Church Life Profile - Workbook

Church Life Profile

WorkbookMichael Brady | Kathy Jacka | Ruth Powell | The NCLS Research Team

NCLS ResearchLocked Bag 2002 Strathfield NSW 2135 Phone: + 61 2 9701 4479 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ncls.org.au

ISBN-978-0-9872173-1-8

There’s more online... NCLS offers resources to make strategic planning easier

www.ncls.org.au/planning

Go online to see a range of NCLS resources to help you engage your Church Life Profile of results and plan a way forward with your church.

Engage your Church Life

Profile

Engage the Summary Review and gain a clear overview of your church’s areas of strength and potential further development. (See pages 7 to 12.)

Engage the Detailed Review to become involved in reflecting deeply and planning positively in various and specific areas of church life. (See pages 13 to 26.)

Consider planning principles

Planning Principles that will guide church leadership as they develop detailed plans for their church’s future. (See page 29 as well as www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Assess what your church is ready for

Lifestage Overview: Consider your church’s unique life stage (eg. church plant, established ministry, new leadership phase) to inform your choices. (See page 30.)

Planning Preparedness: Discern your church’s readiness for a planning by completing the planning preparedness questionnaire. (See www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Plan for your Future

Planning Processes: Choose from the Short Planning Session, Reflection Action Planning Process and Comprehensive Planning Process for your church. (See pages 31 to 36.)

Facilitators Material: Use Worksheets, PowerPoint slides, and background research material to help run a workshop or process. (See www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Identify key action points

Prepare a Report for leadership, the congregation, discussion groups, etc. concerning various aspects of your Church Life Profile using the Workbook processes and the templates provided. (See pages 12 and 26.)

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This Workbook is a companion document to the NCLS Church Life Profile.

It will help you engage your results in your Church Life Profile and develop effective plans of action.

The Church Life Profile is the report that a church receives after their attenders complete a Church Life Survey. It represents the voices of local attenders talking about their attitudes and experiences of life at your church. It creates an opportunity for a church to stop and reflect on what they do well and how to build on their strengths.

You can go through this companion Workbook systematically or you can choose particular aspects of your Church Life Profile to explore.

You can use this Workbook to:• Develop an overview of your Church Life Profile which can be shared with your church/parish.• Explore one part of your Church Life Profile and its implications for your vitality.• Conduct a workshop on a specific Core Quality to further develop that area.

Church Life Profile Workbook

We offer three different planning processes to choose from, or you can use your own preferred process. The Church Life Profile and Workbook can be readily used in conjunction with other resources or planning approaches to meet your specific needs.

You will need your Church Life Profile to work through this Workbook.

Your Church Life Profile can be accessed online by an individual or group, using your Profile Number (included on page 2 of your Profile).

Share your Profile Number with anyone you would like to have access to it. Enter your Profile Number on the NCLS website www.ncls.org.au

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Church Life Profile WorkbookAuthorsMichael Brady, Kathy Jacka, and Ruth Powell, with the NCLS Research team.

Section 2 was adapted from the NCLS Research publication, Enriching Church Life (2006). Authors of this publication were John Bellamy, Bryan Cussen, Sam Sterland, Keith Castle, Ruth Powell and Peter Kaldor.

Published Edition © 2012 Mirrabooka Press & NCLS Research

All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means without prior permission in writing from the publisher.

First published April 2012

National Library of AustraliaCataloguing-in-Publication data

Church Life Profile Workbook / Michael Brady, Kathy Jacka, Ruth Powell; The NCLS Research Team.ISBN 978 0 9872173 1 8Dewey Number: 262.0994

Copies available from Mirrabooka Presswww.mirrabookapress.com.au

Designed and printed by Openbook Howden Design & Print

About use of the Church Life Profile Workbook

Permission is granted to local churches to reproduce pages for internal church use.

About use of the Church Life Profile

Permission is granted to local churches to reproduce data and images for internal church use.

About NCLS Research

The mission of NCLS Research is to use credible research to identify signs of hope and nurture life in churches and leadership, as well as to encourage the wider community to reflect upon its spiritual journey and the churches’ place within it.

NCLS Research serves over 22 denominations and movements and is jointly sponsored by ANGLICARE Diocese of Sydney, Uniting Mission & Education (Synod of NSW & the ACT), the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the Australian Catholic University. The National Church Life Survey has been carried out on five occasions in Australia: 1991, 1996, 2001, 2006 and 2011. Using the Australian model, Church Life Surveys have also been used by churches in the United Kingdom, USA, New Zealand and the Netherlands.

Contact NCLS ResearchLocked Bag 2002 Strathfield NSW 2135 Phone: + 61 2 9701 4479 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ncls.org.au

The Church Life Profile Workbook is a part of the NCLS Church Life Pack of resources, alongside the Church Life Profile and Enriching Church Life Book.

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Contents

Introduction - Using your Workbook and Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-5

Section 1 - Engaging your Church Life Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Gaining an Overview:

Engaging your Summary Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-11

Reporting on your Summary Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Digging Deeper:

Engaging your Detailed Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Your 9 Core Qualities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-19

Your Attendance Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-22

Your NCLS Plus Findings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-25

Reporting on your Detailed Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Section 2 - Church Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27Why do Planning? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Planning Principles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Life Stages of Churches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Three Planning Processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Short Planning Session . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Reflection Action Planning Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Comprehensive Planning Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34-35

Your Chosen Planning Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

NCLS Resources for Planners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

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Ways to Use Your WorkbookIf your church completes a Church Life Survey, you will have a Church Life Profile that outlines your survey results, providing a snapshot of the current health and vitality of your church.

Do you want to gain an overview to write a report for your local church?Do you want to deeply reflect on particular aspects of the Profile?Do you want to workshop a particular part of the Profile with a ministry team?

• of your church’s vitality• of your attendance &

attenders

See the ’Gaining an Overview’ pages 7-12

Gain a Summary Overview

• reflect on an element of your church’s vitality

• workshop this element with a small group

See the ’Digging Deeper’ pages 13-26

Engage the Detail

• your church’s life stage• your church’s readiness

See the ‘Church Planning’ pages 27-30

Discern Your Church’s Next Steps

• short planning session• reflection action planning

process• comprehensive planning

process

See the ‘Church Planning’ pages 31-36

Implement a Planning Process

5

Many Ways to Plan

Many factors make your church unique so we provide a range of exercises to choose from to help your church move forward.

You can use various elements in this Workbook to tailor a process to suit your particular context, life stage and people.

If you’d like to work through the NCLS process systematically, follow the steps below.

Step 1 - Engage your Church Life Profile of results:

• Gain An Overview: Review the Summary Review section of your Church Life Profile to gain a quick summary of your key findings.

• Engage the Detail: Dig deeper into the Detailed Review section, Attendance Patterns and NCLS PLUS sections of your Profile to assess specific issues or key points that you’d like to explore further.

Step 2 - Identify key action points:

• Prepare a report of key issues or observations for follow up, from your Profile.• Invite team members to review the Profile and give their reflections on key points.• Have a conversation with a trusted colleague or mentor about your Profile.

Step 3 - Consider some valuable planning principles:

• Read over the NCLS Planning Principles to inform your approach to planning.

Step 4 - Assess what your church is ready for:

• Assess your church’s readiness for planning using the Planning Preparedness Questionnaire.• Refer to the Life Stage of Churches information and case studies to reflect on the stage of your

church and consider the best approach for your current needs.

Step 5 - Plan for your future:

There are several styles of process you can use to engage your NCLS results and plan for the future. You may already use another planning resource that the NCLS Profile can also complement. Choose a process and begin.

• NCLS Planning Processes: a Short Planning Process, Reflection Action Planning Process, or Comprehensive Planning Process.

• Other Planning Resources: The NCLS Church Life Profile provides a natural complement to many existing planning resources.

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A Planner’s ReflectionIt helps, now and then, to step back

and take the long view. The kingdom is not only beyond our efforts,

it is beyond our vision.

We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction of

the magnificent enterprise that is God’s work. Nothing we do is complete,

which is another way of saying that the kingdom always lies beyond us.

No statement says all that could be said. No prayer fully expresses our faith.

No confession brings perfection. No pastoral visit brings wholeness.

No program accomplishes the church’s mission. No set of goals and objectives includes everything.

This is what we are about: We plant seeds that one day will grow.

We water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise.

We lay foundations that will need further development. We provide yeast that produces effects beyond our capabilities.

We cannot do everything and there is a sense of liberation in realising that.

This enables us to do something, and to do it very well.

It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way,

an opportunity for God’s grace to enter and do the rest.

We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.

We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs.

We are prophets of a future not our own.

“The Romero Prayer” Dedicated to Archbishop Oscar Romero Archbishop of San Salvador 1977-1980

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Section 1 - Engaging Your Church Life Profile

Gaining an Overview

Pages 8-11 help you to engage your Summary Review of results in your Church Life Profile and gain an overview of your local church’s vitality. You may then synthesise your Summary Review findings and prepare a report using the form on page 12 as a template, naming potential directions for your church and priority areas of action.

These pages have been designed so that an individual can reflect on these things alone, or so that a small group or ministry team can explore these areas together.

Gaining An Overview: Engaging your Summary Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-11

Reporting on your Summary Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Digging Deeper...

Pages 14-26 will help you engage the Detailed Review in your Church Life Profile and give you a comprehensive understanding of your local church’s vitality.

These pages can be worked on by an individual or delegated to a particular person or team responsible for that area of church ministry.

Digging Deeper: Engaging your Detailed Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Your 9 Core Qualities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-19

Your Attendance Patterns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-22

Your NCLS PLUS Findings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-25

Reporting on your Detailed Review . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

8

Gaining an Overview - Change Over Time

Your Change Over Time

Refer to page 6 of your Church Life Profile

Having become familiar with the brief description of the Core Qualities on page 4 of your Church Life Profile, study the Change Over Time chart. This chart compares your current results with your last Church Life Survey.

For further information on understanding the core quality scores refer to the end of the Church Life Profile.

Examine the Chart:

Which qualities have grown in strength, which show no change, and which have shown decline?

Why do you think this is so? What has happened between the Surveys that would contribute to this?

What might you celebrate from this?

Reflect/Discuss:

What do these changes imply about the life and culture of your church?

How might the growing qualities be further developed?

Who do you most associate with these qualities? How might they be part of any further development?

What insight comes to you from this?

Note here any points you would like to discuss with others, include in a report or take action on.

9

Gaining an Overview - Your Church’s Strengths

Your Church’s Strengths


Having become familiar with the brief description of the Core Qualities on page 4 of your Profile, study the Circle of Strengths for your church.

For further information on understanding the core quality scores refer to the end of the Church Life Profile.

Reflect/Discuss:

How are your stronger core qualities evident in the life of your local church?

Who do you most associate with these qualities?

How might your local church build on these stronger qualities?



Examine the Circle:

Which are the strongest core qualities of your local church?

Why do you think these qualities are ranked highest in your local church?


10

Gaining an Overview - Attenders’ Priorities

Your Attenders’ Priorities


Read through the aspects of your church that attenders most value and those they would like to see get more attention in the next 12 months.

Notice the four most hoped for and the four most valued, as shown in the graphic.

Examine:

What are the aspects of local church life people most hope for (i.e. want to see given attention to over the next year)?

What are the aspects of local church life people say they value?


Reflect/Discuss:

Consider the four aspects people chose in both categories - do any of these surprise you?

How might the church respond to these?

What could be done to engage people more fully in each of the aspects of church life they most value and those they would most like to see more attention given to?



11

Gaining an Overview - Attenders’ Leadership Strengths

Your Attenders’ Strengths


Attenders were presented with a list of the 12 NCLS Leadership Strengths and asked to choose the four they considered themselves to be best at. The choices were aggregated to give an image of the four top Leadership Strengths of attenders.

Reflect/Discuss:

Which people in the local church do you think typify each of the top four strengths?

What opportunities do these strengths offer to the local church’s mission and ministries?

Compare these strengths with the top four leadership strengths of your region (if available). What does this suggest to you?



Examine:

Become familiar with the 12 NCLS Leadership Strengths (see www.leadwithyourstrengths.net). Which leadership strengths are most common among your church attenders?

Are they as you expected or do they surprise you?


12

This Overview Report can be shared with your Church Council, Elders, a Planning Group or your Church Attenders as a summary of your NCLS findings. For an extensive report use this

page as a cover sheet/summary and add the necessary extra pages.

Gaining an Overview - Report Template

Copy/download the front and back covers of your Church Life Profile to accompany your Report and attach further pages as necessary.

Refer to your work in the previous four pages of this Workbook to compile this Report.

1. What findings in the Summary Review of your Church Life Profile do you wish to highlight?

2. What insights do you wish to share after the last four pages of engaging the Summary Review?

3. What action or next steps do you recommend?

Synthesise your findings from the Summary Review into a report

Church Life Profile

WorkbookMichael Brady | Kathy Jacka | Ruth Powell | The NCLS Research Team

NCLS ResearchLocked Bag 2002 Strathfield NSW 2135 Phone: + 61 2 9701 4479 Email: [email protected] Web: www.ncls.org.au

ISBN-978-0-9872173-1-8

There’s more online... NCLS offers resources to make strategic planning easier

www.ncls.org.au/planning

Go online to see a range of NCLS resources to help you engage your Church Life Profile of results and plan a way forward with your church.

Engage your Church Life

Profile

Engage the Summary Review and gain a clear overview of your church’s areas of strength and potential further development. (See pages 7 to 12.)

Engage the Detailed Review to become involved in reflecting deeply and planning positively in various and specific areas of church life. (See pages 13 to 26.)

Consider planning principles

Planning Principles that will guide church leadership as they develop detailed plans for their church’s future. (See page 29 as well as www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Assess what your church is ready for

Lifestage Overview: Consider your church’s unique life stage (eg. church plant, established ministry, new leadership phase) to inform your choices. (See page 30.)

Planning Preparedness: Discern your church’s readiness for a planning by completing the planning preparedness questionnaire. (See www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Plan for your Future

Planning Processes: Choose from the Short Planning Session, Reflection Action Planning Process and Comprehensive Planning Process for your church. (See pages 31 to 36.)

Facilitators Material: Use Worksheets, PowerPoint slides, and background research material to help run a workshop or process. (See www.ncls.org.au/planning.)

Identify key action points

Prepare a Report for leadership, the congregation, discussion groups, etc. concerning various aspects of your Church Life Profile using the Workbook processes and the templates provided. (See pages 12 and 26.)

Church Life Profile - Workbook

Documents

Transcript of Church Life Profile - Workbook