Transitions - Keep Looking into the Mirror

Prayer Journal - August 29, 2012 "Effective Meeting tonight with council and the consultant"
October 19, 2012 - "Thank You for a complete assessment!"

As a transition begins, it is SO helpful to know a few things from the congregation, including:
1) Where do we think we are?
2) Where do we think we're going?

As a pastor leaves, especially a long-term pastor, it helps to "look into the mirror" and we sought to accomplish this in two ways.  First, we decided to put a congregational survey in place.  During preparation and delivery, the company we used was thorough and helpful.  The questions covered a wide range of topics but the primary topics about which we were most concerned were: 

Evidence of Conflict, Governance, Spiritual vitality, Hospitality, Ministry Readiness, Worship/music, and Morale. 

In addition, the assessment offered an opportunity for the congregation to state what their preferences were for the characteristics and strengths of a new Senior Pastor.

Secondly, we looked into the possibility of having a consultant guide us through the results in order for us to implement a plan to respond to the assessment.  While the council chose not to pursue the consultant's services, even the preliminary meeting with the consultant (I prayed for above) was very, very helpful and revealing.

Both options offered us an opportunity to "look into the mirror" and understand how to proceed next. 

What did we do with the assessment results?

• Built the Senior Pastor job description with the understanding of what the congregation expected in a Senior Pastor.  This did NOT mean that the description was a copy of what the congregation expected.  Some, if not most, areas of importance of what the congregation expected was reflected in the job description.
• Pastoral Candidates could look at the results and understand more about the congregation's current health and outlook.
• The assessment confirmed a requirement for communication that we had already identified. Communication begins with council (elders) and staff and moves from there. I feel that we did a pretty good job communicating with the congregation - maybe moving into over-communication - and that helped them understand how we were moving together!
• Notice how I asked the congregational questions above: where do you THINK we're going? Vision begins with the leadership and is confirmed (or not) by the congregation. Understanding where the congregation thought we were going reflects how we had been leading and helps us understand how we need to progress as the leadership (elders, pastor, staff, etc.) prayerfully approach the future.

While the results from the assessment were helpful, looking back I think we would have benefited from an outside consultant coming in to walk us through the rest of the process.  This is another way to look into the mirror, see things not normally observed, and take appropriate action with the credibility of one who has done this before.