Does Your Church Have An OUTCOMES Focused Ministry?

A basic planning building block that can be used in designing, developing and evaluating a ministry is the Logic Model.[1] There are three main areas in the Logic Model: Inputs, Outputs and Outcomes.[2]

Inputs are what we invest, Outputs are the activities and people we reach, and Outcomes are the life changes we want to see in our people, church, community, and society. Although the Logic Model is laid out from left to right, a church should always begin with the OUTCOMES: “What type of disciples are we trying to produce?” or “What does a disciple making community of believers look like?”

Having the outcomes well-articulated, a church should then ask, “What Outputs would best help us achieve these outcomes?” It is good practice to check in with other pastors and churches to learn what is most effective.   Churches should then think, if these are the outputs we want, what do we need to invest (inputs) to make them a reality. The outcomes are your fixed North Star.  The outcomes are non-negotiable. The outputs and inputs are negotiable. They can change as different methods might work with certain groups but not with others. Leaders are called on to be innovative around outputs and inputs and do everything possible to achieve the outcomes.

One of the misalignments that has occurred in the church is becoming fixated on the inputs and outputs and then using them to measure success.  A church may conclude that because they have big budgets and buildings, multiple programs, and large attendances, they are successful. In contrast, what really matters is how have these inputs and outputs delivered on the Biblical outcomes?  

To become more outcomes focused a church will need to identify how they would measure an achieved outcome. A church should develop indicators that help them to measure if they are achieving their outcomes. Here is an example from CRU Press- Evangelistic Movements- An Outcome Based Analysis[3].  In the article, the author identifies five outcomes for an Evangelistic Movement and indicators for each outcome. I have provided two of the outcomes and subsequent indicators to help churches see how they can measure their growth towards outcomes.

1. Believers are experiencing the spiritual dynamics of witness (outcome).

The following are the indicators:

• Intrinsically motivated by love for God and others.
• Actively dependent on the power of the Spirit in witness.
• Intentionally participating in the Great Commission.
• Commonly praying for the campus and the lost.

   2.  Gospel conversations are common (outcome).

The following are the indicators:

• Witness is occurring as a way of life, as believers take advantage of unexpected opportunities and initiate within relationships.
• Gospel conversations are occurring as part of ministry outreach initiatives.
• Believers are faithfully bringing others into the experience of gospel-centred community.

Using the example above, churches would then rate on a scale of not present to fully developed on each indicator for individuals or the congregation to let them know if the outcomes are being achieved. This is where they evaluate the effectiveness of their inputs and outputs. If a church is consistently seeing a rating of absent on their indicators, they will know that their outputs are ineffective. Consequently, they will need to look at doing something different. If they are seeing growth in the indicators, the church will know that their outputs are effective.

[1] The model describes logical linkages among program resources, activities, outputs, audiences, and short-, intermediate-, and long-term outcomes related to a specific problem or situation. Paul F. McCawley.  The Logic Model for planning and evaluation

[2] Adapted from McCawley’s chart in the article referenced above.

[3] https//www.cru.org>outreach-strategies>evangelistic