Although few look forward to them, business meetings are necessary for the ministry of any church. At such meetings, pastors are hired, budgets adopted, building programs started, and officers elected.
Because church business meetings are so important, they must be conducted in conformity with church and state regulations, according to Church Business Report (Nov. 1977). If you act illegally, every decision at a business meeting may be invalid and could subject you to a lawsuit.
Courts have pointed out the following danger areas for churches: 1. Only a person with authority can call a meeting. A layperson cannot call meetings unless statutes or rules provide for it. If this happens, any action taken at that meeting is void. 2. Church rules regarding the type of notice to be given to the congregation about meetings must be followed closely. Be sure, then, to always hold the meeting at the specified time and location. The minority of the congregation acting in accord with church rules may prevail over the majority acting in violation of rules. 3. Follow procedural requirements closely. Always strive to be fair in letting members discuss areas where there is a difference of opinion. In the absence of church rules to the contrary, it is best to observe standard rules of parliamentary procedure. 4. Strictly follow church and statutory requirements regarding who can preside at meetings. 5. A quorum must be present to transact business. Check relevant statutes and church rules for your church’s requirements. 6. Unless otherwise specified, every member of legal age can vote. Minors can vote where congregational customs or rules dictate that there is no age limit on voting. Courts have held that a lawsuit can be brought against a presiding officer of a religious meeting who maliciously refuses voting rights to any qualified member. 7. Slight irregularities in an election will not invalidate it unless it is impossible to determine which were the lawful votes. Because irregularities may result in lawsuits, it is best to follow all procedures to the letter. 8. The more important the issue acted upon at your church business meeting the more likely the courts are to require strict compliance with all established procedures.
Library
Resource
Possibilities
In these days of increased leisure time, it seems that television eats up most of those extra hours. Studies have shown, however, that more books and magazines are being sold than ever before. One important function of your church, then, is to be a Christian resource center to provide members with Christian forms of education and enrichment.
The most logical place to offer audio visuals, magazines, and books is in your church library. If it now contains only books that have been on the shelf for decades and a few out-of-date magazines, it is time to rebuild your library as a ministry to your congregation.
Dorothy Dahlman, executive with the Christian Education Board of the Baptist General Conference, has listed several suggestions in The Standard, Dec. 1979, for building a church resource center. 1. Look through Sunday school teacher manuals. Often books and other items are suggested for student enrichment. 2. Ask for recommendations from church leaders who know the needs of your congregation. These would include church staff, board members, Sunday school workers, and youth leaders. 3. Use denominational resources. 4. Current periodicals are good sources for reviews of recently published books. 5. Visit the library/ resource center of a church in your community that is known for its effective ministry. You can glean ideas by talking to their staff and noticing what is on their shelves.
Along with these practical steps, you will want to look at some of the periodicals written specifically for church librarians and leaders.
Media, Library Services Journal, provides information to inspire and guide you in establishing, maintaining, enlarging, operating, and utilizing libraries. Published by the Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, this magazine is written for church library staff, pastors, and church leaders. Subscription, $5 per year. Harvest Publications, 127 Ninth Ave., N., Nashville, TN 37234.
Librarian’s World, the publication of the Evangelical Church Library Association, features items on all aspects of setting up a library from a children’s corner to handling circulation problems. Subscription, $5 per year. Librarian’s World, Box 353, Glen Ellyn, IL 60137.
Stimulus, dedicated to initiating innovative church thinking, reviews programs and products for specific target groups. Lists seminars, dramas, audiovisuals, and many more ideas. Subscription, $6 per year. North American Baptist Conference, 1 S. 210 Summit Ave., Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60521.
For Your Church Library, a packet of helps on establishing a resource center, also has instructions on how to keep it going. Cost: $2. The Board of Christian Education, Baptist General Conference, 1233 Central St., Evanston, IL 60201.
The Library and Resource Center in Christian Education, a book by Betty McMichael, is a good resource book on understanding the functions of a church library. Moody Press, #4985-X, $10.95, 2108 Howard St., Chicago, IL 60645.
Looking for New Members?
Many pastors desire membership growth, but often they aren’t quite sure where to begin.
According to Robert Orr, pastor of Ness Avenue Church in Winnipeg, Manitoba, in American Church Growth, Sept/Oct 1979, a prospect file is a basic step toward church growth. Orr defines a prospect file as “a specific list of people outside the fellowship of the church, to whom a bridge exists through one or more laypersons in the church.” It is this list, then, that receives the primary attention of any church evangelism or local outreach program.
A prospect file is helpful for several reasons. It allows church outreach to be planned to meet the needs of the specific people you are trying to reach. It helps identify relationships between people in the church and those contacts on the list. And the list helps focus church concern and prayer on individuals rather than on a nebulous group of “unchurched in the community.”
Orr points out many sources of names for the prospect list: 1. Unchurched friends and/or relatives of church members. 2. Non-Christian family members of Sunday school students and club members. 3. Special-interest groups meeting in the church that include community people. 4. Those influenced by specialized ministries, such as the elderly or handicapped. 5. People contacted through short-term ministries, such as Vacationl
6. Those contacted through church-sponsored sports events. 7. Visitors to church worship services, or special holiday or musical programs. 8. Referrals from church members, funeral homes, and hospitals. 9. Contacts made with new residents through church visitation or surveys. 10. Non-Christian friends of new converts in the church.
Orr points out, however, that just developing a prospect file is no guarantee that effective evangelism will take place or that the church will grow. The prospect list is simply a tool that must be used properly. Several guidelines should be kept in mind. 1. Gather as much information as possible about each prospect and become familiar with it. 2. Keep accurate records of each contact made.
3. Don’t allow prospects to become cold. Someone who visits a church may be a prospect for that week but will not necessarily be one the following month. 4. Train people to work with prospects. 5 Pray regularly and specifically for prospects on file. 6. Encourage active church programs into which prospects can be drawn when they are ready to become involved in the church.
Volunteers: Preserving A Vanishing Breed
As making a living, raising families, participating in community affairs and just plain living take more time, the church volunteer becomes more rare.
This scarcity may not totally be due to society’s demands, however. According to John and Paul Pearson, both full-time Christian executives, there are still people willing to volunteer who are willing, committed, incur few expenses, and provide a broader base for input on church programs. The problem is failure in defining volunteer tasks.
The Pearsons recommend in Moody Monthly May 1978, that four steps be taken before even approaching a volunteer about specific church jobs. 1. Know the exact job you want help with. 2. Prepare a timetable for the volunteer’s responsibilities . 3. Share a description of your desired results with the volunteer before he accepts the job. 4. Know where the volunteer fits into the church structure and explain to whom he should go for advice and progress reports.
Job description in hand, the recruiter must recruit responsibly. The job description, if written properly, will imply the type of person suited for the position. The Pearsons point out two principles that should underlie the recruiting process: 1. Do not overwork the most faithful people. Potential volunteers are often missed because they don’t aggressively campaign for jobs. 2. Recruit heavily. More volunteers means a wider base of support and communication, an expanded list for future positions, and an opportunity for leaders to observe and evaluate workers firsthand.
Once the recruiter has determined the number of volunteers needed and who will best fill the positions, several guidelines should be kept in mind: 1. Recruit volunteers personally. A letter or telephone call might work, but face-to-face requests usually get better results. 2. Don’t delay. When someone is asked to take on a project with the deadline looming just ahead, they usually think one of two things: either several people have already turned down the job, or church planning and procedure is poor and unorganized . 3. Don’t assume anything. Give a brief outline of your objectives, a history of the program, and long range plans. 4. Help the volunteer sense your enthusiasm for the job. 5. Emphasize his and the job’s importance to the church. Give an estimate of how much money the church saves by using volunteers, and indicate your awareness of his unique qualifications for the job.
Many make the mistake of putting volunteers into the program and then abandoning them. They must be aware of the staff’s concern for them and their jobs, and sense watchfulness but not direct control.
Mentioning volunteers in the church newsletter, writing personal notes of appreciation, and expressing verbal appreciation to the volunteers’ families are just a few ways to maintain an effective volunteer program in your church. After all-what would you do without them?
How Not To Run the Show
Many suggestions have been published about how to get the best results from meetings that you call. But rules are a little different when you are asked to attend a meeting someone else has convened.
The staff of The Effective Manager (Nov. 1977) has compiled a brief roster of things to keep in mind when you participate rather than preside.
1. Talk wears thin quickly. Within an established working group, the heavy talker falls into a stock role and may become a predictable joke. According to psychologists, more than 92 percent of all communication among people is nonverbal-a gesture, a tone of voice, eye contact. By simply giving someone your full attention, you can speak volumes.
2. Being prepared is a good way to show respect for others. Know the agenda and what you think about the subjects up for discussion. If you plan to fight for or against something, have data to back up your position. If you don’t disagree with the way the meeting is going, don’t feel obligated to make a comment.
3. There are several roles to avoid if you wish people to value your thoughtful participation:
a. Hemmer and Hawer. State your ideas clearly.
b. One-Upper. If someone comes up with a better idea than yours, support it wholeheartedly.
c. Comic. A little humor is good, but avoid playing the joker. Never put down someone else’s point with a smart remark.
d. Perpetual Reviser. There will be enough times when you have a truly worthwhile amendment. Avoid trying to add to every item discussed.
e. Legalist. If the meeting is not being run according to correct procedure, don’t feel obligated to recite Robert’s Rules of Order.
f. The Heavy. If you are the senior pastor or staff person, avoid giving lectures. Work through ideas with your competent colleagues.
How to Handle Criticism
Anyone in a position of leadership and decision-making will be the target of criticism-some justified and some not. Here are some suggestions from The Effective Manager (Dec. 1979) that can help you handle criticism without alienating the other person and ruining your working relationship.
1. Don’t listen defensively. It isn’t your responsibility to defend yourself against dispproval. It’s never easy to take criticism objectively, but if you make an effort, you might realize that the person has given a few good points.
2. Think independently and examine each remark on its own merit. Don’t decide the criticism is unjustified before you hear it, and don’t conclude that it is all correct. The criticizer could be wrong and so could you.
3. Look for the meaning behind the message. There may be more to the person’s message than you hear. To understand its full scope, listen to the speaker’s voice and watch his face.
4. Give a tactful response. While it is easier to give criticism than it is to take it, the person offering you advice probably has some anxiety about doing it, especially if he is honestly trying to be constructive. Be aware of his feelings and thank him for his consideration.
For Your Information
Christian Legal Society,
P.O. Box 2069, Oak Park, IL 60303, 312/ 848-7735;
Sponsors conferences related to Christian rights and responsibilities in society, information source for legal questions related to the local church.
EMIS (Evangelical Missions Information Service),
Box 794,Wheaton, IL 60187, 312/653-2158;
Publishes regular news releasesand research about missions worldwide.
Institute for American
Church Growth, 150 S. Los Robles, Suite *600, Pasadena, CA 91101, 213/449-4400; Church growth seminars, consultation, computer services and curriculum available.
Institute for the Study of American Religion,
P.O. Box 1311, Evanston, IL 60201,312/475-0601;
Information source for questions about religious trends and events in the United States.
Leadership Dynamics International,
5780 Peachtree Dunwoody Rd., NE, Suite #210, Atlanta, GA 30342;
Leadership skills training for Christians, traveling seminars.
National Association of Evangelicals’ Office of Public Affairs,
1430 K St., NW, Washington, DC 20005, 202/628-7911
Information source for background and status of legislation affecting the church and Christians’ rights.
Spiritual Counterfeits
Project, Inc., P. O: Box 4308, Berkeley, CA, 415/548-7947;
Information resource on major and obscure cults and religions in American society, regular publications available.
Copyright © 1980 by the author or Christianity Today/Leadership Journal. Click here for reprint information on Leadership Journal.
