HEALTHY CHURCH: Evaluating Your Ministry (Part 1)
How do we get healthy as leaders, teams and churches? What steps are necessary for beginning the journey and where do you begin? Do not take another step without prayer; always begin there. Make sure everything you are thinking, feeling and desiring is under the Lordship of Christ in your heart by surrendering everything to His agenda. Scripture teaches that it is wise to continually evaluate and make adjustments. It is clear that God expects us to evaluate, and He tells us that if any man considers building a tower he should first count the cost.
One picture given is that of a farmer in Matt. 7:17-20 (NIV) where Jesus says, “Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.” How can you tell and how can you know whether your church is producing good or bad fruit? It begins by asking good questions. When Jesus was 12 years old and his parents could not find Him, they finally discovered Him in the temple courts, “asking them questions.”
Evaluating is figuring out what God wants you, as a leader, team and church, to do and then begin doing it. Determine what success looks like in your setting based on the Scriptures, then pursue it with all your being. A church is a living organism and should be experiencing health, growth and a multiplication of disciples, leaders and churches. What if it is not seeing an ever-increasing harvest? Jesus’ in his final speech to the 12 disciples in John 15:1-2 (NIV) said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.”
What you see in this passage is a farmer who regularly inspects the vines to make sure they are healthy and bearing fruit. Do not miss this — if they are bearing fruit, he takes action (steps) to cause them to bear more fruit. One part of a leader’s responsibility is to evaluate the ministry to which God has given them the oversight and prepare it for healthy growth. How is the discipleship pathway performing in the lives of your people? What can be done to improve that pathway and how can more disciples make more disciples? What are you doing well as a church, where do you need to improve and what do you need to do next?
• First, spend some time relating with those who are journeying with you. Have some good conversations with team members and give them permission to speak into the overall health of your church. Allow them to speak directly into particular issues they believe need to be addressed. Proverbs says it well, “there is wisdom in a multitude of counselors” (Prov. 15:22). Foster healthy relationships that promote healthy input, focused on the health of the organization. Become not only a good listener but a willing listener that values the opinions of others around you who have the same heart and burden for your church.
• The next thing you need to do to promote health is to reflect on where you are. Learn to look deeper and be willing to examine your church to gain the perspective that is needed to determine where God desires you to focus. In our Activate(church health) process, we challenge churches to determine their present reality. Make sure you celebrate the progress and victories as you clarify your values and vision. The reflective stage gives you time to consider where you are, where you have been and where you want to go. This is vitally important because it is not “if” there will be obstacles but when and what.
Paul, in I Corinthians, does not talk about a great door that “might’ open but speaks of a great door that “has” opened. He does not assume the door closed because there were adversaries but instead saw the presence of difficulties and opposition as an opportunity to keep pressing forward. Sometimes, if you are not spiritually discerning, you will assume the challenges are because God is closing the door. The reality is that the Devil does not want us pressing on faithfully to advance God’s kingdom. The promised land had giants, the children of Israel had enemies and the church will always have adversaries.
Reflection is aided in your journey of evaluation by asking probing, defining questions. What is really important to you? This enables you to determine your priorities by your values. It can be messy and can also stir up a lot of emotions. It can be a hurtful and stressful process because of the negative feelings that come with the territory. J.D. Greear said, “You do not feel your way into your beliefs. You believe your way into your feelings. You let reality be determined by the Word of God and let your feelings adjust to that.” You cannot ignore your feelings, but they must also bow to the lordship of Christ in your life.
Recognize that reflection can reveal some painful moments. If your church has been around for any length of time, this tool of evaluation, through reflection, is going to cause you to go back to seasons in your church history where the memories are painful. You need to revisit those times and re-examine them. We do this because it can facilitate healing that helps us move forward. This is so important because there may be things that have happened that were never dealt with, and never talked about, and because that didn’t happen, healing never took place.
Remember, repent and then refocus. More on this in Part II next week and check out our free Healthy Church Assessment when you visit healthychurchsolutions.org/register!
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Larry Barker
Director of Church Planting and Church Health Larry Barker submits a weekly column titled, Healthy Church Solutions, designed to strengthen and encourage the local church.
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