|
|
To effectively
mobilize our chapters, we must move beyond
just thinking in terms of how many people come to large-group meetings
or how many names we have on our mailing lists. We must analyze the
various levels of commitment that exist within the group -- exactly
who is involved in the group and how they are involved.
One way to get started is to ask some basic questions when the leadership
team evaluates how the year has been going:
- Who in the chapter is willing to take on responsibilities, to
lead out, to work on projects, to influence other group members toward
growth?
- Who is definitely committed to the "big picture" of
our fellowship -- its purposes, plans and activities?
- Who in the chapter shows up regularly to most or all functions?
While these are not the only questions that determine the health of
a campus fellowship, the answers offer important clues that determine
how leaders can best invest their energies. Answering the questions
above will help an exec group move on to the next step in understanding
the chapter -- identifying the core group.
Core group members are people committed to the purposes, plans and
activities of an InterVarsity fellowship. They're committed to more
involvement than just one regular meeting and are grasping why I-V
is on campus.
In contrast, the fringe members are those not yet committed
to the fellowship's overall purposes, plans or activities. Fringe
folks are usually committed to only one type of regular meeting, often
the small-group Bible study.
There are four broad categories of members within this idea of core
and fringe involvement.
- A leader takes
responsibility for some work or service for
the entire fellowship.
- A member is considerably
involved, perhaps joining with other
members in work or service for the entire fellowship.
- A casual participant is part
of the "healthy fringe."
He or she is regularly involved in one activity or aspect of fellowship,
but is not committed to the InterVarsity group as a whole or its mission
on campus.
- A marginal attender moves
in and out of involvement. Such a
person does not attend even one InterVarsity activity regularly.
Please note that these distinctions do not measure spiritual
maturity, just levels of participation. Some casual participants,
for example, may be more mature than some core members. People remain
on the fringe for many reasons other than just spiritual immaturity
or disinterest -- difficulty with grades, commuting distance, family
commitments and health are just a few factors that can come into play.
The idea is simply to ascertain who can be counted on to be
committed to the group's purposes and activities.
Count up all the people in each category. Those in the first group
of leaders (exec, small group leaders and coordinators of other
chapter functions) form the total leadership team.
Those in the member and casual participant categories
form the total regular membership, your "body of believers."
Marginal attenders are often too unreliable to count, but we must
continue to welcome them into fellowship and to call them to our purposes.
Analyzing a chapter's membership composition helps planning in several
ways:
- It keeps leaders realistic.
For example, instead of assuming
that a group has fifty members, an exec team may find that only forty
actually show up regularly. And out of that group they may discover
that only twenty would really describe themselves as committed to
the entire fellowship and its purposes of evangelism, discipleship
and missions. And out of that group of twenty, they might discover
that only eight people are really doing all the work!
Take heart. Jesus himself recognized that not everyone touched by
his ministry would join his core group. There were "layers of
membership" around him: the crowd, the seventy he sent out to
preach, the twelve disciples and the three disciples who were closest
to him -- Peter, James and John.
- Analyzing chapter membership will help
the leadership team plan and delegate more wisely.
If plans call for
more leaders than there are (or can be developed from the pool of
available members), then leaders are setting themselves up for failure
and disappointment.
- Understanding chapter membership will help spot problems.
A
chapter with a large percentage of marginal attenders, for example,
might tempt leaders to spread themselves too thin. They risk trying
to minister to those who are uncommitted to the group while neglecting
regular attenders.
Here are a few examples of things to watch for along
with some questions to ask:
- If a chapter is just a huge fellowship of merely casual participants,
leaders should ask what might be keeping them from committing themselves
to the group's vision. Do they need to be challenged to commit themselves
to the Lord's purposes for the group on campus? Do they need to be
invited to take some responsibility? Has the vision for reaching the
campus been communicated well?
- If a chapter has a large core group but few leaders, how well are
jobs being delegated? Are leaders training and grooming this group
for leadership? Might some of these people be ready to take on more
responsibility now?
- If a chapter has a solid core but almost no fringe members
hanging around the edges of the group, what is the state of the chapter's
evangelistic outreach? Is the group visible on campus?
To analyze your group accurately, you'll need good data. The key people
for getting this are your small group leaders. They are characteristically
closest to the people in the fellowship, and should be included when
you get together to discuss chapter involvement.
The best time to get a handle on your chapter membership is at the
end of each academic term. Mid-year evaluations give leaders a chance
to fine tune programs and plans, delegate new responsibilities that
have crept up, and determine potential leaders for the coming year.
Get ready for chapter planning camps this coming spring by gathering
information early to take with you to camp. Your planning will be
realistic and much more effective. |
