Planted in Stories. WATERED BY FAITH.
As a critical component of our I.M.P.A.C.T. Approach, Cornerstone Consultancy provides each Church with a comprehensive planning document which we've humbly coined: The Mustard Seed Assessment. The purpose of The Mustard Seed Assessment is to highlight strengths we observe in your congregation, outline priorities that resonate with your membership, and explore areas of growth opportunities for your church to intentionally engage with your community.
With this purpose, The Mustard Seed Assessment offers an accessible and individualized plan, true to the context and uniqueness of your Church, that will reposition your flock toward renewal and sustainable impact.
1. Church Worth & Value – Telling a New Story
What makes your parish unique and how are you expressing that to the world?
Looking critically at the tradition and current state of your Church through a lens of curiosity and appreciation, Cornerstone Consultancy supports the transformative capacity of your congregation by getting to the heart of your identity, values, and mission-focus. In articulating the testimonies of your parishioners and measuring the tangible impact of your Church through the use of our Community and Economic Impact Calculator, a baseline is created by which your Church can speak boldly about their worth.
2. Internal Assets – The Strength of Your Parish
What are the gifts, talents, and treasures already within your walls?
Through the dispersal and analysis of our Parish Gift Survey, one on one interviews, and the facilitation of exploratory workshops, we work closely with your congregation to gauge your strengths and listen to where the collective experiences of your parishioners could be directing your Church forward. We believe that the focus should not be on empty pews but rather on those seats already filled with love and talent. Where has God led them in their personal lives and careers, what defines their relationship with their community, and what drives their passion to serve, are all questions that point to an inner strength and working of the Holy Spirit at your Church.
3. External Mapping; Community Opportunities
How well do you know your neighbors—and how well do they know you?
No Church can survive apart from their community. Working and hearing from municipal leaders, local organizations, and neighbors that are connected to the work of your Church, reveals unmet needs and perspectives that point to areas of opportunity. Cornerstone Consultancy maps these areas of opportunity where the priorities of the parish and the priorities of the community intersect and the work of your Church can be further manifested.
4. Growth Potential; A Way Forward
Where do we go from here and how do we get there with clarity, and confidence?
After our inventory and mapping assessments, we translate the culmination of our findings into a practical, actionable roadmap that details growth opportunities and engagement strategies built specifically for your church’s context and capacity. Offering recommendations concerning program support, succession planning, branding and outreach direction, the adaptive reuse of your managed spaces, the creation of standard operating procedures, each Church is equipped with a forward-thinking guide.
In providing this guide, we will set your congregation on solid ground; a foundation that can weather the uncertainties through engagement and relevance, as Jesus himself states in the Gospel of Matthew:
“The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock.” - Matthew 7:25
What The Mustard Seed Covers
What to Expect
Each Assessment includes the following methods and activities:
Spiritual Gifts Survey
Distributed parish-wide and analyzed
Church Leadership Interviews & Workshops
To surface honest feedback and future goals
Community Organization Interviews
At least 10 conversations with local stakeholders
Donor History & Document Review
To understand giving trends, church capacity, and alignment
Communications Review
Audit of your newsletters, bulletins, digital channels, and outreach efforts
All data is detailed into a beautiful, easy-to-use report that serves as your strategic foundation for growth.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
— Matthew 28:19–20
What You’ll Walk Away With
✅ A detailed 3-Year Resource Development Plan, including a grant calendar, capital campaign timeline, and fundraising event strategy.
✅ A Communication Improvement Plan tailored to your church, covering newsletter strategy, social media templates, website updates, and press outreach.
✅ A Parish Spiritual Gifts Profile, mapping congregational strengths and interests to ministry needs and outreach opportunities.
✅ A Community Opportunity Report, summarizing interviews with local stakeholders, identifying unmet needs, and outlining potential partnerships.
✅ A Ministry Activation Toolkit, with rebranding materials, campaign templates, and an impact measurement tool to track growth and celebrate wins.