8 Good Questions to Evaluate Your Church

It’s easy to get so busy doing ministry that you don’t take the time to evaluate your ministry. 

But evaluation that leads to change is how your church gets better.

It’s like your annual physical. No one wants to get a check-up, blood work, and maybe a test or two, but that’s how you learn what you need to know.

Then, of course, you need to act on what you learn.

The 5-point plan to get better:

1. Pray
2. Ask the right questions
3. Give honest answers in a team process
4. Determine the best prioritized plan for improvement. This includes:
   • People: Who is going to lead it? (Who can do it? Who is available?)
   • Time: What is the timeline?
   • Money: What is the cost?
   • Outcomes: What are the expected outcomes?
5. Take action

It starts with asking the right questions.

8 Good Questions That Will Help Your Ministry Get Better:

1) How is the unique culture of your church helping you make progress?

My friend and brilliant church consultant Sam Chand wrote a great book titled Breaking Your Church’s Culture Code. He states that more than vision, programs, money, or staff, culture has the greatest impact on your church’s future.

• How would you describe your culture?
• Is it what you want?
• Is your church culture helping or hurting as you pursue God’s purpose for your church?
• What changes do you need to make?
• If the culture is healthy, what practices are in place to remain healthy?

Another great book is Culture Matters, by Jenni Catron, gifted coach and consultant.

2) How would you describe the overall morale of your church?

Are the people happy with your church? Is the general spirit upbeat and positive? That question seems subjective but is surprisingly easy to answer. Here are a few questions to help you get started.

• Do they trust the leadership?
• Is progress greater than complaints?
• Are they excited about the vision?
• Are they passionate about following Jesus?
• Is there momentum?
• Are problems solved with relative ease (without significant resistance?)

These questions don’t all require a “perfect 10” to have high morale, but they serve as excellent indicators of how you are doing.

When you walk into the lobby of the church you get an instant indicator of the morale and culture.

Morale and culture are closely linked. If the church is stuck or struggling and the culture and morale are not ideal, I recommend that you to pour your leadership energy here first.

3) What is your approach to spiritual formation in your church?

One of the most artful blends of spiritual formation in the local church is how you balance evangelism and discipleship.

• Evangelism is the natural result of good discipleship.
• Good discipleship leads to an overall sense that people are pursuing God.

It’s not about perfection, but do you see progress? What factors do you consider important to help assess spiritual maturity?

Consider things like prayer, serving others, obedience, and financial generosity. How about the fruit of the Spirit like love, joy, and peace, etc.?

Changed lives that continue to mature in their faith is one of the greatest indicators of a healthy and productive church.

What methods and processes do you utilize?

Do you utilize small groups? How is community developed? What priority does biblical truth hold? Are you seeing more new converts in a new Christians class? Are you experiencing more baptisms?

4) Are you developing new leaders?

Next to the favor of God, everything rises and falls on leadership.

Do the leaders in your church demonstrate a strong spiritual depth and a servant’s heart?
What is your process to find and develop new leaders?

You will not realize your potential as a church without dedicated effort to some form or process to start with.

Here’s a great plan to start with.

If your vision is big and bold enough to require God to be accomplished, it also needs more and better leaders. (Better leaders because they are developed.)

5) How would you describe the strength of your volunteer teams?

Your volunteer teams are the lifeblood of your church. They keep the body of Christ going.

• Are your volunteers part of vibrant and productive teams or a struggling band of survivors?
• Much of that depends on how you select, train, encourage and empower your volunteers.
• Do you recruit to a vision or just to get a task done?

All churches face the pressure of needing people to volunteer to serve. However, if your heart is to grow them over growing the church, you will have greater results and enjoy ministry more.

How you develop and encourage your volunteer teams makes a huge difference in the fruit and joy of your ministries.

How would you rate the overall esprit de corps of your volunteer ministries?

What is your first best step to strengthen your teams?

6) What are the financial indicators telling you?

It is relatively easy to measure results when it comes to money. The weekly offering defines reality. At the same time, one of the great challenges a spiritual leader embraces is successfully inspiring people to trust God with their finances and remain faithful to generous living and generous giving.

• Where are you stronger regarding money, faith or practice?
• Are you bold in your teaching of God’s truth about money?
• Do you offer practical training about money management?
• Do you personally model generosity?

7) Are you on mission?

The church is designed to take new territory, not merely enjoy good fellowship.

One of the things I love most about the church is the warmth of relationships in the body of Christ, but we are also called to reach our community for Christ. In the spiritual realm, that is taking new territory by seeing people say yes to Jesus.

To be on mission you must first be clear about the purpose of your church. What is your mission/vision – exactly? Does your congregation have a good sense of what it is? Are you acting on that mission?

It’s essential that your leaders become and remain aligned together in that mission. Your will always feel like you are swimming upstream if you are not headed in the same direction.

8) Do your people enthusiastically invite others to your worship services?

I have coached churches where the people obviously had lukewarm feelings about the worship service. They were not motivated to invite someone even if they had a friend they wanted to bring.

It’s not always or only about the worship service, but it starts there and quickly goes to culture, vision and the rest of the list in this post.

Is there anything about your church that would cause your congregation to pause about inviting their friends?

When people are committed to the vision and excited about your worship services, they are much more motivated to invite others to church.

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OK, so there were really more than just 8 questions. But I trust these questions will be helpful to you and the health of your church.

I pray God’s wisdom for your leadership and His favor upon you!