Texting Terms of Service

1. Who Sends the Texts

Shepherds Inbox, operated by Steward HQ LLC, sends texts on behalf of the church named on the form you fill in. That church is the sender you are agreeing to hear from. Your choice applies to that church, not other churches using Shepherds Inbox.

These terms cover volunteer, guest and church-news texts. They do not enroll you in staff sign-in or staff-notification texts, which have a separate opt-in.

2. What You Can Choose

You choose each kind of message separately:

• Serving, visits and follow-up: volunteer scheduling requests, confirmations, reminders and changes, plus messages about your visit and follow-up from the church.
• Church news and announcements: updates from your church, only if your church offers this choice and you separately agree to news by text. Choosing news by email does not sign you up for news by text.

Some messages may be sent automatically. Your serving, visit and follow-up choice does not authorize church-news texts. These choices do not authorize fundraising texts or advertising for other businesses.

Texting availability: Volunteer and guest communication is currently by email. Forms may record your text choices before church texting becomes available. Giving permission does not turn texting on or guarantee when it will be available. Church-news texting also depends on availability and your church offering it. Before texts begin, we may ask you to confirm your choices again.

3. Your Choice Is Optional

Only you can agree to receive texts at your mobile number. Giving us a phone number, choosing Text as your preferred way to be contacted, accepting general terms, or having a church leader add you does not by itself give permission to text you.

Consent to texts is not a condition of any purchase, donation, church participation, volunteering, visiting, submitting a form, opening an account or using Shepherds Inbox. You can leave the text boxes unticked. You can still take part without receiving texts.

4. The Words on the Sign-up Form

The form uses your church’s name where the examples below say “Grace Church.” These are separate, optional choices:

Serving, visits and follow-up

Text me from Grace Church about serving, my visit and follow-up from the church.

Sent by Shepherds Inbox. Msg frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help or STOP to opt out. Terms of Service · Privacy Policy

Church news by text

Text me church news and announcements.

From Grace Church, sent by Shepherds Inbox. Msg frequency varies. Message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help or STOP to opt out. Terms of Service · Privacy Policy

On the form, “Terms of Service” links to these texting terms and “Privacy Policy” links to our Privacy Policy. Your church may not offer every choice.

5. How Often and What It Costs

Message frequency varies. It depends on your serving dates, your visit and follow-up, and any church news you separately ask to receive. Messages may recur; there is no fixed number per month.

Message and data rates may apply. Your mobile carrier’s charges apply to texts you send and receive and to data used when opening links. Ask your carrier about your plan.

6. Stop Texts, Get Help or Start Again

These reply instructions apply once your church’s texting program is available:

• STOP: Reply STOP to a text to stop texts from that church’s number, including both serving/follow-up and church-news texts from that number. You will receive one confirmation of the stop, then no further program texts unless you choose to opt in again. Stopping texts does not remove you from the church or cancel a serving commitment.
• HELP: Reply HELP for help, or email [email protected]. You can also contact the church named on the form for questions about your serving dates or visit.
• START: If you previously stopped texts and want to receive them again, reply START to the same church number. START removes the texting block; it does not sign you up for a new message category or another church. We may ask you to confirm which texts you want before they resume.

You can also withdraw permission before or after texting starts by emailing [email protected] or contacting your church. Tell us which church and mobile number the request concerns. We honor clear requests to stop, not just the word STOP. An email-news subscription is a separate choice; use its unsubscribe link to stop those emails.

7. Delivery and Your Information

Wireless carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Text delivery is not guaranteed; contact your church directly about anything urgent.

Our Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how it is used, and how text-consent information is protected. Our Terms of Service cover use of Shepherds Inbox.

Questions about texting? Contact [email protected]. Shepherds Inbox is operated by Steward HQ LLC, San Antonio, Texas.