MEASURING THE CONNECTION - PART 2

This post is part 2 to the September 26, 2011 post CONNECTION AND COMMITMENT.

"Measuring the Connection"

In developing a strategy for helping your people grow to deeper levels of commitment to Christ and His church, it is important to have some simple measurements.  These are the measurements that we use at the Church of God of Landisville:

There are four desired outcomes to be considered in knowing whether people are growing in commitment.

Committed to Worship.  The heart of a truly missional community is the connection with Christ and with the Body in corporate worship.  Without keeping a regular focus on the sovereignty of God and the essential interdependent nature of the Church, we devolve into solo artists whose effectiveness for God is diminished.  Worship is the lifeblood of the church for we acknowledge that is all about Him.  Losing that shared commitment is one of the first warning signs of a person's disengagement.

Committed to a Small Group.  We need one another for prayer, encouragement, servanthood and accountability.  We need people to pour themsleves into our lives and to allow us to do so in return.  A person needs REAL PEOPLE with whom to be connected in an authentic, continuing and transparent way if they are to experience the love of Christ which sustains us daily.  People who only worship often are trying to hide out in the crowd.

Committed to a Ministry.  Membership means ministry.  The scriptures are clear that each of us has a part in the work of the Kingdom and are gifted for it.  If we are not involved in ministry we remain takers of spiritual nourishment but are not givers of spiritual strength.  Ministry places us in the pattern of discipleship that was commanded by Christ -- to be servants.

Committed to Discipleship Equipping. Our deepest desire is for people to be authentic disciples of Jesus Christ.  A disciple by definition is one who is learning.  In a our rapidly changing mission field it is important for people to be growing in their understanding of the Word, of the vision for ministry, and in the use of their gifts to carry out that ministry.  Is the person regularly participating in learning groups or experiences that contribute to this goal. Be it a Bible study, a discipleship class, a training program--are they maintaining a commitment to learning and applying in an intentional way that keeps them maturing and growing as faithful and fruitful disciples of Jesus Christ?

A person who can be considered a part of the core of the congregation is demonstrating a consistent involvement in at least three of these categories.


Our next post will focus on CREATING A STRATEGY FOR CONNECTION AND COMMITMENT.

Permissions: You have blanket permission to reproduce any original post by STEPHEN DUNN on this blog, as long as it is not altered in any way, is not part of a resource for sale, and proper attribution is made to the author.  A link to this blog is appreciated.  A copy of your use is appreciated as well. Send it to sdunnpastor@coglandisville.org

CONNECTION AND COMMITMENT - PART 1

 by Stephen L. Dunn

The outward-focused church is not simply about community outreach and community impact.  It is about life transformation and inviting people into the kingdom of God.  "Making disciples" is still the purpose of an outward-focused church---not simply growing a church but growing a community of faith.  And the target of this ministry is people previously unchurched, people without meaningful Christian roots.

Two words that describe the desired vision outcomes of this effort are connection and commitment.  People need two connections - first connection to Jesus Christ, and then connection to the church where they are
nurtured, equipped, and assisted in becoming part of the community on mission for Jesus.  The tie to Christ and the tie to the body make an unassailable knot that helps the individual live life to full and the church to accomplish the immeasurably more that Christ promises.

There are levels of connection in any church.  In the Church of God of Landisville we recognize five levels. They are tied to involvement in worship, which is often the initial entry or connection point for unchurched people and the church.

        LEADERSHIP CORE = These are the most strongly connected and clearly committed persons – they go the furthest mile by taking leadership responsibility for some ministry of the church.

         CORE = These are persons who worship on a regular basis, are connected to a small group or ministry, have an identifiable ministry in the church or in the community on behalf of the church. They are engaged at least once a year in some kind of training or discipleship learning group.

          CONGREGATION = These are persons who worship at least once per month or are connected on a regular basis with a  Sunday School class, small group or ministry team. They are occasionally involved in one of our ministries.

         COMMUNITY = These are persons who are connected to the church basically by worshiping with us several times a year, occasionally being involved in a program or ministry event, and generally identify us as their church.

          SHUT-INS = These are members of our church who can no longer be a part of active ministry or involvement in worship because they are now living in nursing homes or for health reasons largely confined to home.

      The goal of CONNECTION is to bring people into the body and then help them progress more deeply into that body until they can b identified as the CORE or LEADERSHIP CORE of the church.  If churches are prepared to do so, a strategy can be developed to work with the Spirit to accomplish this task.

In the next post we will talk about MEASURING THE CONNECTION and first steps in the process of intentionally connecting people with the Church.

Permissions: You have blanket permission to reproduce any original post by STEPHEN DUNN on this blog, as long as it is not altered in any way, is not part of a resource for sale, and proper attribution is made to the author.  A link to this blog is appreciated.  A copy of your use is appreciated as well. Send it to sdunnpastor@coglandisville.org

Kevin Harney is an author on outward-focused churches that I have come to appreciate dearly. He is especially articulate on the essential role of evangelism, which is my passion. I use his excellent book Organic Outreach for Churches in a course I teach called "Developing a Strategy of Evangelism in the Local Church."  Recently an adaptation of his material was posted in Church Leaders.Com  which I am reposting here. - Steve

How to Measure the Evangelistic Heartbeat of Your Church

by Kevin Harney

When God looks at the spiritual heart monitor of your church, what pattern does He see?

When God looks at his bride, the church, he longs for her to have a healthy heartbeat. He wants our hearts to beat with his love for the lost, and he longs for evangelistic passion to flow through our veins. The Maker of heaven and earth wants to see each and every church alive with love for the lost and engaged in reaching out with the message and grace of Jesus in natural, organic ways.

God wants to draw people into our fellowship with the assurance that they will be embraced by grace and introduced to the Savior, Jesus. But this can happen only when the people in our church are deeply in love with God.

When we are, our heartbeat is strong. When we do not love God, it is difficult for us to love others. As God looks at the spiritual monitor that registers the evangelistic heartbeat of a church, he sees one of several different patterns. What do you think God sees when he looks at your church?

FLATLINE

Some churches have a loud, high drone and a flatline on their heart monitor. There is no love for God, nor is there a relentless love for the lost. These churches are closed off to visitors, their community, and the world. They don’t reach out or train their members to share Jesus’ love.

Prayer for their community is nonexistent. There was a heartbeat at some time in the distant past, but today the church is flatlining.

If this describes your church, don’t lose hope! We believe in a God who can raise the dead. Heaven is watching your church’s heart monitor, and the Spirit of God is always ready to send a pulse of heavenly energy into your congregation’s heart to bring it back to life. God is ready to return your church to her first love, Jesus Christ. And the Holy Spirit is ready to move your church from apathy to passion.

WEAK PULSE

Sometimes when a doctor checks for a pulse, he’ll say, “I have a pulse, but it’s weak.” There is still life in the body, but action needs to be taken quickly to sustain it.

Many churches have a pulse and there is life, but it’s faint. There is love for God and for people, but it is waning.

If this is a picture of your church, be honest and admit it. You might have a map on a wall somewhere with several pins showing where you send money to support missionaries. You might do an event or two each year that “spiritual seekers” are welcome to attend. You might even try to be friendly if a guest or visitor happens to wander into your church on a Sunday morning.

But honestly, your passion for outreach is gone.

Your church lacks a desperate love for God that will drive you into the world with his good news. You are nice to people who visit your church, but you don’t go out of your way to reach those who are far from God. You send money overseas, but you don’t engage the mission field right next door.

If this describes your congregation, you too need to fall in love with God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—all over again. Yes, you still care. You love God, and you love people. But it is time to rehabilitate your congregation’s heart.

You might need to do some spiritual exercise and fortify your heart to make it beat strongly again. The heart is a muscle, and if you use it, it becomes stronger.

Read Page 2 >>

This is a great post from Rick Howerton worthy of discussion in your small group if your church wants to grow in its outward focus.

Evangelism and Mission: Why Your Group Neglects Them

by Rick Howerton

Every group should be evangelistically effective at some level.

Not every group is going to experience leading the masses into a relationship with Jesus. Every group should be evangelistically effective at some level though. So, why is it that some groups are ineffective when it comes to being evangelistically missional?

 

1. The leader isn't praying enough. In Jim Egli and Dwight Marable’s book, Small Groups Big Impact, after interviewing more than 3,000 small group leaders, their research showed that, “Of the leaders with a strong prayer life 83% reported that their group had seen someone come to Christ in the past 9 months, but only 19% of the leaders with a weak prayer life could say the same.”

 

2. The leader of the group isn’t directing the group to have an outward focus. Again, Small Group Big Impact… “Ninety percent of the groups surveyed with a strong outward focus had seen someone come to Christ in the last six months, but only 11% of the groups with a weak outward focus could say the same.

 

3. The group leader doesn’t consistently remind the group that they exist to bring others into a relationship with Christ. From Small Group Big Impact… “Group outreach begins with group purpose. If you are launching a group, you should make it clear to those forming the team and those joining that the group exists to experience and extend Jesus’ truth, love, and power. This needs to be repeated over and over again.”

 4. The small group leader isn’t modeling a evangelistically missional lifestyle. Small Groups Big Impact speaks again… “As leaders reach out to their own friends, relatives, and associates – praying for them, loving them, introducing them to their small group members, and bringing them to small group and church events – the small group members capture a vision and imitate their example.”

If This Was Helpful Check Out...
People Into Projects: Let's Use Language That is Actually Missional by Scott Boren
Sympathy for the Devil by Randall Neighbour
The Future of Church/Community, Is Your Church Ready by Kirby Holmes  

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Rick has one passion... To see “a biblical small group within walking distance of every person on the planet.” He is presentlythe Global Small Group Environmentalist at NavPress Publishing. Rick has authored or co-authored multiple books, studies, and leader training resources including Destination Community: Small Group Ministry Manual, The Gospel and the Truth: Living the Message of Jesus, Small Group Life Ministry Manual: A New Approach to Small Groups, Redeeming the Tears: a Journey Through Grief and Loss, Small Group Life: Kingdom, Small Group Kickoff Retreat: Experiential Training for Small Group Leaders, and Great Beginnings: Your First Small Group Study. Rick’s varied ministry experiences as a collegiate pastor, small group pastor, teaching pastor, full-time trainer and church consultant, as well as having been a successful church planter gives him a perspective of church life that is all-encompassing and multi-dimensional. Rick is a highly sought after communicator and trainer speaking at or leading training in forty settings annually. More from Rick Howerton or visit Rick at blogs.navpress.com/rickhowerton/

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO MISSIONAL?

An outward-focused church is a missional community. The church, as a body, is living on mission with Jesus. But this is far more than a program, it is a lifestyle. And outward-focused churches are shaped by the Spirit to become a missional community made up of individuals living missionally. This video poses some important questions to be asking and reflecting upon as your congregation takes on a missional focus.

Come Explore the More from Jeff D. Johnson on Vimeo.

WILL MANCINI ON VISION VEHICLES

The Six Vehicles for Church Vision: How Many Are You Using?

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Every pastor wants to get people excited about God’s activity in the world through their local church. But not every pastor understands how to use the multiple vehicles at their disposal. 

The idea of vehicle is easy to understand. If a community is in desperate need of medical supplies, what vehicles are you going to use? A wheelbarrow or a 18-Wheeler or a C-130 cargo aircraft? And if you could, would you want five C-130’s or just one? You get the picture.

Keep in mind that the concepts we are covering are very powerful when implemented. The truth is that pastors have trucks in their fleet that have never seen drive time. The cost is high as the precious cargo of motivational kingdom fuel never dispenses to hearts and minds of their people. But get those rucks rollin and you will see things happen like you’ve never seen before!

This post is the second in a series on “Vehicles for Vision.” The first post dealt with a primary challenge on the subject- the default setting in the pastor’s mind that preaching is the primary vehicle for vision. It is the default mode because it is the easiest. After all, pastors are preparing messages every Sunday already and they don’t have to get other people involved in the delivery process. It’s simple and clean.
In that post we revealed that despite the important role of preaching, the primary vehicle is the church’s connecting environment. So let’s start there and continue our list:

Vehicle #1: The Connecting Environment. This is the primary vehicle because it is the most relationally intensive. Therefore most of the validation, understanding and appreciation takes place here. Don’t complicate this too much. If you have small groups or Sunday school or missional communities, I am suggesting that those leaders or facilitators and the environments that they create are crucial to the delivery of vision.

Vehicle #2: The Leadership Pipeline. If you understand the importance of vehicle one, you might be asking, “How does that actually work?” That’s a great question because it reveals an even more foundational vehicle. In fact, I consider it the prime mover. The leadership pipeline is the vehicle where vision is transferred from leaders to other leaders. It assumes a leadership development culture. It supposes there are time and places where only leaders meet to pray, dream, dialogue and train together. 

Vehicle #3: The Preaching Event. Now we get to everyone’s favorite. And this vehicle is important as it carries a special authority and motivational dynamic with the congregation at large. Preaching connects the vision to the Word of God, to the act of worship, and rallies the entire body of Christ together in a unique way.

Vehicle #4: The Structural Story. This is a meaningful piece that I look forward to unpacking with you. By structural story I mean everything from staff and volunteer position titles, to budget categories, to systems. It’s everything in the background; the supporting processes of the organization. And these  pieces will either make a random, static-like noise or work together to contribute to the story and the vision.

Vehicle #5: The Visual Brand. From screens and worship guides, to curriculum and websites, your church is creating visual palettes from which people are digesting information. It may be a church sign, or a e-mail from the pastor. Everything speaks. As we explore this often overlooked vehicle we will show how you can constantly reflect and reinforce your vision.

Vehicle #6 The Voice of Each One. The icing on the cake is always the word on the street. Vision transfers through people not paper. And the ultimate test is not how well vision was communicated leader to leader, but from a participant to participant. By that I mean, what does Joe attendee say to a co-workers after he’s visited your church for six months? There are important steps that you can take, to help the vision transfer on the front line. Do you know what they are?

As we continue the series we will explore each vehicle further. For now I would encourage you to evaluate your ministry. How many of these vehicles are you currently using?

THIS IS DISCIPLING