Results of previous surveys
In August of 2009 we began a weekly survey, around the following construct: Vern Sanders has, for many years, been collecting categories for a potential book: "The World is Divided Into..." Here is this week's category...choose the answer that best describes you...
During the weeks of January 1-15, 2010, the question was
At our church worship is planned by...
| the musician (16) |
 34% |
| the pastor (4) |
9% |
| the musician and the pastor together (21) |
45% |
| a committee (6) |
13% |
| idiots (0) |
0% |
During the weeks of December 21-31, 2009, the question was
How do you feel about the Christmas season?
| I love Christmas...it is my favorite time of year (14) |
38% |
| Bah Humbug (4) |
11% |
| Should have asked me in July...I'm planning for Lent now (19) |
51% |
During the weeks of December 1-20, 2009, the question was
Is your church...
| growing? (10) |
42% |
| dying? (2) |
8% |
| remaining the same for some time? (12) |
50% |
During the weeks of November 16-30, 2009, the question was
Is your church multisite?
| Yes (3) |
18% |
| No (14) |
82% |
During the weeks of November 1-15, 2009, the question was
Are you serving in a church because...
| you were called to do so at an early age? (27) |
77% |
| you were called to do so at a later age? (6) |
17% |
| your original career choice didn't pan out? (2) |
6% |
During the weeks of October 19-31, 2009, the question was
Are you a lark (morning person) or an owl (night person)?
| Lark (14) |
35% |
| Owl (26) |
65% |
During the weeks of October 5-18, 2009, the question was
1. Which day(s) of the week are your scheduled days off? (Indicate all that apply)
| Monday (2) |
3% |
| Tuesday (2) |
3% |
| Wednesday (2) |
3% |
| Thursday (6) |
9% |
| Friday (28) |
42% |
| Saturday (26) |
39% |
During the weeks of September 21-October 4, 2009, the question was
1. My primary training for my role as church musician/worship leader was?
| Musical (33) |
79% |
| Theological (9) |
21% |
During the weeks of September 7-20, 2009, the question was
1. Our church is....
| Ancient-Future (6) |
19% |
| Missional (11) |
34% |
| Seeker-centric (0) |
0% |
| Social Justice (2) |
6% |
| what? we're just trying to serve our congregation and community the best we can... (13) |
41% |
During the weeks of August 24-September6, 2009, the question was
1. Which computer platform do you use?
| Mac (16) |
39% |
| PC (25) |
61% |
| Other (0) |
0% |
During the week of August 17-23, 2009, the question was
1. As a musician, would you most categorize yourself as
| instrumentalist (12) |
57% |
| vocalist (9) |
43% |
During the week of August 10-16, 2009, the question was
| |
1. Worship Music Style
| Traditional (14) |
30% |
| Blended (25) |
54% |
| Contemporary (7) |
15% |
|
|
In the summer of 2009, we asked about how people got ministry training
1. Do you strive to develop the skills necessary to do your ministry role and tasks better?
| Yes, regularly and intentionally (63) |
78% |
| Sometimes, when I can (17) |
21% |
| No, I can barely keep up as it is (1) |
1% |
|
2. Does your church provide funds for you to develop your skills?
| Yes, in the church budget (48) |
59% |
| Sometimes, depending upon the situation (17) |
21% |
| No (16) |
20% |
|
3. What is the primary way that you develop your skills? (Select one only)
| Attend conferences (42) |
52% |
| Classroom training at an educational institution (0) |
0% |
| Conversation/Fellowship with my peers (8) |
10% |
| E books (0) |
0% |
| Online classes such as live webinars (1) |
1% |
| Online training that is not live, such as downloadable documents or self progressing courses (4) |
5% |
| Reading books and periodicals such as Creator (25) |
31% |
| Telephone conference call training or seminars (0) |
0% |
| None (1) |
1% |
|
4. In the past two years, which of the following ways have you used to develop your skills? (select all that apply)
| Attend conferences (67) |
25% |
| Classroom training at an educational institution (17) |
6% |
| Conversation/Fellowship with my peers (60) |
22% |
| Ebooks (12) |
4% |
| Online classes such as live webinars (15) |
6% |
| Online training that is not live, such as downloadable documents or self progressing courses (21) |
8% |
| Reading books and periodicals such as Creator (69) |
26% |
| Telephone conference call training or seminars (7) |
3% |
| None (0) |
0% |
|
In the spring of 2009, we asked about the media aspects of ministry
1. Does your church use video projection for congregational singing?
| Y - words only (76) |
75% |
| Y - words and music only (4) |
4% |
| N (21) |
21% |
|
2. Does your church employ (pay) media technicians?
| Y - audio only (12) |
12% |
| Y - video only (2) |
2% |
| Y - audio and video (14) |
14% |
| N (73) |
72% |
|
3. Does your church have an over the air broadcast ministry?
| Y - audio only (9) |
9% |
| Y - video only (3) |
3% |
| Y - audio and video (11) |
11% |
| N (78) |
77% |
|
4. Does your church have a streaming internet ministry?
| Y - audio only (14) |
14% |
| Y - video only (3) |
3% |
| Y - audio and video (9) |
9% |
| N (75) |
74% |
|
5. Does your church provide CD/DVD copies of worship services by request as a ministry (shut ins/visitor packets/etc.)?
| Y - audio only (52) |
51% |
| Y - video only (4) |
4% |
| Y - audio and video (25) |
25% |
| N (20) |
20% |
|
6. Does your church use "pre-packaged" video content?
| Y - announcements/pre-roll only (10) |
10% |
| Y - sermon or other illustrations only (13) |
13% |
| Y - announcements/pre-roll and sermon or other illustrations (21) |
21% |
| N (57) |
56% |
|
7. Does your church use social network tools in worship ministry?
| Y - Twitter (0) |
0% |
| Y - multisite/other (14) |
14% |
| N (87) |
86% |
|
8. Average Weekly Worship Attendance
| less than 100 (7) |
7% |
| 101-500 (60) |
59% |
| 501-1000 (18) |
18% |
| more than 1000 (16) |
16% |
|
At the beginning of 2009, we asked about church libraries and bookstores.
1. What is the average worship attendance for your church?
| less than 100 (14) |
16% |
| 101-500 (46) |
51% |
| 501-1000 (18) |
20% |
| greater than 1000 (12) |
13% |
|
2. Does your church have a Bookstore and/or Library?
| Bookstore only (8) |
9% |
| Library only (71) |
79% |
| Both Bookstore and Library (7) |
8% |
| Neither (4) |
4% |
|
3. If your church has a Bookstore and or Library, are they located in dedicated spaces or are they operated temporarily on Sunday mornings and special occasions? (answer as many as apply)
| Dedicated space for Bookstore (13) |
13% |
| Dedicated space for Library (75) |
74% |
| Temporary space for Bookstore (7) |
7% |
| Temporary space for Library (6) |
6% |
|
4. If your church has a Bookstore and or Library, are they managed by professional, paid staff persons or volunteers? (answer as many as apply)
| Paid staff manage Bookstore (8) |
8% |
| Volunteers manage Bookstore (13) |
13% |
| Paid staff manage Library (5) |
5% |
| Volunteers manage Library (74) |
74% |
|
5. If your church has both a Bookstore and a Library, which gets more usage?
| Bookstore (4) |
4% |
| Library (9) |
10% |
| About the same for both Bookstore and Library (2) |
2% |
| Don't Know (9) |
10% |
| We don't have both a Bookstore and a Library (66) |
73% |
|
At the end of 2008, we asked about Children's Music Ministry programs.
1. Does your church have a children's music ministry?
| Yes (81) |
 96% |
| No (3) |
4% |
|
 2. How many people serve in a leadership capacity for the children's music ministry? (count the total of both professionals and volunteers)
| One (10) |
12% |
| Two (13) |
15% |
| Three (9) |
11% |
| Four (13) |
15% |
| Five or more (39) |
46% |
|
3. Does your children's music ministry have a separate budget line?
| Yes (43) |
51% |
| No (41) |
49% |
|
4. What is the total program budget for your children's music ministry (excluding salaries)?
| Less than $100 (14) |
17% |
| $100-$500 (28) |
33% |
| $500-$1000 (15) |
18% |
| $1000-$2000 (12) |
14% |
| More than $2000 (15) |
18% |
|
5. What does your children's choir ministry involve? (select as many as apply)
| One children's choir (29) |
15% |
| More than one children's choir (25) |
13% |
| Graded children's choir program (35) |
18% |
| Dance (5) |
3% |
| Drama (27) |
14% |
| Film Making (3) |
2% |
| Handbells (35) |
18% |
| Instruments other than handbells (23) |
12% |
| Visual Art (9) |
5% |
|
In the fall of 2008, we asked about what instruments were used in worship.
1. What is the PRIMARY instrumental configuration used to lead worship at your most well attended service each week (please select only 1 option)?
| Full Rhythm Section (guitar(s), keyboard(s), bass, drums) (25) |
27% |
| Guitar(s) (2) |
2% |
| Keyboard(s) (1) |
1% |
| Keyboard(s) and Organ (1) |
1% |
| Keyboard(s) and Piano (5) |
5% |
| Keyboard(s), Organ, and Piano (6) |
6% |
| No Instruments (0) |
0% |
| Orchestra (6) |
6% |
| Organ (16) |
17% |
| Organ and Piano (24) |
26% |
| Percussion only (0) |
0% |
| Piano (5) |
5% |
| Rhythm Section with no Percussion (3) |
3% |
| Other (0) |
0% |
|
2. Do you have other worship services each weekend?
| Yes (62) |
66% |
| No (32) |
34% |
|
3. Are your other worship services led by a different instrumental configuration?
| Yes (46) |
49% |
| No (48) |
51% |
|
4. Which of the following instrumental configurations REGULARLY lead in worship each weekend (choose as many as apply)?
| Full Rhythm Section (guitar(s), keyboard(s), bass, and drums) (52) |
25% |
| Guitar(s) (17) |
8% |
| Keyboard(s) (8) |
4% |
| Keyboard(s) and Organ (1) |
0% |
| Keyboard(s) and Piano (10) |
5% |
| Keyboard(s), Organ, and Piano (6) |
3% |
| No instruments (2) |
1% |
| Orchestra (16) |
8% |
| Organ (16) |
8% |
| Organ and Piano (34) |
17% |
| Percussion (5) |
2% |
| Piano (24) |
12% |
| Rhythm Section with no percussion (7) |
3% |
| Other (6) |
|
In the middle of 2008, we asked about the size of worship/music ministry staffs.
1. What is the size of your worship/music ministry staff (full-time equivalent of professionals and volunteers combined)?
| 1 (21) |
23% |
| 2 (17) |
18% |
| 3 (17) |
18% |
| 4 (10) |
11% |
| 5 (8) |
9% |
| 6-10 (12) |
13% |
| 11 or more (7) |
8% |
|
2. How many of your worship/music staff members are professional (full-time equivalent paid)?
| 1 (64) |
70% |
| 2 (20) |
22% |
| 3 (2) |
2% |
| 4 (2) |
2% |
| 5 (2) |
2% |
| 6-10 (0) |
0% |
| 11 or more (1) |
1% |
|
3. What is your current annual budget for worship/music ministry, EXCLUDING salaries?
| Less than $1,000 (10) |
11% |
| $1,000-$2,500 (5) |
5% |
| $2,501-$5,000 (10) |
11% |
| $5,001-$10,000 (28) |
31% |
| $10,001-$20,000 (18) |
20% |
| $20,001-$35,000 (7) |
8% |
| $35,001-$50,000 (5) |
5% |
| More than $50,000 (8) |
9% |
|
In the first part of 2008, we asked
Are You a Member of a Professional Music Organization?
1. Are you a member of a professional music organization?
| Yes (199) |
97% |
| No (6) |
3% |
2. If you answered yes, to which organization(s) do you belong? (You may select more than one option)
| AAM (Association of Anglican Musicians) (5) |
1% |
| ACDA (American Choral Directors Association) (97) |
20% |
| AGEHR (American Guild of English Handbell Ringers) (52) |
11% |
| AGO (American Guild of Organists) (49) |
10% |
| ALCM (Association of Lutheran Church Musicians) (9) |
2% |
| Choristers Guild (65) |
14% |
| FUMMWA (Fellowship of United Methodists in Worship and Music Arts) (56) |
12% |
| NACM (National Association of Church Musicians) (26) |
5% |
| NPM (National Association of Pastoral Musicians) (10) |
2% |
| PAM (Presbyterian Association of Musicians) (15) |
3% |
| UCC Musicians National Network (7) |
1% |
| Other (89) |
In October and November of 2007, we asked
What is your average combined worship attendance each week?
We had a total of 157 responses, with the following results:
less than 50 = 6%
50-100 = 17%
100-200 = 22%
200-350 = 18%
350-500 = 15%
500-800 = 10%
800-1250 = 3%
1250-2000 = 4%
more than 2000 = 6%