We are often asked the same questions regarding Charlie speaking, so we have laid out answers to all of the common questions below. Feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions. We’ll be happy to help!
EXPENSES:
1. What does it cost to bring Charlie to our event, school, or church?
This is the most common question we receive, so we’ll start by answering it. ABR will cover Charlie’s meals, gas, and toll-road expenses. ABR asks that your church or organization cover Charlie’s travel expenses (flight from San Diego if necessary, hotel, rental car) and make a donation to ABR of $1,000 or more to help us continue contending for the faith. If you would like Charlie to do a seminar or conference with multiple topics, we ask that the donation be $1,500 or more. We encourage you to view this not as paying for a speaker but as a strategic donation to a ministry that has been helping the people in your congregation for years to be better ambassadors of Christ. And with your help, we’d love to keep doing that.
Once a date is determined, a check made out to ABR can be mailed to:
Always Be Ready
PO Box 130342
Carlsbad, CA 92013
A separate check for travel expenses can be handed to Charlie at your event or mailed afterward.
2. Is it okay if we take a “love offering” for Charlie?
No. Charlie would prefer that people not feel pressured to give in any way. If they want to support his ministry, they can do that by purchasing items at his book table or making a donation on the ABR website. But he’d prefer that not even be mentioned.
FLIGHT:
3. Where does Charlie fly out of?
San Diego, California.
4. Should we book Charlie’s flight?
For a smoother travel experience, it is better if ABR arranges all of Charlie’s flights, hotels, and rental cars, and then be reimbursed.
HOTEL:
5. Does Charlie prefer to stay with a host family or at a hotel?
For a good night of sleep, a hotel is preferred. If your venue is south of Santa Barbara, in California, a hotel will not be needed. Charlie will drive to your event.
6. Should we book the hotel or will ABR do this?
ABR will book the hotel. The cost for a Hampton Inn (or three-star equivalent) is usually $95–175 per night, depending on the date and location. The cost will be included in the travel expense total that ABR will email you about a week before the scheduled event.
RENTAL CAR:
7. Does Charlie need a rental car?
If Charlie is flying to your event, yes, he prefers to pick up a rental car at the airport. ABR will reserve it and include the cost with his travel expenses (the cost is typically $70 – $100 per day).
TOPICS FOR TEACHINGS:
8. Can we pick the topic(s) Charlie will speak about?
Yes. Feel free to let us know what topic(s) you’d prefer from any on this list.
9. Does Charlie do Q&As after his teaching sessions?
No. For a variety of reasons (some of which are explained here), Charlie does not do Q&As from the stage, but he is happy to chat with people at his resource table before, after, and in between sessions/services.
SEMINAR SCHEDULE SUGGESTIONS:
10. Is there a particular schedule or format you’d suggest for a seminar/conference?
Charlie’s apologetics seminars typically consist of two or three 50-minute presentations with short 10-15 minute breaks in between for fellowship, dessert, coffee, etc. Three popular formats are:
A. Saturday evening (2 sessions/topics) + Sunday a.m. service(s)
B. Sunday a.m. service(s) + two topics on Sunday evening (6 p.m. – 8 p.m. seems to work well)
C. Saturday a.m. (2–3 topics) + Sunday a.m. service(s)
We have discovered that more people come out to Saturday evening events than Saturday morning events.
AUDIO-VIDEO SETUP:
11. What are Charlie’s Audio-Visual PowerPoint needs when he teaches?
Charlie’s teachings are visual presentations with lots of photographs of archaeological discoveries, distant galaxies, the Dead Sea Scrolls, etc. For the presentations to flow smoothly, Charlie must be able to control the presentations himself, from his computer, at the pulpit. Some churches have tried to install his PowerPoint presentations on their AV-booth computer and give their remote to Charlie or sync up his computer to “screen share.” There have been so many problems with those options, Charlie prefers to never work with those technologies again. His presentations need to run on his computer at the pulpit. So, this requires one of the following connections to the church’s projector(s)/television screens:
• HDMI cable at the pulpit (his MacBook Pro has an HDMI port in it)
• Male or female VGA cable at the pulpit (he has an adapter for each of these)
• Apple TV (wireless connection)—Available for purchase on Amazon or at your local Best Buy. This has been an excellent solution at lots of churches. Apple TV is easy to set up. Once the Apple TV device is connected to your splitter or projector via an HDMI cable, Charlie can connect wirelessly to the Apple TV from the pulpit, and his slides will go to the screen(s).
If your church does not have any of these connection options available and is unable to put one in place, please let us know ASAP, so we can postpone the teaching. If your AV team has any questions or concerns about any of this, have them email ABR at alwaysbeready.com@gmail.com to discuss.
And lastly, whatever setup the church decides on, please test it days before the event. Charlie has shown up to some churches that didn’t test the setup ahead of time because, “The HDMI cable worked fine the last time a speaker used it (a year ago), so we thought it would work.” The AV team overlooked that after that event, someone disconnected the power, or a cable, etc.
12. Do Charlie’s PowerPoint presentations have any audio/sound in them?
No, just images.
13. Can we record the audio of Charlie’s message as he teaches?
Yes, and feel free to archive it on your website, publish it on your podcast, radio program, etc.
14. Can we record a video of Charlie’s message(s) as he teaches?
Yes.
15. Does Charlie prefer a podium mic, lavalier mic, or over-the-ear mic?
His first choice is the over-the-ear mic that he travels with (see it here). With the adapters he carries, he can plug his mic into any belt pack you hand him. He likes this mic best because it fits well and offers exceptional sound. If you don’t have a belt pack, that’s fine. He can use your podium mic.
PROMOTIONAL GRAPHICS:
16. Can you provide us with a photograph of Charlie Campbell or any graphics for social media use?
Yes, click here.
ARRIVAL:
17. What time will Charlie arrive at the event?
Sixty minutes before the first service. This usually allows ample time for him to work with the AV team, test the mic, set up his book table, etc.
SECURITY:
18. Is Charlie okay with having someone from our armed-security team shadow him?
Yes, please. If your church does not have an armed-security team, you should. Church shootings are happening, and there’s good evidence that armed security teams deter violence and save lives. Responsible godly men and women in your church with conceal-carry permits will happily volunteer to be on a security team.
FIRST-RESPONDER:
19. Does Charlie have any medical or health issues that our first-responder team should know about?
No.
HOSPITALITY:
20. What kind of food does Charlie like?
Please do not feel the need to feed him. But if you are planning on dinner or lunch with him, you can hardly go wrong. He loves Mexican, Thai, Italian, Japanese, or even just a good salad or burger. He’s easy.
21. We have a green room for the worship team and speakers. Does Charlie like anything in particular before or in between services?
He really doesn’t like to eat much before he teaches. If there are three or more services, some fresh fruit, a muffin, and coffee are appreciated.
22. Does Charlie prefer regular coffee or decaf?
Regular. Black. No creamer or sugar is needed.
23. We’d like to give Charlie a basket to take home or enjoy in his hotel room. What does he like?
This offer is so appreciated but not necessary. But, if it would bless someone to do that, we certainly don’t want to thwart someone sharing their gift of hospitality. Some of Charlie’s favorite things are water bottles, fruit (grapes, strawberries, oranges, apples), mixed nuts, and popcorn.
RESOURCE/BOOK TABLE:
24. Would Charlie like a table set up to make some of his books available after he teaches?
Yes, that would be a blessing. A six-foot table would be great, an eight-foot table, even better.
25. When Charlie arrives, will he want any help at his table setting out his books?
No, he prefers to lay his books out in a particular way—thank you though!
26. Will Charlie be at his table after he speaks? Would he like a helper at that point?
Yes, it is best if he is at his table after each teaching to answer questions about the content of his books and videos. If the service has more than a hundred adults, a helper would be a blessing. Thank you.
27. Will Charlie bring change for his table?
Yes. He will also be able to accept debit and credit cards.
28. Would Charlie like to use our Wi-Fi (and login code) for his credit card reader?
Yes, that would be a blessing (though not a must if it is not available).
INTRODUCTION:
29. Is there a short bio somewhere, so we can let people know a little bit about Charlie when he is introduced?
Please feel free to say whatever you’d like, but here’s a sample:
“Charlie Campbell travels throughout the year speaking at churches and conferences on topics related to the defense of the faith. He’s the author of several books and the founder of the popular apologetics website AlwaysBeReady.com. He was also an instructor at the Calvary Chapel Bible College in Murrieta, California. He and his wife have five kids and reside in San Diego. Please welcome him . . . “
Thanks for taking the time to read through these. If there are any other questions you’d like answered, please email us here.