The FaithX Project

Strategic Missional Consulting

CVI Analytic Indicators as Check Engine Light

Part 5  in a series on MapDash analytics

By Ken Howard

After the last blog post in our series on MapDash Analytics, some of you asked, “What is the most appropriate way for me to consider what the indicators of the Congregational Vitality Index (CVI) are trying to tell me?”

I find that the best analogy to the Green-Yellow-Red ratings of the indicators that make Congregational Vitality Index (as well as the factors that make up those indicators) is that they are “warning lights,” like the “check engine” light on your car’s dashboard:

  • If it’s green, keep on driving – but keep up your scheduled maintenance
  • If it’s yellow, attention required – make an appointment to have it checked
  • If it’s red, urgent attention required – stop the car right now and have it towed to the dealer.
[Read more…]

Tribal Politics Be Damned: A Pastor’s Plea for Civility Among the Brethren

 A Guest Post

By Ron Davis
Ron is the Executive Pastor of Cramerton Church, Charlotte, NC

The hope of the world has never been a political party, politicians, or our ability to leverage political power. It has, and always will be, the beautiful gospel of Jesus Christ. As a pastor, I long to see brothers and sisters who are so driven by their love for one another that the gospel becomes more important than winning an unholy tribal war between Left and Right. Below is my call to civility — and maybe, just maybe, it will find its impact far beyond a late-evening Facebook post:

Dear Friend, 

I think our Lord is much more grieved by the attitudes and actions of believers toward one another in Western society, where each side believes they have the “answer” to America’s problems. Both liberal and conservative Christians seem to forget they exist in a secular culture and both of their politics necessarily reflect these same secular points of view. Jesus made it clear: the world will know we are his disciples by our love one for another.

This kind of interaction we find on Facebook is, sadly, fodder for the skeptical mind, as they see the Christian world being so divided over things like politics. The hope of the world is the gospel of Jesus Christ not our ability to prove each other wrong. From my observation, there seems to be very little civility or objectivity from either side. Just a desire to “be right” and to look at almost every single issue with a particular set of glasses (and not gospel-centered ones at that). To me this is shameful and heart-breaking. The early Christian church was not concerned with achieving political dominance over others. It was concerned with making disciples, loving one another, their neighbors, their enemies, everyone – under peril of persecution, torture, and even death.

[Read more…]

Directional Indicators and Discernment Starters: Congregational Vitality and Sustainability Trend Indexes

By Ken Howard

(This is the fourth of eight articles on MapDash for Faith Communities Analytics)

Two of the most asked questions about analytics provided by MapDash for Faith Communities are about the Congregational Vitality Index (CVI) and the Congregational Sustainability Index (CSI). Both are powerful analytic tools if used wisely. The purpose of this article is to help MapDash users properly understand these tools, so they can interpret them appropriately and apply them effectively.

What They Are and What They Aren’t

CVI and CSI are not assessments. Assessments are direct, graded, criterion-referenced measurements that provide objective answers at a point in time. They make judgements based on facts that either inform or imply what the decision maker should do about it. Example (sailing): Is your boat currently leaking? If yes, fix the leak. If no, good to go.

CVI and CSI are indexes. Indexes are a collection of indicators that sample and describe the relative overall direction of factors that are correlated with a particular concern and may be predictive of it, but do not measure the concern directly. They describe a trend and let the user discern what the trend means and what to do about it by filtering insights through the organizations vision, mission, commitments, resources, etc. Example (sailing): If you continue to sail in the direction you have been, are you heading shoreward or toward the open sea? If you mean to sail across the ocean blue, go on with your bad self. If not, better tack toward the shore.

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Finding Fertile Soil – Missional Opportunity Index

Part 3 in our MapDash Analytics Series

How do you know if your judicatory needs a new congregation? And how do you know where?

How can you know whether there are opportunities for multiple congregations to collaborate in engaging growing communities that they share?

How do you know whether investing resources in a struggling congregation is likely to make a difference?

These are important questions that every judicatory has to answer sooner or later.

The Missional Opportunity Index (or MOI) was designed to give judicatories data that can help them answer these important questions and more.

[Read more…]

Broadening Our Reach – Increasing our Offerings

It’s been 12 months since Ken Howard and Matt Felton, respective founders of FaithX and Datastory, appeared at the exposition hall at the Austin Convention Center in Texas to launch Datastory’s new MapDash for Faith CommunitiesTM strategic missional planning platform along with FaithX’s Strategic Missional Consulting initiative. 

Much has happened in the last year with both FaithX’s missional consulting services and Datastory’s platform. And we’d like to bring you up to date on all the progress we have made in such a relatively short time.

[Read more…]

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