Six Scorecard Flips of Ministry

There is no doubt ministry in 2020 has changed. Many churches find themselves in a fog, feeling frustration, trying to figure out a fresh way to do church again. In the past, we had standard scorecards that made leaders aware of how their organization or church was doing. However, COVID and 2020 have flipped those scorecards upside down. Here are some areas of the scorecard to pay close attention to.
  
1. Worship Attendance Flip: It was easy to count heads as people walked through the door, but now it is much harder to identify how many people are actually attending worship services or gatherings. With online campuses and many social media platforms and many generations in the church, a church must engage differently. There are so many choices for people to engage in, and keeping track of that engagement is difficult.  Pastors are struggling not knowing the exact number of people they are reaching.  A large crowd would encourage the pastor, but now the groups are smaller.  Pastors are often preaching to empty rooms with empty chairs which makes it difficult to bring the same energy level to their preaching.  When churches can meet on campus, the energy level is different because of protocols and restrictions and the inner culture is just not the same.  Instead of focusing on the large crowd, band and lights, maybe it's time for a more simple, acoustic feeling with intimacy and connection as the focus.  
  
2. The Financial Flip: The method and timing of giving have changed. The days of passing the plate or bucket on Sundays seem to be gone.  People don't just give on Sunday's anymore, rather they give all throughout the week in many different ways. In order for our churches to survive and thrive, multiple options for giving must be available.  The average person gives between $30-38 dollars a week to their church. Encourage the people in your church to step up their giving and donations and to give through digital platforms. If the church is going to remain, the people in the church must be willing to sacrificially give. Extravagant givers will keep their church open, their pastor encouraged, and their impact on the community continual.
  
3. Connection Flip: The days of classes and programs have ceased for a season.  Real connection is happening on a micro-level with small groups of people.  A micro-church setting with 20-30 people gathering at home to watch a church service online, giving, praying, doing outreach together, and talking about the Bible in a smaller setting is becoming more popular. Connection to one another is crucial, especially in a socially distanced world.  Micro-churches and micro-groups  are the key to caring for people in the future.
  
4. Conversion Flip: Instead of corporate church efforts for evangelism and altar calls, conversions in the future will depend on the people's obedience in their daily lives. Individuals having gospel conversations with people where they eat, work, shop, and play will be how people come to know Christ.  The emphasis has flipped to placing the responsibility on church members and attenders to share the gospel and then report the conversions back to the local church. If the conversion flip does not happen, the church will lose its purpose for existing and its momentum for the future.
  
5. The Ministry Flip: Ministry on the church campus has been limited, and where we eat, work, shop, and play has become the focus. The ministry scorecard is based on moving ministry off the campus and into the community. Low involvement in the community leads to low engagement in the church.  Increase your community service outreach, encourage discipleship and groups to happen off campus, and engage the community in ways that you have never done before.
  
6. The Accountability Flip: It was a lot easier to keep people accountable when they walked into a room, but it is a lot harder on Zoom. Body language, tone, and connection can feel distant through digital platforms with its formality and set time constraints. The challenge is to make sure that people are doing what God has called them to do, making disciples. Meeting together does not mean there is a focused mission centered around the Gospel. The accountability flip focuses on being clear with a process to discover, develop, and deploy people to do the work of the ministry, to be participants and not just spectators.  
  
There is no doubt the scorecards have changed in the local church, but the good news is Jesus is still building His church. Even though the scorecards have been flipped, the mission remains the same to stay focused and make disciples who make disciples.