Peter Smit
Gateway Community Church
Perth, Australia
Most improved Quality Characteristic
Effective Structures +30 points  Prior to doing NCD our small church community functioned as a big family. As we were a new church plant we focused primarily on building relationships. We had little structure and no concept of department heads and ministry development. In addressing this area, we developed an organisational structure with clear roles and responsibilities for ministry leaders and teams. In 2001 we prayerfully developed a strategic plan with big dreams and visions which the Lord is wonderfully bringing to reality.
Most frequent Minimum Factor
Passionate Spirituality  While this has been consistently lower in our surveys, since our initial survey in 1999 this quality characteristic has, by God's grace, climbed some 21 points. We still have much more to do in this area. One of the reasons there has been some growth can be attributed to the development of Life Transformation groups, in which 3 people come together for spiritual accountability and commitment to reading scripture. Along with our regular home groups, this has been a great blessing to those who have participated and deepened our spiritual life with Christ.
Most frequent Maximum Factor
Gift-based Ministry  Our second profile identified this as our minimum factor and since that time we have run the Network (Willow Creek) Gifts discovery course annually. Those who have completed the course have their gifts placed in our churches database and we continually refer to that to ensure that when new ministry opportunities are needed that we direct people to appropriate areas of service. This consistent and intentional approach means that we are seeking to build the church and the Kingdom on the basis of the gifts God has given us. That has blessed those who serve and us who receive.
Greatest joys of our NCD journey
The greatest joy has been the discovery of a different paradigm to see and assess our ministry. Prior to doing NCD I thought church ministry was just about preaching and teaching. While this is central, effective kingdom ministry is much more diverse. NCD has helped me and our church to work on all the areas of ministry. One of the wonderful joys we have experienced of late is having people come to our church community and say, "we love coming to this church, we feel loved and welcomed, God's doing something special in this place.” God is continuing to bring people to us. It's the 'all by itself' thing happening. When we pay attention to the health of the church and ask the Lord of the church to guide us and bless our work, He will build His church. That is the greatest joy.
Greatest challenges of our NCD journey
Has doing NCD always been easy? No way. Sometimes the results expose weak areas in my ministry or the life of our church. That's not always very easy to accept, particularly if you think you've been doing OK in that area. Doing NCD then requires a great deal of humility and openness to reassess and review what you do.
The other challenge that NCD has placed before me has been the recognition that the principles of church health must be worked out uniquely for each church. The challenge then is not to compare yourself with other "successful” churches. The way that our church expresses its "inspired worship” will be different from another church. And that's OK. The diversity in the body of Christ is something our heavenly father wants us to celebrate and enjoy.
What I think of NCD
NCD is a great tool to review and assess ministry. But like any tool, it needs to be used well to receive the maximum benefit. It's strength lies in the Biblical principles upon which it is based. It cuts through the fog of our limited perception of church life and objectively identifies the areas of strength and those that need work. Without a doubt the NCD (biblical) paradigm has had a huge impact in the life of our church. I thank God for the continual encouragement and challenge it brings. I love the truth of the Mark 4:28. When there is a healthy balance in the soil of the ministry… 28 All by itself the soil produces grain.
Advice for Leaders beginning with NCD
When we did our first NCD profile the results were not very exciting. The results ranged from 31 to 48 with most in the low thirties. When it comes to church health, we were not well. But over the last seven years we've just kept chipping away. Some years we didn't even do the implementation well, or at all. But by God's grace, with the NCD paradigm in the back of our minds, we've seen wonderful growth in our health. And it really is all by God's amazing grace.
So my advice is, get started. Do a survey. Pull an implementation team together. Get an NCD coach to help you journey through. And finally keep at it.
We've had growth. We've had ups and downs. But like you, we've got more to do. And I'm praying that we steward and develop our gifts and God's church well. NCD is a tool to help all of us do, just that.
About Peter Smit
After graduating from the Reformed Theological College in Geelong in 1995 I served for one year in Canberra as an apprentice minister. Having a passion for evangelism and church planting I received a call to come to Western Australia and have served in my current church since 1996. In 2001 we developed a strategic plan for our church, which included being in a church building in 2004. By God's grace in 2004 we purchased a factory building, and are now developing it into a ministry centre.
I've been married to my wonderful wife Suzanne for twenty years. We have been blessed with four wonderful children. I love playing my Maton guitar and worshipping our great God.
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