Benchmarks

There are certain "benchmarks" in ministry. A well known one is (as an example) that one does not have a major crisis on one's hands until 10% or more of one's members resign. Another one: that 30% member participation in weekday Church groups is very positive. And another one: that up to 20% deficit in a month is (so to speak) meaningless. Such benchmarks are useful, to help a minister keep his (or her) head, and to know what to expect in ministry. One of my own benchmarks is this: if 20% or more of the congregation get in touch to voice support, it is a major outpouring of emotion. In 30+ years of ministry, I have experienced this three times. OBSERVATION: By this I mean spontaneous support. If one is talking about organised support (say, in meetings, or organised gifts), it would be many more times.