Congregational Consulting
Strategic Planning
The strategic planning services through WELS Congregational Services will help congregations identify, organize, and prioritize their long-range goals. Congregations are encouraged to view everything in their congregation—the congregation’s core values, goals, motivation, joys, and confidence to be worthy of the gospel—to revolve around the gospel.
- GOALS – The goal of our every ministry effort is to help people know the love of Christ and the salvation he won for all (Colossians 2:2).
- MOTIVATION – The motivation of our ministry is simply to thank Jesus Christ for all his blessings (1 Timothy 1:21).
- JOY – The joy of doing ministry is not rooted in what the world might call “success,” but simply in serving the Savior who first served us (1 Peter 1:8,9).
- CONFIDENCE – The confidence we have in doing ministry is rooted in the supernatural power of the tools Christ has provided, his Word and sacraments (2 Corinthians 3:4,5).
The strategic planning program is customized to the needs of each congregation. It may include some of the following:
- Congregational Profile – Information about demographic, financial, ministry systems, community, etc.
- Strategic Planning Team (SPT) assessment – This is a type of digital SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats). It lays the foundation of the SPT creating a list of prioritized initiatives to be enacted in the upcoming few years.
- Leadership Listening Session – An assigned Congregational Services (CS) team member(s) will lead a meeting with the congregational leaders and called workers to assess what they see as future opportunities and challenges.
- Congregational Pulse Survey – This is a digital survey shared with all members. It assesses the congregation’s general perception of various ministry efforts.
- SPT Meetings – The CS team member leads the SPT in the formulation of long-range objectives and corresponding initiatives.
- Congregational Meeting – The CS team member presents initial ideas of the SPT to all members and solicits congregational feedback.
- Final report and recommendations – CS presents a final report and recommendations, based on the prioritized initiatives produced by the SPT.
At the end of the program, the congregation will have a list of prioritized initiatives to be enacted in the upcoming few years. Contact WELS Congregational Services to inquire about scheduling a strategic planning meeting – [email protected].
Mission Together
[God] reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation… And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).
Christ has committed to us the message of reconciliation. WELS Congregational Services’ Mission Together program helps congregations in geographic proximity consider if some sort of merger or combined ministry might enable them to better accomplish the mission of sharing Christ. Mission Together has three phases.
Phase One: Exploration
All interested members of the participating congregations come together in a meeting facilitated by a member of WELS Congregational Services. Participants review the mission of the Church and discuss modern challenges to gospel ministry. Participants learn about different types of mergers and the process for planning and executing a merger. After the meeting, the members of the individual congregations decide if they want to proceed to Phase Two.
Phase Two: Envisioning
Members of each participating congregation are selected to serve on several committees. An executive committee guides the work of a variety of subcommittees: ministry, finance, facility, human resources, school (if applicable), etc. These committees do the necessary research and planning for a merge. The executive committee produces a long-range ministry plan. This plan is presented to each congregation individually. Members then decide if they want to proceed with Phase Three.
Phase Three: Execution
The congregations that voted to proceed with the merger now take the necessary legal and logistical steps to execute that plan.
Timing, Roles, Cost
Phase One: Exploration can conclude relatively quickly. At the initial meeting, participants are provided with some summary materials to discuss at home in their congregation. The decision of whether to proceed to Phase Two typically takes only a few weeks.
Phase Two: Envisioning varies greatly based on a variety of factors: the number of congregations involved, the complexity of the merge, the number of functioning committees, etc. It typically takes between four and twelve months.
Phase Three: Execution typically takes one to three months.
The role of the Congregational Services representative is to facilitate the process, not to determine the type of merge or the ministry plan. Those decisions are entirely up to the congregational members serving on those committees. The Congregational Services representative can also serve as a resource, answering questions that arise as the merge is planned.
The base aspects of the Mission Together program—the facilitation provided by a Congregational Service representative and up to two onsite visits—are free. If additional expertise is required, the congregations will be responsible for that cost. For example, if the congregations wanted an estimate of how much it would cost to renovate a facility, they would be responsible if there is a cost involved. If the merge process requires more than the single Congregational Services representative, there may be a cost involved which would be communicated in writing with the Merge Together Executive Committee for their approval.
Again, WELS Congregational Services facilitates conversation and provides counsel when requested. However, the decision of whether to merge belongs entirely to the congregations.
We pray “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom” (Ephesians 1:17).
Contact WELS Congregational Services to inquire about Mission Together – [email protected].
WELS School Accreditation (WELSSA)
WELS School Accreditation (WELSSA) is a process in which the school evaluates its current educational practices and seeks sound methods to build on its strengths and determine new ways to grow and strengthen the educational ministry of the school for the benefit of the students and parents to the glory of God. WELSSA operates under these three core values: continuous improvement, distinctly Lutheran, and discerning accountability. For information on how your school can participate, visit cls.welsrc.net/download-cls/welssa/.