How to do a Ministry Survey

Written by Eddie Mosley

Many key positions in the church must be filled. You need more leadership. A survey of your entire church family may help them understand where they feel God is leading them to serve. Eddie Mosley took a church through a successful ministry survey process. Here are four steps you can take to do the same in your congregation:

1. Design the Survey
Appoint a team of leaders to design a survey that can be easily understood and completed during a worship service. You may use these as a model.

Free downloads: 

• Ministry Survey Tool  (185 kb RTF - will open with your word processor so you can adapt it for your use)
   
• Ministry Survey Tool  (133 kb PDF - will open with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader)
   
• Discover Your Spiritual Gifts and Spiritual Gifts Survey   (133 kb, 7- page PDF )
  Adapted from Jesus on Leadership: Developing Servant Leaders by C. Gene Wilkes

2. Plan a Survey Sunday
Designate a Sunday morning worship service to, "walk through the survey.” Preach a sermon on service in God's kingdom.

Spiritual Gifts: A Practical Guide to How God Works Through You

These free  model sermons from Proclaim Online may give you direction: 

• 5 Ways to Impact People (Acts 11:22-26)
• The High Cost of Leadership (Numbers 13 - 14)
• The Truth About Talents: Using Gifts for God's Glory (Matthew 24:14-30)
• Ministry - Investing in Others (Matthew 20:28-34)

3. Be Creative to Improve the Response
Your challenge will be to get your member profile into the hands of every member.

• Place the profile in your newsletter or e-newsletter, along with a letter of explanation. Ask members to pray about where they feel God leading them to serve, complete the survey, and return it to the church on Sunday morning in the offering plate.
• Insert the survey into the Sunday morning bulletins and hand them out to every adult and youth who enters the sanctuary.
• As part of the conclusion of the sermon on service in God's kingdom (mentioned above), read through the entire member profile, allowing the congregation time to complete the questions.

4. Follow Up

• Compile the profiles in a database.
• Have the nominating committee use the surveys to contact people for the positions that are currently vacant.
• Forward the responses to the leaders, directors, and staff in charge of various ministry areas.
• Instruct leaders to pray over individuals who do not currently serve in their ministry area and then make contact with them.
• Provide discipleship and/or training opportunities for each ministry area listed on the member profile. Send a personal letter  to promote these classes to all who have completed the member profile. Each ministry area of the member profile can be linked to a particular class with a brief description of the material. Include a registration card and envelope for purchase of course workbook. For example, you might offer:

• Jesus on Leadership: Developing Servant Leaders
• Spiritual Gifts: A Practical Guide to How God Works Through You
• Speaking with Bold Assurance
• Share Jesus Without Fear
• Love, Laughter & Learning: Teaching Preschoolers DVD/CD-ROM

Eddie Mosely is pastor of Group Life (adult small groups) at First Baptist Smyrna, Tennessee. Adapted by Craig Webb from a previously published article.