Glossary of Terms

The Healthy Church Initiative uses a lot of terms and acronyms that can be confusing. This Glossary of HCI terms should help you understand the process even better.

5 Fruitful Practices – from Bishop Robert Schnase’s “Five Fruitful Practices” books, the five practices are Radical Hospitality, Passionate Worship, Intentional Faith Development, Risk-Taking Mission & Service and Extravagant Generosity. The Central Texas Conference has adopted these as key practices to achieving our vision. Read more.

Church Coach – a trained coach who works directly with the pastors and churches who go through a Church Consultation and accept the Prescriptions provided by the Consultation Team. This coach will provide a listening ear, ask powerful questions, and expect accountability in fulfilling the prescriptions. The church coach is provided by the Center for Evangelism and Church Growth and will have 18 individual sessions with the church.

Church Consultation – after participating in PLD, LLD and SCI groups, some churches will choose to engage a consulting team to spend time learning more about their church and developing Prescriptions that will help their congregation grow. In the Congregational Initiative, this is a weekend consultation. In the Small Church Initiative, this is a one-day consultation.

Church Self Study – churches who agree to a Church Consultation will conduct an in-depth Self Study including a church history, local demographics and other information. A Self Study guide will be provided to the church in advance. The Consultation Team will review the completed Self Study in advance of the Consultation to gain a better understanding of the unique needs of this congregation.

Larger Church Initiative – HCI component for mid- and large-membership churches designed to help pastors and lay leaders work together in transforming their congregation. More information.

Consultant – leads the Church Consultation and the team that develops the Prescriptions.

Consultation – see Church Consultation

Consultation Team – the team present during a Church Consultation includes the Consultant, the Church Coach and sometimes a Conference lay person.

Consultation Cluster – pastors from churches who decide to move forward with a Church Consultation will become part of this Continuous Learning Group that includes other pastors of churches going through a Consultation. The pastor will remain a part of this cluster as long as the church continues to work on its Prescriptions or up to 18 months.

Consultation Cluster Orientation – an introductory meeting of the Consultation Cluster members, some of their key laity, the Consultant and the Church Coach. This session will be led by the Church Coach and will usually take place before the Consultation.

Continuous Learning Community – small groups of individuals who come together in a learning environment for an extended period of time. HCI Continuous Learning Communities include PLD groups, LLD groups, SCI Workshops and Consultation Cluster groups. All HCI Continuous Learning Communities are led by trained Facilitators. They focus on leadership teaching, accountability and peer mentoring.

Facilitator – leaders for the HCI Continuous Learning Groups. All HCI Facilitators receive training for facilitating small groups and to understand the expectations of the specific curriculum.

Faith Perceptions – the company that conducts the Mystery Guest program.

HCI – Healthy Church Initiative

Lay Leadership Development (LLD) – for churches in the Congregational Initiative, an eight-month lay teaching component to support and complement PLD groups by training lay leadership through in-depth reading and peer group discussion. The LLD classes mirror the PLD process with materials adjusted to reflect lay leadership concerns. Led by a trained facilitator, the class has eight, four-hour sessions, done once a month over eight months.

Leadership Team – for churches that chose to do a Church Consultation, this is the internal team that will shepherd the congregation through the HCI process. It consists of the church’s Council or a smaller group of leaders the pastor recruits.

LLD – see Lay Leadership Development

MissionInsite – the online demographic tool offered at no cost by the Center for Evangelism and Church Growth. This tool will be very helpful in completing a church Self Study. More information.

Mystery Guest/Visitor – prior to a Church Consultation, 12 mystery guests will visit your church and provide their feedback to a marketing research company. These compiled results will be provided to the Consultant team who will keep them in mind as they prepare a church’s Prescriptions.

Pastor Coach – as part of a PLD group, each pastor will engage a Pastor Coach for six 30-minute sessions to take place throughout the course of the PLD group. These sessions are phone conversations aimed at helping pastors integrate learning from their PLD groups.

Pastoral Leadership Development (PLD) – for churches in the Congregational Initiative, a voluntary, eight-month, small-group, peer learning experience for pastors that involves trained coaching, in-depth reading and mutual support. It gives pastors tools for training laity and helps them develop strategies and skills for congregational transformation. It develops the leadership skills of pastors to enable them to better lead themselves, their church and others. The program is led by a trained facilitator has eight, four-hour sessions, done once a month over eight months.

PLD – see Pastoral Leadership Development

Prayer Team - for churches that chose to do a Church Consultation, this internal team will pray regularly for changes that help their congregation fulfill its vision.

Pre-Consultation Workshop – for churches in the Congregational Initiative, about six weeks before a Weekend Consultation the pastor and church leaders will participate in the workshop led by the Church Coach to begin understanding how the world around us has changed and what we need to do to stay relevant. This workshop will lay the groundwork for the Church Consultation.

Small Church Initiative – HCI component that addresses the unique needs of small-membership congregations in two distinct phases. More information.

SCI – see Small Church Initiative

SCI Workshops – the first phase of the SCI process includes six four-hour SCI Workshops for pastors and laity over the course of nine months. These workshops create built-in momentum with action steps and accountability throughout the process. It gives pastors and laity the opportunity to learn together

Self Study – see Church Self Study