Evaluation Time

I do. There is an annual review we have for our pastors and staff members. It has many formal aspects but also some informal ones. We solicit feedback from church lay leaders, volunteers in the ministry areas of that pastor, other staff members, and one or two other levels. The process is designed to encourage and maintain accountability. We receive our annual reviews from our direct staff supervisors or, in my case, lay leadership.

We use a combination of goal fulfillment, input from various metrics, supervisor feedback, and qualitative feedback to get a picture of how a pastor or staff member is doing. In my opinion all pastors should be held accountable for various marks of a church (attendance, budget, guests, etc) and while we can't expect constant, continual growth we can expect health.

I find these evaluations to be very helpful. We have a staff with high trust and a lay leadership that graciously confronts the brutal facts. I've continued to grow as a pastor through these reviews.

Great idea for a thread.

 

When I was pastoring I developed a team of men whom I met with weekly. I had taught them how to make disciples so they knew the mission of the church and where I was headed. They did not get distracted by things coming from others who were self focused. Those men helped to give me the pulse of the church as they saw it and they also had my back. I would wonder how many are evaluated in light of scripture. Everyone has struggles and I find few staff who are open about their struggles. Struggling does not mean one is happy with sin but rather they are real and transparent. Those who say little or nothing about struggling present an image of strength that is not at all accurate or healthy. I believe transparency is one of the greatest measures of maturity. The sign of a healthy church is where disciples are making disciples.

 

Wow...you actually met with church members....and a goal was discipleship!?! I am astounded. Where do I sign up?

You know today is Sunday and I am not motivated...and I am sitting here trying to talk myself into going to church, to still another same old same old lazy church service which I am tired of. There is no support, no social service to the community, no activity of merit. What I would like to know is, what word of hope does the church have to offer the world?

 

That is one of the things that motivated me to make disciples in the context of the church. The early church faced persecution and they did not wait for someone else to do something. They did what God called them to do. Jesus taught in Matthew 28:19, 20, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Go must precede making disciples. Jesus qualified the disciples he wanted us to make and that was to baptize them and teach them to observe all he commanded. To teach them all Jesus commanded means we must lead well and be personally involved in their lives. We must teach and live out what Jesus commanded. We must be honest about our struggles and transparent with them. Struggles does not mean we call sin okay but that we have genuine struggles and that we bring our struggles to light so they are dealt with just as James 5:16 says. People are drawn to our strengths but are connected to our weaknesses. If we expect to make transparent leaders we must show them how it is done. When that happens it is life changing. Right now I meet with three men who are in the process of reaching others. They are going through the struggle of learning to reach others. In my discussions I teach them to be alert and pray that God will give them men to meet with. Too often men want to start something they see as big when they have not won their first for Jesus. They need to pray and be patient. Why would God give you two until you have one. Sometime when you get a chance listen to the message Dawson Trotman gave in the 1950s at http://turret2.discipleshiplibrary.com/1A.mp3

Once you begin to see men grow and reach others you will see things you have never seen and receive encouragement you have never had. That is where you begin to reach a church that lacks in vision and experience. Not everyone will get on board. Be careful to not be critical but rather be loving and joyful Be thankful for what God gives you. Most do not have a clue about how to make disciples and nobody has shown them how. so start with gratitude and a vision. Most churches, seminaries and Bible schools do not teach this because they do not know how.

 

Why do they not (know how)? They certainly know how to preach the Great Comission! I have another suggestion "Its too darn hard"

 

I do not see Jesus command "teaching them to observe all I have commanded you" as something you just do from the pulpit. Doing it from the pulpit would be like teaching our children from the pulpit. Making disciples can be messy just like raising our children. Take a look at the commands Jesus gave and ask yourself how you would teach them to your disciples of Jesus under persecution. I think in that lies the answer. We can preach sermons and be so isolated from real life but we cannot make disciples and avoid real life issues. For example how would we teach other men how to love their wives if we do not know how. We can tell others from the pulpit they are to love their wives and not reveal our own struggles. However we cannot make disciples unless we are real. And that is where genuine believers make a difference and those who cover up stop short of making genuine disciples. In order tofo that people must feel safe and not in a judging hypocritical environment. There is not one person on this earth who does not have struggles. For them to cover up and pretend they do not is a lie.

 

On my own journey I've seen 3 primary problems with the way church handles developing Christian's:

1. Too many unsaved people in the pews masquerading as Saved. This causes Pastors to spend most of their time trying to convert those that claimed to be saved.

2. The saved (so called) do not recognize Christ right in front of
them John 20:27

3. Little of no discipleship programs. Plenty of dogma, plenty of lazy church service, plenty of preparing for the next world Vs teaching people to meet God in this world.

Honestly, I am not trying to be hypocritical ...you need a place for group worship, for learning.but often it doesn't go near far enough. See people are coming for a belonging system...but most of the time that's it. Well to me anyway, that can't be it! There has to be more!

 

Sorry to say but yes that's probably it. Are you seeing the same thing upstate? I will bet you that Padre doesn't conduct church like that! Course I'm not moving up to the frozen tundra either....LOL! Sorry Padre.

 

Sounds like NW NJ.