Shane Pruitt is one of those guys who makes content creation look effortless. He is the National Next Gen Director for the North American Mission Board, the author of “9 Common Lies Christians Believe,” and he has over 41,000 followers on Instagram. His tweets regularly go viral on Facebook and Twitter. I brought him on the ChurchCandy Podcast to break down exactly how he approaches content strategy for ministry, and what he shared applies to every pastor trying to build an online presence.
Shane’s Story
Before we got into strategy, Shane shared his background. He grew up in Waco, Texas and started following Jesus at 21. “God saved me out of a lot,” Shane told me. “In high school and college, my trinity was not Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. My trinity was sports, chasing girls, and partying.”
That honesty is part of what makes Shane’s content so effective. He does not pretend to have it all figured out. He shares from a place of authenticity, and people respond to that. When he posts a screenshot of a tweet about struggles, doubts, or the messiness of faith, it resonates because it is real.
Why Pastors Need a Content Strategy
I asked Shane why so many pastors struggle with content creation. His answer was that most pastors think of social media as an afterthought rather than a tool for ministry. “Social media is not just a megaphone for your Sunday sermon,” Shane said. “It is a mission field. People are on these platforms seven days a week, and they need encouragement, truth, and hope on a Tuesday just as much as they do on a Sunday.”
Shane encouraged pastors to think about content creation as an extension of their pastoral care. You are still shepherding people. You are just doing it through a different medium.
How Shane Creates Viral Content
Shane broke down his process and it was surprisingly simple:
- Write from real life. Shane’s best-performing content comes from actual conversations, real struggles people share with him, and things he is personally processing. He does not sit down and brainstorm tweet ideas. He writes what is on his heart.
- Keep it short and relatable. The content that goes viral is almost always concise. A single sentence that names something people feel but have not been able to articulate. That is what gets shared.
- Screenshot your tweets. Shane posts his tweets as screenshots on Instagram and Facebook. This cross-platform approach lets him reach people on every platform with content he has already created. One tweet becomes a post on three different platforms.
- Post consistently. Shane does not post once a week and hope for the best. He shows up regularly. Consistency builds trust with your audience and gives the algorithm more opportunities to push your content.
Content That Connects vs. Content That Converts
Shane made an important distinction between content that connects with people and content that moves them to take action. Both matter, but they serve different purposes.
Connection content is the stuff that builds your audience: encouraging posts, relatable observations, and thought-provoking questions. This is what grows your following and earns trust.
Conversion content is the stuff that moves people toward a next step: visiting your church, buying a book, attending an event, or making a spiritual decision. You cannot lead with conversion content. You have to earn the right to ask by first providing value. That same principle drives everything we do at Church Candy with our ad strategies for churches.
Protecting Your Heart in Ministry
Toward the end of our conversation, Shane got real about the toll that public ministry takes on a person. We talked about the pattern of leaders falling, burning out, or walking away from the faith entirely.
“Sometimes gifts and talents take us a lot further than our character can sustain us,” Shane said. “And I think sometimes we put people on platforms before showing them the power of the Holy Spirit.”
His solution? Prioritize your walk with God above your platform. “There is no cheat code for this,” Shane said. “It is just time with the Lord. And I think that is where we get into problems when we skip that.” This echoes something Dr. Phil Brassfield shared with me about developing leaders from the inside out rather than just developing their skills.
Shane’s Advice for Getting Started
For pastors who feel overwhelmed by content creation, Shane’s advice was encouraging: start where you are. You do not need fancy equipment or a production team. You need something worth saying and the willingness to say it consistently.
“Write down the conversations you are already having,” Shane told me. “The questions people ask you, the things you are praying about, the lessons you are learning. That is your content. You just have to write it down and share it.”
Follow Shane Pruitt on Instagram at @shane_pruitt78 to see his content strategy in action. He also hosts the NextGen on Mission podcast. And if you are ready to combine strong organic content with a proven paid advertising strategy, reach out to our team at Church Candy. We help churches across the country get new guests every single week.
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