Faithlife Sites is a free church website builder from Faithlife, the makers of Logos Bible Software. It offers a simple drag-and-drop editor with templates tailored for churches, plus built-in tools for sermons, events, online giving, and ministry pages. The editor supports HTML embed blocks, so you can add custom content like a forum. However, it does not include a built-in community forum or discussion feature.
That's where Website Toolbox comes in. You can embed a fully featured discussion forum directly into your Faithlife Sites website, or simply link to your forum from your site's navigation. Either way, you get user accounts, moderation tools, and real-time conversations.
This works really well for:
- Church member communities
- Small group discussions
- Prayer request boards
- Youth ministry forums
- Volunteer coordination
- New member welcome areas
- Event follow-up discussions
This step-by-step guide walks you through the process:
Step-by-Step: Add Your Forum
Option A: Embed the Forum
- Log in to your Website Toolbox account or create a new forum if you don't already have one.
- Go to Integrate → Embed → Embed your forum, and copy the embed code.
- Log in to your Faithlife account and open sites.faithlife.com.
- Select the site you want to edit, then click Edit to open the website builder.
- Open the page where you want the forum, or add a new page and name it Forum.
- Add a Section to the page where you want the forum to appear.
- Add an HTML or Embed widget to the section.
- Paste your Website Toolbox embed code into the widget.
- Click Save, then click Publish to deploy your changes to the live site.
- Copy the URL of your published Forum page.
- Go to your Website Toolbox embed settings and paste the URL into the Where is the forum embedded? field to complete the configuration.
Option B: Link to the Forum
- Log in to your Website Toolbox account or create a new forum if you don't already have one.
- Copy your forum URL from the Integrate → Embed page.
- Log in to your Faithlife account and open sites.faithlife.com.
- Select the site you want to edit, then click Edit to open the website builder.
- Open the page where you want the forum link, or add a new page.
- Add a Button or Text widget to the page.
- Set the button or text link to your forum URL.
- Click Save, then click Publish to deploy your changes.
Single Sign On
Website Toolbox offers a custom SSO integration service starting at $199.
How to purchase custom SSO integration:
- Log in to your Website Toolbox account.
- Go to Integrate → Single Sign On.
- Under Your Website Builder, select Other from the dropdown.
- Follow the prompts to complete your purchase.
What Your Members Can Do
Members
- Create discussion topics
- Reply to existing threads
- Like and react to posts
- Search the forum
- Receive notification alerts
- Edit and delete their own posts
Admins
- Moderate all content
- Ban or suspend users
- Create and manage categories
- Customize the forum appearance
- Set user permissions
- Access analytics and reports
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Faithlife Sites have a built-in forum feature?
No, Faithlife Sites does not include a native forum feature. However, you can easily add a forum to your site using Website Toolbox, either by embedding it directly into a page or by linking to it from your navigation.
Should I embed the forum or link to it?
Both work well. Embedding keeps users on your Faithlife Sites site and integrates the forum seamlessly into your page layout. Linking is simpler to set up and opens the forum in its own page, which can be a better experience on mobile devices. Choose whichever fits your workflow.
Can I customize the look of my embedded forum?
Yes. Website Toolbox provides a theme editor with a variety of themes you can choose from to match your Faithlife Sites site's design. You can customize colors, fonts, layout settings, and more to create a seamless look.
Can I make the forum private or members-only?
Absolutely. You can restrict forum access to logged-in users, create invite-only communities, or charge for access with subscription plans. Combined with the SSO integration, you can seamlessly connect your church's member system with the forum.
Do I need to know how to code?
No. Faithlife Sites uses a visual, drag-and-drop editor. You add an HTML embed widget and paste the embed code from Website Toolbox, and the forum appears on your page. No programming skills are required.
Will the forum work on mobile devices?
Yes. Website Toolbox forums are fully responsive and work great on phones, tablets, and desktops. If you embed the forum, the iframe adapts to the container size automatically. Website Toolbox also offers a mobile app so your members can participate from their phones.