Team Member Self-Evaluation
OK, everybody... I'm thinking about doing something special this Sunday...
Our first Team Member Commissioning!
As of this moment, there are no official Team Members of The Core. Not even me. So I think this Sunday would be a good time for us all to commission each other as Team Members.
The Wilmoths and the Wiksells talked a few weeks ago about the idea of a Team Member Covenant, but we didn't come to any solid conclusions. This is my current thinking:
I. Team Member Covenant (Team Members agree to fulfill these expectations)
A. Soul
-I will prayerfully consider all pastoral discipline and personal accountability.
-I will commit to the mentorship, self-evaluation and growth process.
-I will gather faithfully with my home church, and with larger groups of The Core.
B. Mind
-I will read and study the Bible, and reading materials assigned by The Core.
-I will teach others when I have the opportunity or responsibility to do so.
-I will participate in at least one discussion group.
C. Body
-I will give generously of my money and possessions to help The Core fulfill its mission.
-I will pioneer new ministries based on my calling, and volunteer to meet existing needs.
-I will rest regularly, and not expect myself or others to overextend.
You'll notice this is not highly spiritual, but it does refer under letter A to the self-evaluation process. Below is my proposal for the Team Member Self-Evaluation, that would be taken upon induction, and then at each person's membership anniversary. One would answer each point on this questionnaire with a number, 0-10 (except for the first point, which would only have two choices: yes or no.) The Self-Evaluation is simply a tool to help us each understand how we can grow, and how much we are growing over the years. Therefore, one's membership status would not depend on his or her score. However, some answers may raise red flags that may cause a leader to doubt an individual's eligibility. But all decisions about beginning or ending membership will be made on a case-by-case basis, in the context of relationship, and not because of a numerical score.
I. SOUL
A. Holiness
-I am saved by the grace of God, the blood of Jesus.
-I live a lifestyle of worship, obedience and love.
-I model the fruit of the Spirit to everyone around me.
B. Daily Walk
-I am consistent in prayer and Bible-reading.
-I exhibit a 24/7 authenticity of faith.
-I seek God’s face, not His hand.
C. Purpose
-I am developing my talents and passions for God’s glory.
-I am working to fully discover God’s call for my life.
-I am following His call wholeheartedly.
II. MIND
A. Doctrine
-I know who God is, who Jesus is, and what He’s done. (see The Core Beliefs)
-I know that the Bible is God’s Word, and what that means. (see The Core Beliefs)
-I know what the Church is, and who I am, in Christ. (see The Core Beliefs)
B. Study
-I allow God’s Word to shape me, not the other way around.
-I learn all I can from wise mentors, teachers and authors.
-I submit my worldly knowledge to godly wisdom.
C. Dialogue
-I share the truth with love & respect for those who disagree.
-I strive to learn from everyone.
-I enjoy, and celebrate, diversity within orthodoxy.
III. BODY
A. Stewardship
-I take good care of my body, and reject unwise activities and indulgences.
-I manage my resources wisely and give sacrificially.
-I put the needs of my family first.
B. Service
-I recognize that I am not here to be served, but to serve.
-I seek out ways to meet organizational and personal needs.
-I contribute positively to society and strive to obey all laws
C. Community
-I worship regularly with a specific group of believers.
-I share my resources, energy, joys, and struggles with my group.
-I work closely and consistently with my group to spread the love of Christ.
OK, everybody... what do you think?
posted by The Coreman at 3:02 PM
6 Comments:
I guess my first question would be, What role is the "evaluation" going to play? Will each of us need to say "Yes" to each of these questions as a prerequisite for Team Membership induction and/or continuance? Before I can respond with thoughts, I'll need to be clear on this. The way you've worded the Covenant, it only seems as if we will be required to evaluate ourself regularly, not answer the questions in a particular way.
5:03 PM
OK. I've been thinking over night (and in the shower), and have a couple of thoughts, mostly unrelated to the question I posed. First, regarding my previous post on membership (to which I've yet to receive response...GOSH!), I believe that Team members need to ascribe to the Core Beliefs. Not necessarily to always live up to them, but to believe it with the totality of our being, which includes striving to live up to them (believe = be+live). And this is both for Biblical and practical purposes. If we are going to function as a true team, we can't be getting hung up on the basic doctrines all the time, or we'll never accomplish anything. And trust me, when conflicts arise (and they will) we'll have to cling to our foundation (what we believe to be absolutely true).
That said, let me share a few thoughts regarding the evaluation. First, I do not recommend requiring team members to answer "Yes" to all of these questions at our induction and re-evaluation period. It could be an vital tool for helping us grow, but not a measuring stick by which we maintain team membership (primarily because it would disqualify all of us eventually). Therefore, I instead recommend expanding the Covenant a bit. More on that later.
I.A. "Holiness" should include something about abstaining from thoughts and actions which keep us from drawing near to God and which have the potential to keep others from doing so. This could be covered by "fruit of the Spirit", but I think it needs fleshed out a bit, in terms we relate to more immediately.
I.B. "Daily Walk" should read, "I seek God's face always before seeking His hand." God clearly commands us to ask Him for things and rebukes us for not asking, but He mandates that we seek first His face. Thus adding "only" or "just" to the last phrase won't quite cut it.
III.A. I would add parentheses behind "resources" to clarify: (time, finances, possessions, talents, knowledge, influence). Most often when we see the word "resources" our minds automatically jump to money, but that's only a small part of it. This clarification would be extremely helpful in engaging us with the intent of the statement.
OK, back to the Covenant. The first thing that jumps out to me is the obvious omission of one of the key aspects through which Jesus commanded us to love Him: the heart. When only 3 aspects are listed, strength is omitted. So if we're going to stay true to the Word and not just to some convenient triune structure (however representative it may be of God's triunity), then we must add "heart". Otherwise we are either saying (1) part of God's great commandment isn't important to us, or (2) Jesus didn't have a specific purpose for using the descriptors that He did (i.e. one of them could be sufficed in another). I think we'd all agree that both these claims are unacceptable, so it leaves us with only one choice: add "Heart" to the covenant.
Now, this may cause us to consider, "What's the difference between heart and soul?" And that's something we'll have to submit to study. But basically, Heart=emotion, Mind=intellect (both knowledge and reason), Soul=Spirit, and Strength=body. In Revelation 2:4, when God rebuked the church in Ephesus, it was for disobedience with regard to loving God with their hearts. Now, how do you foster love for God in your heart? Well, one way is by being authentic... expressing your emotions genuinely, whether in mourning, stress, or happiness. Another way is by "keeping our spiritual fervor" or zeal. Still another (and possibly the most important) is what John Piper calls "pursuing your pleasure in God". It is devoting yourself to maximizing your enjoyment of God. And I believe this is the essence of loving God with our hearts. Any other thoughts?
8:32 AM
My idea is this:
To become a member, one would have to agree to uphold each point of the Covenant.
The Self-Evaluation is not for purposes of determining eligibility for team membership, although it can be useful to help both the candidate and the leadership gauge whether the candidate is ready to be a team member. As I said before, all decisions about granting membership, or ending membership, will be made in the context of relationship, and not based on a score of some kind.
8:37 AM
Beloved, you posted your most recent comment simultaneous with mine, so now I'll answer that:
I think I agree with you about "heart." In fact, we could restructure both the Covenant and the Self-Evaluation this way:
I. Love the Lord your God with all your:
A. Heart (emotionally)
B. Mind (intellectually)
C. Soul (spiritually)
D. Strength (physically)
II. Love your neighbor as yourself.
I'm not sure what the sub-heading would be under Roman Numeral II. We could have the same A,B,C,D under each half.
And I agree about each other point that Beloved has made. I'll make the adjustments.
8:48 AM
This post has been removed by a blog administrator.
9:29 AM
Sorry, there were some punctuation errors that were confusing.
Hey, good thoughts. If we do this, then we'll have to take a closer look at what distinguishes the two, because at surface value it looks like there's some major overlap. Wait... I just realized something... holy cow... I've never realized this before... I mean, I have in a sense, but never applied it. OK, this is going to throw a wrench into our neat, Western-oriented outline, but I think it'll help tremendously. In fact, I think it's necessary...
I was starting to say, "Well, first we need to discuss the distinguishing factors of loving God and loving others," and then I realized that they are inseparable. If we accept the dichotomy, then we have to say that "Love the Lord" only refers to our direct relationship to God, and "Love your neighbor" only refers to our gracious interactions with others. And I think if we started working things out that way, we'd feel that something isn't quite right, that our love expression is falsely segregated. And this makes perfect sense (insofar as we can comprehend) of the fact that Jesus in the Gospels and Paul in Romans 13 and Galatians 5 seem to represent them as one and the same. Ironically, Jesus and Paul "disagree" as to which one is primary. But again, this just validates my observation. 1 John 4:8&20 also inseparably link them. (Interesting how this is also the case with faith and obedience!)
So I feel pretty confident that we should keep the two joined together as a single command. Therefore, the subheadings would reflect both vertical and horizontal relationships. And I think if you look back through the ones you've already written, you'll see both intertwined.
9:32 AM
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