Barnabas File

Many ministers falter or burn out because they do not attend to their personal spiritual health. The justification for failing to invest in one’s spiritual life is often, “I am just too busy.”  The same is true for the church staff. They are so busy doing good things that they may not spend time encouraging each other as disciples and facilitating each other’s spiritual growth. Sam Rainer dealt with this in a recent article on “4 ‘Must-Haves’ for Weekly Staff Meetings.”  Here are some of the things he suggested and some additional ideas. First, prayer is essential. Many churches collect prayer requests during weekend worship, then the staff prays about them during the weekly staff meetings.  The staff should also pray for each other, other needs of congregational members, and the challenges of the ministry. Second, sharing of scripture keeps everyone on track.  The pastor might share the scripture for the coming weekend’s service...

Like death and taxes, staff meetings seem unavoidable.     With the best of intentions, a leader calls people together with the intention that they be informed, share important information with one another, and leave better equipped to do their jobs.    Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not.   Here are some guidelines about effective staff meetings (or meetings of any kind for that matter) that might be helpful. First, is this meeting really necessary?  Does it require the presence of this specific group of people for a designated period of time?  If the answer is “No,” don’t bother to meet.  If “Yes,"  then proceed to the next questions. Second, what is the meeting’s purpose?  The best way to define this is to create in advance a written agenda for those who will be expected to attend.  Provide them with the opportunity to adjust the agenda either prior to the meeting or at the beginni...