As the year draws to a close, leaders in many congregations are actively involved in crafting annual reports. Depending on your congregation’s denomination, network or association, certain statistics may be required. In almost all congregations, there are other things that get counted throughout the year and are then reported to the congregation annually.
When people talk about the size and scope of ministry in a given congregation and seek to compare it to that of another, the assumption is that there is some way or there are multiple ways to do so objectively. What that measure or what those measures should be, however, is a topic for debate. For many years two that have carried considerable weight are average Sunday worship attendance and annual church budget.
As all aspects of life, including the life of faith, rely more and more heavily on the internet one would assume that we would be seeking ways to account for such. Tim Schenck recently blogged about this topic, suggesting a need to move beyond such a heavy reliance on average worship attendance. He writes
I’ve been thinking a lot about what isn’t included in these numbers and I keep coming back to online ministry. Just as online relationships are real relationships, online ministry is real ministry. Parishes that put effort and intentionality into social media and online communication with parishioners and others are reaching many people beyond the number recorded in the service register each week.
So What?
The time has come for a new scorecard. Those looking for a starting point that takes online ministry seriously, may consider one crafted by Cameron Trimble. At this stage in the life of the church, it is my hope that each and every congregation is having serious conversations about what it means to be church in the early 21st century. As clarity about that question emerges, so also should new standards that should be measured and reported on in annual reports. Likewise, if these measures matter they should impact budgets.
- On a scale of 1 to 10, how important is online ministry in the life of your congregation?
- What aspects or elements of online ministry does your congregation measure? How are those statistics used?