Officer Training Self-Assessment

The following self-assessment questionnaire will take some time to complete. Give yourself at least 15 minutes, and do not be surprised if it takes you up to 45 minutes or so (depending upon how quickly you type, and how much you write in the open-ended fields).

Name *

Character Self-Assessment

Rate yourself on a scale of 0-5 for each statement below. A rating of 0 means “this doesn’t describe me at all,” and a rating of 5 means “this describes me well.” While certain sins and weaknesses may disqualify you from serving, please know that nobody will score perfectly on this. No Christian grows in grace and godliness (and leadership abilities) without first being honest about where they are, so assess yourself honestly and humbly. That being said, do not take on a posture of false humility or self-abnegation.

I practice consistent repentance and faith.

Selected Value: 0

I am aware of my own sins and heart idols, and I am prayerfully pursuing God's promised sanctification in these areas.

Selected Value: 0

I am aware that I have "blind spots," defects and weaknesses in my character that I can see only with the help of others.

Selected Value: 0

There are Christians in my life who know the "real truth" about me and are helping me to grow in Christlikeness.

Selected Value: 0

I have a genuine and growing love for Jesus and for others.

Selected Value: 0

People who know me well would describe me as patient, gracious, and self-controlled in conflict – not as quarrelsome or short-tempered.

Selected Value: 0

My wife (if married) and close friends respect me and respond to my spiritual leadership.

Selected Value: 0

I would feel comfortable telling a younger Christian to "follow/imitate me as I follow Christ."

Selected Value: 0

If someone spent a day alone with me, they would not find anything surprising or alarming.

Selected Value: 0

If someone talked to my non-Christian friends or work associates (past or present), they would discover nothing that brings shame or dishonor on Christ or His church.

Selected Value: 0

If someone observed my marriage, they would see healthy patterns of communication, sexual intimacy, parenting, and headship/submission.

Selected Value: 0

I live above reproach in my sexual life, including freedom from pornography and/or fantasies (in my thought life).

Selected Value: 0

I consistently practice the means of grace in private and in public (e.g., Bible reading, prayer, Sabbath observance, family worship, etc.).

Selected Value: 0

I financially support the church in a way that is generous and free from compulsion.

Selected Value: 0

Additional Character Self-Assessment Questions

Briefly describe your approach to your personal devotional life. *

Have you any serious personal or domestic troubles that, if known, would dishonor you, your family, and/or the church? *

Are you and/or your wife involved in any financial predicaments or situations that, if known, would dishonor you, your family, and/or the church? *

Character Reflection Questions

These questions are meant more for reflection than a test you pass or fail. Christian growth requires knowing yourself, including your weaknesses and deficiencies in understanding and practice. Serving the church is stressful and will test you in many ways (not least of which will be the reality of spiritual warfare). Understanding your heart and temptations is key to lasting ministry. While you should take as much time as you need on each question, do not “overthink” things, and keep moving through the questionnaire. It may be beneficial to look over the whole before you begin answering them. Also, you may want to write them out by hand, or prepare your answers in a word processing program (e.g., Microsoft Word, Google Documents), and then copy-and-paste your answers into the entry form after saving them to your computer.

Humility

Do you acknowledge your limitations and needs? *

Are you honest enough? Do you demonstrate a willingness to admit your limits, mistakes, sins, and weaknesses? Are you defensive, guarded, hypersensitive? Are you too open or indiscreet? Do you wear your heart on your sleeve, indulging and wallowing in your limits, mistakes, sins, and weaknesses?

Do you demonstrate a flexible spirit? *

Do you adapt flexibly and creatively to the unexpected? Do you value and encourage the ideas and gifts of others? Do you insist on your own way, whether forcefully or through subtle manipulation? Are you too flexible? Do you blow in the wind of others’ opinions and get overwhelmed by people’s demands and agendas? Do you let people or circumstances (rather than God and His Word) dictate to you what you should do?

Love

Do you have a positive approach to people? *

Do you give grace to others? Do you love and encourage other individuals, even when you are under stress or in the face of an attack? Are you able to confront the failings of others in a way that breathes the invitations of God’s grace? Are you too tolerant? Do you massage people’s egos (or flatter them) with praise and “unconditional positive regard”? For the sake of biblical love of others, are you willing to enter into constructive conflict?

Do you show a servant's heart to people? *

Do you serve willingly? Do you truly serve the well-being of others and shepherd them under and unto the Lord? Do you strive for personal glory either aggressively (compulsively driven to make a name for yourself) or passively (preoccupied with your own estimation of yourself)? Do you serve compulsively? Do you serve other people slavishly, acquiescing to their demands, expectations, and whims?

Integrity

Are you responsible to God first and foremost? *

Do you follow through on convictions and commitments? Do you speak the truth firmly, confidently, and faithfully? Are you overly demanding? Are you legalistic in your commitments and nit-picking in your convictions? Do you make demands of yourself and others which God does not make?

Do you demonstrate a disciplined and self-controlled lifestyle? *

What would people see if they could tag along with you for a week? Do you work diligently, or are you lazy? Are you too disciplined and regimented, overly organized, or “perfectly” on the outside? Is your visible discipline a mask for hypocrisy, a cover for ignorance of yourself, or a denial of a deviant inner life? Do you allow room in your life for interruptions, breakdowns, unexpected difficulties, and occasions for changing plans?

Are your family commitments properly prioritized as of first importance under (and unto) the Lord? *

Do you love your family in such a way that they willingly become committed to your ministry (and/or work) and really stand with and behind you? Are you over-committed to ministry and/or work obligations such that your family is neglected? Are you over-committed to your family such that they provide an imbalanced refuge, distraction, or excuse to avoid ministry? Is family life an excuse for selfishness?

Spirituality

Do you demonstrate personal piety and spiritual vitality in your relationship with God? *

Is your communion with God rich and growing? Is your personal prayer life both spontaneous and disciplined, or are you mostly a public pray-er? Do you escape into pious cliches and misuse the spiritual disciplines? Do you use “I’ll pray about it” or “I need to study the Bible” in order to avoid problems for which you feel inadequate?

Do you demonstrate faithfulness to the Bible and sound doctrine? *

Are you biblically and theologically careful? Are you orthodox, faithful to the whole counsel of God? Do you have clear, definite and thought-out biblical positions on the central issues of life? Are you a theological nit-picker?

Home Life

Are you the spiritual leader (head of the household) in your family? How? *

At home, are you quick to admit when you are wrong? Are you quick to seek forgiveness? *

Do you quickly repent before your wife and children when you have wronged them? Is repentance a consistent part of your life? Give a recent example. Would your wife and children agree with this answer?

Mission

Do you evangelize those outside of Jesus Christ? *

Do you believe with all your heart that people without Christ remain under the wrath of God? Do you neglect evangelism out of ignorance, love of comfort, fear, prejudice, bad experiences? Do you overemphasize evangelism or one evangelistic technique to the detriment of the church’s overall ministry? Do you create ministry activists instead of encouraging people to be godly in all of life?

Do you show concern for the many needs of people? *

Do you care for the whole person? Are you skilled in applying the resources of the church to the social and material needs of your neighbors? Do you value diaconal work and gifts of generosity, liberality, and beneficence? Are you overly involved in addressing social needs? Do you overemphasize social concerns and drift towards a “social gospel”?

Summary

Thank you for taking the time to complete this Officer Training Self-Assessment. Hopefully, you’ve gotten a more God-centered view of your life as you encountered questions that you have not thought about before (or recently). You probably feel humbled as you realize that there is more to work on than you might have realized before running through this questionnaire. But take heart! God’s grace is sufficient for you. Jesus Christ is your faithful High Priest and Good Shepherd. “Draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Heb. 4:16).

Character Self-Assessment

Additional Character Self-Assessment Questions

Character Reflection Questions

Humility

Love

Integrity

Spirituality

Home Life

Mission

Summary

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