Healthy church leaders focus on ministry, purpose of church

Healthy church leadership consists of leaders focused on the ministry of the church, not leadership, according to Leith Anderson, pastor of Wooddale Church, a Southern Baptist church in Eden Prairie, Minn.
   
Anderson led breakout sessions dealing with church staff and lay leader issues, why people come and stay in churches and a general question and answer time during the recent Healthy Leaders Healthy Churches Conference held at First Baptist Church, Pelham.
   
He offered suggestions for attenders on selecting a church leadership team, as well as selecting someone to join the church staff.
   
For the church’s leadership team:
   
1. Have clear expectations.
   
“We need to have people who know what’s expected of them,” Anderson said. “The church board is not involved in the day-to-day details of the church, it is responsible for the fulfillment of the church’s mission.”
   
2. Too big is too small.
   
When a leadership team is large, power tends to concentrate with two or three individuals, Anderson said. So a leadership team functions best when it is limited to six to 12 members.
   
3. Get the right people, beginning with the qualities listed in 1 Timothy 3.
  
“This is not about a person’s history,” Anderson said. “This is about their current character and behavior.”
   
4. Follow the skeleton principle.
   
The church leaders’ job is to provide support and strength to the church unseen, like a skeleton does. Rather, the ministry teams should be in the forefront of church life, urging members to get involved.
   
5. Build solidarity and consensus within the leadership through shared experiences.
  
For selecting a church staff member, Anderson said it is best to take the time and money at the beginning to choose the right person, rather than hurrying and choosing the wrong one.
   
1. Gather a search team made up of wise people.
   
2. Decide what the position is going to be.
   
3. For the first two or three months do not consider any candidates. Instead consider the selection process, qualifications, job description and interview questions.
   
4. Try to gather a wide pool of candidates.
   
5. Without notifying candidates, eliminate those who do not meet the  requirements by talking with references.
   
6. When the candidates are narrowed down, the senior pastor and senior church leader should make a home visit.
   
7. If the person is suitable, ask them to interview with the search committee without exposing them to the rest of the church, in case the candidate is disqualified.
   
Once the candidate is chosen and in position, assimilate them into the life of the church, Anderson said. He said this process is very time consuming, but “Getting rid of somebody is a whole lot more work and expensive — not just in terms of money — than taking the time and money up front.”
   
Anderson also shared some reasons why people choose to become a part of  a church. These include:
   
–The church’s friendliness and caring
   
–The quality of the sermons and respect for the pastor.
   
–The new relationships formed, involvement in small groups such as Sunday School or Bible studies.
   
–An atmosphere of excitement, as well as  of safety.
   
–The church’s emphasis on the Bible.
   
–The church provides opportunities for personal and spiritual growth, as well as involvement opportunities.
   
–The church has need-meeting  ministries such as strong children and youth programs as well as programs offering marital help.