A Summary by Pastor Chris Smith
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| Pastor Chris Smith Senior Pastor |
The Church Assessment Tool (CAT) Survey was completed by 927 people between January 19 and February 16, 2014. This is fantastic! The large sample provides results which have high validity and yield reliable insights. Thank you for taking the time to complete the survey. Below is a summary of key findings from the survey. A full copy of the report with an explanatory DVD is available at the Welcome Center for check-out.
A High Energy Church
The people of Shepherd of the Valley (SOTV) report that the church is a high energy center of ministry in the name of Jesus Christ. SOTV is a transformational church where people express overall high satisfaction with their experience of its ministry and appreciate the diverse opportunities for worship and growth that our church offers.
An Adaptable Church
SOTV people also report that they experience the church as a flexible, adaptable place of mission and ministry. We are willing to adapt our worship and our programs in order to meet the changing needs of our current members as well as to reach out to others in our local community. We are also a theologically diverse community of faith. We think and talk about God in a variety of ways and make room for others with differing viewpoints.
Particular Strengths
The CAT survey highlighted a number of areas of strength in SOTV’s ministry:
- Music and Worship – Worship at SOTV is characterized by music and other worship elements that are outstanding and inspiring for faith
- Educational Offerings – SOTV provides opportunities for education that are high quality and suit the needs of our community.
- All Called to Ministry – SOTV does a good job of equipping its people for ministry and helping them know that they make a difference.
- Energetic Spirit – At SOTV, people experience the presence of God in ways that impact their faith and how it connects to other aspects of their lives.
- High Morale – People at SOTV are energized and transformed by their experience of the church so that they invite others to experience the church as well.
Places for Improvement
The CAT survey also revealed a number of areas where SOTV can improve:
- Governance – CAT results suggest that the Church Council and other governance teams at SOTV do two things: First, include broader representation from the congregation and, second, make information about key decisions more accessible for review and comment.
- Transformation and Meaning – While people experience an energetic spirit and high morale at SOTV, they also seek greater meaning from their experience in worship and beyond to apply to their lives every day.
- Conflict Management – SOTV has gone through a variety of changes in recent years. Changes like these will happen more effectively through broader engagement and excellent communication in the process of making decisions and implementation.
- Invitation and Welcome – SOTV needs to explore new ways to welcome and engage the diverse community around us.
- Activity Level Beyond Worship – While the people of SOTV affirm worship as a key priority in their faith development, their involvement beyond worship is at a lower level than most churches. How can we inspire greater participation?
- Opportunities to Give – The people of SOTV on average give 1.28% of their household income to support the mission and ministry of SOTV. A giving increase of just one-half of one percent of household income would fully fund our mission and enable us to be far more generous with those in need.
Your Priorities
The CAT survey provided the opportunity to name priorities and hopes for SOTV. The results ranked four as high or very high priorities:
- Serve Our Community – The people of SOTV want to do much more to reach out and serve those living on the margins of society. This means that our church needs to develop ministries that bring healing to those broken by life circumstances.
- Reach Out – The people of SOTV want to develop and implement new ways to invite others to engage in the life and ministry of SOTV.
- Build Relationships – The people of SOTV want to form new relationships with others in our community of faith. This priority means that we need to create new and diverse ways for people to meet one another and build relationships.
- Worship that Transforms – Worship and music are already key strengths of SOTV. The people of SOTV want these experiences to deepen their connection to God and one another and to bring greater meaning to their faith in daily living.
The Vision and the CAT
It’s exciting to see how the results of the CAT survey align with the vision of SOTV. Our vision is to invite all people to experience the welcome, transformation, and sending of Jesus Christ. This vision supports devoting more energy to reaching out, building relationships and community, and creating transformational worship experiences, all priorities for SOTV. These efforts would also build on our strengths as a church. As an adaptable, high energy church we have the capacity to put into action much that the CAT survey results suggest.
Ideas Please!
Your leaders on the church council and on the church staff will be discussing the CAT results in the weeks and months to come. If you have ideas about putting insights from survey results into action, please share them. We need good ideas! And, thanks again for completing the survey!
Full CAT Survey Results
Download the full Vital Signs Report (PDF) prepared by Holy Cow Consulting. A full copy of the report with an explanatory DVD is also available at the Welcome Center for check-out.
You may also view a video explanation below of the Vital Signs Report, by J. Russell Crabtree, called the Vital Look Session. This video lasts an hour and 17 minutes.
