Writing a ministry report

Ross Woods, 2023

Why, what, when, how long?

  1. Why are you writing the ministry report?
  2. Who will you send it to, and who will read it?
  3. How long should it be? Is there a guideline for number of pages or words?
  4. Is there a schedule or a deadline for sending the report?
  5. Is the report for a particular period of time? (E.g. one month, one semester)

What is usually in a ministry report?

  1. Your name
  2. The date
  3. Does it need a title?
  4. Goals of the ministry
  5. Which activities should you include? Should you exclude some activities?
  6. What have you already done?
  7. Evaluation:
    1. What were the strengths and weaknesses?
    2. What problems and difficulties did you face? (Don’t make excuses, but you can give real reasons.) What solutions do you suggest?
    3. Do you have particular priorities?
    4. What did you learn from your experiences?
  8. What are your strategies and plans for the future?
  9. Other possible items:
    1. Ask questions
    2. Ask for help
    3. Mention funds, facilities, or equipment?
    4. Prayer and praise points

How to write the report

  1. Plan the report
    1. Write a list of points to include.
    2. Put the points in the best order for readers to understand
  2. Write a rough draft
  3. Revise the rough draft
    1. Use full sentences, not just list of points.
    2. Eliminate verbiage
    3. Eliminate redundancies
    4. Check sentence lengths
    5. Check paragraph lengths
  4. When you think it is right, will readers understand it without an oral explanation?
    1. Read it out loud. Every time you stumble, it probably means that something is poorly expressed.
    2. Put it away for two or three days. Then read it again. It might not say what you thought it said.
  5. Check your spelling, grammar and layout

Assignment: Write a report on your current ministry.

  1. One page (no more than two pages)
  2. Write your name and the date at the top.
  3. Goals or purpose of the ministry
  4. Include the main activities and say what you have already done
  5. Evaluation:
    1. What were the strengths and weaknesses?
    2. What problems and difficulties did you face?
    3. What solutions do you suggest?
  6. What did you learn from your experiences?
  7. What are your strategies and plans for the future?
  8. Typing:
    1. Single spaced
    2. Times New Roman font, 12 point
    3. Page size: A4
    4. Margins: 2.5 cm at top, bottom, right, and left.