Home Church Evaluation

Home Church Evaluation

[Home church leaders are asked to complete this form, or one like it, but shorter,and bring it to their consultations with oversight staff. The full assessment might be done once or twice a year. The purpose of the exercise is to help leaders think strategically about the aspects of their group, focusing on the "important but not urgent" issues. Groups with team leadership benefit if the team fills it out together at a leaders' meeting.]

Church:______________________________ Date:

As you evaluate your church, summarize your impression in each area in a one or two line statement.

I. Outreach

A. Record the actual statistics in the areas of outreach.

1. What has been the growth rate of your home church over the past year or since the plant (whichever is shorter)?

2. How many first timers have been to home church during the last four months? How does this compare to the size of your home church during that period? (Firs timers per month as a percentage of home church size)

3. Of the first timers from the past 6 months, how many were probably non-Christian?

Record the leaders' impressions in the following areas:

1. Does your leadership believe that most of the people in cell group are actively witnessing? Answer by cell group.

2. Has there been a change in attitude toward outreach during the past few months? What?

3. Overall, do you get the impression that your church is soft average or strong in the area of outreach?

Considering your conclusion, what do you plan to do?

II. Follow up

What is the follow up ratio so far, or for the past 6 months, whichever is less time? (Take the actual number of first timers over the average of the past two weeks' "returning new") Do you consider this ratio good, average, or problematic?
Do leaders promptly designate follow-up responsibility? ____ How well do members understand the ministry spheres in the group and automatically know who they should help with?
Asses any recent losses (the past 4 months) in returning new people. Were the losses unavoidable, or the result of poor work?
Assess recent losses (the past 4 months) in old members. Why did they leave?

How have you explained past losses? Give four recent cases. Is there a pattern in your losses?

III Cell Groups:

1. How many men are in cells: ____ How many women are in cells: _____

2. Approximate % Incorporation: [Total average attendance over # in cells X 100]

3. Are you aware of people who have been lost out of cell group in last two months? Who are they? And how do you assess the losses?

4. How many people have been won into cells in last 2 months, and who are they?

5. About how many unincorporated people attend the home church on an average week?

6. Does this figure seem high low or average to you?

III. Top end work

Do your leaders agree on who are likely to be your next leaders?
What would be your list of the first 4 men and women to reach home church leadership, in order of likelihood if possible?
Future Cell Leaders: Indicate the names of those you hope to move into cell leadership next:

Names	Anticipated time before planted as cell leader	Currently getting input from:	Their Disciple (s):

Which cell group is most likely to be planted next?
Existing Cell Groups: (Be sure to bring in a ministry chart to sphere meetings!) How do you assess the discipleship for your key upcoming leaders?
For each cell group, which of the following is the greatest area of need? 1. outreach 2. consistency in their personal walk 3. Bible knowledge 4. victory over sin 5. relational skills

Cell group name:	1st need	2nd need

Who are the next people likely to take the leadership class series?

How many of your people do you think really desire to become home church leaders some day?
What percent of your cell members do you think are actively seeking a personal discipling ministry?_____
Do you have any married people desiring leadership whose spouse may be uninterested? Who?
Can you think of anyone who should be discipled, and is not being discipled? If so, what is your plan?
Summary: How strong does the top end work look in your home church?

	Excellent
	Running well
	Unsure
	Problematic
	Very worrisome

IV. Present Leadership:

Composition of the leadership: Do you think your team's outlook would be considered Pessimistic, Optimistic, or Balanced?
Leadership Unification

1. How open is the atmosphere at your leaders' meeting? How free is communication?

2. Do the leaders generally agree on conclusions reached?

3. In all honesty, can you say that there are no outstanding issues causing resentment among the leaders?

Leaders Meetings

1. What is the frequency and duration of your meetings?

2. Are Potential Leaders sitting in for training? Who?

3. Do you have an agenda, and if so, how is your agenda prioritized?

d. Circle any of the following words that would describe your leadership:

unified competent disengaged close
motivated demoralized confident supportive
too busy angry relaxed worried

V. Body Life and Composition

A. General: Again, summarize your impression in each area.

1. How would you assess the general emotional or relational health of the group?

2. What proportion of the home church is Married:____ Single:____

3. Circle the age range closest to your group:

12-18 15-23 20-30 25-40 35-50 over 40

4. How would you characterize the SocioEconomic makeup of the home church? (White collar, Blue collar, Students, Impoverished etc.)

5. How many children under 5 are there in the church? ____ How many over 5? ____

B. Is body life appreciated as significant?

1. How well do you think people are doing in the area of assisting the ministry of those who are not in their own ministry sphere? How well do people make friends with those outside of their own ministry sphere?

2. Has there been any evidence of territoriality or jealousy in the area of ministry?

3. What do people do after home church? Do they stay and enjoy fellowship with each other even if there are no first timers?

4. What time do things wind up at home church?

5. How deep do you think involvement is between members during the week?

C. Central Teaching Attendance:

1. What % of your home church Attendance is missing from central teachings on an average week?

2. Do you go out afterwards? How many do? How late?

D. Provision for Old Members:

1. Do people not involved in a discipleship ministry perform helpful services? What examples come to mind?

2. Are they encouraged and recognized for what they do? What kind of recognition?

E. Summary: which area is your greatest area of weakness, and of strength when it comes to fellowship?

VI. Prayer

A. Is there a special meeting for intercessory prayer? If so, how well attended is it?

B. Do the men pray separately from the women or together?

C. How long do the meeting(s) last?

D. Do leaders attend?

E. If there is no special prayer meeting, is there any extensive intercessory prayer at other meetings?

F. Are any people involved with the Global Prayer Digest?

G. How many from your church attend the quarterly missions prayer meeting?

VII. Home Church Meeting

A. Teachings:

1. Is it possible that the teachings are not consistently good enough to truly hold the interest of the people? How would you rate the teachings?

2. Do you think teachers are getting adequate feedback on their teachings? How do you know?

3. How much do experienced teachers help out new teachers?

4. How much of your teaching is via lecture, and how much via discussion?

5. During discussion, are people actively entering in? Are discussion and prayer lively and enthusiastic, or dead?

6. Who is the best teacher in the home church?

7. How often does that person teach?

Overall, is teaching a strength or a weakness in your home church?

B. Other aspects:

1. Is your work force burdened for the meeting's health? How do you see them contributing?

2. Do you sing? ____ How many songs?_____ How lively and animated is the singing?

C. After the meeting:

1. Do people look forward to the time after the meeting?

2. Do workers appear to have "edification goals"?

3. Where do you go afterwards? Why?

D. Summary: Circle the words that best describe body life in your home church:

Lively Slow Chaotic

Depressed Involved Excited

Moderate Quiet Drowsy

VIII. Giving:

1. How many people in your home church are on the fiscal support team, compared to the average attendance?

2. Are you confident that the leaders give a good percentage of their income?

3. Do you know whether people in your home church support missions? How many?

IX. Over All Summary:

A. Put an "X" where your church is at. ["0" indicates "healthy balance" between the two.]

1. Top End work 3---2---1---0---1---2---3 Low End work

2. Personal Investment 3---2---1---0---1---2---3 Call for Movement

3. Optimism 3---2---1---0---1---2---3 Pessimism

C. Greatest Overall Problem(s):

D. Greatest Overall Strength(s):

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