Healthy Congregations

HEALTHY CONGREGATIONS INTITATIVE

Healthy Congregations Initiative
This Initiative is a unique partnership between Lutheran Family Services and the Virginia Synod. It is designed to assist congregations in developing and maintaining their health, to prepare for healthy transition to a new pastorate, and to provide expert consultation in times of crisis. The focus is on the congregation as a family system and is an expression of the Synod’s mission to minister to families.

The Bishop, Jim Mauney, writes:
"I give thanks to God for the serving ministry of our own Lutheran Family Services of Virginia! Their ministry on our behalf is all about ministry to families: foster care and parenting, adoption for families, advocacy for children and their families. What better place to partner together than a family systems approach to congregational life through this Healthy Congregations program! LFS has taken the lead in making this workshop possible for you this day with funding and with their strong encouragement! By strengthening healthy communication and relationships within our congregations, they equip us in our planning to be Ambassadors for Christ in our mission."

Healthy Congregations Workshops Healthy Starts Program Bridgebuilders Program

Healthy Congregations Workshops

General Description
The Healthy Congregations workshop program consists of six six-hour workshops, which are biblically based, theologically sound, and applicable to everyday life. Workshops 1-3 are designed to equip church leaders to become effective stewards of their congregations. Workshops 4-6 are designed for the entire congregation to respond to needs in three key areas: helping skills, stewardship, and spiritual growth.

The ultimate goal of the workshops is to make the congregational members the experts on maintaining and improving congregational health.

Through the use of videotapes, case studies, workbooks and discussion, participants will learn in a highly interactive way.

Qualified and professionally trained workshop leaders teach the workshops. They are designed to be flexible, and can be completed in a variety of time segments to meet the needs of participants.

Workshop Outcomes
The Healthy Congregations workshops are packed full of useful skills for congregational leaders and members. Overall, they learn how they, as leaders, can influence the health of their congregations.

These workshops enable participants to:

Gain a renewed sense of purpose and mission

Cultivate strong leadership capacities to challenge the congregation

Learn how to develop healthy patterns of living together in community

Learn to focus on strengths, resources and options for the future.

Boost confidence in responding to challenges and opportunities.

Learn how to lead with calm and thoughtfulness.

Reflect theologically about relationships.

Move the congregation toward healthy functioning.

Workshop Descriptions

Workshop #1 The Marks of a Healthy Congregation This workshop lays the foundation for the series, explaining the underlying theory – systems theory, illustrates both anxious and responsible leadership, assists in identifying key congregational strengths, and focuses on the congregation’s mission and vision.

Workshop #2 Healthy Congregations Respond to Change and Anxiety Key concepts covered are responding to anxiety and change, managing conflict, and methods of maintaining flexibility and creativeness.

Workshop #3 Leadership in Healthy Congregations The focus here is upon teaching the leaders to promote health through their presence and functioning, by being able to respond to challenging situations and persons, and through providing immune capacities.

Workshop #4 Relationships in Healthy Congregations Targeted to the entire congregation, this workshop teaches relationship and helping skills, the power and graciousness of forgiveness, and the process of empowering others.

Workshop #5 Healthy Congregations Develop Generous People Important concepts taught are the Creator’s interdependent design of life, the grateful and willing practice of stewardship, and how to manage the relationship between anxiety and money.

Workshop #6 The Spiritual Care of Healthy Congregations The development and enhancement of the life of the spirit is discussed, illustrated, clarified, and practiced.

About the Workshop Developer

Peter L. Steinke is a Lutheran pastor and counselor who serves as a consultant to clergy and congregations nationwide. Throughout his career, he has been a developer. He has developed a new congregation in Virginia; a home for emotionally disturbed youth in North Carolina; the Interfaith Pastoral Counseling Center in Illinois; and a clergy care program in Texas. More recently, he initiated the Bridgebuilder Ministry, a training program for working with churches in conflict.

Pastor Steinke has written nine books, and edits the quarterly clergy newsletter New Creation. He is a Fellow in the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and a seminary instructor.

The Healthy Congregations workshop is a partnership between Steinke and Lutheran Brotherhood (now Thrivent).

Workshop Costs
The fee for each 6-hour workshop is $550. (The cost is this low because Lutheran Family Services covers over half the actual costs.) In addition, per person costs for the workbooks are $6.00 for each of the workshops. Reimbursement for travel costs of the facilitators (two are normally scheduled for each workshop) and meal/refreshments are the responsibility of the congregation(s).

Facilitators
We have trained facilitators located in all sections or the Synod, both clergy and laity. The current names, by conference, are:

Central Valley:

J Paul Balas
Shelby DePriest
Richard Goeres
Bill Nabers
Tim Orrell

Patty Trevor

Karen VanStee

Germanna:
Richard Carbaugh
John Herman

Angela Jennings

Cathy Kravetz
Carol Kniseley
Jim Kniseley
Bill Stewart

Paul Walters

Highlands:
Steve Ridenhour
Murray Ziegenfuss

New River:

John McCandish

Northern Valley:
Bob Jones

Jim Utt

Peninsula:
Carl Jensen

Dan Jungkuntz
John Lucier
Charles Mayer
Starr Mayer

Jim Nickols

Richmond:

Tom Bosserman
Mark England
Steve Moose
Bill Boldin

Dottie Ninmal

Southern:
Floyd Addison
James Armentrout
Wlll Engelke
Sue Harris
Chip Gunsten
Luther Mauney

Southern Valley:

Wayne Engels
Bob Holley

Bob Humphrey

Tidewater:
Jean Bozeman
Robert Vogl

Process of Scheduling
Facilitators may be contacted directly, or through the Coordinator’s Office (Pastor Luther Mauney, 540-297-7231 or lfsmauney@aol.com). The Coordinator will work with you in talking through the best format, times, and persons to assist your congregation’s needs. Congregations are encouraged to involve as many of their leaders as possible, and, where feasible, to share a workshop with another congregation.

Satisfaction Survey Results

HEALTHY CONGREGATIONS PROGRAM

Survey – 34 churches involved

SAMPLE SURVEY COMMENTS – PASTORS

(28 surveys sent out – 15 responded. All rated it 4 or 5 on scale of 1-5. All felt it met the goals they had .)

"(this workshop) has helped us deal with conflict and conflict in a healthier manner. The seminar was "tested" the very next Sunday when a situation similar to that in the movie arose. Leaders had concrete examples and paths to follow and reacted in a healthy manner – thus averting, I believe, a larger crisis."

"nearly all the material is immediately relevant. All participants were very much engaged and stimulated. (How often is that true??)"

"an excellent experience – improved leaders self-concept"

"got (laity) to start thinking about healthy communication and how we may need to change"

‘needed by all who deal with conflict"

"every congregation needs more awareness of healthy and unhealthy behaviors"

"The presenters were excellent"

"eye opener – very real"

SAMPLE SURVEY COMMENTS – LAITY

(15 surveys sent to specific lay leaders; 9 were sent to pastors to give to lay leaders: 11 were returned. All rated it 4 or 5. All felt it met their goals, and all would recommend to other congregations.)

"I thought the program was well presented, interesting, educational and helpful."

"I think being led by Lutherans (either clergy or non-clergy) is very useful to lend congruency in dealing with common issues."

"It helps to know other congregations deal with similar issues and to see how successful outcomes can be worked toward."

"it was very timely. We seem to have pulled out of the honeymoon stage and fallen into the fire in a very short time. This program reminds us all that we’re not alone. All organizations go through the same types of growing pains around the issue of change."

"should be presented to all congregation ‘members’".

"better understand peoples feelings, attitudes, and working relationships as members of congregations and how to deal with these issues when they are negative."

Healthy Starts

The HEALTHY STARTS PROGRAM is designed for congregations with a pastoral vacancy. Three different models are available in this program. The goal of all these is to help congregations prepare for a healthy start to a new pastorate and to assist with the call process.

Model #1 helps the congregation with routine transition issues.

Model #2 is designed for congregations who need a renewed sense of mission and vision.

Model #3 provides selected elements of the Bridgebuilder process and Healthy Congregations Workshops for congregations facing special challenges.

In selecting the appropriate model to work with and events to include in your Healthy Starts program, consultation with the Bishop’s Office is encouraged. Consultation with the Healthy Starts Coordinator,

Pastor Luther Mauney, is also available. Scheduling is done through the Coordinator’s office. He can be reached at 540-297-7231 or lfsmauney@aol.com

Personnel
Individuals trained to work with this program include the Healthy Congregations facilitators (listed in the Healthy Congregations icon) and the Bridgebuilder consultants (listed in the Bridgebuilder icon)

Costs:
The costs of the Healthy Starts program vary, depending on the complexity of the model and consultant time involved. The majority of the costs for this program are provided by Lutheran Family Services as a gift to the congregations of the Synod. The remainder of the costs can range from $1000 - $4000. Limited scholarship money is available. For more information contact the Bishop’s office, or the Lutheran Family Services’ Coordinator, Luther Mauney (lfsmauney@aol.com) .

Bridgebuilder Program
The Bridgebuilder program is a structured process for helping congregations in times of transition and tension. It is a way to move beyond anxiety to clarity, to focus on resources rather than deficits, and to create a clear future instead of remaining mired in confusion.

The primary Bridgebuilders are the people of the congregation who are most in the position to effect decision, changes and direction. A French proverb says, "Change is a door that can be opened only from the inside". Bridgebuilder is a way to help this happen. It is about empowering people to create a new future.

The process design of the program includes six elements:

ENTRY – This includes the initial contact and an exploratory meeting to determine readiness, clarify expectations, outline the process and assign tasks, and forming a contract.
EDUCATION – Workshops are utilized for teaching (including theory and case studies) and dialoging (including small group discussion and written responses).
INTERVIEWS – Interviews are scheduled with 16- 20 persons, plus staff, to collect information about history, mission, and current problems and strengths. Responses from other interested people are encouraged via phone, email or letter.
FEEDBACK – A report is written summarizing the process followed and the data collected. This is presented in a congregational meeting for discussion and planning.
PLANNING - A strategic planning group is formed to respond to the consultants’ report and formulate a new mission and vision statement which includes specific goals and tasks. This is presented to congregation for feedback and adoption.
AFTERCARE – Continuing consultation is provided on as-need basis through phone calls and a check-up session. The final product is celebrated and the process is evaluated.

Personnel:
The consultants in the Bridgebuilder program are persons from congregations of the Synod who have been called together by the Office of the Bishop and have received initial training in the Bridgebuilder Program enabling them to assist congregations experiencing conflict to return to health.

Those currently within the Synod who have been trained are:

Central Valley:
Patty Trevor

Germanna:
Tim Waltonen

Paul Walters

Highlands:
Jim Bangle
Murray Ziegenfuss

Northern Valley:
Jim Utt

Peninsula:
Carl Jensen
Dan Jungkuntz
Charles Mayer
Starr Mayer
Jim Nickols

Southern:
Luther Mauney

Southern Valley:
Wayne Engel
Bob Holley
Bob Humphrey

Tidewater:
Jean Bozeman

Costs:
Fees for a typical Bridgebuilder program, which involves 4-6 months of work, are underwritten primarily by Lutheran Family Services, as a gift to the congregations of the Synod. The remainder of the costs starts at $3000 plus expenses for travel and materials. Limited scholarship money is available. Contact the Bishop’s office or the Lutheran Family Services’ Coordinator, Pastor Luther Mauney, for details, at 540-297-7231, lfsmauney@aol.com, or 1619 Red Horse Drive, Goodview, VA 24095.

Other Healthy Congregations Emphases:

Coaching Groups (Pastoral Leadership Consultation) - with groups of from 3-8 pastors, trained pastoral coaches offer a series of sessions designed to apply Healthy Congregations theory to congregational settings. The sessions include didactic presentations on selected topics, critical incident presentations, and consultations. See Pastor Luther Mauney for addtional information.

Individual Consultation - congregational leaders, either pastoral or lay, are invited to request a consultation with a trained Healthy Congregations facilitator concerning leadership issues in the parish.

Program Bank - Healthy Congregations facilitators can offer workshops, programs, and consultations tailored to your specific setting in the following areas:

- congregational goal-setting

- Healthy Starts followup programs

- council retreats

- leadership training

- individual consultation