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If you’re searching for a Christian Website Theme for your Church, Business, Non-Profit or Blog, then I come bringing great news. 

Look, I get it.  Just thinking about launching a new website can create waves and waves of anxiety.  Then, digging into all the “how-to’s” and “what-for’s” only lead to more and more questions about the “how-to’s” and “what-for’s.”  Believe it or not, it wasn’t too very long ago when I was sitting in the same spot you are today.  

However… you have something I didn’t have.  I didn’t have… well… me.

Nevertheless, before we begin learning about website themes, let me first share that this is Part 3 of a series on Christian Web Design.  Previously, I discussed in-depth how to:

• Part 1: Creating Your Website Blueprint
• Part 2: Choose Your Website Domain and Hosting Company

I only mention this because you may want to go back through Part 1 and 2 before finishing this article.  But I’ll leave that up to you.  Regardless of your choice, let’s get on with learning more about choosing the website theme that best fits your needs. 

One of my favorite places to sift through Christian Website Themes is at the Envato Market. 

At Envato, you will find dozens of themes and templates that have been created specifically for Churches, Charities and Non-Profits.  And yes, I did say themes and templates.  And yes, there is a difference. 

A website theme encompasses the entire design layout of a website.  Design features such as:

• Headers
• Footers
• Colors
• Backgrounds
• Sidebars

… and other elements like site width.

Whereas, a template is a specifically designed layout for specific pages and posts.  Therefore, a template is a specific page or post layout that is implemented inside a theme. 

Now, it is important to note that the themes and templates at Envato Market do come with a price tag.  A good theme will generally cost around $60, and a template can cost up to around $22.  On the other hand, there are plenty of free themes to choose from as well. 

Regardless as to whether you end up choosing a free or paid-for website theme, the most important factor to any website theme in 2020 is that it must be RESPONSIVE. 

What is a Responsive Website Theme – A theme that will adjust to the screen size of whatever device your site visitor is using; whether iPhone, Tablet or Desktop.

Why is having a Responsive Theme Important – If you wish to rank high on Google Search, then having a responsive website theme is imperative.  I’ll discuss this in much greater detail in the near future when discussing search engine optimization (SEO).

Nevertheless, before I discuss free themes, I’d like to remind you: thus far we’ve only discussed themes for churches, charities and non-profits.  As we get into looking at free themes, we’ll look at several you can use for a Christian Business, Ecommerce, or even a Blog.   I’ll also share my favorite themes to use as well. 

If you’re looking for a theme that is simple, sufficient, and great for an extremely tight budget, there are actually plenty of really nice FREE WordPress Website Templates to choose from.  

For example, if you are getting ready to launch an Online Christian Magazine, News or Newspaper-type Website, then ColorMag might be a good choice.  A few other popular Free Magazine Themes are: 

• Magbook
• Elegant Magazine
• Hueman
• Madd Magazine
• Semicolon

However, if you’re looking for some of the top-rated Free WordPress Blog Themes, then you might enjoy: 

• Astra
• OceanWP
• Hestia
• Bento
• Go

But let’s not leave out those who are looking for the best Free WordPress Ecommerce Themes.  A few of these include:

• Leto
• TheShop
• Neve
• Zigcy Light
• Ecommerce Gem

… and for your convenience, you will find links to tons of free WordPress Themes at the end of this article. That being said, this does lead us to the interesting question doesn’t it?

When it comes to discussing free website themes, one might ask, “Why would you ever spend money on a website theme when there are tons of free themes from which to choose?”  Let me answer this question while, at the same time, sharing the themes I enjoy using the most.

Every time I begin building a new website, I always begin with Avada – the #1 selling theme of all-time.  No, I am not affiliated with them in any way, and receive no royalties for mentioning them in this article.  Nevertheless, Avada is most definitely my favorite theme because of how easy they make it to build a website. 

Above, you see 3 different images.  These images represent Avada’s theme elements, columns and containers. 

When I begin building any page or post using Avada, I get to choose from 34 different container pre-sets.  Once I’ve chosen my preset, I can then choose from 28 different column variations.  Then, I choose from 64 different elements: the type of content I’ll be adding into the column(s). It’s truly amazing!

From the 64 elements, I have the option to choose between Audio, Contact Forms, Checklists, Coding, Flip Boxes, Image, Separators, Carousals, YouTube or Vimeo Videos, Social Sharing, Pricing Tables, Toggles, WooCommerce Products… just to name a few.  Point being, in just a few clicks, I can create one of the most dynamic pages you’ve ever seen. But it gets even better!

Once having created a specific Element, Column and/or Container, I can then save it in a library and use it at any time on any page I wish – with just a few clicks.  I can even save an entire Page or Post Template to use and re-use at any given time; cutting my design time in half… if not more.

CONCLUSION:  Everything we’ve covered in this entire article is wrapped up in Avada.  I never have to worry about shopping around for templates or anything else, because I can make virtually any style of template I want with the Avada Theme.  Then, once having built the perfect template, I can re-use it time and again!  But there is yet another reason I always suggest Avada.  It comes with the WooCommerce plugin already attached.

Therefore, it’s perfect for small business owners who only sell a few products.  It’s also perfect for an author who is just selling a book, or even 100 books.

Now, what does it cost…?

Avada by Theme-fusion costs $60, and there’s an option to pay an additional (I believe) $30 fee for customer support.  Which can be handy when just getting started with the theme. 

However, there is more than one reason I “Purchase” this theme instead of using a free WordPress theme.

When it comes to using free themes, does free really mean “Free?”  It absolutely does.  However, there is one thing I discovered about free themes when I first began building websites. 

Building a website with a free theme can be great, because, well… it’s free.  But what I’ve discovered (and this is just my opinion) is that as your business and/or blog begins to grow, you realize that you want to make your site look better with design techniques – whether it’s better colors or better looking page template layouts.  That is when you discover you can have a whole lot more website building options if you “Upgrade” the theme. 

Now, by all means, it isn’t that the theme owner has done anything misleading in any way.  

Nevertheless, when you wish to make your website more dynamic, user friendly, and even more professional looking… at some point you’ll be upgrading.  And this is why I always suggest purchasing a very popular and responsive website them from the start. 

I truly hop this article has been helpful.  As always, should you have any questions, please feel free to ask in the comments at the bottom of the page. 

May God greatly bless you on this day….

Free WordPress Magazine Themes at themefreesia.com

Free WordPress Blog Themes at wpbeginner.com

Free WordPress Ecommerce Themes at athemes.com

Also, for a limited time, save a total of 67% off “SEO 2020 for Christian Business Owners: I’ll See You at the Top,” when using the Coupon Code MYJESUS.  Only $9.88!

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