Just wrapped up a meeting with our Executive Leadership Team. Just thought I'd share some thoughts on church government. I'm guessing you won't agree with all of these. And these are random thoughts. But here are some guiding principles.
1) Don't create two steps where there needs to be one! Bylaws need to be as streamlined as possible. Don't create bureaucracy where there doesn't need to be any! And don't meet for the sake of meeting. Make sure there is a rhyme and reason for everything.
2) Policies can actually be your friend. They keep you from making the same decision over and over again.
3) Don't discriminate against staff. I have no idea why you wouldn't let someone who is called to full-time ministry and trained for full-time ministry serve in the highest decision making capacity in your church. I definitely believe in staff-led churches versus board-led churches. I'm not saying there aren't alot of great board-led or laity-led churches. There are. But I think the staff-led model is a closer approximation to the New Testament model.
4) Form follows function. I believe that structure ought to facilitate ministry and it doesn't always do that! Our mission is "the horse." Church government is "the cart." Don't let the cart pull the horse. Your ministry ought to define your bylaws--not the other way around.
5) Surveying is better than voting. We have tried to create a survey culture at NCC. We want all the input we can get, but surveying is a different psychology than voting. Just for the record: voting is not biblical. I'm not saying it's unbiblical. And there can be a time and place to vote. But it isn't modeled in the New Testament.
6) Serving on a committee doesn't make you a leader. Choose leaders who would rather be doing ministry than sitting in a meeting! Leaders don't serve on committees. Leaders serve.
7) Your organizational structure is like a skeletal structure. It is extremely important. It supports your body. But it ought to be an invisible and unnoticeable as possible. It simply supports your mission. It's all about the mission!
1) Don't create two steps where there needs to be one! Bylaws need to be as streamlined as possible. Don't create bureaucracy where there doesn't need to be any! And don't meet for the sake of meeting. Make sure there is a rhyme and reason for everything.
2) Policies can actually be your friend. They keep you from making the same decision over and over again.
3) Don't discriminate against staff. I have no idea why you wouldn't let someone who is called to full-time ministry and trained for full-time ministry serve in the highest decision making capacity in your church. I definitely believe in staff-led churches versus board-led churches. I'm not saying there aren't alot of great board-led or laity-led churches. There are. But I think the staff-led model is a closer approximation to the New Testament model.
4) Form follows function. I believe that structure ought to facilitate ministry and it doesn't always do that! Our mission is "the horse." Church government is "the cart." Don't let the cart pull the horse. Your ministry ought to define your bylaws--not the other way around.
5) Surveying is better than voting. We have tried to create a survey culture at NCC. We want all the input we can get, but surveying is a different psychology than voting. Just for the record: voting is not biblical. I'm not saying it's unbiblical. And there can be a time and place to vote. But it isn't modeled in the New Testament.
6) Serving on a committee doesn't make you a leader. Choose leaders who would rather be doing ministry than sitting in a meeting! Leaders don't serve on committees. Leaders serve.
7) Your organizational structure is like a skeletal structure. It is extremely important. It supports your body. But it ought to be an invisible and unnoticeable as possible. It simply supports your mission. It's all about the mission!
10 Comments:
What a really great post!!! While I somewhat disagree with point 3 (I'm an Elder led guy)...point 5 was right on the mark!!! Thanks for taking he time to write this. It is the kind of stuff that young pastors and planters need to hear.
I love the way you guys seem to balance policy with mission without loosing focus and letting the process overtake the vision.
Chris,
Thanks :)
Just to fuel a conversation...I think we assume that "Elder" means "non-pastor" or "non-staff." Is is possible that "Elder" as it was used in the New Testament was more of an "overseer" which is somewhat synonymous with staff/pastor.
I have more questions than answers, but I do think it's healthy to think about it and talk about it.
When I describe the way we function at NCC I'm always careful to say it's more "descriptive" than "prescriptive." I honestly think we need a variety of government structures.
FYI--I'm glad "Elder" doesn't refer to age or we'd be in serious trouble at NCC :) We're 73% single twenty-somethings.
Mark
Mark,
I love your blog.
I agree with you on your version of the leadership model.
I have been a part of both kinds of churches, (elder-led and staff led) and the staff led model has worked better. At least in the churches I have been a part of.
Peace!
In all of my years in church leadership, from deacon to elders. I have never agreed more with your idea's. I have seen more churchs literally split apart, over voting.
Everything Rises and Falls on Leadership. Praying that God gives you leadership skills far beyond your years. Follow HIS lead!!!
Oh yeah...I totally agree. My concern is that I've been talking to some really young guys who are serving in other established churches. They want to be church planters so they "don't have to take orders from an elder board or deacon body". They are making their "staff" elders so they can say they are elder led. The problem...some of their "staff" have only been a Christian for a few months. 1 Timothy 3 makes it pretty clear that that is a "no-no". I can just see these guys saying, "Batterson's staff leads his church..." :-)
They need to know that your staff is not made out of every Tom, Dick or Harry that walks in. I know you guys have a leadership process and that spiritual maturity is high on your list of qualifications.
I don't disagree at all with your statement...I just think too many folks out there don't fully comprehend what staff/overseer really entails.
By the way...I'm getting ready to blog about your book. It wasn't my cup of tea...but I gave a copy to a friend that had spiritually check out. He read it, rededicated and I'm pretty sure he crashed Hell with a squirt gun the other day. :-)
Chris,
Good thoughts.
There is always a little concern over someone doing something just because someone else is doing it. Does that make sense? There are a 1000 factors that go into play when figuring out structure.
At the end of the day, we're all human--pastors and boards, clergy and laity, deacons and staff. And that is why churches have issues :) We just have to make sure, whether it's staff or laity, that we have mature, genuine, God-loving and God-fearing people in key decision-making capacities.
We've got a great mix of staff and laity in those key positions.
I think staff needs to be empowered to make decisions when it comes to "ministry matters." But I'm so grateful for a Stewardship team that handles "financial matters." It keeps things neat and clean.
We always have to remember that Christ is the shepherd of His church. It belongs to Him. I'm just an under-shepherd. And we're all accountable at the end of the day.
Thanks for the comment.
Mark
Mark,
thanks for comment # 6.
I've always been a huge fan of the phrase, "Ministries do what committees discuss."
I’m late on this conversation but it’s right where I am with my new church plant.
I’m trying to understand the structure behind a staff led church (which is what we’re trying to do). What does the structure look like so that the pastor and staff can lead creatively and quickly, while at the same time be held accountable so they don’t go off the deep end and take the church with them?
Who’s in charge? How are decisions made? What does the church body vote on, if anything? Who makes the financial decisions? How do you keep the decision makers in check?
There are no books out there to my knowledge that clearly outline how to structure a staff led church, or the different ways of doing so.
Any help would be appreciated.
Andy,
A few thoughts...
1) I think staff-led means the pastor is empowered with overall vision for a church, and there is a trickle down. Think of it as "vision-driven" in a sense. For example, our small group leaders are empowered to get a vision from God and go for it.
There are checks and balances. There is accountability, but ministry decisions are ultimately made by the pastor and staff--not a board made up of lay elders.
2) We don't vote on much. But we try to "survey" just about everything!
3) We do defer financial issues to our stewardship team and they "green light" our budget, but it's ministry vision driving the budget not vice versa.
The longer I pastor the more I realize there is a delicate balance to all of this and the Holy Spirit is the key :)
This probably warrants a longer conversation, but hopefully that helps some. Love to do a conference session on this stuff sometime. Tough questions, decisions, issues. But important. I've seen too many church ripped apart by government issues and board conflict.
Mark
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