The Other 80 Percent E-Book

Scott Thumma

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Serie: J-B Leadership Network Series
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 320

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

A research-based approach to developing more active and involved congregations In this practical resource, well-known and respected researcher Scott Thumma and professional co-writer Warren Bird draw upon new and heretofore unpublished research across a broad range of Protestant churches of all sizes and show how to create more active members. Offers solid information of what church leaders need to know about the factors and practices that create church members who are more actively and passionately involved in their congregations. * Offers a first of its kind resource for developing engaged congregations * Lead author Scott Thumma is a noted researcher and writer on congregational studies * Warren Bird is coauthor of Culture Shift and Viral Churches This book offers advice for moving church members from being spectators to living a life of discipleship and faith.

Leseprobe

Contents

About the Jossey-Bass Leadership Network Series

Preface

Introduction

Part One : Listening

Chapter 1 : What do You Hear from the Committed 20 Percent?

Those Who are Already Committed

Those Currently Increasing Their Involvement

Drawing Them in and Keeping Them

Chapter 2 : What Do You Hear from the Less-Committed 80 Percent?

Those with Declining Involvement

Those with Low or Marginal Involvement

Those with No Involvement

Still Reachable and Wanting to Be Connected

Chapter 3 : How to Create a Listening Team

Five Categories to Use

Discover Your Church’s Participation Quotient

Learning Beyond the Membership

Part Two : Learning

Chapter 4 : Cultural Causes of the 80/20 Problem

Some Changes Are Obvious, but More Are Subtle

Church Contributions to the Problem

Keep Listening for the Good Shepherd

Chapter 5 : Comparative Patterns in Churches

Organizational Factors Related to Participation

Removing Roadblocks to Participation

The Role of Clergy in Participation

Chapter 6 : Misinformed Efforts to Build Participation

Newcomer Involvement Patterns

Involvement Models

Involving Those Who Seem Uninterested

Making the Effort to Bring Them Back

Chapter 7 : How to Create a Learning Team

The Who and the What

Dealing with Leadership Challenges

Part Three : Leading

Chapter 8 : Start with What You Do Well

Start with Prayer

Proceed with Your Best Efforts

Affirm Your Expectations for Commitment

Reevaluate the Process of Participating

Help People Use Their Gifts and Interests

Individualize Avenues of Participation

Make Sure the Rewards Aren’t Limited to Heaven

Chapter 9 : Create More Ways for People to Participate

Expand What It Means to Participate

Attend in Lots of Ways

Do Better Networking

Peek into a Few Pandora’s Boxes

Chapter 10 : Reach Toward Spiritual Growth and Development

Looking for Spiritual Maturity

Involvement Equals Spiritual Growth Equals Involvement

Pushing Against Pareto

Afterword

Appendixes

Appendixes A : Resources

Appendixes B : Methods and Description of the Datasets

Appendixes C : Sample Survey Questions

Annotated Bibliography

Acknowledgments

The Authors

Index

Tables and Figures

Table 1(Introduction) People join, but only half or less show upTable 2(Introduction) The smaller the church, the more of its members who actually attendTable 1.1Everyone is somewhere on a continuum of involvementTable 1.2The most involved rate their churches much higher in certain areasFigure 1.1The longer people have been at a church, the less they say their participation is increasingFigure 1.2The older people are, the less they say their participation is increasingFigure 1.3The less conflict, the higher the level of participationTable 1.3Increased participation results mostly from a new role or responsibilityTable 1.4Most churches need multiple pathways to help increase involvementTable 2.1Participation decreases as motive, means, and ability disappearTable 3.1Unfortunately distinguishing sheep and goats is never this easy!Table 3.2Your listening team will need a confidential format to record its notesTable 3.3Your listening team should create a confidential overall tallyTable 5.1The smaller the church, the more of its total affiliation who actually attendFigure 5.1Spiritually vital churches rate highest in recruiting volunteersFigure 5.2Churches with these values have the easiest time recruiting volunteer leadersTable 5.2Members being busy and overcommitted is the greatest hindrance to participationFigure 5.3Recognition of volunteers pays off with more success in future recruitingTable 5.3The more a church trains its volunteer leaders, the less problem it has in finding volunteersFigure 5.4Volunteers and inviters go hand in handFigure 5.5Most churches say they would contact a lapsed member (but do they?)Table 6.1Most people come to a church because a person there invited themTable 6.2The biggest group came to the current church from another local churchTable 6.3Attitudes of staff and attenders clearly differ on what brings people in and what keeps themTable 6.4Attenders and staff differ considerably on how they think members get involvedTable 6.5The longer you are at a church, the more important friends and family there are to youTable 6.6Group life is thought by staff to be the greatest point of spiritual growth

Praise for The Other 80 Percent

“I can’t believe the amount of research that Thumma and Bird put into this project. I immediately began to give renewed focus to some areas that our church’s leadership had let slide. It contains so much practical stuff that I am going to make sure our ministry teams read and apply the strategic practices of The Other 80 Percent.”

—Dr. Michael Slaughter, lead pastor, Ginghamsburg Church; author, Change the World: Recovering the Mission and Message of Jesus

“This book is what you get when a researcher and a pragmatic team up to address a critical topic in the life of congregations. It will not only help you understand why your members are not more involved, it will help you do something about it! This is one of those rare books that could come with a money-back guarantee. If you are not better equipped to reengage the less-involved members of your congregation after reading this book, I will be shocked. Any single chapter of this book is worth the full price. Never has so much solid material been packed into one book on a topic seldom addressed in the life of congregations.”

—Dr. C. Jeff Woods, American Baptist Churches, USA

“Over and again I hear from clergy about the challenge of getting their members involved. Thumma and Bird have done the hard work and provided the answer to this ages-old dilemma. In this superb volume, you find plenty of hard data, lots of practical suggestions, and an entire program that can transform a congregation. An absolutely essential read for any clergy who wants to find the way forward.”

—Rev. Ian S. Markham, Ph.D., dean and president, Virginia Theological Seminary, Alexandria, VA

“I love this book. Thumma and Bird love the church enough to call us on our sloppy thinking, hunches, and outdated assumptions, and they have the expertise to present us with the facts. Their thorough research forces us to listen to the people we never hear from, the people on the outskirts of church, the ones who have left or may be about to. God is still speaking, even through that disengaged 80 percent who may not want to stay that way, if only we will learn from what they have to say.”

—Rev. Dr. Lillian Daniel, senior minister, First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ; author, This Odd and Wondrous Calling: The Public and Private Lives of Two Ministers

Copyright © 2011 by Scott Thumma and Warren Bird. All rights reserved.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Thumma, Scott.

The other 80 percent : turning your church’s spectators into active participants / Scott

Thumma, Warren Bird.

p. cm.— (Jossey-bass leadership network series; 56)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-470-89129-2 (hardback); 978-1-118-02534-5 (ebk); 978-1-118-02535-2 (ebk); 978-1-118-02536-9 (ebk)

1. Discipling (Christianity) 2. Pastoral theology—Protestant churches. I. Bird,

Warren. II. Title.

BV4520.T58 2011

253—dc22

2010053856

Leadership Network Titles

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Leading from the Second Chair: Serving Your Church, Fulfilling Your Role, and Realizing Your Dreams, Mike Bonem and Roger Patterson

Hybrid Church: The Fusion of Intimacy and Impact, Dave Browning

The Way of Jesus: A Journey of Freedom for Pilgrims and Wanderers, Jonathan S. Campbell with Jennifer Campbell

Cracking Your Church’s Culture Code: Seven Keys to Unleashing Vision and Inspiration, Samuel R. Chand

Leading the Team-Based Church: How Pastors and Church Staffs Can Grow Together into a Powerful Fellowship of Leaders, George Cladis

Organic Church: Growing Faith Where Life Happens, Neil Cole

Church 3.0: Upgrades for the Future of the Church, Neil Cole

Journeys to Significance: Charting a Leadership Course from the Life of Paul, Neil Cole

Off-Road Disciplines: Spiritual Adventures of Missional Leaders, Earl Creps

Reverse Mentoring: How Young Leaders Can Transform the Church and Why We Should Let Them, Earl Creps

Building a Healthy Multi-Ethnic Church: Mandate, Commitments, and Practices of a Diverse Congregation, Mark DeYmaz

Leading Congregational Change Workbook, James H. Furr, Mike Bonem, and Jim Herrington

The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community, Hugh Halter and Matt Smay

Baby Boomers and Beyond: Tapping the Ministry Talents and Passions of Adults over Fifty, Amy Hanson

Leading Congregational Change: A Practical Guide for the Transformational Journey, Jim Herrington, Mike Bonem, and James H. Furr

The Leader’s Journey: Accepting the Call to Personal and Congregational Transformation, Jim Herrington, Robert Creech, and Trisha Taylor

Whole Church: Leading from Fragmentation to Engagement, Mel Lawrenz

Culture Shift: Transforming Your Church from the Inside Out, Robert Lewis and Wayne Cordeiro, with Warren Bird

Church Unique: How Missional Leaders Cast Vision, Capture Culture, and Create Movement, Will Mancini

A New Kind of Christian: A Tale of Two Friends on a Spiritual Journey, Brian D. McLaren

The Story We Find Ourselves In: Further Adventures of a New Kind of Christian, Brian D. McLaren

Missional Renaissance: Changing the Scorecard for the Church, Reggie McNeal

Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders, Reggie McNeal

The Present Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church, Reggie McNeal

A Work of Heart: Understanding How God Shapes Spiritual Leaders, Reggie McNeal

The Millennium Matrix: Reclaiming the Past, Reframing the Future of the Church, M. Rex Miller

Your Church in Rhythm: The Forgotten Dimensions of Seasons and Cycles, Bruce B. Miller

Shaped by God’s Heart: The Passion and Practices of Missional Churches, Milfred Minatrea

The Missional Leader: Equipping Your Church to Reach a Changing World, Alan J. Roxburgh and Fred Romanuk

Missional Map-Making: Skills for Leading in Times of Transition, Alan J. Roxburgh

Relational Intelligence: How Leaders Can Expand Their Infl uence Through a New Way of Being Smart, Steve Saccone

Viral Churches: Helping Church Planters Become Movement Makers, Ed Stetzer and Warren Bird

The Externally Focused Quest: Becoming the Best Church for the Community, Eric Swanson and Rick Rusaw

The Ascent of a Leader: How Ordinary Relationships Develop Extraordinary Character and Influence, Bill Thrall, Bruce McNicol, and Ken McElrath

Beyond Megachurch Myths: What We Can Learn from America’s Largest Churches, Scott Thumma and Dave Travis

The Other 80 Percent: Turning Your Church’s Spectators into Active Participants, Scott Thumma and Warren Bird

The Elephant in the Boardroom: Speaking the Unspoken About Pastoral Transitions, Carolyn Weese and J. Russell Crabtree

About the Jossey-Bass Leadership Network Series

Leadership Network’s mission is to accelerate the impact of OneHundredX leaders. These high-capacity leaders are like the hundredfold crop that comes from seed planted in good soil as Jesus described in Matthew 13:8.

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Believing that meaningful conversations and strategic connections can change the world, we seek to help leaders navigate the future by exploring new ideas and finding application for each unique context. Through collaborative meetings and processes, leaders map future possibilities and challenge one another to action that accelerates fruitfulness and effectiveness. Leadership Network shares the learnings and inspiration with others through our books, concept papers, research reports, e-newsletters, podcasts, videos, and online experiences. This in turn generates a ripple effect of new conversations and further influence.

In 1996 Leadership Network established a partnership with Jossey-Bass, a Wiley Imprint, to develop a series of creative books that provide thought leadership to innovators in church ministry. Leadership Network Publications present thoroughly researched and innovative concepts from leading thinkers, practitioners, and pioneering churches.

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Preface

How can you shift more of your church members from sitting to serving, from being spectators to engaging more deeply? Would doing so help more people to grow and develop spiritually?

Virtually every church in America faces this same problem. While participation percentages may vary from church to church, the core challenge does not: What will motivate less-connected or less-active members to move toward a life of discipleship and of living out the faith in community?