WHY MinistryMatch

MinistryMatch is based on the following beliefs:

1. God has a specific plan for every believer - Eph. 2:10.
2. God made everything about us to enable us to accomplish His will - Psalm 139
3. One of the easiest ways to discover the purpose of a tool is to see what it does best

Based on this, MinistryMatch can help you discover God's image of you and help you to accomplish God's will with the greatest effectiveness.

As such, MinistryMatch:

1. Equips consultants to assess and coach ministry staff
2. Enables pastors of assimilation to help lay leaders find satisfying ministries
3. Enables denominational executives to place ministry candidates where they will be fulfilled and fruitful
4. Helps individuals to better know themselves
5. Does all this without file drawers full of paperwork

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MinistryMatch is a multiple-construct* tool developed to measure the elements of an individual's life that are directly related to Christian ministry. MinistryMatch was originally developed by Bob Gilliam, a church consultant, and Steve Johnson, a professional Christian vocational assessment counselor. Gilliam had previously started the church consulting ministry for Denver Seminary and was in charge of placement for the Evangelical Free Church of America. He needed tools to assess pastors and church staff. Unfortunately all available tools (DiSC, MBTA, TJTA, etc) had one or more of the following limitations:

Measured only a subset of the needed constructs. Included negative elements of the constructs, which would be inconsistent with a Christ-like characterization.

Measured psychological pathology, not ministry-related contexts. Characterized for secular relationships, not Christian ministry workers.

MinistryMatch was designed with the following unique characteristics:

1. It measures seven different constructs including temperament, motivated role, leadership style, participation style, ministry gifts, and ministry values. Ninety-five elements are measured within these six constructs. Thus, virtually every issue important to ministry is measured in one assessment.
2. The questions in MinistryMatchPro are worded to fit ministry settings. The wording for MinistryMatchLaity questions is adjusted to fit the general population who may be administrative staff, board members or other volunteers.
3. Questions measure only positive issues, those that are a part of the image and character of Christ.
4. MinistryMatchPro is normed for "staff members" in Christian churches and Christian ministries (para-church, seminary, denominations, etc.).
5. Some constructs and elements are added that are important to ministry, but are not included in other tests.
6. Many elements that are mixed together and invisible in other tests are unbundled and explicit in MinistryMatch.

As a result, MinistryMatch is one of the tools most widely used to evaluate and place persons in ministry, both for placement of professional staff in churches and organizations as well as recruitment and placement of lay leaders inside their own churches.

*construct: an idea or theory containing multiple conceptual elements

MinistryMatch measures six major constructs that are vital to effective ministry. These are:

1. Temperament (sometimes called personality) - Sixteen independent elements are measured and normalized.
2. Motivated Role - This construct measures five elements to discover what part of the development process a person is most motivated toward.
3. Leadership Style (sometimes called Impact Style) - This construct is similar to the DiSC behavioral profile and assesses how individuals usually impact others.
4. Participation Style - This unique construct measures how persons will interact as members of a decision-making group.
5. Functional Spiritual Gifts - Spiritual gifts are included and many are unbundled for greater specificity. For example, "teaching" is unbundled as preaching, teaching, discipling/mentoring, and interpersonal communication.
6. Ministry Values - This construct allows the participant to prioritize his/her ministry values from strong values to anti-values.
7. Age Group - This construct, which is especially helpful for lay leaders in churches, allows you to designate what age group(s) you minister to that are most fruitful and fulfilling.

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MinistryMatch is taken online via the Internet. The assessment is very simple. For each question, you simply enter a number representing your answer.

Before you take MinistryMatch , you must first purchase it. If you are an individual, you will purchase MinistryMatch and you may begin to take MinistryMatch immediately following the instructions provided.

If you are an organization, you may purchase multiple license codes which you may then provide to individuals within your organization by making that selection in the Purchases section

Note: On average, finishing MinistryMatch will take about two and a half hours. It is ideal to finish in one sitting with a few short breaks. However, you may stop any time you like and return later to continue your work.

Reliability and validity studies have been completed on a database of thousands of staff profiles. These staff personnel profiles were generated primarily from EFCA, Bible, and Independent Evangelical Churches across the United States.

Coefficient alpha was used to evaluate each construct. Pearson´s Rho was used to measure each element.

We are well aware that different denominations have distinctive MinistryMatch Profiles. If you require more information about the statistical background of MinistryMatch , pleaseContact Us.

The questions in MinistryMatchPro are worded to fit ministry settings. For instance, instead of answering a question like, “Would you rather drive a motorcycle or a dump truck?” you will answer questions like, “Do you feel more fulfilled preaching to a congregation of 100 or teaching an interactive adult class of 100?” Such questions are easier to identify with, easier to answer and have more direct application to those in ministry.

The wording for MinistryMatchLaity questions is adjusted to fit the general population who may be administrative staff, board members or other volunteers.

For instance, while still asking questions that involve a church setting, we do not ask about things that most lay leaders would not do, such as studying Greek or preparing a series of sermons.

MinistryMatchPro was created to:

• Discover the ministry abilities of lay and/or non-pastoral staff members.
• Help them assess their "fit" in ministry.
• Help them retro-fit their position profiles to better fit themselves.
• Help them understand other staff and work together better.
• Help candidates and churches match up in placement.

MinistryMatchLaity was created to:

• Discover the ministry abilities of lay and/or non-pastoral staff members.
• Help regular members assess ministry abilities and find the "best fit" for ministry in a church.
• Help assimilation pastors find the best lay persons to work in specific ministries.

Similarities of these two tools:

• Both measure the same traits.
• Both have the same number of questions.
• The definitions of issues are identical.
• The printout report looks identical.

Differences between these tools:

• Question wording is different for each tool.
• Norms are different for each tool.
• The price is different for each tool.

The MinistryMatch assessment produces two types of reports, a comprehensive 32 page Detailed Report and a Summary Report. The Detailed Report is primarily intended for use by the individual and provides a personalized interpretation of an individual’s scoring in all six MinistryMatch constructs. The Summary Report is intended for those already familiar with the MinistryMatch results, to be used in comparing the characteristics of multiple individuals.

DETAILED REPORT
The Detailed Report gives a personalized assessment an individual’s abilities that are important in ministry. It reports on the measurement of certain aspects of temperament, motivated role, leadership style, participation style, functional gifts, and values. The first four constructs relate to characteristics of one’s approach to ministry while the last three constructs assess a person’s gifts or abilities, values, and reporting accuracy.

Click Here to View a Complete Sample Report.

SUMMARY REPORT
The first page of the Summary Report graphically describes the first four constructs. The second page reports on the gifts and values constructs in a ranked list.

Click Here to View a Complete Sample Report.

Many thousands of churches across America and the world are using MinistryMatch to significantly enhance their ministry.

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1. Many churches use MinistryMatchPro and a brief consultation to tune up and retro-fit ministry positions to better fit their staff.
2. Many use MinistryMatch with their church staff and board to build stronger teams and manage conflict.
3. Churches use MinistryMatch in the staff search process to ensure they find the right person in the right place at the right time.
4. But the greatest use of MinistryMatch in churches is for the internal selection of lay ministry workers. The church first requires their board and committee members to complete the MinistryMatchLaity survey.
   
   Finally over a period of one to two years, they have every attender complete MinistryMatch. These are placed in the MinistryConnect database. At the same time, a staff creates the second database of defined ministry positions. Now the church is set to experience a new level of effective recruitment that they have never before known!

Denominations:

Effective placement is one of the five top responsibilities of any denomination. Doing this well today involves collecting the right information, making that information available quickly and easily to the right persons, and providing a solid and comprehensive process to evaluate that information and form Godly conclusions.
The MinistryMatch suite of apps provides a comprehensive placement process and the tools that are needed for denominations. Some denominations have their own placement process, but use MinistryMatchPro, as part of their process. For more information about this application, please Contact Us.

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Seminaries:

Seminaries have the same placement needs as denominations. Special student prices are available for seminaries using MinistryMatch products and processes. For more information about this application, pleaseContact Us.

Para-Church Organizations:

Para-church organizations like "The Navigators," and others use MinistryMatch for internal position profile retrofitting as well as for team building and external consulting. For more information about this application, please Contact Us.