New Research: Churchgoers Stick Around for Theology, Not Music or Preachers

I used to lead, and now work with, LifeWay Research. Here’s an interesting piece of research they just released. It’s a bit counterintuitive in ways, so it caught my interest and I decided to share the story with you!

Most churchgoers will put up with a change in music style or a different preacher.

But don’t mess with a church’s beliefs or there may be an exodus, according to a new study from Nashville-based LifeWay Research.

The study of Protestant churchgoers found most are committed to staying at their church over the long haul. But more than half say they would strongly consider leaving if the church’s beliefs changed.

Pastors often worry about changing church music and setting off a “worship war,” said Scott McConnell, executive director of LifeWay Research. But few say they would leave over music.

Churchgoers are much more concerned about their church’s beliefs.

“Mess with the music and people may grumble,” he said. “Mess with theology and they’re out the door.”

Churchgoers stay put

LifeWay Research surveyed 1,010 Protestant churchgoers—those who attend services at least once a month—to see how strongly they are tied to their local congregations.

Researchers found most churchgoers stay put.

Thirty-five percent have been at their church between 10 and 24 years. Twenty-seven percent have been there for 25 years or more. Twenty-one percent have been there less than five years, while 17 percent have been at the same church for between five and nine years.

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Lutherans (52 percent), Methodists (40 percent) and Baptists (31 percent) are most likely to have been at their church for 25 years or more. Fewer nondenominational (11 percent) or Assemblies of God/Pentecostal churchgoers (13 percent) have such long tenure.

“Most church members have been at their church longer than their pastor,” said McConnell.

More than half (57 percent) of churchgoers say they are completely committed to continuing to attend their current church. About a quarter (28 percent) are “very much” committed, while 11 percent are moderately committed. Two percent are slightly committed, while 1 percent are not committed at all.

The more people go to church, the more committed they are to attending their same church in the future. Those who attend at least once a week are twice as likely to be completely committed to attending their church (62 percent) than people who go once or twice a month (31 percent). Those who attend once or twice a month are more likely to be moderately committed (36 percent) than those who go at least once a week (7 percent).

Churchgoers with evangelical beliefs are more likely to be completely committed (67 percent) than those who don’t have evangelical beliefs (45 percent). Baptists (60 percent) are more likely to be completely committed than Lutherans (47 percent).

About two-thirds (63 percent) of churchgoers who are 65 or older are completely committed to attending their same church in the future. That drops to 50 percent for those younger than 35.

Older churchgoers are also least likely to want to leave their church. When asked if they’ve thought about going to another church in their area, 92 percent of those 65 or older say no.

Overall, 15 percent of churchgoers say they have thought about going to another church in the past six months. Eighty-five percent say they have not.

Of those thinking about going to another church, about half (54 percent) have already visited another church. Forty-six percent have not.

“If people are thinking about leaving your church, chances are they’ve already started looking,” said McConnell. “So they’re probably halfway out the door.”

Most feel their beliefs line up with the church

For the most part, churchgoers say they agree with their church’s teaching. About half (52 percent) say their beliefs are completely aligned with those of the church. Forty-two percent say their beliefs are mostly aligned. Fewer than 3 percent say their beliefs are slightly aligned, not aligned or they don’t know their church’s beliefs.

Education plays some role in how churchgoers view their church’s theology. Churchgoers who have graduate degrees are less likely to accept all their church’s teachings. Only a third (35 percent) say their beliefs are completely aligned with those of the church. Sixty percent say their beliefs are mostly aligned.

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Two-thirds (62 percent) of churchgoers who have evangelical beliefs say they are completely aligned with their church’s theology, while a third are mostly aligned. By contrast, 39 percent of churchgoers who don’t have evangelical beliefs say they are completely aligned, and about half (53 percent) are mostly aligned.

Sixty percent of churchgoers at big churches—those with more than 1,000 attenders—say they are completely aligned with their church’s theology. That drops to 46 percent at churches with fewer than 50 attenders.

Baptists (57 percent) and nondenominational churchgoers (61 percent) are more likely to say they are completely aligned with their church’s theology than Lutherans (43 percent) or Methodists (25 percent).

Still, churchgoers don’t like to see changes in their church’s doctrine. More than half (54 percent) say they’d seriously consider leaving if church doctrine changed.

Researchers asked about other factors that might cause churchgoers to switch churches. Nearly half (48 percent) would change churches if the churchgoer moved to a new home.

Some churchgoers would leave if the preaching style changed (19 percent), if the pastor left (12 percent) or if a family member wanted a new church (10 percent). Nine percent say they would leave over politics. Fewer would leave if they didn’t feel needed (6 percent), if the music style changed (5 percent), if they had a conflict (4 percent) or if a friend stopped attending (3 percent).

The survey shows churchgoers care about doctrine, said McConnell.

“Still, pastors can’t assume everyone in the pews agrees with their preaching,” McConnell said. “Overall, 94 percent believe most or all of their church’s teaching. But there’s still substantial wiggle room.

“Every time a pastor gets up to preach, there’s a good chance more than a few people in the pews are going to disagree,” he said.

Most find church programs helpful

Researchers also looked at how effective churches are in helping people grow spiritually.

Most churchgoers think their church is doing a good job. Three-quarters (76 percent) think their church has been either extremely helpful (36 percent) or very helpful (40 percent) in their spiritual growth. Sixteen percent say the church is moderately helpful.

Relatively few say the church has not been helpful (1 percent) in their spiritual growth or are not sure (2 percent).

Churchgoers did have some suggestions on ways churches can help them grow. Among them:

27 percent want their church to help them understand more about God and the Bible.
20 percent want their church to help them find new ways to serve.
19 percent want their church to provide more Bible study groups.
16 percent want their church to help them get to know more people in church.
14 percent say their church could provide forums to answer their spiritual questions.
13 percent want their church to give them more chances to serve.
13 percent want their church to provide worship experiences that fit their needs.
9 percent want their church to provide more interaction with the pastor.
8 percent want their church to provide them with a mentor.

Even though most churchgoers are staying put and are relatively happy, there’s some reason for concern, McConnell said.

At any given church, about 15 percent of the congregation is thinking about leaving. If they go, the church could suffer.

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“The average church in the United States has less than 100 attenders,” McConnell said. “Losing 10 or 15 people could make a huge impact.”

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Methodology:

LifeWay Research conducted the study Aug. 22–30, 2017. The survey was conducted using the web-enabled KnowledgePanel®, a probability-based panel designed to be representative of the U.S. population.

Initially, participants are chosen scientifically by a random selection of telephone numbers and residential addresses. People in selected households are then invited by telephone or by mail to participate in the web-enabled KnowledgePanel®. For those who agree to participate but do not already have internet access, GfK provides at no cost a laptop and ISP connection.

For this survey, a nationally representative sample of U.S. Protestant and nondenominational adults (18 and older) who attend religious services once a month or more often was selected from the KnowledgePanel®.

Sample stratification and base weights were used for gender, age, race/ethnicity, region, metro/non-metro, home ownership, education and income to reflect the most recent U.S. Census data. Study-specific weights included for gender by age, race/ethnicity, region and education to reflect GSS 2016 data. The completed sample is 1,010 surveys. The sample provides 95 percent confidence that the sampling error does not exceed plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Margins of error are higher in sub-groups.

Evangelical beliefs are defined using the NAE/LifeWay Research Evangelical Beliefs Research Definition based on respondent beliefs. Respondents are asked their level of agreement with four separate statements using a four-point, forced-choice scale (strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, strongly disagree). Respondents are categorized as having evangelical beliefs if they strongly agree with all four statements:

The Bible is the highest authority for what I believe.

It is very important for me personally to encourage non-Christians to trust Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Jesus Christ’s death on the cross is the only sacrifice that could remove the penalty of my sin.

Only those who trust in Jesus Christ alone as their Savior receive God’s free gift of eternal salvation.

LifeWay Research is a Nashville-based, evangelical research firm that specializes in surveys about faith in culture and matters that affect churches.

Find the original article on Lifeway’s website.

This article originally appeared here. 

Bob Smietana

https://factsandtrends.net

Bob Smietana is a senior writer for Nashville-based Facts & Trends magazine. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.

Top Questions That Pastors Ask - 4 Ways To Get The Word Out About ...

Here is another edition of The Church Playbook: 




I really hope you are drawing encouragement and help from these post. 
Please comment below to just let me know of your interest.    Thanks  PR


"Marketing" isn't a bad word. In fact, much of what we see in the Gospels are large crowds being drawn to Jesus, simply because the word got out about who He was, and what He was doing! "Getting The Word Out"...That's all marketing is! In this video, I explain 4 ways you get promote your Church in the community for FREE (or relatively inexpensively). Hope it's helpful! By the way, Get Your Free Copy of The Church Playbook at http://www.thechurchplaybook.com The Church Playbook will jumpstart growth in your Church, and help you breakthrough one of the toughest barriers that every Church has to deal with. Let me give this book to you for FREE! Inside of The Church Playbook, I tell the story about how my Church went through some struggles in the early days of our Church Plant, but after applying the principles that I lay out in this book, we went from just a few families to over 200 in less than a year!

Relationships and reflections

     

“Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord.”                                                      2 Peter 3:18

There are two things that help determine personal growth: 

(1)        Your relationships. 

The Bible says, “Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?” (Am 3:3 NLT).

The company you keep will lift you, level you, or lower you. A lady wrote this letter to an advice columnist: “In my last year of school my English teacher took an essay I’d written and tore it apart in front of the class. I was humiliated—I felt dumb. That was years ago, and I’ve never forgotten it.” In a few short seconds the wrong person diminished this woman’s sense of self-worth for a lifetime. 

(2)        Your reflections. 

When a Sunday school teacher asked a little girl, “Who made you?” she replied, “God made part of me.” The teacher asked, “What do you mean?” The little girl replied, “God made me little—and I growed the rest of myself.”

God holds us responsible for our personal growth. The Psalmist wrote, “I have more understanding than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation” (Ps 119:99 NKJV).

The word “meditation” means “reflective thinking.” Like a crock pot, meditation allows your thoughts to slowly simmer until they’re done. Most of us would rather act than think.

But as Socrates observed, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Reflective thinking is uncomfortable for a variety of reasons. For instance, we have difficulty staying focused. We find the process dull, and we don’t particularly enjoy spending time reflecting on difficult issues. But if you don’t carve out time for reflection and meditation, you won’t mature.

You won’t grow in the “grace and…knowledge” you need to succeed. It’s that simple.

Source: 

To listen to today's devotional Click HERE 

Divers complete Thai cave rescue, all 12 boys and coach out safely

Divers completed their rescue mission on Tuesday July 10th by safely removing the last five members of a Thai youth soccer team from a cave.  The 12 boys and their coach are now hospitalized after being trapped in the cave for more than two weeks. 

As the Thai cave rescue continues and concern grows over the health of those who are saved, the parents of one of the rescued soccer players is saying “thank you.”

According to Compassion International, the boy is one of their sponsored children. The ministry is not releasing names due to privacy concerns.

A Compassion photojournalist in Thailand was able to interview his parents. In the video, a woman identified as the boy’s mother said, “Thank you so much for all prayers and all the encouragement. Thank you to God. I’m really thankful that they found my son and all 13 are alive.  I’m so happy and so thankful to see my son again. Thank you so much to everyone that has been praying for us and the boys and helping us; thank you.”

Thai Cave Rescue Frees New Christian

Mission Network News interviewed Noi, identified as Compassion International’s Senior Manager of the program in Thailand.

“Noi said of the Compassion beneficiary, ‘He is 14 years old and he is at eighth grade right now. He is actually a very good boy, very active to participate in the program in the project at the church. He loves sports, of course… he loves football [soccer], he loves running, he.. also love to play guitar. He also [plays] a guitar at the church [and] got to play piano, what.. maybe you call [an] electric keyboard. And also he just [accepted] Jesus Christ last March, this year.’”

Eighteen-year-old Surayut Puengpadung, another Compassion beneficiary and member of the Chiang Rai Rescue Academy Team, was one of the first to report the boys missing on Saturday and one of the first to enter the water to search for the boys.

“Pray for all the rescue operation teams who are making progress,” Surayut says. “They are working very hard through this weather, and it’s very dangerous. The water runs fast and there are strong currents.”

As rescuers slowly bring the boys out of the cave, medical teams will be looking for an airborne lung infection known as histoplasmosis, or “cave disease,” which is caused by bat and bird droppings. It can be fatal if it is untreated and spreads to other parts of the body.

Medical officials will also be examining the children for leptospirosis, an infection caused by bacteria which can lead to severe bleeding from the lungs, meningitis and even death.

A health official told local media that the boys should hopefully be able to see their families on Monday night but there will be “no hugging, no touching,” until their blood work comes back.

Compassion’s local church partners are involved in the rescue effort. Baag Jong Church is hosting the Thai Air Force team, providing food and accommodation for 20-30 people. Every day church members volunteer to cook meals and clean for the Air Force team as they rotate on and off duty, sleeping and eating at the project. The church also hosts visitors who drop by to pray for the 13 boys.

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Church members are also donating their homegrown vegetables, fruits, pineapples, drinking water, other drinks and whatever they have to provide for the rescue teams.

Top Questions That Pastors Ask - What To Do When Someone Leaves Your Church

Another Episode of The Church Playbook: 






It happens more often than we'd like to admit: People leave our Church. Sometimes they leave because they'll realize it's not a fit. Sometimes there are deeper reasons. Sometimes...they leave loudly. In this video, I'll explain the 3 things I do when someone leaves the Church that I Pastor. I hope they'll help you too. Here is the text of the note/email I send people that leave my Church. Feel free to use it, if it's helpful to you: "Hey friend, I heard a sad & surprising rumor that you & your family might be leaving Riverview. First, I just wanted to reach out and make sure that I didn't say or do something that hurt or offended you. Second, I know that Riverview isn't for everybody, so if you are leaving, I certainly hope you find what you're looking for. Third, if where ever you're headed ends up not working out, just know that Riverview will always have open doors & open arms for you. If there are any questions I can answer for you, or some kind of confusion I can clear up, please let me know. Much love, Pastor Todd"

By the way, Get Your Free Copy of The Church Playbook at http://www.thechurchplaybook.com The Church Playbook will jumpstart growth in your Church, and help you breakthrough one of the toughest barriers that every Church has to deal with. Let me give this book to you for FREE! Inside of The Church Playbook, I tell the story about how my Church went through some struggles in the early days of our Church Plant, but after applying the principles that I lay out in this book, we went from just a few families to over 200 in less than a year!

Josh Wilson - "Dream Small" (Lyric Video)

Another song to help Sharron and I face our future as we sit in "God's Waiting Room."   We have been here, trusting God, resting in the Lord.  We are in His Word each day and crying out to God for His perfect will and direction for our life and ministry. This is the longest we have ever been in this type of situation. Our faith is strong and the message of this song blesses our heart as we patiently wait for God to work on our behalf.  

Video Courtesy of Black River Entertainment. Josh Wilson’s debut single on Black River Christian "Dream Small" available now:

http://radi.al/JoshWilsonDreamSmall Follow Josh on his socials! Facebook - @JoshWilson Twitter - @JoshWilson Instagram - @JoshWilsonMusic
http://www.joshwilsonmusic.com

Top Questions That Pastors Ask - What Are The 6 Steps We Need To T...

Another Edition of The Church Playbook: 







Since I've been promoting The Church Playbook, one of the questions that comes up a lot is, "Todd...you keep talking about 6 steps your Church took to get to 200. Well...What ARE those 6 steps???" I give a brief explanation of what those steps are in this short video. Enjoy! Well, in this video, I'm going to give you 3 ways you can reach more people for Christ...WITHOUT a bigger budget! You can buy a hard copy of The Church Playbook HERE: https://theshopperschoice.com/product... Or...download a digital copy of The Church Playbook HERE: https://theshopperschoice.com/product...

What if Your Child Is Gay?

Article by Russell Moore - July 2018

My denomination is dealing these days with a pastor in California who reversed his position on homosexuality. The pastor said that his shift coincided with his 15-year-old son’s announcement that he is gay.

This is a situation every Christian should think through, now. As I’ve said before, at stake on the issue of a Christian sexual ethic is the gospel of Jesus Christ. But what if, sitting across from you, is your child or grandchild?

You will, without a doubt, have someone close to you in your family come out as gay or lesbian, if not already, then sometime in the future.

How should a Christian parent or grandparent respond?

One of the reasons this is such a crushing experience for many is because they assume that their alternatives are affirmation or alienation. I either give up my relationship with my child or I give up the Bible. The gospel never suggests this set of alternatives, and in fact demonstrates just the opposite.

Every child, whether gay or straight, is oriented toward sin, and so are you. If your child or grandchild says he or she is gay, you shouldn’t act shocked, as though you are surprised your child might be tempted toward sin or that you find your own sinful inclinations somehow less deserving of God’s judgment.

Your child’s point of temptation doesn’t mean that your entire relationship with him or her should be defined by that. We don’t affirm what the Bible says is wrong simply because someone we love is drawn toward it, whether that’s “straight” fornication or gay relationships.

At the same time, that doesn’t mean your entire relationship is now to become a sparring match over Romans 1.

Ironically, those who cut off all relationship with a gay child buy into the narrative of the Sexual Revolutionaries, that every aspect of one’s identity is defined by sexual orientation and activity.

As a Christian, you believe this person is made in the image of God, and thus worthy of love, regardless of how far away from God or from you.

First of all, consider what your child is telling you.

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He or she could be saying that this is an identity, from which they refuse to repent. That will require a different sort of response than if the child is saying, “This is how I feel, so what do I do?” This will change the way you respond, but what doesn’t change is your love and care for this child.

Don’t panic, and don’t reject them.

Say explicitly that you love that child, no matter what, and mean it. Your relationship wasn’t formed by the child’s performance, and that won’t start now.

If your loved one is a Christian, spend time over the years discipling him or her about what following Christ looks like. Jesus isn’t shocked by his or her temptations, and will not leave him or her alone to fight them.

The path toward chastity and fidelity to Christ is a difficult one, and your child or grandchild will need you and the church and the great cloud of witnesses to cheer him or her on as they walk a path that can be lonely in a world that too often defines sex and sexuality as ultimate in life.

If your loved one isn’t a Christian, express your love, keep the relationship going and be a gracious gospel witness.

God never promises us that our children or grandchildren will all walk the way of Christ. Every wandering son or daughter needs to know that if the moment of crisis comes in his or her life, there’s a house waiting with a fatted-calf party ready to go, welcoming the wanderer home.

One of the reasons this is so hard for some parents and grandparents is because somehow we assume this issue to be merely a “culture war” issue, and not a gospel issue. As such, parents are often perplexed as to how to deal with this in their families because they think this is about them.

They wonder if others will judge them, as though they did something to “cause” this.

That’s ridiculous, and it leads people ultimately either to reject biblical teaching to keep their kids or reject their kids (and their gospel witness to them) for the sake of appearing to keep the biblical teaching.

At the root of all of that is pride, and I don’t mean that in the sense of “gay pride” but in the sense of carnal self-seeking. That’s a temptation for all parents, not just for those of gay children. We’re tempted to see our children as reflections of ourselves, and we’re tempted then to keep up our image.

Crucify that temptation.

God calls us to holiness and to encourage one another to holiness. The Bible is clear that this means fleeing from sexual immorality, and that includes same-sex sexual activity (1 Cor. 6). God also calls parents to love their children.

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Be clear about your convictions, and at the same time don’t exile your child from your life. If we sacrifice grace for truth or truth for grace, we’re sub-Christian.  

Source: 

Russell Moore

http://russellmoore.com

Dr. Moore is the Dean of the School of Theology and Senior Vice-President for Academic Administration at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also serves as a preaching pastor at Highview Baptist Church, where he ministers weekly at the congregation’s Fegenbush location. Moore is the author of several books, including   "The Kingdom of Christ," "Adopted for Life," and "Tempted and Tried."

This post was originally posted HERE 

 

 

Top Questions That Pastors Ask - 4 Things That Limit Church Growth

Another posting from The Church Playbook Channel: 






Church Growth is kind of like washing your car: Everything's great until you get the hose caught underneath one of the tires. It cuts the flow off! In this video, I talk about 4 things (and these aren't the only things) that will LIMIT growth in your Church...and what you can do about them! By the way, Get Your Free Copy of The Church Playbook at http://www.thechurchplaybook.com The Church Playbook will jumpstart growth in your Church, and help you breakthrough one of the toughest barriers that every Church has to deal with. Let me give this book to you for FREE! Inside of The Church Playbook, I tell the story about how my Church went through some struggles in the early days of our Church Plant, but after applying the principles that I lay out in this book, we went from just a few families to over 200 in less than a year!

Remember, What God Starts, He Finishes

By Pastor Rick Warren

Before Saddleback moved to its present location, we bought a big chunk of land. 

While I thought at the time it was a dream come true, it turned out there were giants in the land.

The county began heaping on ridiculous requirements. 

First they wanted to allow us to build on only nine acres of the property. Then they instructed us to build a berm — an eight foot ridge of dirt — along the front of the property to hide the building.

Then they decided we’d need to move 150 trees from the back of the property to the front of the property and plant them on that berm.

Next, they told us we couldn’t build a 7,000-seat worship center. Instead, we could build a 1,000-seat worship center and have seven services.

Then they demanded that we put in a charcoal filtration water system so that the water that ran off the parking lot would be nice and pure as it went into the gutter.

Then they told us we couldn’t build a parking lot. We’d have to build a parking garage.

Finally, they decided we couldn’t build a preschool because “that’s not a legitimate church ministry.” We said, “Since when did the government start deciding what is and what isn’t legitimate church ministry?”

We battled for four years. Some 25 articles appeared in The Los Angeles Times and The Orange County Register during that time with headlines like, “Church Project Delayed” and “Church Project Delayed Again.”

I asked our people to write to the county supervisors. Shortly after, this headline came out: “Pro Canyon Church Project Letters Flood the County Offices.” Letters were coming in at the rate of 400 a day. Finally the county supervisors called me and said, “Please stop. You’re clogging up our mail system.”

The Orange County Register published an editorial supporting Saddleback Church called “A Church Beset, A Church Under Siege.” 

It said, “The church’s congregation has grown in 9 1⁄2 years from nothing to 7,500, but still meets in a high school gym. What this really amounts to is county bureaucrats trying to force and control their use of property along a pre-determined path. What gives people the arrogance to presume they have the right to do such a thing?”

Finally I took our church directory to our county supervisor. I laid it in front of that supervisor and said, “There are 18,000 names in this directory. They all vote and they’re all in your district.”

And that’s how we swapped for the piece of property we now own. We paid $3.5 million for the first piece of land. During the four-year battle it went up in value to $6.5 million, and we traded it evenly for a piece worth $9 million. We walked onto our Lake Forest property with $6 million in equity. That is so God!

The new land had more visibility, more usable space, more accessibility, a six-lane road on one side, a six-lane road on another side, and a toll road that goes up and down the entire county, putting one third of Orange County — or a million people — within a 20-minute drive of this church. God knew what he was doing.

Were the risks and the battles and delay worth it? Absolutely. 

Because what God starts he finishes.

Some in our congregation have said, “I really regret missing some of those early exciting tests of faith that Saddleback was in on. I wasn’t here during that time.” But the most exciting part of any race is not the start of the race. It’s the end.

Good things are ahead not just for your congregation, but for all of God’s people. We’re all in a battle, but we already know we’re going to win it because the Bible tells us. I don’t know a more exciting time to be alive.

As a pastor, there are many things you don’t have control over. You didn’t choose when or where you’d be born or what your natural talents would be. God, in his sovereignty, chose those things for you. But there is one thing you do have control over and that’s the most important thing: It’s how much you choose to believe God.

Philippians 1:6 says, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns” (NLT).

You can trust him. Whatever he starts, he finishes — and finishes well!

Source: 

PASTOR RICK WARREN

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church, one of America's largest and most influential churches. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Purpose Driven Life. His book, The Purpose Driven Church, was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. Pastor Rick started The PEACE Plan to show the local church how God works through ordinary people to address the five global giants of spiritual emptiness, self-serving leadership, poverty, disease, and illiteracy. You can listen to Daily Hope, Pastor Rick’s daily 25-minute audio teaching, or sign up for his free daily devotionals at PastorRick.com. He is also the founder of Pastors.com, a global online community created to encourage pastors.

First Posted HERE

How Healthy Is Your Leadership?

Reviewing eight factors in your ministry
 and how they contribute to a healthy church.

Every church is only as healthy as its leadership, and the healthier the church, the better the chances it will maintain sound financial management. Do you know how to assess the health of your leadership team? Do you have signs of trouble? Review these eight factors of healthy church leadership below and consider where your team is strong and where there may be weaknesses:

          

     1.  Strong chain of command

Employees should know to whom they should go for decision-making insights and to observe the church’s hierarchy. This can be reinforced by emphasizing the importance of department heads and their roles during staff meetings. Keep everyone well informed by communicating the chain of command consistently and updating staff on any changes. If someone tries to work outside this structure, they should be reminded of the proper channels and encouraged to follow through appropriately.

            2.  Open door policy

Your church should have a policy or process by which staff can appropriately express concerns. Do your employees readily share opinions through the forums available to them, and does management act on employees’ recommendations? These forums could include anonymous surveys, roundtables, and staff meetings. This allows for organizational growth because employees are the “boots on the ground” and therefore the best source for identifying improvements and making suggestions. When suggestions aren’t implemented, be sure to communicate the reasons why so that employees don’t get discouraged and stop providing input.

          3.  Modeling of positive behavior

Leadership should consistently revisit the organization’s values in staff meetings, include the values in the completion of work projects, and consistently reflect those values in their words and actions. Values can be emphasized not only through departmental meetings but even be included in staff performance appraisals. Any deviation from values should be followed up on and possibly disciplined. You may also consider rewarding behavior that is consistent with living out the values of the church.

         4.  Sensitivity to diversity

Management demonstrates its respect for all people through its words and actions. There needs to be a high regard for all people on staff and in the ministry regardless of race, culture, gender, or generation. Be careful that you are not unintentionally communicating a different set of expectations. Consider whether your staff reflects this type of diversity. If not, is there a specific reason for it (for example, if it reflects the demographics of the congregation or community)?

        5.  Positive view of promoting from within

Does leadership consistently promote qualified internal candidates before hiring outside candidates? Investing in staff training and providing opportunities for advancement are two of the best ways to show that you value employees’ contributions, as well as providing for the ever-changing needs of the church.

         6.  Periodic compensation evaluation

We realize that working for a church is not a “get rich quick” scheme. However, management does have a responsibility to ensure employees are paid appropriately. We want to make sure we are not taking advantage of the calling individuals may feel to ministry. It is also important to pay an appropriate amount so the best candidates can be secured. Sometimes you really do get what you pay for, and when you are paying far below market rate, you may receive far below market services.

       7.  Emphasis on the value of employee and volunteer                          contributions

It is easy for an individual to come into a ministry excited about the vision and purpose, only to become disillusioned or even bored over time. In direct ministry roles, it’s more obvious how the employee’s work affects individuals and contributes to the church’s mission. When employees or volunteers serve in a support role, such as human resources, accounting, or information technology, however, the effect can be far more difficult to see. Over time, processing accounts payable for the church could start to feel the same as processing it for a local car dealership.

It takes intentionality to make sure each employee and volunteer continues to feel engaged and understands the real effect they have on ministry. Sometimes this can be facilitated by allowing employees in support roles to participate in ministry during work hours. They shouldn’t be expected to do this in addition to their role, but rather as part of it. Another way to engage them is to share ministry stories with all staff, not just those directly involved.

Remember that without the computers working properly or the bills getting paid, everyone would come to a near standstill in their ministry. Those in direct ministry roles need to understand their dependence on the support roles and show an understanding and appreciation for those individuals.

      8.  Adept navigation through change

Certainly change is a constant. How we plan for and react to change is the only thing we can control. It is the leadership’s responsibility to clearly explain the reasons for anticipated changes, how and why each person’s role will change, and the organizational benefits of the change. Communication during the change process must be frequent and clear, and any deviations from previously stated expectations need to be conveyed and explained. Management can help minimize employee stress and anxiety by understanding that change is disruptive and creates apprehension for employees, and by working hard to ensure that employees feel valued and understand how the change will affect them.

After considering these factors, you can probably identify the areas where your church is strong, and others where work is needed. Celebrate together those things that are good, and prioritize — with specific action steps — how you will address the others. Then make sure to look back periodically and see where you have made progress. When change happens incrementally, it’s easy to miss seeing just how far you have come.

As with our personal health, these changes and improvements won’t occur overnight. Building good habits now, however, can lead to long-term positive results.

Source: 

Vonna Laue is an Editorial Advisor for ChurchLawAndTax.com.

She joined the firm of CapinCrouse in 1996 and serves as the firm’s Managing Partner. As West Regional Director, she works closely with the West Coast audit team and with clients, and makes herself available throughout the year to assist with special projects, answer questions, and to address the ever-changing needs that face not-for-profits. 

Vonna has published articles in national publications and is co-author of the book Essential Guide to Church Financial Health.

First Posted HERE 

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