Church TechMay 14, 2026
Claude Code for Church Staff: A Real-World Pastor's Guide
Real-world Claude Code use cases for church staff. How I use it daily for REACHRIGHT and my church, plus the nonprofit discount most pastors miss.
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Thomas Costello
Founder & CEO of REACHRIGHT
Executive Pastor, New Hope Hawaii Kai
Honolulu, Hawaii
Founder & CEO of REACHRIGHT. Executive Pastor at New Hope Hawaii Kai. 20+ years of church leadership across 4 states, now helping 800+ churches reach the people searching for them online.
800+ Churches Served
20+ Years in Ministry
$14.24M Google Grants Managed
300+ Podcast Episodes
About Thomas
Thomas Costello has spent 20+ years on both sides of church growth.
As a pastor, he planted a church from scratch in Austin, Texas. He grew a congregation from 30 to 150 in Madison, Wisconsin. He now serves as Executive Pastor at New Hope Hawaii Kai in Honolulu, leading staff and overseeing operations for a church of 300.
As a marketer, he managed a 15-person sales team at Faith Highway, one of the largest church website companies in America (later acquired by Ministry Brands). He saw the same problem everywhere: churches doing incredible ministry with zero online presence. Great preaching, strong community, and nobody could find them on Google.
He founded REACHRIGHT in 2016 to fix that. The team has since served 800+ churches across 47 states, managed over $14.24 million in Google Ad Grants, and built hundreds of websites that turn online searches into Sunday visitors.
Thomas hosts the REACHRIGHT Podcast (300+ episodes) and runs the REACHRIGHT YouTube channel, where he covers church growth strategy, pastoral leadership, church finances, and digital outreach. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaii with his wife Mellissa and their three kids.
Education
- Life Pacific University (formerly Life Pacific College), San Dimas CA
Experience
- Founded REACHRIGHT in 2016
- Executive Pastor, New Hope Hawaii Kai, Honolulu (current)
- Served 800+ churches across 47 states
- Managed $14.24M+ in Google Ad Grants for churches
- Lead Pastor, The Journey, Madison, WI (grew from 30 to 150)
- Church planter, Austin, TX
- Sales Manager at Faith Highway (acquired by Ministry Brands)
- Published 500+ articles on church growth and ministry
- Host of the REACHRIGHT Podcast (300+ episodes)
Areas of Expertise
Church Growth Strategy Church Web Design Google Ad Grants for Churches Local SEO for Churches Pastoral Leadership Church Finances Digital Ministry Church Marketing Church Planting Sermon Video Production
Featured Videos
Watch Thomas on the REACHRIGHT YouTube channel
Pastor Salary Guide 2026: What Churches Are Actually Paying
Inside a $1.26M Church Budget: What 300-Person Churches Actually Spend
Church Tech Stack Tour: What Actually Works at 300 People
How to Do Church Announcements That Don't Suck
How to Turn One Sermon into 42 Pieces of Content
How to Grow a Small Church in 2026 (Step-by-Step Digital Plan)
What Pastors Are Saying
Real results from real churches. No stock quotes.
"The results in just a few short months have been nothing short of dramatic. We are consistently seeing first-time guests on Sundays, and when we ask, "How did you find us?" the response is almost always, "We found you online.""
TK
Terry Kreuger
Redemption City Church
"We used to get like 5 new people a month. Check out the last 3 weeks: Week 1, 5 new people. Week 2, 10 new people. Week 3, 12 new people. Nearly 30 new people in 3 weeks. Thank you so much, please keep doing what you are doing!"
RK
Ryan Keller
"Thanks to their work, we maximized our Google Grant and invested over $26,000 in Google Ads, driving over 4,000 new visitors to our website. We now rank in the top 15 for our city and are the #1 result for Lutheran Churches in our area."
MW
Mark Wuggazer
St. John Church
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Speaking
Book Thomas for Your Event
Thomas speaks at conferences, leadership retreats, and denominational gatherings. His talks draw from 20+ years of pastoral ministry and the digital marketing strategies behind 800+ churches reaching their communities online.
Book Thomas for Your EventTalk Topics
1 Church Growth in a Digital-First World
2 The $10,000/Month Grant Your Church Is Probably Missing
3 Church Marketing That Actually Fills Seats on Sunday
4 AI in the Church: What Pastors Need to Know
5 Leadership Lessons from Pastoring and Running a Business
Published Articles
488 articles on church growth, marketing, and ministry
Church TechMay 14, 2026
Claude Cowork for Church Staff: The No-Terminal Sister to Claude Code
Claude Cowork for churches is the no-terminal AI coworker your office manager will actually use. 75% nonprofit discount. Set up in 30 minutes.
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SEO & SearchMay 8, 2026
Best Local SEO Companies for Churches (2026)
I run local SEO for hundreds of churches across 47 states. Here are the best local SEO companies and agencies for churches in 2026 — honest pros, cons, pricing.
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Church WebsitesMay 6, 2026
Best Church Website Builders in 2026 (Ranked & Reviewed)
We tested 11 church website builders on ease of use, SEO, mobile, integrations, and pricing for 2026. Here's the one that fits your church.
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SEO & SearchApr 18, 2026
AI SEO Tools for Churches: What's Worth Using and What's a Waste of Money
Not all AI SEO tools are worth your church's budget. We review the tools that actually help with AI search visibility and the ones you can skip.
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Church TechApr 17, 2026
Best Sermon Clip Tools for Churches [2026]: The Honest Comparison
We tested 10 sermon clip tools churches actually use. Real pricing, real workflow time, and the done-for-you option nobody else is telling you about.
Read articleYour Community Is Searching
800+ churches across 47 states. Over $14.24 million in free Google advertising managed. Hundreds of websites built. Your church could be next.