What is blocking the use of circles for your organization?

I'm curious as to what is stopping people from using the circles functionality. I've failed to nudge our ward to use it for youth (stuck with groupme) with references to "it doesn't do what we need" but I never get specific reasons of what doesn't work. I think having a short list of the major issues would help me understand that maybe I'm tilting at windmills in recommending circles.

So, what is blocking your ward/org from using it?

From what I've seen here:

Leaders do not want to use a system that doesn't include everyone. There is no web client access. Not all parents give their kids smart phones, and you can't add non-members to the circle. Also, the inability to customize the circle (such as a youth leadership circle).

I'm going to plus1 on Russell....

Parents just have different ages where their kids will be involved with mobile devices. If you don't start at 11, it'll never be adopted, but at 11 it's rare for them to get a mobile devices

No Web Client - This could fix the adoption particularly among youth. I honestly can't image how we thought 11 year olds would ever use this app without a web client

No ability to create custom leadership circles

Youth don't see it modeled with Adults

Our main issue (and really the only core issue) is that a few youth are going to be left out of all the fun chat and other sharing that would occur via Circles. Like all other leaders, we're very sensitive to youth who would be left on the outside, and sensitive to how that would make their parents feel as well. Even if we had a current group that all had cellphones, I'd be worried that we'll get a new 11-year-old in January who won't have a cell phone, and that they'll be excluded.

Lack of customization isn't really a big issue for us (although I know it bothers others).

Admin can add members and/or callings to circles.

Does the Gospel Living app route through Church servers? If so, it seems it would be perfect for communication, especially for emergencies and "two deep leadership".

Thank you very much for the responses, just a couple thoughts to bounce around....

If a child doesn't have a cell phone the communication issue exists whether it is Circles or Groupme/other app. IMO, not using Circles for worry of leaving some out will just mean the communication will still happen cell-phone based but outside of the Gospel Living app (via text usually) to their parents. In our ward for 11-13 yr olds, the communication is directed at the parents (cell phone based).

At 14 communication seems to be transitioning to the youth presidencies handling it. Another thread mentioned Parents having read-only access in the youth Circles. I think this can be a good thing but also a problem at the younger ages. I wonder if a Circle can have that read-only option for parents to be configurable. I agree that trying to get 11 yr olds to use it wouldn't be a great approach.

Will youth really use a web app? I'm guessing they won't. IMO, a better alternate than a web app is using the app on a tablet. Someone on another thread pointed out a person could use an android app emulator like Bluestacks to run the app on a PC. IMO, the problem with a web app is that a person has to go look to see if any new messages are there. That means they will check infrequently and after a few times of not seeing new messages they will slowly stop checking. The buzzing of a cell phone notification is the driver for adopting the tool.

I think there's a training opportunity as well for youth. One big gotcha I'm seeing with my son is that people that send the messages electronically assume that everyone will read the messages they sent in a short amount of time (if at all). (I'll ignore the fact that there seem to be 3-5 different text threads with different groups on different threads.) As an example, my son's quorum sent out a message 1 hour before their activity about where/when/what they were doing. He checked his phone 2 hours before the scheduled time and assumed they weren't doing anything. At 1 hour before the youth presidency had posted "let me know if you're coming to the activity". When they didn't get a response they assumed that no response meant they weren't coming, not that they didn't see the message. No follow up call to verify they knew about the activity, etc. The activity ended up with very few there and leaders missing as well. This is not so much a tech issue but a training issue.

I'd imagine that a lot of youth do have phones, just not smart phones. Something that will work on text messaging (SMS) seems like it would be more successful.

While you have a point about web apps, not having a web app means the door is completely closed to some participants. And that's non-starter for the youth leadership.

russellhltn wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 1:57 pm I'd imagine that a lot of youth do have phones, just not smart phones. Something that will work on text messaging (SMS) seems like it would be more successful.

While you have a point about web apps, not having a web app means the door is completely closed to some participants. And that's non-starter for the youth leadership.

Gabb phones don't allow app installs. They can do SMS messaging but not group messaging, so they already are hampered by not being about to do group texts or groupme. Those youth are essentially in the same bucket as no-phone youth.

I think a tablet isn't a bad solution in place of a cell phone for the app (instead of a web app). If you are referring to adults needing the web app, I'm not sure I follow the reason there.

Two issues for me.

Perhaps I do not have something set properly, but Gospel Living does not send notifications when messages are posted in Circles. Most other apps, such as GroupMe, do.

Most other apps do not require me to sign in and establish my settings again every time there is an update, as Gospel Living does.

Lack of access for non-members is another challenge for our ward

chriswoodut wrote: Sat Aug 21, 2021 3:52 pm Gabb phones don't allow app installs. They can do SMS messaging but not group messaging, so they already are hampered by not being about to do group texts or groupme. Those youth are essentially in the same bucket as no-phone youth.

Wasn't Twitter originally built on SMS?

Here are a couple more:
– It requires installing an app that people may not already have installed. (Potential solutions: Integrate circles chat with other Church apps that members already have, like Gospel Library and/or Member Tools, or make circles chat more appealing by giving it a slimmed-down stand-alone app that doesn't carry with it the bloat of other functionality that doesn't feel relevant to all members.)
– It doesn't have the ability to route notifications to other channels, like email or text, for users who either don't have the app installed, or who don't have push notifications turned on.

GroupMe doesn't have either of these problems because it has a web app and it can route notifications to email or text – meaning that there's no requirement to ever install an app. It does, however, require signing up for the service, which is an area where the Church could one-up them, because most members already have a Church Account, or are incentivized to get a Church Account for other reasons, like seeing the ward directory, doing family history, paying tithing, etc.

Another issue that we have is that even if all of our Deacons had phones and used the app, they are not very in control of their lives. I would say that more than 90% of the communications that we see in GroupMe are responses from Parents, even if the Deacons have a phone and GroupMe on it. This becomes difficult with Circles because while Parents have access to their kids' circles, they are not notified in any way that there is a new message... even if they go into the app and look at their own circles. There should at least be an option to choose which circles the parents receive notifications from.

We're going to try Circles with our teachers quorum. One benefit of the app is it supports the youth entering their goals into it. The youth haven't been too enthusiastic about jumping on board and surprisingly don't seem to understand the technical limitations of massive text groups.

One note, our ward member that works for the Church development department mentioned that non members can now be part of the group. I don't have admin rights to the group to try to confirm that statement. Maybe one of you can see it.

non members can now be part of the group

I've got Gospel Living 1.7, and as mentioned previously, I can still only see members and callings as options to add to Circles. And I wouldn't be able to say if "adding non-members" is a technical issue they're working their way thru and we'll eventually see it; or if there's any privacy or other issues to consider when bringing in non-members into an official Church application like this, and we might not see this ever. And since we likely won't ever see inside the decision-making bubble, as users we're all kinda just in that waiting mode.

I really want to use it.

As EQP I need a circle for Service Committee and Activities Committee but don't see it.
I can't create a custom Circle
No Web (PC) support - phone keyboard is not ideal

I hadn't really heard about the application but it sounds interesting. I developed a solution for my ward to broadcast text messages to members. It is more an administrative tool than social platform. We found most members in my ward prefer to receive announcements through text than social media.

https://ward-notification-pager.io

It's a web based application that allows you to target organizations and you can create custom orgs and then broadcast messages.
It is built on top of twilio sms platform and you need a twilio account to send messages.

if anyone is interested in trying it out PM me. or email me, my email is on the attached document all the way at the end.

We are trying to use the app for all of our communication. The biggest obstacle is that parents don't get notifications unless we add them to the group. Is there a way to allow notifications for those who have "view only access" namely the parents? Adding them to each circle is not ideal. It should be automatic like view access but include notifications.

BDA

blasen wrote: Wed Oct 06, 2021 8:08 am We are trying to use the app for all of our communication. The biggest obstacle is that parents don't get notifications unless we add them to the group. Is there a way to allow notifications for those who have "view only access" namely the parents? Adding them to each circle is not ideal. It should be automatic like view access but include notifications.

BDA

Thanks for this heads up about the notifications. We're trying to get it rolled out in our YM quorum. Parents not getting notifications will be an issue -- glad to see we could add them manually.

In the app, you can submit feedback under Profile there is a send feedback option (at least in Android).

Hard limits on callings, such as only one secretary for a presidency - in this case primary - all secretary callings should be one to many, otherwise add-on secretaries can't participate in automatic relevant circles.
Seconding custom circles - ward choir is another good example

We have tried to use it but would find it much better if it had an SMS or email notification like the Remind app uses.

Admin rights are too limited. The YM only has Bishopric as admins. This is something that should be shared is a specialist or clerk to make sure the Bishopric is focused on the youth and not app permissions.

I'd like notifications as a parent as to what my kids have going on so I can support them and get them where they need to be. My kids aren't glued to their phones, so they often miss last-minute changes.

Goals and sharing are good, but it would be nice if it was tied to the notes I take in the Gospel Library.

Have a desktop application. Many of our children do not have phones. But it would be nice if my 9-year-old had a way to share and update her goals. Additionally, this is needed for managing permissions. Doing things on a phone is fine for simple tasks, but not for more complicated matters like permissions and viewing who has access.

More circles. I have an additional calling teaching primary. I'd like to communicate with their parents with lesson follow-ups or preparations.

Grady8080 wrote: Mon Jan 03, 2022 1:24 pm Admin rights are too limited. The YM only has Bishopric as admins. This is something that should be shared is a specialist or clerk to make sure the Bishopric is focused on the youth and not app permissions.

I just checked and in our ward the bishopric, ward clerk, and quorum advisors are admins.

From how I read this, there are several concerns of members that are not included if you were to leverage the Living App. IMO we will never be able to have 100% participation in any solution. SMS is only inclusive of those that provide contact info and when you remember to add them to the chain. Email through the church website assumes that members have updated their contact info. The Gospel Living app assumes that EVERYONE has logged into the app. Maybe we should care for the 99% on a common tool and the 1% should have the special focus from the leadership to bring them back to the fold and ensure their inclusivity. Unique to my unit, maybe; there are NO youth that have only SMS ability.

My adoption is poor as well. I have tried pushing its use in Ward Council, Bishopric, and the youth programs (I am a bishopric member) and cannot get them to commit. I think it is going to take a mandate from the Bishop that this is our primary communication channel and provide alternative methods for the exceptions. However no one in leadership can argue that the transparency is not superior to this app vs SMS and eMail.

Personally, my children don't "like it" because they cannot respond from the locked screen (iPhone) like they can with SMS and the leaders think it is "broke" because they don't get consistent notifications. I am not convinced this is accurate but perception is theirs to be had...

I believe adoption is important because
1. It provides 2-deep visibility and parental oversight
2. It provides an easy to use mechanism for communication and events notifications
3. There are automatic updates for callings including addition and removal of participants from proper circles.

What I see is missing:
1. The ability to add non-members.
2. Create custom circles (Think leadership for classes, seminary, etc)
3. Cannot reply in the lock screen as you can with SMS or iMessage
4. Circles "red dot" notification (iPhone) is relating to messages, reminders, events, and so the user does not know what the notification is for.
Finding the correct circle that has the notification alert active is a challenge. You may need to look though many circles to see which one is causing the notification.

The biggest issue is the lack of web browser access to the Gospel Living app. If any member of your quorum or class don't have access to the app, then it's not a tool you can use to communicate. Because many children and youth do not have mobile phones or other devices that are compatible with the app, they can't access it. If the app were available as a web page on any Internet browser, then more people could access and participate in the app (e.g., through any Internet-capable device). -- In the end, this is the only reason we can't push for full adoption and use of the app - too many youth simply don't have the hardware to access and use it. -- I have suggested repeatedly that a webpage / web app be added to allow all people to be able to access it for full adoption.

First off, I am so appreciative of the efforts put into the app and for the sacrifice of those that put their time into it.
There are a few reasons I am having a hard time "selling" the app to organizations.
1) No out of unit communication
I am a high councilor and recommended we use this app for communication. In doing that, I am now not able to be in the communication loop since I am out of unit.
2) App Only implementation really limits the use
It would greatly increase the function to be able to get online to check messages.
In addition, it is a fairly large app. Could it be included with the Tools App?
3) Only Members have access
For the youth to involve those who are not members is not an option with circles. This leaves the nonmembers they are welcoming out of the circle.
4) Unresolved Questions or Extra long wait for updates
As these type of questions and issues go longer, the love for the app and hope of using is a lot harder to "sell"

We're currently using a combination of WhatsApp (for parents) and Google Chat (for youth). We would use Circles if there was a web version of the functionality. Most youth (11-14) don't have devices, but they're comfortable using email and web-based chat apps (Google Chat/Hangouts).

I'd be happy if the Gospel Living app was just an app that shows a web view with all the functionality visible in the app or in a web browser. My ward would love to move to move to Gospel Living/Circles instead of using 3rd party apps, it's close, but not quite there yet.

In our area, most children (even in elementary school) have school issued chromebooks that they can use at home for homework, distance learning, etc. Last year we had an indexing goal for our Ward Temple and Family History Plan and the youth were the largest contributor. Primarily by indexing in FamilySearch on a chromebook. Having a browser version of Gospel Living would be a big plus, but I'm not a programmer and have no clue how easy or difficult that would be.

davesudweeks wrote: Wed Feb 02, 2022 11:56 am In our area, most children (even in elementary school) have school issued chromebooks that they can use at home for homework, distance learning, etc. Last year we had an indexing goal for our Ward Temple and Family History Plan and the youth were the largest contributor. Primarily by indexing in FamilySearch on a chromebook. Having a browser version of Gospel Living would be a big plus, but I'm not a programmer and have no clue how easy or difficult that would be.

Most new Chromebooks have the Google Play Store, which allows you to install Android apps. Have you tried installing the Android version of Gospel Living? See this article:
https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/7021273?hl=en

sbradshaw wrote: Wed Feb 02, 2022 12:19 pm Most new Chromebooks have the Google Play Store, which allows you to install Android apps. Have you tried installing the Android version of Gospel Living? See this article:
https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/7021273?hl=en

That's a good suggestion for those who want to help youth get access! I don't know if school-issued chromebooks are locked down for app installs - something for parents to look into, though.

I'll have to check with my Chromebook at home, but I've discovered not all Android apps are available on it. For example the free Microsoft Office for Android doesn't appear on the Chromebook Google Playstore.

Primary President here- we wish we had a circle that include all primary parents. Having one for each group of primary activities is nice, as well as one for the leaders, but I would like to have a way to share primary assignments, or pictures from primary without spamming the whole ward.

Too many bugs and no web access for people without smartphones.

1) Not being able to post on my children's circles: When leaders post activities/events/etc, parent's can't reply or ask questions. So everyone just reverts back to texting or other tools. The app already supports posting, but if we can't post on the youth or primary circles, it just can't work.

2) Not being able to get notifications on my children's circles. My kids have literally missed activities because we were not notified about the event. I have to MANUALLY go look at each circle to find messages. The app is causing people to be excluded or left out. The app already supports notifications, seems easy to allow notifications on the children's circles. Problem solved.

The biggest impediment to universal adoption is the lack of availability as a web app. We need something our youth and adults can access on their family desktop or laptop computer. We encourage parents to have their family computers in a public place and caution them about getting smartphones or mobile devices that can be viewed in private, but then we develop a church communications app that only works on mobile devices! (Insert face palm here.)

Most of our leaders would use Gospel Living and Circles in a heartbeat if it was more accessible to all of our youth. If even one or two youth in a class / quorum doesn't have a smartphone or mobile device, then everyone switches to something else. Reddit, Groupme, Discord, and Google Hangouts are examples of communication tools people are using instead of Gospel Living; why? Because they can access them as mobile apps, Windows apps, web apps, web pages, etc.

If the Church wants its investment in developing this tool to pay off (and for the content tied to the Children and Youth Program to finally stick), then make the Gospel Living app available as a web app on desktops and laptops.

According to this: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ins ... e?lang=eng web access to circles if coming soon.
Circles (Coming Soon)
We are actively working to bring Circles from the Gospel Living mobile app to the web. This is a virtual conversation experience that will enable you to stay connected to your family, Sunday School class, quorum, Young Women class, or presidency as applicable.

And for those that don't know the Discovery part of the Gospel Living app has been on the web for awhile:
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ins ... n?lang=eng

Click the source icon in the far right of the filter/search box at the top of the page, and select Gospel Living.

t_taufer wrote: Sat Feb 19, 2022 4:18 pm 1) Not being able to post on my children's circles: When leaders post activities/events/etc., parents can't reply or ask questions. So everyone reverts back to texting or other tools. The app already supports posting, but if we can't post on the youth or primary circles, it just can't work.

2) Not being able to get notifications on my children's circles. My kids have literally missed activities because we were not notified about the event. I have to MANUALLY go look at each circle to find messages. The app is causing people to be excluded or left out. The app already supports notifications, seems easy to allow notifications on the children's circles. Problem solved.

Our leadership has encouraged the usage, but most leaders are sending out text messages outside of the Living App because parents and youth can respond directly. Recently, a family moved out and was included in a Text message, which resulted in an exchange on how unconnected leadership and youth appear. That is the exception, not the rule, but I wish the Living app (Circles was more robust).

Adding a Ward Bulleting page to replace our Sunday meeting program that we print and throw away.

We don't get notifications reliably from Circles.

The app is incredibly unstable. Most of the time, on my Android (Google Pixel 4a), I don't get any notifications until I launch the app, then several notifications flood the screen. If I do get notifications, when I tap on them the app will load and either display nothing, or it will crash. This is similar to the other's in the bishopric and ward council I have talked to.

There are several members in the ward that cannot get added to the Adult circle for some reason. It will not let the admins add them because it says they are already invited, but the members have no way of accepting the invites. When they tap on the circles page, it just says something like "you are ready to join circles", but has no way of actually joining a circle. We have verified they are using the member account that is tied to their MRN and the same login they use on the church website.

There is no way to remove and re-add a member if they are having issues, because you cannot delete a member that has not been manually added. But if it's not automatically adding them, that makes it impossible for them to join.

Trying to add a calling to a circle is not functional, at least with the custom callings we have tried to add. For example, when trying to add a custom calling, it will add ALL custom callings because when you select one, it selects all. It also shows every member in the ward that has a custom calling as having everyone of those callings (meaning if we have 10 members with customer callings, it will display 100 callings: 10 people each with the 10 callings...way too buggy).

We do still use Circles as the main method of bishopric, ward council and ward activities communication, but we are finding out that more and more people are not receiving the notifications, or have issues with the app not working properly.

Personally, as an IT professional, I am embarrassed by this app and how buggy it is. I'm also embarrassed with how poor the church website has been functioning the last year or so.

I think we're overlooking something really important here and that is the barrier to entry.
Regardless of what age a person gets a phone or if it's a parent vs. a youth, 99% of phones come pre-equipped to send and receive text messages.

To use Circles, I have to:

1. Know the app exists and is being used in my ward.
2. Have a device that will allow me to download the app.
3. Care enough about receiving messages from my leaders to actually download it.
4. Take the time to download it.
5. Have a church account and know my credentials.
6. Sign in using my church credentials.
7. Be given the correct permissions (even as a parent).
8. Learn how to navigate the app, set up notifications, etc.
9. Remember to check the app regularly if I don't get notifications.

OR, I could:

1. Have a device.
2. Send a receive text messages.

Maybe someone should have told that to Elder Gong during the Face to Face Event in November 2019?

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/chu ... d-families

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/chu ... face-event

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/chu ... red-living

As a ward we are trying to use circles, but the inability to customize access limits it's usefulness. For example, since access is based on current calling, we have a YM "specialist" that will be working with all three Aaronic priesthood quorums. There is no way to give him access to all three quorums without listing him in the system as having 3 different calling (one in each quorum).
Also we just discovered today the the Bishop cannot text certain groups within circles. He wanted to forward an article and a spiritual thought to the young women in the ward through circles, but he doesn't have access to their circles group (at least not that we could find). The Bishop (of all people) should be able to send messages to whatever circles group he chooses within the ward. This is one major failure of the program in my opinion.

I thought I'd mention something I learned that I haven't seen listed:
I was just introduced to Circles myself. I find it very useful but wonder about how to implement. I have seen many concerns listed here and did find that there is a solution for children who do not have a device.
You can have many accounts on one device/app and they allow you to use a pin to keep them private.

I did notice quite a few features added to Circles in the recent app update. Many complaints on this thread may no longer apply.

The ability to add anyone that isn’t a member of the church. We have non-member youth and adults alike attending and participating in different youth classes regularly and in primary…. there is no Option to add them or their parents manually, so it isn’t inclusive, it may feel exclusive.

What is blocking the use of Circles? Well, I can't speak for everyone but I'll speak for me:

1. Limitation to mobile platforms.
- I am in my 40s, an early adopter of technology, and have a background in IT so 'mobile devices' are not an inherent issue, but I also have nerve damage to my hands and carpal tunnel (years in the military). Typing anything out on my phone is slow and painful. If I could access it from my computer I would be much more active on it and send more meaningful messages. I'm sure this probably applies to older folks with arthritis as well.

2. Limited functionality.
- There are other apps out there that do things better from simple messaging to having local control over users. In many cases, Circles is just another tool to of pay attention to when we have other tools that do things better. Want to discuss various topics and have a space to meet (audio/video)? Discord is better. Want to send out messages to everyone in a specific class/quorum/calling? LCR/Email is better. Want to communicate in small groups (e.g. a presidency or ward council)? Text message groups are better as long as the group membership is not super-dynamic.

3. It doesn't work well.
- I've heard this from multiple people and seen it first hand. Occasionally I'll get alerts to messages I can't find. I'll show unread messages in a 'forum' that I can't find. I'll check to see if there are replies to posts and I can't find them.

My wife recently got called as the Relief Society president in our ward and I'm looking for ways to help her communicate effectively at various levels and Circles is not it. The primary means of communication is text messaging / text groups. The medium she plans to use for presidency meetings is Discord. The medium they are using for more dynamic information is Facebook. The medium she is using to share more static information at various levels is Google Drive. These are all tools that can be locally controlled and interact with members and non-members.

We have several parents who can read messages in their circles but are not allowed to post - is there a setting or other factor to help with this??

athompsonlds wrote: Thu Aug 14, 2025 7:51 am We have several parents who can read messages in their circles but are not allowed to post - is there a setting or other factor to help with this??

If the circles are youth circles, then the function is as planned. Parents can monitor the activity on the youth circles so they can see what is going on. The youth circles are intended to allow the youth to communicate openly among themselves without the intrusion of parents taking over the conversations. But if you are talking about not being able to post in the youth circles at the Parents tab then there is a bug/malfunction. The parents can view posts in both the youth tab and the parents tab. But parents should be only able to post in the parents tab. The youth don't see the parents tab and therefore the conversation going on there.

Thank you.

the parents are unable to post in the parents group, but can in Relief Society, etc. This is happening with multiple families - and in one family, the wife can post in RS but not in youth parents. The husban cannot post anywhere

Even though the handbook is clear we should use it, it is extremely hard to get Young Men and Young Women's organizations to adopt the application because they cannot include non member friends, or prospective members to are taking lessons from the missionaries. Leaders prefer to use existing methods and manually determine who needs to move in or out of a chat continually, rather than exclude anyone from regular chats. They have strongly expressed it is difficult for fellowshipping it we can't include others into Circles.

1. Posts to a whole group works great, but what if someone has a question about the post? It quickly becomes a message storm like Reply All. People turn off notifications to limit the dozens of unnecessary alerts.
2. No web version for those that don’t allow their youth to have smart phones.
3. Buried inside the Gospel Living App. Circles should be its own dedicated app for messaging.
4. Only a small subset of potential groups are supported. All other church communications have to go through text or email so now the communications are spread out again.
5. Can’t include images
6. No ability to Tapback or reply with an emoji.

This app simply isn’t ready to be the default app for all church communications. It’s such a simple app. Why is it taking so long to include any of the improvements requested in this post?

mazachary wrote: Fri Jan 16, 2026 4:16 pm 2. No web version for those that don’t allow their youth to have smart phones.

Not to mention adults who don't care for them either.

Why is it taking so long to include any of the improvements requested in this post?

Limited "funding" and resources. Low priority. Perhaps the software used for Circles is too complex. I think discussions in these forums don't really influence what gets done with the software.

ybc44 wrote: Thu Dec 16, 2021 2:46 pm Hard limits on callings, such as only one secretary for a presidency - in this case primary - all secretary callings should be one to many, otherwise add-on secretaries can't participate in automatic relevant circles.
Seconding custom circles - ward choir is another good example

Absolutely! Custom circles and picky permissions is why we gave up.

mazachary wrote: Fri Jan 16, 2026 4:16 pm 1. Posts to a whole group works great, but what if someone has a question about the post? It quickly becomes a message storm like Reply All. People turn off notifications to limit the dozens of unnecessary alerts.
2. No web version for those that don’t allow their youth to have smart phones.
3. Buried inside the Gospel Living App. Circles should be its own dedicated app for messaging.
4. Only a small subset of potential groups are supported. All other church communications have to go through text or email so now the communications are spread out again.
5. Can’t include images
6. No ability to Tapback or reply with an emoji.

This app simply isn’t ready to be the default app for all church communications. It’s such a simple app. Why is it taking so long to include any of the improvements requested in this post?

We're aren't the clients of the tools the church develops, we as users of the apps are not a priority. The different church department take turns getting what they 'want' developed by the tools teams. So, unless and until it is a priority to a church department it will not be developed. It's just a reality of how this all works.