One church or a loose confederation of ministries?

Jeff Hook — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 23:43:00 GMT

We get to know a lot of churches in conjunction with our implementation of Fellowship One; currently we have sold over 500 churches. Plus we have talked to a whole lot more through the selling process. Clearly there are two different kinds of churches; those that act as “one church” and those that simply act as a loose confederation of ministries.

So how are they different? The “one church” church is concerned about the overall brand of the church and desires to have the overall brand’s “fingerprint” on everything that is done concerning that church. This should not necessarily be stifling to the ministries. It should provide some level of support concerning the overall level of excellence that is required when that brand is associated with an event, a mailing or a website? You might look at the different ministries as different “product lines” which are being used to attract and serve a different type of audience based on age, demographics, etc.

The “one church” also is more concerned about the coordination of the information flow as well as the information contained within the church database. They believe that the chances are if a parent’s phone number changed in the children’s ministry, perhaps that family would be better served if the general church database also reflected that change. The “one church” also helps people move from one ministry to the next as their life stage or circumstances change.

The “one church” is concerned about the overall workload of a volunteer across ministries, not allowing a person to get overworked and overcommitted. The “one church” does not allow a “problem” volunteer to move from one ministry to the next passing on a person who could be creating issues that are detrimental to the overall church, having the attitude, “as long as it is not in my ministry!”

We have also run into churches of the other sort, where the staffs do not have a process of on-going information sharing that allows them to all get on the same page as far as how ministry will be accomplished, what the common goals might be, or even how ministry is to be measured. Each ministry is an island; perhaps each ministry has a different formal database. If not, then at least a different informal database. You know the one that the staff and volunteers really rely on. And instead of taking the energy to fix the real issue of people allowing bad information to get into and stay in the system, they just create a database or spreadsheet that they can control. In other words, they go around the problem.

To me, the church that is a confederation of ministries is shortchanging the congregation. Within it, certain ministries will thrive; but others will flouder or even fail. Not because the congregation does not see a need or want to participate, but because the island of people will not feel connected to the church. This uneven experience that people feel will break the congregation into parts, and parts are not as strong as a whole. However, it takes strong leadership to get all ministries on the same page. Leadership that is willing to stand up to the different forces that want to do “their own thing.”

Grace to you as you go out to be one,

Jhook

What does it mean to be a ministry tool?

Jeff Hook — Sun, 04 Dec 2005 17:01:00 GMT

One of the key differences between Fellowship One and many of the more traditional church management systems is that Fellowship One is built to be a ministry tool used by the entire church staff. Since we have come to market, other software vendors have jumped in to say many of the same things – and anyone can “claim” anything.

But to be a true ministry tool, a majority of the ministry staff has to actually use the system through direct access. Too often, only one or two key people do all of the work in the church database because access is difficult or limited. If this is the case in your church, how can your system really be considered a ministry tool? How is the system really helping you proactively affect the lives of the congregation?

Granted, the level that a system can be viewed as a ministry tool is subject to judgment and interpretation. And certainly, it is not always a problem with the system as some of our customers use the capabilities of Fellowship One better than others. However, it is our intent that each of our customers, and by that I mean the entire church staff, use as much of our system as they need and is possible.

To truly be a ministry tool, the system must be easy to use for the casual user. To log-in and look up an address or to respond to a contact request should require minimal training. Also, access to the system should be easily available where and when a minister requires the information. Fellowship One allows a pastor to look up a person’s name, address and associated map, vital family information (spouse’s name, children names and ages, etc.), and even a picture of the person directly from any Internet-ready cell phone or PDA. How convenient is that when you are getting ready to meet a parishioner for coffee at Starbuck’s but you are not truly familiar with who they are or what they look like?

A ministry tool should also assist you to help people become better Disciples of Christ. After all, it is about the people! Are their needs (spiritual, emotional and physical) being addressed? Why are physical and emotional needs so important? Because if those needs are not being addressed, most people cannot even get to the realization of their spiritual needs – they are too caught up in the basics. Are they being assimilated into the church quickly enough? Are their gifts being used properly? Are they involved in the ministries of the church? As a pastor, can I easily identify the people who are; but as importantly, the people who are not. A true ministry tool can assist you in determining and tracking such vital information.

Grace to you as you go out and MINISTER!

Jeff Hook

Accelerating the Dynamic Church : Ministry

One church or a loose confederation of ministries?

What does it mean to be a ministry tool?