Effective Strategies for Church Board Meetings

In some churches, mature and godly men spend more time in board or committee meetings than anything else, with the possible exception of Sunday church services. Through the years, the board and committee process has met with subtle and not-so-subtle criticism. It has been said: “A camel is a horse designed by a committee.” Another writer stated that a committee is “a group of the unwilling, chosen from among the unfit, to do the unnecessary.”

These assessments came from someone’s experience, but certainly do not have to be true. It is possible for pastors and church boards to enjoy a special bond of caring, support, and efficiency. A board should contain significant supporters and enablers for their pastor(s) and for God’s vision for their church. Since the New Testament presents little biblical precedent for boards and committees in the church, we must recognize them as helpful tools for leadership that fit the culture of democracy. This brief article will attempt to provide some usable suggestions for making church board and committee meetings more profitable.

Understand the Task
Why are you meeting? What is the purpose of the group or meeting? You must determine whether the board is on–going or temporary, supervisory, coordinating, providing feedback, solving a specific issue, or advising. Some meet regularly while others could meet once or twice. The emphasis of this article will be for “on-going” boards that meet regularly.

Prioritize God
All uses of the church people’s time should glorify God, bring obedience, meet needs, serve others, or carry out the “Great Commission.” Ultimately, a church board is more likely to glorify God by serving and enabling others so they may grow spiritually and become more effective in serving, leading, teaching or witnessing to others. There is no place for pride, politics, or anger in a church board meeting. It is wise to make reading the Word of God and prayer an essential part of every meeting.

Always an Agenda
If it is not possible to develop a specific meeting agenda, the meeting should be cancelled. Time is too important to spend it on the unnecessary. The “what” and “why” of the items to be considered are essential. It is wise to allocate amounts of time for each item to be considered and specific start and stop times for the meeting itself.

Prepared Leaders Lead
Depending upon the level of tasks and roles in the church life, chairmen are appointed or elected to prepare and lead. A church board would be led by the senior (lead) pastor, and other boards or committees in larger churches may be led by various associate pastors. Single pastor churches may have committees led by well-prepared laymen. All leaders should pray for and prepare the details of each meeting they will chair.

Preparations should involve a “pre-meeting checklist.” This checklist must include what the leader or chair needs to do to prepare for the meeting. Items may include date and time, handouts, research, reports, a follow-up of assigned tasks from the last meeting’s minutes, and a review of the agenda.

Look Forward
Board and committee leaders should resist a “problem-solving focus.” Otherwise, they must find lots of problems in order to have a successful meeting! A better vision for the group is to explore ways to innovate and set goals for new or improved ministries for God. A preoccupation with the past and present problems will leave a board depressed, doubting God, and with little enthusiasm for what God could do in their church.

Utilize Brainstorming
A setting for good communication and sharing of ideas will provide some means of capturing and saving ideas. It is important to designate a person to record the contributions and suggestions.

Assign Tasks and Research
Before an on-going board or committee adjourns, research tasks and projects should be assigned. Everyone should be completely aware of his or her responsibilities. It is essential that authority to function be delegated along with responsibility. Reports at the next meeting should be brief (5–10 minutes, depending on the significance of the task), concise, and clear.

Continuing Education
Any on-going board or committee should take time for instruction, reading, or attending seminars in order to improve their abilities to serve and perform.

Hopefully this brief treatment of the very important function of church boards and committees will provide insights that will assist churches to operate more smoothly.

For a helpful catalog of CD training materials available for improving ministry skills, email Dr. Bixby at hbixby@bbc.edu.

Dr. Howard Bixby (Th.M., Ed.D.) is the Dean and a Professor of Church Leadership and Growth at BBS. He has served for 19 years as a pastor and for 21 years in his current role.

return to the Summer 2007 Paraklesis