I've spent my entire life in church. More specifically, I've been a part of a dozen congregations affiliated with a group of denominations most continue to label Mainline Protestant (for more on my departure, check out Giving Up Mainline Protestantism). Defining Success Individual congregations rarely provide stakeholders with a clear definition of success. As a result, most members and many active participants are left to assume their congregation is doing just fine provided it Read More …
measurement
Giving Up the Church I Always Knew (#1916)
For the last fifteen or so years I've focused on approaching life, ministry, and the life of faith from a both/and perspective rather than the either/or framework that was normative in my earlier years. For Lent, I'm accustomed to both giving something up and adding something on as a way of growing in my faith. In past years, items in both the giving up and adding on categories have been mundane. They were not original. Nonetheless, they were helpful. This year, for Lent I'm formally Read More …
Measurement Matters (#0711)
Mike Bonem, a former executive pastor who now serves as an organizational consultant, wrote an article entitled "Measuring What Matters" in the Spring 2012 edition of Leadership Journal. He names several barriers to generating helpful metrics including two that are especially problematic in a church setting: Not clearly defining what should be measured A perspective that measurement is an unspiritual discipline (p.72) So What? In my experiences very few congregations effectively Read More …