Nine simple steps to a better business meeting

Nine simple steps to a better business meeting

By Hal Pettegrew

Stressed out by your church business meetings? Turn them into positive, team-building Kingdom work with these nine common-sense ideas.

1.  Publish the meeting agenda ahead of time.

• Make a printed agenda available the Sunday before a Wednesday business meeting, include it in your church’s e-mail newsletter and post it on your church Website.
• If your church family knows what will be discussed, they will be better prepared and more encouraged to participate.
• It will also demonstrate that church leaders are planning and there is nothing secretive about the meeting.
• Consider including in your policy manual limitations on items that can be brought to the floor that are not on the published agenda. This will prevent major surprise votes.

2.  Know the agenda well.

• Do not assume any motion will pass without discussion.
• Talk with the committee chairpersons who will be presenting motions.
• Be sure you know the “ins” and “outs” of each motion.

3.  Know where your people are and the underlying issues.

• Who are the primary stake-holders and leaders in your church?
• Who are the opinion-makers in the church?

4.  Set a positive tone.
You need to be comfortable in front of the church body and radiate a sense of positive self-confidence.

5.  Get outside help with controversial issues.
If you are working with a controversial subject (one that might cause a split in the life of the church) consider inviting an objective, outside person who has good up-front presence and is versed in Robert’s Rules of Order to chair the meeting (possibly your association moderator).

6.  Be familiar with Robert’s Rules of Order.
Take a copy with you to the meeting or have someone you can trust who might function as a parliamentarian. When used properly, Robert’s Rules can be very helpful in organizing the discussion.

7.  Present motions clearly and professionally.
This is almost as important as the content of the motion in terms of its acceptance. Use a variety of presentation methods such as handouts and PowerPoint. Anticipate questions that might be asked in the presentation of the motion. Sloppy presentations invite sloppy discussions.

8. Preface the meeting with prayer and Scripture.
Move the meeting toward the direction of the church as an organism, rather than the church as an institution. Set the tone for the meeting so it’s not just a business meeting like those of other organizations. Emphasize that this is a business meeting where God and God’s people are present. If at any time in the discussion you have the sense that feelings are getting out of control, take a break in the discussion, and then pray again.

9. Have as few business meetings as possible.
Many church business meetings are a waste of time. Meeting once a quarter would be sufficient in almost any church. As your church family embodies trust within itself, most business of your church can be delegated to other small work groups. These groups should operate within the bounds of the policies of the church and the annual church budget.

Give them freedom to do their work without having to get approval from the church for every jot and tittle. In between business meetings, make available on Sunday or in mailouts information about the work of the church. Consider occasional “information meetings” (no motions, no voting) to keep the church family informed of all the wonderful actions taking place in the life of the church.

Hal Pettegrew is associate pastor of church ministries at Walnut Street Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky.

2001-2009, LifeWay Christian Resources

 

A Philosophy of Christian Education for the Young People Class by Gene Filio

A Philosophy of Christian Education for the Young People Class

The young people have the most active and dynamic learning capability. They must be approached with utmost respect in regards with their individual abilities. Their inquisitive behavior is the foundation of their present and future approach in life. They are not so much interested in the acquisition of facts but on the applicability of acquired knowledge. So, to a Christian educator, the young people should not be treated as students but disciples of the Lord, the young people are not mere listeners but partners in the growth of faith, the Young People Class is not just a Sunday School Class but a leadership program in progress.

Teaching Approach

We are going to use the word VIBES to make everyone conceptualize on the approach of teaching to be undertaken. VIBES means a particular kind of feeling, atmosphere or ambiance.

The purpose of this group is to create an environment where people are connected to one another for the purpose of knowing God, experience new birth, developing a heart for the lost and developing true community.

V- Verbalize faith with conviction

The young people will learn to develop the ability to verbalize their faith with conviction.

I – Imitators of Christ

The young people will learn to think like Christ, act like Christ and have a heart like Christ.

B- Bible Learner and Teacher

The young people will learn to read and understand the Bible with humility and faith.

E- Enjoying the Fellowship of Believers

The young people will learn the value of fellowship and church.

S- Spiritual Growth and Maturity

The young people will develop to become a follower of Christ and a leader in the church.

Method of Teaching

1. Among friends – develop the concept of Fellowship.

2. Among disciples- develop the concept of servant hood-leadership.

3. Among believers – develop the concept of church.

4. Among leaders- grow in faith in the knowledge of God the Father, the saving grace of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Filling Holy Spirit.

Conduct of the Class

1. Fit – Lets the group get to know each other in the class and to prepare the group for the Bible Study.

2. Flow – Let the members of the group understand the message of the story of the Bible that will lead them to action.

3. Mirror – Let the members of the group apply the message of the story in the Bible and to share with the group what a person is going to do about the lesson learned.

Beginning Lessons

First Lesson: Christian Discipleship: A Four Part Lesson

Aim of the Study: The Young People will learn how God can change a person’s life into a very useful disciple. So that by accepting God’s plan of salvation and experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit, every member of the Sunday School class can become what God intended them to be

Study No. 1 “At the Potter’s House”

This study details God’s plan of salvation and how all young people can have eternal life through accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Study No. 2 “Mending broken pieces”

This Bible lesson helps young people understands sin and temptation and offers biblical remedies to successfully resisting them.

Study No. 3 “Tested in a fire”

The Bible Study gives youth the assurance that God will use the difficulties of life to make them more like Christ.

Study No. 4 “Sandals never worn out”

This bible lesson helps the young people understands the importance of Bible Study, prayer and fellowship.

Sola Scriptura   

 

 

The Mendacity of the G12 Movement By Gene Filio

 

This article is a reflection on the current issue besetting churches and the Unida Church in particular. Church leaders are discussing a major issue right now. It is about the so-called G12 Vision. Many are now familiar with this term and history, but for those who are in the dark let me give you an overview.

 

 

G12 stands for the Government of Twelve People, twelve people after being taught and trained would eventually fathered 12 new believers and grand fathered 12 new believers. Disciples repeat the same process to promote church growth. Cesar Castellanos Dominguez of Bogota, Colombia who borrowed the idea from David Yonggi Cho after visiting Yoido Full Gospel Church in South Korea developed this pyramidal scheme for church growth.

 

 

The G12 methodology of growth can be summed into four categories namely;

 

 

1. Win-new believers are added to the open cell through friendship and by utilizing the prayer of 3 strategy ( three disciples meeting once a week and pray for three non-Christian each and inviting them to evangelistic events until these three people make a decision for Christ).

2. Consolidate-after joining the cell, new believers are consolidated in the Pentecostal-charismatic faith and sent on an encounter (these are weekend retreats-somewhat like an indoctrination camp where new believers are being re-oriented and re-directed into the G12 agenda).

3. Disciple-once the new believers (already brainwashed and re-focused) has experienced an encounter, they are sent to the school of leaders ( a nine month split into a three ten week sections course study of the fundamentals of the Pentecostal-charismatic faith as well as the principles of the G12 vision).

4. Send-during the school of leaders the believers begins to reach out through friendships and prayer of 3 to start their own open cell. Once they have opened their own open cell, one of two things happens.

a. The new cell leader stays in their own leader’s open cell. This cell gradually changes into a closed leadership cell (an exclusive club).

b. Or, more commonly, will join a separate leadership cell under their cell leader.

 

Church leaders have become aware of the G12 deception and fallacies. The “new believers” or “new disciples” targeted by this group are not new at all. These are actually the regular church members and also pastors and church leaders of certain church denominations who are in search of ways and means to help promote growth in their church but eventually becoming victims of a very crude deception by attending their conferences. The G12 in actuality is promoting division and exclusiveness in the church. The truth of the matter is that G12 originators are gathering disciples for themselves not for Christ. Pastors, church leaders and church members would become puppets of the twelve originators who would downgrade and down play existing church leadership to the detriment of the church. In reality a crisis of leadership will arise geared towards a confrontation of what is now and what should become. A church founded by Christ or a church founded by the G12 people. And the loser of this confrontation is the Church the body of Christ. Smite the shepherd and the sheep will go astray. The devil is so cunning the Christian church must watch and guard their sheepfold. Many have already found out about this deception and fallacies and have left the G12 movement. Let us not be caught off-guard and suffer the consequence of the errors of G12.

Get out of her right now!

 

Finding Faith in Troubled Times by Gene Filio

A Troubled Times

Look at the news today; approximately 120,000 dead in Myanmar due to a cyclone and neglect, a 7.9 earthquake caused the death of more than 30,000 people in China many of them school children and only child in a family, six million children in Ethiopia faces malnutrition, 9 working people brutally killed inside a bank, 8 dead 5 of them sleeping children massacred by a monster with an M-16 rifle. Knock, knock Hello, Mr. Crypt are you asking how a loving God would allow such a thing to happen to innocent people.

Lord, you have given hope to Brother Jun and you have kept him safe in your mercy for a long time. A year ago, he has given up hope but Lord you showed him compassion. A year has passed, he has to undergo chemo-therapy again but it seems his body is frail and weak. But, I know and the church knows; we all know our God is an awesome God who reigns! Sister Muriel has waited for four years and years of painful dialysis for a kidney and pancreas donor and my Lord and my God you did a good job. When I first saw her she can barely stand nor walk by herself. Now she’s as agile as her 17 year old donor; may she be enjoying your heavenly bliss.

GOD IS NOW HERE

Mr. Crypt you may have been blind and deaf for a long, long time. You have eyes but you were blinded by sin and ignorance. You have ears but your ears were covered by your selfishness and conceit. You just do not want to listen. You just do not want to see. All that you crave for and all that you ever wanted most are the lust of your flesh and the pride of your life. What else is new Mr. Crypt? God to you is a non-entity. God to you is some one who does not care. God to you is no where. But as for me and to all who have faith; GOD IS NOW HERE!

God does not delight in suffering and death. He is pained the more when any of us His creature suffers or is facing death. He shed his blood for us. He wept. He cried out loud from excruciating pain and agony. Through our pain and suffering God accomplished His purpose and will. That we may know Him the only true God and His Son Jesus Christ our Savior.

God accomplished His purpose and will

At the cross of Calvary, God showed us through Jesus that He could take the pain and bear it for our sake. When we suffer He suffered the most. When we are in pain He was pained the more. For His love is far greater than any pain or any suffering that we could ever bear. And He bears them all. Do you know that you can take your pain and suffering to God? He said, “Come to me all who are heavy laden and I will give you rest…” The truth was He took our pain, our suffering and our death with Him at the cross.

At the cross of Calvary, God showed us through Jesus that He could face death and triumphed over it. He conquered the fear and pangs of death so that we also could face it with hope of life. For we are all looking forward to that glorious day when God would tap us on our shoulder and say, “well done good and faithful servant.”

In Life Two things are sure to come; Death and Taxes.

Ephatha!

 

A Pew Words on the Church by Gene Filio

What is the Church?

The word translated “church” in the English Bible is ekklesia. This word is the Greek words kaleo (to call), with the prefix ek (out). Thus, the word means “the called out ones.” However, the English word “church” does not come from ekklesia but from the word kuriakon, which means “dedicated to the Lord.” This word was commonly used to refer to a holy place or temple. By the time of Jerome’s translation of the New Testament from Greek to Latin, it was customary to use a derivative of kuriakon to translate ekklesia. Therefore, the word church is a poor translation of the word ekklesia since it implies a sacred building, or temple. A more accurate translation would be “assembly” because the term ekklesia was used to refer to a group of people who had been called out to a meeting. It was also used as a synonym for the word synagogue, which also means to “come together,” i.e. a gathering. “Body of Christ” Since believers have been united with Christ through spiritual baptism, they are sometimes corporately referred to as the body of Christ. (Rom. l2:4-5; 1 Cor. l2:11,13,l8,27; Col. l:l8; Eph. 5:30) The church therefore means an assembly of believers gathered together as a worshipping community dedicated in worship and service to God and as a witnessing community to preach the gospel and to make disciples of all nations.

The Reinvented Church

The church has a crisis of identity. It has become a Reactive Church. The emphasis of churches today can be summed up in the following concepts:

First, the church is saying to itself, “God in me. God in you”. The church is reacting to the stimulus of human experiences in shaping its agenda and purpose.

Second, the church is looked at in, “God in socio-political-cultural perspective”. The church is being determined by sincere socio-political-cultural experiences in developing its agenda and purpose.

Third, the church is molded in, “God in tradition and heritage”. The church is being caged by Regulative Principles from a very commendable ecclesiastical era.

Reclaiming the Church

The church was built upon the foundation of the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

Jesus said to his disciples, who do you say I am? Peter answered saying, “You are the Christ the Son of the Living God”. And Jesus said, “…upon this rock. I will build my church.”

The church is a worshipping community dedicated in worship and service to God. The duty, ministry and mission/missions of the church were committed and intended for the glorification of God and in the proclamation of the Gospel.

In the prayer of Jesus in John 17:13 he said, “Now this is eternal life, that they may know you the only true God and Jesus whom you have sent.”

The church is a witnessing community empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Acts 1:8 states, “And you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

The Great Commission is the impetus that moves the church to action.

Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold I will be with you until the end of the age. (Matthew 28:19-20)

The Bible is the Word of God it is the only source and basis of the church faith and practices.

Tole, Lege