When Better Isn't Enough: Evaluation Tools for the 21st-Century Church

by Jill M. Hudson

Many sociologists and a growing number of church scholars have noted that we live in a time of transition―from the modern era to the postmodern. Whenever a shift of this magnitude occurs, it leaves all of life, including the church, in flux. We instinctively strive to stabilize the situation by re-establishing what has worked in the past. Increasingly, however, congregations are finding that the same old things done harder or better don't seem to make a difference. Author Jill Hudson argues, "We must identify new criteria for success, and perhaps even for faithfulness, and hold ourselves accountable to them." Approaching the postmodern era as a tremendous opportunity, Hudson identifies 12 characteristics by which we can measure effective ministry for the early 21st century. Based on those 12 criteria, Hudson has created evaluation tools, "an early measuring stick," to help congregations evaluate their work in this new era. Not everything of the past is ineffective and best discarded, she says, nor will everything we try in the future be successful. But by faithfully listening for God's guidance and carefully evaluating progress using Hudson's tools, looking at the ministry of the whole people of God as well as that of the professional staff, congregations can improve their ministry, help members and staff grow in effectiveness, deepen a sense of partnership, and add new richness to the dialogue about the congregation's future.

Genres: Church

182 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Kate Davis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Job evaluation, not project evaluation.

Mostly helpful, but too many facets with questions that are too subjective/discussional to be part of a yearly review. The review team would have to prioritize - which should be easy to do, since some of the components are based on particular theologies/anthropologies that would make them more less relevant to certain contexts.

[Teri Peterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good overview and baseline for mutual reviews, with some good starting points for conversations.
Of course it's outdated already in terms of both tech and generational trends.
The people interviewed or quoted are overwhelmingly white men pastoring large churches. Particularly disconcerting from a female judicatory-level author.
The small church (also known as "the vast majority of churches") gets only a glance. The tool here is certainly useful, but will need tweaking for churches that don't rely on programmatic ministry or multiple staff.

Overall, a good start.

[Jan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've given this book to lots of church Personnel Committees. It speaks to the health of the church and pastor, as well as the shifts in pastoral leadership for the 21st C.