I am not going to reveal my source for this suggested evaluation of a pastor or church, but I feel sorry for the pastor and the church that adopts such a view. Based on this evaluation, most pastors in the world are failures, and most pastors in church history were failures as well. Even Jesus Christ did not meet the standards below (as far as we know). I have several problems with evaluations like the one presented below: 1) They are blatantly unbiblical. 2) They come from a CEO mentality. 3) They are arbitrary. 4) Such evaluations encourage pastors and churches to hide the glory of God. Pastors and churches cannot be blamed for failing in these standards unless they can be praised when they are “successful.” God alone gives the increase (1 Cor. 3:6-7). Jesus alone builds His church (Matt. 16:18). He does not need any of us to do it; not even the so-called “best” pastors or churches or denominations on earth. If you want to know how NOT to evaluate a church or pastor, simply follow these steps:

Although the task will not be easy, a number of things could be considered for measuring the effectiveness of a church or church staff position:

The pastor might be evaluated on the basis of attendance, budget, buildings, and baptisms.

Standards for a church could be developed based on purpose, organization, leader-ship, facilities and equipment, growth, finances, planning, reports, and other factors.

Some sample standards are suggested below:

1. An annual increase in attendance of 15%.
2. An annual increase in receipts of 20%.
3. A ratio of baptisms to church membership of 1 to 10.
4. Adding three times more church members than church members lost for all reasons.
5. An average gift of $20 each Sunday for every Sunday School attendee.
6. A budget distribution of 10% for missions and 30% each for staff, programming, and building.
7. No emergency financial appeals.
8. A Sunday School enrollment age distribution that has the same percentages as the age distribution of the surrounding community.
9. A fellowship group for every 25 adult members.
10. Seventy percent of adult members having a ministry position.
11. Sixty percent of Sunday School workers completing a training course in the past year.
12. Average of one pastor for every 125 people in attendance on Sunday morning.

What are your thoughts?