SermonWise.ai Agent Brief

Purpose

This brief gives Claude agents the strategic direction, product positioning, content pillars, and execution tasks for SermonWise.ai.

SermonWise.ai is a sermon preparation tool for Christian pastors, priests, and preachers. It should not be positioned as an "AI sermon generator." The stronger positioning is:

SermonWise is a sermon prep companion for pastors who want help getting unstuck without outsourcing the sermon.

The founder, John Moelker, has 15 years of software experience and 15 years of pastoral ministry experience in Reformed churches in Ontario. The brand should draw from that credibility. "Pastor John" is real. The content should feel like a seasoned pastor sitting beside another preacher at the desk.

Core Strategic Insight

Pastors are cautious about anything that sounds like outsourcing the sermon. Public offers like "I will create a sermon for you" can trigger resistance because preaching is tied to calling, prayer, study, theology, pastoral identity, and congregational trust.

Therefore, all messaging should avoid:

• AI writes your sermon
• sermon generator
• automated sermon
• done-for-you sermon
• sermon content machine

Preferred language:

• sermon prep
• prep pack
• study companion
• preaching assistant
• sermon craft
• one way to approach the text
• a sermon angle
• a scene retelling
• a pastoral application

Recommended line:

SermonWise helps pastors prepare faithful sermons without replacing the preacher's prayer, study, voice, or pastoral discernment.

Product Direction

SermonWise should help pastors produce a "prep pack," not a finished sermon.

A prep pack can include:

• Text and context
• Big idea
• Sermon title options
• Outline options
• Key exegetical observations
• Theological themes
• Christ connection
• Illustration ideas
• Show, Don't Tell scene retellings
• Pastoral application
• Discussion questions
• Children's moment ideas
• Newsletter or social summary
• Conclusion seed

The product should make the pastor feel:

"This helped me see the text more clearly and start faster, but the sermon is still mine."

Multi-Method Sermon Prep

John's personal preaching template is strongly shaped by the Four Page Sermon Method associated with Paul Scott Wilson:

• Page 1: Trouble in the text
• Page 2: Trouble in the world
• Page 3: Grace in the text
• Page 4: Grace in the world

Important: SermonWise should not be branded as only a Four Page Sermon tool. Most pastors do not use that method.

Instead, SermonWise should support multiple sermon methods.

Recommended method options:

1. Classic Expository Prep

   • Main text
   • Main point
   • Explanation
   • Illustration
   • Application
   • Gospel connection

2. Big Idea Preaching

   • One central proposition
   • One memorable bottom line
   • Supporting movements
   • Application pathway

3. Four Page Sermon

   • Trouble in the text
   • Trouble in the world
   • Grace in the text
   • Grace in the world
   • Use attribution if referencing the method by name.

4. Lowry Loop

   • Oops
   • Ugh
   • Aha
   • Whee
   • Yeah

5. Narrative Sermon

   • Setting
   • Tension
   • Movement
   • Turn
   • Resolution

6. Lectionary Homily

   • Liturgical context
   • Gospel movement
   • Seasonal emphasis
   • Pastoral invitation

7. Topical Sermon

   • Theme
   • Key texts
   • Doctrine
   • Application
   • Guardrails against proof-texting

8. Christ-Centered / Redemptive-Historical

   • The text in the story of redemption
   • Promise, fulfillment, type, theme, or trajectory
   • How the text leads to Christ without forcing it

Default product method should probably be "Classic Expository Prep Pack" because it is familiar and broadly acceptable.

The Four Page method can remain:

• A selectable advanced method
• A hidden internal quality rubric
• A YouTube content framework
• A source of distinctive sermon-craft segments

Internal Quality Rubric

Regardless of selected sermon method, SermonWise should quietly check:

• Is there one clear main text?
• Is the central theme clear?
• Is God the primary actor where appropriate?
• Does the sermon identify real human need?
• Does the good news match the trouble?
• Does the sermon lead to Christ appropriately?
• Does the application flow from grace rather than mere burden?
• Is the language pastoral, not scolding?
• Is the text handled faithfully?
• Does the preacher retain final authority and voice?

Theological And Pastoral Guardrails

Agents should maintain these guardrails in all content and product work:

• SermonWise supports the preacher; it does not replace the preacher.
• Avoid claiming certainty for imaginative details not explicit in the text.
• Never fabricate historical or textual facts.
• Distinguish "imaginative retelling" from exegesis.
• Avoid moralism: application should be framed as invitation and grace, not crushing burden.
• Avoid treating all traditions as interchangeable.
• When using "One Text, Many Pulpits," frame it as learning from the wider church without abandoning conviction.
• When using humor, do not mock Scripture or make the pulpit feel flippant.
• When connecting to Jesus, do not force a hidden code into every verse. Walk the textual and canonical path to Christ.

Useful repeated lines:

You do not have to leave your tradition to learn from the wider church.

Do not jump to Jesus. Walk the path to Jesus.

Do not make fun of the text. Let the text's own irony, reversal, and surprise do the work.

YouTube Strategy

YouTube should be the main discovery engine. Email should be the main owned audience asset.

The content strategy:

1. Short videos create discovery.
2. Playlists and pinned comments explain each series.
3. Descriptions link to SermonWise.ai.
4. SermonWise.ai offers a free worksheet or prep pack.
5. Email captures turn anonymous viewers into reachable pastors.
6. Paid SermonWise follows after trust is established.

This is not a broad "Christian YouTube" strategy. It is a long-tail sermon-prep search strategy.

Target searches include:

• Luke 15 sermon title
• Prodigal son sermon outline
• John 3:16 sermon illustration
• Psalm 23 funeral sermon
• Palm Sunday sermon ideas
• Good Samaritan sermon application
• Reformed sermon outline Romans 8
• Catholic homily John 6

YouTube Algorithm Notes

YouTube is not exactly like Google. Google ranking depends heavily on domain authority, backlinks, and site trust. YouTube has channel-level signals, but individual videos can surface if they match a specific search or perform well with viewers.

YouTube responds to viewer behavior:

• Do viewers stop scrolling?
• Do they watch?
• Do they rewatch?
• Do they skip?
• Do they like?
• Do they comment?
• Do they watch more?
• Do similar viewers seem satisfied?

New channels can still win with narrow, intent-rich topics.

Do not dump hundreds of videos at once. Better:

• Produce 100 Shorts in batches.
• Publish 2 to 4 per day for 30 days.
• Watch which pillars perform.
• Make the next 100 based on real data.

Production Workflow

John has a decent office setup and usually uses OBS.

Recommended approach:

• Use real John on camera.
• Use real John voice.
• Use AI for captions, editing assistance, titles, hooks, special effects, and production speed.
• Avoid using a fully synthetic AI "Pastor John" as the main trust-builder.

AI-assisted editing is fine:

• Auto captions
• Filler word removal
• Pause tightening
• Audio cleanup
• Caption styling
• Hook suggestions
• Title variants
• Thumbnail assistance
• Minor visual polish

Recommended stack:

• OBS for recording
• Descript for transcript editing and filler-word removal
• CapCut for vertical captions and short-form templates
• Canva for thumbnail or title card templates
• Optional: OpusClip if long videos are being clipped into Shorts

OBS Shorts setup:

• Vertical canvas: 1080x1920
• Output: 1080x1920
• FPS: 30
• Format: MKV for crash safety, then remux to MP4
• Audio: 48 kHz
• Bitrate: 12,000 to 20,000 Kbps
• Warm office background
• Clean mic audio
• Small lower third: Pastor John | SermonWise.ai
• Optional top label: Show, Don't Tell
• Optional Bible reference label: John 3:1-2

Use two OBS profiles:

• SermonWise Shorts: vertical, close framing
• SermonWise Longform: horizontal, 1080p or 4K

Avoid overproduced flashy effects. Pastors will likely respond better to clean, readable, trustworthy, and pastoral visuals.

AI Disclosure

If John is on camera and using AI only for captions, editing, cleanup, titles, thumbnails, or minor production assistance, YouTube generally does not require altered/synthetic disclosure.

If using a realistic AI avatar or realistic AI clone that makes John appear to say something he did not actually record, disclose clearly.

Suggested disclosure if avatar is ever used:

Some short videos on this channel use an AI-assisted visual avatar of Pastor John. The scripts, theology, and sermon prep are created and reviewed by John Moelker.

Preferred trust model:

Real John for trust. AI for production speed.

Core Content Pillars

1. Show, Don't Tell

Concept:

Instead of summarizing a biblical scene too quickly, help people see it.

This is a preaching craft move. It turns commentary statements into cinematic, faithful, imaginative retellings.

Example:

Instead of:

Nicodemus came to Jesus secretly.

Show:

Jerusalem has gone quiet. The public debates are over. Torches burn low against the stone. A teacher of Israel moves through the dark with a question he does not want overheard.

Guardrails:

• Do not invent doctrine.
• Do not pretend invented details are certain.
• Label it as imaginative retelling or a preaching move.
• Let the scene serve the sermon.

Short format:

Pastor John here. Instead of telling your people, "Nicodemus came to Jesus at night," show them the scene.

Jerusalem has gone quiet. The public debates are over. Torches burn low against the stone. A teacher of Israel moves through the dark with a question he does not want overheard.

That one detail, "by night," is not just time of day. It lets you preach secrecy, longing, fear, and the first flicker of faith.

Follow for more sermon prep help.

Create one 2 to 4 minute anchor explainer:

Title:

What Is Show, Don't Tell For Preachers?

Use it as:

• Channel trailer or featured video
• First video in the Show, Don't Tell playlist
• Link in every related Short description
• Pinned comment link

2. Everything Points To Jesus

Concept:

Show how each text leads to Christ without forcing it.

This solves a real sermon-prep problem: pastors want to preach Christ faithfully, but not every text should be handled with a simplistic leap to Jesus.

Guardrail:

Do not jump to Jesus. Walk the path to Jesus.

Example:

Pastor John here. How does Psalm 23 point to Jesus?

Not by forcing a hidden code into every line, but by following the Shepherd language forward.

"The Lord is my shepherd" becomes Jesus saying, "I am the good shepherd." The valley of the shadow becomes the place where the Shepherd enters death with us. And the table in the presence of enemies becomes the feast Christ prepares by grace.

So Psalm 23 does not stop at comfort. It leads us to the Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep.

3. One Text, Many Pulpits

Concept:

Show how different Christian traditions might preach the same text.

This brings SermonWise's 17 theological lenses to life.

Use 3 to 5 traditions in a Short, not all 17.

Framing:

You do not have to leave your tradition to learn from the wider church.

Example:

Pastor John here. John 3:16 is familiar, but different traditions notice different treasures.

A Reformed preacher may emphasize the sovereign love of God: God loved before the world loved him.

A Wesleyan preacher may lean into the invitation: whoever believes.

A Catholic homily may connect belief to the visible, sacramental love of God in Christ lifted up for the world.

None of these exhaust the text. Together, they remind us the gospel is larger than our usual preaching instincts.

4. Sermon Title Clinic

Concept:

Help pastors find titles that open the sermon rather than merely label the passage.

Use "stronger," "fresh," "memorable," or "pastoral" more often than "catchy" or "edgy."

Example:

Pastor John here. If you are preaching Luke 15, do not only title it "The Prodigal Son."

Try "When Grace Looks Wasteful."

That title lets you preach the younger son's rebellion, the older brother's resentment, and the father's extravagant mercy.

The text is not only about coming home. It is about a grace so generous it offends the respectable.

Full prep pack at SermonWise.ai.

5. Is There Humor In This Text?

Potential series names:

• Holy Irony
• Did You Notice The Humor?
• The Bible Is Funnier Than We Think
• The Smile In The Text
• Sacred Surprise

Concept:

Notice irony, surprise, reversal, exaggeration, or holy absurdity in the text.

Guardrail:

Do not make fun of the text. Let the text's own irony, reversal, and surprise do the work.

Example:

Pastor John here. Is there humor in the story of Zacchaeus?

I think there is at least a holy irony.

Here is a wealthy, powerful tax collector, and the first thing Luke makes us see is that he is too short to see Jesus. So this important man climbs a tree like a child.

The scene lowers him before grace lifts him.

That little comic image helps preach the reversal: the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.

6. One Text, One Turn

Concept:

One detail, word, phrase, movement, question, or tension in the passage that opens the sermon.

Examples:

• One word in John 3:16 pastors should slow down on
• Why "by night" matters in John 3
• The detail in Luke 15 that changes the sermon
• The overlooked movement in Psalm 23
• The question behind Mark 10

7. Preaching Mistake To Avoid

Concept:

Name one common flattening or overused move in preaching a famous text, then offer a better way.

Examples:

• Do not reduce the Good Samaritan to "be nice."
• Do not preach Psalm 23 only as comfort.
• Do not rush past Nicodemus's fear.
• Do not make Romans 8 only about personal inspiration.
• Do not skip the older brother.

8. 60-Second Outline

Concept:

Give a quick usable structure for a passage.

Examples:

• Luke 15 sermon outline in 60 seconds
• John 3:16 sermon outline in 60 seconds
• Psalm 23 funeral sermon outline
• Mark 1 sermon outline
• Romans 8 sermon outline for weary people

9. Does The Grace Match The Trouble?

Concept:

A sermon's good news should answer the real trouble raised by the text and by the congregation's world.

This comes from the Four Page/SermonWise internal preaching quality standard, but it can be taught broadly.

Examples:

• Does the grace match the trouble in Luke 15?
• The sermon mistake: grace that does not answer the wound
• Why your application feels heavy
• Let grace do more than end the sermon

10. God-Active Language

Concept:

Use strong active verbs for what God is doing, not only passive or stative language.

Examples:

• Do not only say "God is present." Ask what God does.
• God seeks. God restores. God forgives. God gathers. God raises. God sends.
• Let God be the subject of the good news.

Calls To Action

Avoid making generic YouTuber CTAs the default:

Like, subscribe, and comment.

Pastors may hear that as too creator-economy-ish.

Better:

• If this helps your sermon prep, follow along.
• Follow Pastor John for more sermon prep in under a minute.
• Comment the passage you are preaching next.
• What text should I do next?
• Would you preach this detail differently?
• Get the full prep pack at SermonWise.ai.
• The full worksheet is linked in the description.

Use only one CTA per Short.

Descriptions And Pinned Comments

Each Short should have:

• A short description
• SermonWise.ai link
• Playlist link if relevant
• A pinned comment with a natural question

Example description:

Show, Don't Tell for John 3. This is a preaching move that helps people see the scene before you explain it. Get the full sermon prep pack at SermonWise.ai.

Example pinned comment:

What text are you preaching next? I may do a Show, Don't Tell example for it.

Email List Strategy

The real audience asset is email, not social subscribers.

Offer:

The Tuesday Sermon Prep Pack

Positioning:

A weekly email for pastors who want help getting unstuck without outsourcing the sermon.

Sections:

• Text snapshot
• Sermon tension
• Three faithful angles
• Show, Don't Tell segment
• Everything Points To Jesus
• Illustration seed
• Application questions
• Pastoral sensitivity note
• Link to full SermonWise pack

Lead magnets:

• Free Show, Don't Tell worksheet for 10 famous Bible scenes
• Free Luke 15 prep pack
• Free John 3:16 prep pack
• Free One Text, Many Pulpits sample pack
• Free sermon title clinic for 25 famous texts

Keyword Research Workflow

Before producing a batch, score topics.

Step 1: YouTube Autocomplete

Type phrases into YouTube:

• sermon title for Luke
• Luke 15 sermon
• John 3:16 sermon illustration
• prodigal son sermon outline

If YouTube autocompletes the phrase, there is at least some search behavior.

Step 2: Manual Search

Search the phrase and inspect the top 10 results.

Look for:

• Old videos
• Long videos answering a quick-intent query
• Generic titles
• Weak thumbnails
• Few Shorts
• Mismatched results
• Small or inconsistent channels ranking

Step 3: Google Trends

Use Google Trends with the YouTube Search filter for broader comparisons:

• sermon outline
• sermon illustration
• sermon title
• John 3:16 sermon
• Luke 15 sermon
• Palm Sunday sermon

Step 4: Tools

Use vidIQ or TubeBuddy for directional comparison. Do not treat their numbers as precise truth.

Opportunity Score

Score each idea from 1 to 5:

• Search intent: Would a pastor search this?
• Specificity: Is it narrow enough?
• Weak competition: Are current results poor or mismatched?
• Shorts fit: Can it work in 30 to 60 seconds?
• Product fit: Does it lead naturally to SermonWise?

Anything 18+ out of 25 is worth producing.

First Production Batch

Create:

• 10 Show, Don't Tell Shorts
• 10 Everything Points To Jesus Shorts
• 10 Sermon Title Clinic Shorts
• 10 One Text, Many Pulpits Shorts
• 5 Holy Irony / Humor Shorts
• 1 Show, Don't Tell explainer
• 1 SermonWise channel trailer
• 1 free worksheet or prep pack landing page

Publish for 14 to 30 days and measure.

Sample Scripts

Show, Don't Tell - John 3

Pastor John here. Instead of telling your people, "Nicodemus came to Jesus at night," show them the scene.

Jerusalem has gone quiet. The public debates are over. Torches burn low against the stone. A teacher of Israel moves through the dark with a question he does not want overheard.

That one detail, "by night," is not just time of day. It lets you preach secrecy, longing, fear, and the first flicker of faith.

Follow for more sermon prep help.

Everything Points To Jesus - Psalm 23

Pastor John here. How does Psalm 23 point to Jesus?

Not by forcing a hidden code into every line, but by following the Shepherd language forward.

"The Lord is my shepherd" becomes Jesus saying, "I am the good shepherd." The valley of the shadow becomes the place where the Shepherd enters death with us. And the table in the presence of enemies becomes the feast Christ prepares by grace.

Psalm 23 does not stop at comfort. It leads us to the Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep.

Sermon Title Clinic - Luke 15

Pastor John here. If you are preaching Luke 15, do not only title it "The Prodigal Son."

Try "When Grace Looks Wasteful."

That title lets you preach the younger son's rebellion, the older brother's resentment, and the father's extravagant mercy.

The text is not only about coming home. It is about a grace so generous it offends the respectable.

Full prep pack at SermonWise.ai.

Holy Irony - Zacchaeus

Pastor John here. Is there humor in the story of Zacchaeus?

I think there is at least a holy irony.

Here is a wealthy, powerful tax collector, and the first thing Luke makes us see is that he is too short to see Jesus. So this important man climbs a tree like a child.

The scene lowers him before grace lifts him.

One Text, Many Pulpits - John 3:16

Pastor John here. John 3:16 is familiar, but different traditions notice different treasures.

A Reformed preacher may emphasize the sovereign love of God: God loved before the world loved him.

A Wesleyan preacher may lean into the invitation: whoever believes.

A Catholic homily may connect belief to the visible, sacramental love of God in Christ lifted up for the world.

None of these exhaust the text. Together, they remind us the gospel is larger than our usual preaching instincts.

Metrics

Track:

• Views
• Average view duration
• Retention
• Rewatches
• Likes
• Comments from actual pastors
• New subscribers
• Profile visits
• Description clicks
• SermonWise.ai visits
• Email signups
• Free prep pack requests
• Trial starts
• Paid subscriptions

Interpretation:

• Views but no clicks: CTA or offer needs work.
• Signups but no paid conversion: product/pricing path needs work.
• No views: titles, hooks, or topics need work.
• Comments from non-pastors only: targeting needs work.
• Pastors request passages: strong signal.

Agent Task Backlog

Content Research Agent

Create a ranked list of 200 sermon-prep YouTube Shorts topics using:

• Search intent
• Passage popularity
• Seasonal relevance
• Sermon task
• Weak competition
• SermonWise product fit

Output fields:

• Title
• Pillar
• Passage
• Search phrase
• Hook
• CTA
• Opportunity score

Scriptwriting Agent

Create 50 recording-ready Shorts scripts.

Rules:

• 20 to 45 seconds
• Pastor John voice
• One idea per script
• Theologically careful
• No generic AI tone
• End with one soft CTA

Product Agent

Design a SermonWise prep pack schema with support for multiple sermon methods:

• Classic Expository
• Big Idea
• Four Page
• Lowry Loop
• Narrative
• Lectionary Homily
• Topical
• Christ-Centered / Redemptive-Historical

Include method-specific fields and shared quality checks.

Landing Page Agent

Create landing page copy for:

• Free Show, Don't Tell worksheet
• Free Tuesday Sermon Prep Pack newsletter
• SermonWise trial

Avoid "AI writes sermons." Emphasize prep help, trust, and pastoral craft.

Video Production Agent

Create:

• OBS scene checklist
• CapCut caption style guide
• Descript cleanup workflow
• Filename convention
• Upload checklist
• Description templates
• Pinned comment templates

Analytics Agent

Create a tracking spreadsheet template with:

• Video title
• Pillar
• Passage
• Date posted
• Views
• Retention
• Likes
• Comments
• Subscribers gained
• Link clicks
• Email signups
• Trials
• Notes
• Next action

Final Strategic Position

SermonWise should become:

A trusted sermon prep companion that combines pastoral craft, theological depth, multiple preaching methods, and AI-assisted speed without replacing the preacher.

The YouTube channel should become:

Pastor John's weekly sermon-prep desk, where pastors get quick, faithful help seeing the text, shaping the message, and keeping their own voice in the pulpit.

The first campaign should test:

• Show, Don't Tell
• Everything Points To Jesus
• Sermon Title Clinic
• One Text, Many Pulpits
• Holy Irony / Humor In The Text

Do not wait for perfect branding. Publish, measure, learn, and double down on the series that actual pastors respond to.