God has given them. Who do I contact if I have found an error? If you find an error in find a preacher then please email the webmaster. What is the difference between an itinerant and lay preacher? find a preacher defines an itinerant preacher as someone whose full-time occupation is preaching. We define a lay preacher as someone for whom preaching is not their full-time occupation. What other kind of speaker is listed in find a preacher? It is our hope that all kinds of speakers will take advantage of the added exposure that find a preacher offers. Find a preacher is primarily aimed at preachers, but we also welcome other Christian speakers including: lecturers; youth workers; people with a testimony of particular interest; evangelists; and people with a specialist subject e.g. Creation/Evolution. How can I help promote find a preacher? Spread the word to other preachers and speakers so that they can join up too. Also, if you have a website, you could link to http://www.findapreacher.com What areas can I search for a Christian preacher or speaker? You can use the drop menu on the search page to select an area to search in. We have split the UK up into these regions: ENGLAND WALES SCOTLAND NORTHERN IRELAND
For churches Are the preachers on findapreacher vetted? We encourage preachers to read our Basis of Faith before they apply to be listed. We also encourage preachers to provide a sample sermon so that you can listen to or read a sample sermon before you contact them. A preacher should also be able to supply you with at least 2 contactable referees, if required. It is up to the church and preacher to ensure that they are both happy with any booking that may be made as a result of any introduction made by using find a preacher. Unfortunately it is impossible for us to individually check each preacher listed on find a preacher. We accept applications in good faith and cannot be held responsible for any negative experiences. If you find you that a preacher that is listed on find a preacher was very unsatisfactory then please contact the webmaster. We will then investigate the problem and try to resolve any issues. How do I know what denomination a preacher is? The preacher should give denominational details in his profile. If you would like more information about his particular stance, then please contact the preacher directly by email which can be found at the end of his profile. There is no charge to search for, or to book a preacher from find a preacher. However, we do charge the preacher a small fee to be listed on find a preacher. Do we need to pay the preacher? It is usual to offer the visiting preach payment for his services. This should be sorted out in the normal way between preacher and church. As find a preacher only acts to introduce the church to the preacher we have no involvement in booking dates, payment or terms of any sort. Why do some areas have no preachers listed? find a preacher was launched in February 2008. It will inevitably take time for preachers to find out about us and get themselves listed, so if there are no preachers listed in your area at the moment, please check back regularly. In the meantime, if you know of any itinerant or lay preachers that are not currently listed on find a preacher, then please pass on our details to them so that they can decide if they would like to be listed on find a preacher. What do I do if I have serious concerns about a listed preacher? If a preacher that you booked through find a preacher demonstrates serious inadequacies; acts in an inappropriate manner; preaches a gospel other than that found in the Bible; or gives you any other cause for concern then please contact the webmaster. How far will a preacher travel? It depends on the individual preacher's circumstances. You will need to contact the preacher directly to discuss how far he will travel. Some preachers will be happy to travel many miles, whilst others will only be able to visit more local churches. If I contact a preacher, am I compelled to book him? You can contact any preacher to ask for more information and to sound him out, check his references etc without feeling obliged to book him. It is important that both the booking church and the preacher are clear and happy with what is expected. What format are the sermon samples saved in? The sermons can either by a readable script or an audio MP3. If it is the script, then it can be a Microsoft Word document or an Adobe Acrobat PDF. If it is an audio file, the sermon is available for playing online or downloading in the MP3 format. Since sermons are the bread and butter of preachers, please don't make these freely available - they are only available to help you select an appropriate preacher.
For preachers Please visit the application guidelines page. Why do you charge preachers to be listed? There are two reasons why we charge preachers to be listed: How much does it cost to get listed? It only costs £9.99 for a full year's listing. How long will my details be listed for? 1 year from the day your details go live. You will be emailed when your subscription comes up for renewal. Do I have to submit a sermon/talk? No. Although we do highly recommend it and not having a sermon for people to listen to may severely lessen the chances of being booked. However, we do recognise that it can be hard to aquire a previously recorded sermon and so you can either supply a sermon script as an Acrobat PDF or Microsoft Word document. If you cannot provide any of these, you can still submit to find a preacher and add a sermon at a later date. How many times can I update my details? You will be able to update details up to 3 times a year. This does not include amending any errors that may have been unintentionally introduced by find a preacher. If after 3 updates you require further amendments/updates, we may have to charge a nominal administrative fee. Do I have to accept a booking if I don't want to? No. You are of course at liberty to decline any invitation to preach. However, we do ask that where possible you will explain why you are unable to take up the invitation. If you feel that you are unable to honour an engagement that has been agreed, please try to ensure you give the church as much notice as possible. Can I cancel my year's listing and get a refund? We allow a 14 day cooling off period. If you change your mind then we will remove your details and provide a full refund. If you change your mind after the 14 days then we will be unable to refund your money, although we can remove your details if required. Can women be listed in find a preacher? Yes. Our site tries to cater for all Christian preachers and speakers. Whilst we understand that not everyone might agree with female preachers, we also recognise that ministering can take many forms, and to many audiences. A speaker may have a particular testimony of God’s goodness to them which may, for example, be appropriate for an evangelistic or women’s meeting. We leave it up to the discretion of the individual church to decide who they are happy to have ministering amongst them. © findapreacher.com |
