Good leadership requires good meetings. Unfortunately, this reality can often be buried underneath our negative feelings about church administration. God called us into ministry so we can do pastoral care, work for justice, proclaim the gospel as preachers and teachers, etc. — who wants to sit through meetings all week?
Years ago, Louis Weeks, president emeritus of Union Presbyterian Seminary, acknowledged that administration is often regarded as “scutwork,” the work nobody wants to do. He tried to recast the administrative responsibilities of the church in a more positive light. Scutwork, he argued, is an essential part of a flourishing ministry. Someone has to plan the worship service so the music, prayers and message are presented with intention. Someone has to schedule maintenance to ensure the congregation is a good steward of its facilities.
This brings us to meetings. It may be helpful to think about the opportunity they offer you to do ministry in a more faithful way. For example, they provide an excellent opportunity to work through conflict. When we avoid meetings because of conflict, the conflict festers and becomes even more difficult to manage. Hosting a hospitable meeting with the affected parties can lead to reconciliation and a better working relationship.
Meetings also create space to invite participation and solicit genuine input. Having a planned conversation with a staff member, church volunteer or ministry group lets them know that what they have to say is important. When leaders use the agenda to foster dialogue, people will know that leaders care about what they have to say, and they will tell the leader what they really think.
So when is your next meeting?
Resources
Can leaders improve church meetings by rearranging the chairs? A pastor describes how physical space affects the work we do there.
Seemingly mundane details, such as rearranging the furniture, may be an undervalued opportunity to stimulate connection and cultivate community.
By L. Roger Owens
Learning to speak more honestly in meetings
What would you say for a PayDay bar? A lighthearted exercise using peanut-encrusted candy as a reward is remarkably effective in helping people speak more honestly in public, writes a human resources specialist.
By Claire O. Bowen
How to host online meetings with Christian hospitality
Virtual gatherings are here to stay, so let’s host them well, writes a managing director of Leadership Education at Duke Divinity.
By Gretchen E. Ziegenhals
Administration is a Christian vocation
It’s easy to see how teaching, scholarship, preaching, counseling and other activities are the work of ministry. But it may be harder to understand how being an administrator in a Christian institution is also the work of the gospel, says Donald Senior, president emeritus of Catholic Theological Union and the author of a book on the subject.
Interview with Donald Senior
Martyrdom of the mundane
The “administrivia” that leaders face can seem divorced from the real work of ministry. But attending to small details pays off in ways that are hard to imagine, writes Louis Weeks.
By Louis B. Weeks
Before you go
I’ve invested a lot of time during the last 25 years learning to facilitate better meetings. I now see administrative and ministry meetings as opportunities to build relationships and foster collaboration. In a culture that is hyper-focused on efficiency, it doesn’t take long to lose people’s confidence with meetings that don’t seem relevant. I’ve learned is to make every effort to start the meeting on time and to communicate clearly when you want the meeting to end. In this respect, a good meeting is like a good sermon. It needs to have an organized starting point and a definite conclusion. Also, like a good sermon, good meetings require preparation. Do your homework. Bring relevant information. Ask generative questions. And it never hurts to bring snacks.
You can always reach me and the Alban Weekly team at alban@duke.edu. Until next week, keep leading!
Prince R. Rivers
Editor, Alban at Duke Divinity