The Ministry Experience Report (MER)

[Model A]  >   [Model B]  >   [Example 1]  >   [Example 2]

The Ministry Experience Report (MER) was inspired by the case study method used in many clinical trial settings. As developed for the purpose of NET Groups, the MER draws upon the following four areas of personal experience:

1. The work setting



2. The extended family and family of origin



3. The faith community



4. The social network

Out of any one of these areas, the NET Group participant may encounter these or other experiences:

• a business meeting that was difficult or exciting
• a strained relationship or a warm and loving exchange
• a heated church board session
• a complicated holiday visit home
• an exchange with a neighbor, or a walk through an old neighborhood and a meeting with an old friend.

Such experiences make for rich Ministry Experience Reports for participants in a NET Group. Following each incident, it is important to write up the conversation as quickly as possible, capturing the encounter with as much exactness as you can. If it is a lengthy encounter, you can write up the crucial parts and summarize the others.

Two models of MERs follow, as well as two examples of MERs. The two examples are of people who took incidents from their everyday lives and found opportunities for ministry. If we are sensitive to life's common experiences, we will find many potential ministry experiences in our professional lives, personal lives, social relationships, and faith communities.

Note: it is important that the experience in the Ministry Experience Report be genuine. A NET Group member should not use the most dramatic event in her or his life as a MER. The purpose of the NET Groups program is to connect your faith and theology with everyday experience, so that you become a more effective person of faith in the world.