Do a Self-Assessment
Most people like, appreciate, and even adore the church they attend. It’s likely why you go there. It’s in our nature to see the positive in our Sunday morning destination.
It’s also human nature to overlook flaws or deferred maintenance issues in our church facility.
What may stand out as a concern on our first visit isn’t even noticed a few weeks later. We also grow to accept as normal our church practices, even if they may seem odd or confusing to others.
For these reasons, you may want to do a church audit, to evaluate your church to identify areas needing improvement or overhaul.
I’ve visited scores of churches for my Visiting Churches series of books; I know just what to look for. That means I can guide you as you evaluate your church.
Here is a self-assessment guide to help you evaluate your church and determine what can be done to make it better. This will improve it for members and regular attendees.
Even more importantly it will embrace visitors, pull them into your faith community, and help them move from a first timer to a repeat attendee.
Use this handy guide to evaluate your church and do a self-assessment of it:
Website
- Does your church have a website? (A social media page doesn’t count.)
- Is the website complete and up to date?
- Are the service times and street address easy to find?
- Does it have a visitor section that tells first-timers what they can expect and need to know?
- Does it provide contact information if someone has questions?
- Contact the church to see if it works and if anyone responds. How long does it take?
Arrival
- Is the church easy to find?
- Is the main drive clearly marked?
- Is it clear what doors to use?
- Is the facility well maintained? Or are there deferred maintenance issues or problems?
- Is the building—and especially the restrooms—clean and inviting?
- Are the nursery and children’s areas safe, sparkling, and appealing?
- When is your first interaction with someone? (A parking lot attendant, a greeter at the door, an usher, no one?) When will a visitor’s first interaction likely occur?
- Once inside, is the way to the sanctuary obvious or clearly marked?
- Does anyone try to connect with you? What about them connecting with visitors?
- For larger churches, is there a visible and staffed information center?
- Does anyone invite you to sit with them? Do people ask visitors to join them?
Church Service
- What practices does the church have that a visitor wouldn’t understand or would confuse outsiders?
- If the congregation is expected to recite something (such as the Lord’s Prayer or the Apostle’s Creed), is it made easily available for someone who doesn’t know it?
- If there is a greeting time, are visitors sought out first, an afterthought, or generally ignored?
- If it is a liturgical service, how easy is it for a visitor to follow along and participate?
- If communion is celebrated, are the expectations and process clearly explained so visitors know what to do—and not do?
- Are visitors mentioned as a group during the service? Is this celebratory, embarrassing, or condescending?
- If there are pew Bibles, does the church use that version? Otherwise, is the text displayed so everyone can read along?
- Do any of the presenters make inside references or jokes that visitors wouldn’t understand?
- Are people publicly invited to stay for any post-church activities? Are these followed up with personal invitations after the service?
- If there is an altar call or commitment time, is the intent and purpose clear to first-time attendees?
- Does the message veer into dogmatic proclamations or personal views stated as fact that serve to divide rather than unify Jesus’s church?
- In what ways is the service meaningful, encouraging, or faith building?
Questions for Visitors
- Are you thanked for visiting?
- Are you invited to stay for any post-church activities?
- Does anyone ask if you have questions?
- Are you leaving feeling known, recognized, or celebrated? Or are you leaving just as alone as when you arrived?
- Has anyone invited you out to lunch or to their house for dinner?
- Do you want to return next week or go someplace else?
- Is there any effort made to contact you after the service?
Take Action
Note your responses to each of these questions. Be open-minded and fair. Though we will do well to look for areas to celebrate, it’s more critical to look for areas that need improvement.
Do this for your members, your regular attendees, and especially your visitors. It will make your faith community more inviting and your services more impactful.
Armed with a list of areas needing improvement, identify which ones you can handle yourself. Yes, you!
If something’s broken, can you fix it? If something’s dirty, can you clean it?
If there aren’t enough volunteers in a certain area—such as parking lot attendants, greeters, ushers, Sunday school classes—can you volunteer? If visitors are typically overlooked, what can you personally do to welcome them?
Yet it’s not practical—or wise—for you to try to do everything yourself. Who can you recruit to help you with these efforts? And if something’s beyond your ability to impact, who can you approach to respectfully ask them to address it?
Bonus Step
The self-assessment to evaluate your church is a great first step. Even more valuable is to get an outsider to provide feedback.
Alternatively would be for you and a friend who goes to a different church to swap one Sunday and run through this is self-assessment for each other. As long as you’re honest and fair, each church can benefit.
Now go and do it!
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.
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