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The
Oikos Institute for Social Impact
11218 South Bishop Street Chicago, IL 60643
VISION
Our vision is to help congregations harness the power of their assets in order to be a catalyst for communal transformation and economic renewal.
MISSION
Through strategic partnerships with seminaries, universities, foundations, government agencies and denominational judicatories, the Oikos Institute creates mutually supportive ecosystems that strengthen the Faith, Intellectual, Social and Human Capital of congregations actively engaged in social impact and transformational work in the under-resourced communities they serve.
OUR PRIORITIES
• Providing relief for distressed communities
• Alleviating human suffering
• Maximizing human potential
• Solving social problems via social reform
SOCIAL IMPACT
• Building community via civic engagement is a significant, positive change that addresses a pressing social challenge. Creating social impact is the result of a deliberate set of activities with a goal matching this definition.
Empowerment Reading
Click here: https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/trevin-wax/assessing-the-state-of-your-churchand-how-it-got-there/ to read Assessing the State of Your Church and How It Got There by Trevin Wax. Respond to at least two of these questions on your cohort discussion board.
1. How can congregations accurately assess "what time it is" in their church's life and ministry? What time would you say your congregation is in currently?
2. What are the four stages Wax outlines for organizational assessment, and how have you seen these impact your congregation’s growth or decline?
3. Based on Jim Collins's stages of decline, how might our congregation best offset these threats?
4. In what ways does understanding our congregation’s culture help or hinder honest evaluation?
5. What challenges arise from focusing too heavily on either leadership personalities or data?
What is a SWOT Analysis?
A SWOT analysis is important because it helps you understand strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats within your context, which can then be used to inform strategic planning and decision-making. A SWOT analysis helps a congregation to:
• Understand your current situation, helping a congregation to be honest about the congregation’s current state and what needs to improve.
• Develop a strategic plan, helping a congregation set realistic goals, allocate resources, and determine the best action.
• Stay ahead of trends, helping a congregation identify external factors affecting church growth and development.
• Identify opportunities helping congregations identify opportunities that your business can exploit.
• Reduce weaknesses, helping a congregation understand that having weaknesses is not a bad thing and that it can focus on congregational strengths while working on your weaknesses.
• Develop contingency plans, helping congregations develop plans to minimize threats.
Complete the SWOT Analysis based on your perspective of your congregation in light of its impact in your community. Plan a time for members of your congregation in this cohort to meet, merge, and analyze everyone’s responses.
STRENGTHS
OPPORTUNITIES
WEAKNESSES
THREATS
