Dear Good Shepherd member,
We are inviting you to complete the Church Assessment Tool which is commonly referred to as the CAT. It is an on-line instrument that will help congregation leaders gauge the strength, vitality, and trends in our church. The information gained from this assessment will be valuable in helping the leaders of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church as we make decisions about the future of our church.
We are working in collaboration with Mustard Seed Consulting to do this assessment. The CAT will provide us many significant insights into our congregation. It will help us:
- Measure the level of satisfaction and energy in the church and their sources.
- Understand how well our church is connecting with members during the pandemic.
- Identify the factors for improving and growing satisfaction.
- Discover where members would like to go in the future.
- Gauge our flexibility, morale, trust in governance and more.
- Uncover any sources of conflict, as well as potential resources we may be missing.
The CAT is also a “benchmarked” instrument which means will see how we compare to the other 2000 churches in the data base.
Right now, I want to impress upon you how important it is that you participate in our assessment. Good Shepherd has the goal that 80% of the people comprising our average worship attendance in recent years take the CAT. This includes:
- members who aren’t currently attending worship,
- friends and regular visitor who join us in worship, but not necessarily members.
The wider the participation, the deeper and more reliable our results will be to inform our future for the sake of our mission in Christ.
All answers are strictly anonymous. We have no way of matching any assessment to a particular person, so please feel free to candidly share your perceptions, opinions and experiences. Our future together is dependent on your participation and honest answers.
In a few days, you will receive an email with a unique link to the CAT. Beginning September 12, we are asking you to go online by clicking on the link provided and tell us about your experiences in and priorities for our church. If you need a paper copy, please contact the office. Please do not discuss the survey or your answers with others as this may influence their answers.
If you have questions, please contact council members or the church office.
Sincerely,
The GSLC Council Members
President, Nancy Tibbitt
Vice President, Kris Tarter
Fellowship, Heidi Binder
Learning, Valerie Homolka
Outreach, Nancy Leonard
Property, Dave Schneider
Stewardship, Monica Jewell
Worship, Linda Schrieber
Youth, Farrah Uphoff & Sue Lee
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does the CAT come from? The CAT is the property of Holy Cow! Consulting based in Ohio. J. Russell Crabtree developed it. It’s been used in over 2000 churches across the USA. Read more at holycowconsulting.com.
What is Mustard Seed Consulting? The Mustard Seed Consulting, Cumberland, WI was formed by Pastor Kurt Jacobson in 2016. MSC works with the church to engage members and bring relevant, data driven evidence to a wide range of endeavors and challenges churches face.
Rev. Jacobson is a trained interpretive consultant of Holy Cow! assessments serving churches across the country. He has provided this service to over 30 congregations in the NW Synod of WI. As an ordained pastor of the ELCA, he served Trinity Lutheran Church, Eau Claire for 28 years until retirement.
He holds a BA in Business/Hospital Administration and Organizational Communications from Concordia College, Moorhead, MN and a Master of Divinity degree from Luther Seminary, St. Paul, MN. He holds a certificate in Intentional Interim Ministry from the National Association of Lutheran Interim Pastors.
Why take time for a church assessment? Because the information it offers will help us understand the range of views that exist in our congregation, our priorities and opportunities as we seek to make plans for the future.
How long will it take to complete? Plan to spend 20-25 minutes in one sitting. We need every adult and teen (grade 10 or age 16 and older) to complete the CAT in order to get a clear picture.
Is the CAT anonymous? Yes! The answers will be handled anonymously. No one will see your responses and know they are yours. If you lack online availability or need assistance, please contact a council member or the church office
How is this different from other surveys? The process that MSC offers us is unique as it gives all members an equal voice in assessing our church. This is distinguished from other processes church employ to gain insight, such as:
- Impression-driven process which relies on internal thoughts and feelings of persons in leadership to gauge reality;
- Anecdotally-driven process which relies on conversation with individuals or groups that aren’t necessarily representative of the entire church;
- Authority-driven process which rely more on the perspectives of those in positions of power.
What comes from the CAT? A 28 page report called Vital Signs© details the levels of satisfaction and energy, culture and climate present in the congregation, priorities by age groups, critical success factors, and evaluative insight into key factors such as worship and music, morale, governance, conflict management, pastoral leadership, hospitality and more. All the evidence is aimed to inform leaders and guide them in making better decisions, in less time, with greater effectiveness for the sake of the congregation’s future.
How Will We Learn About the Results? The task force and council will meet with Pastor Kurt Jacobson of Mustard Seed Consulting as he presents his analysis of the CAT a few weeks after you’ve completed it. Thereafter a printed “Executive Summary” will be shared with all members and the council will find other ways to share results with you.
Please help us engage others in taking the CAT between Sunday, September 12 & Sunday, October 3. Thank you!