Human-in-the-Loop

Learning AI to serve with integrity.

The intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and spiritual gifts is an opportunity to look at how these two concepts, one machine-led, the other Holy Spirit led, can work in tandem with each other. As Paul notes in 1 Corinthians 12:11, ^“All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” 

My own gifts: knowledge and teaching, have always pulled me toward learning tools that help people and organizations become more efficient. Artificial intelligence is simply the latest one.

A Lifelong Passion for Learning

This zest for learning was ingrained within me long before “AI” hit the headlines.

This zest for learning was ingrained within me long before “AI” hit the headlines. In 2008, I launched a social-media consulting firm and lived on the learning curve of these exploding platforms. Having spent my early career at Procter & Gamble, I knew that these tools would allow smaller businesses to “play” in the same sandbox as the “big guys” to reach their target markets. It was an exciting time to be on the threshold of a communications revolution. That nearly 10-year season taught me two truths I carry into working with AI today: tools will keep changing; leaders can translate them into practical value for real people.

I joined American Heritage Girls in 2016 as Director of Marketing & Communications (MarCom). The 2020 Pandemic converted AHG to a fully remote national organization, which forced us to re-engineer how we collaborated. As an extrovert, I missed in-person energy, so I joined a local LeaderImpact (CRU) breakfast group.

A longtime local digital leader in the group challenged me to lean into AI, not as a trend, but as a discipline. When ChatGPT became publicly available in late 2022, I invested in a pro account and committed to hands-on learning: testing prompts, noting what worked, and teaching as I went. Along the way, I took many courses, added more LLMs, received certifications, and attended AI conferences.

Applying AI Insights

I framed AI as an intern: great at first drafts and research, never the final voice.

Inside our MarCom team, I framed AI as an intern: great at first drafts and research, never the final voice. We used it to spark social copy, refine title options for our magazine features, and generate question banks for our Raising Godly Girls podcast based on each guest’s expertise. The lift wasn’t magic; it was margin. We spent less time on blank-page tasks and more time on strategy, storytelling, and fact-checking. Human-in-the-loop review stayed non-negotiable.

Along the way, we set guardrails. We avoided pasting sensitive data into open tools, we checked factual claims against reliable sources, and we asked AI to scan for readability and respectful language, especially where culture intersects with faith.

After I retired from AHG, I applied the same approach in our church’s new Mental Wellness Ministry. AI helped us draft themed opening prayers, create Mental Wellness Minutes, and generate starter concepts for marketing collateral, freeing volunteers to focus on people instead of pixels. When we needed short mindfulness exercises and tips, AI produced a list of suggestions and corresponding graphics that we verified and formatted for print. Again, the pattern held: AI accelerated the first 60% of the work, and human wisdom finished the last mile.

What have I learned?

1. Curiosity compounds. Leaders who practice with these tools weekly build a reflex for where AI fits and where it doesn’t.
2. Clarity beats cleverness. Giving AI a crisp goal, target audience, and format yields better drafts than chasing “perfect prompts.” 
3. Formation matters. We should be as intentional about the character we bring to AI as the commands we type into it. A tool is only as good as the values guiding its use.

AI Insights for Ministry Leaders

For nonprofit and ministry leaders, the AI opportunity is practical, not theoretical. Most of us are understaffed, calendar-tired, and wearing five hats. AI won’t run your mission. But it can give back the hours you need for the work only humans can do, discerning priorities, shepherding teams, shaping stories with integrity, and serving people face-to-face.

If you’re wondering where to begin, start small. Choose one recurring task:

• Drafting thank-you notes
• Summarizing meeting notes
• Outlining newsletters
• Generating A/B subject lines

Pilot AI as the “intern.” Measure time saved. Improve the process. Share the win with your team and repeat with a second task. Over a month or two, those small gains add up to real capacity. Keep what works, cut what doesn’t, and let your spiritual gifts, not the latest tech cycle, set the tone for how you lead.

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Michelle Beckham-Corbin, MBA, is a nonprofit MarCom strategist focused on faith-based organizations. She helps leaders adopt human-in-the-loop AI practices. Former AHG Marketing Director, she consults, writes, teaches responsible AI, and co-leads a mental wellness ministry. She is a member of Christian Leadership Alliance’s Advisory Council.