ELDERS TRAINING SEMINAR Based on the Elders Handbook
ELDER’S TRAINING SEMINAR Based on the Elder’s Handbook Ministerial Association of the General Conference www. ministerialassociation. com
Church Committees Chapter 3 – Part 5
Committees’ Purpose Committees are Christians working together “Where there is no counsel, the people fall; but in the multitude of counselors there is safety. ” Proverbs 11: 14
Committees’ Purpose • The body operates on the basis of group participation. • Make decision at the lowest level possible. • Committees can be terribly time consuming. • Do not take to the board items that can be settled at other levels.
Business Meeting • Business meeting should always be publicly announced so that all know they are welcome to attend. • The highest ranking committee of the local church. • Includes all members of the congregation. • Called and chaired by the pastor or by a designated elder.
Business Meeting • Held monthly or quarterly. • Full information should be given to the congregation. • Members are free to express their opinions and show their support or rejection by vote. • Designate additional committees as needed. • Where the most significant plans should be discussed and approved.
Church Board Composition, Mandate, Attributions: • Made up of the principal officers and heads of each department of the local church along with any other members chosen by the nominating committee. • The board is elected annually by the church membership.
Church Board Composition, Mandate, Attributions: • The pastor calls and chairs the board unless the pastor delegates this authority to an elder. • It should meet at least once each month, preferably at a fixed time. • It is the principal administrative committee of the local church.
Church Board Responsibilities: • Spiritual nurture, evangelism and maintenance of doctrinal purity. • Upholding Christian standards and recommending changes in church membership.
Church Board Responsibilities: • Church finances, protection and care of church properties. • Coordination of church departments. • Designate special committees for specific purposes.
The Committee Member Initiator • An idea person, continuously coming up with something new. Elaborator • Creative by nature, enlarges on ideas presented by suggesting arguments both for and against.
The Committee Member Challenge • Often a conservative, may seem a nuisance but are necessary in the process of a balanced discussion.
The Committee Member Appeaser • Does not like dispute, seeks ways to bring different viewpoints together. Energizer • Gives enthusiastic support to new plans and programs and wants to get on with the action.
The Committee Chairperson • The agenda: a list of the items to be discuss. • Open the meeting: with prayer and a brief devotional. • Church clerk: should record proceedings. Minutes from the last meeting should have been distributed to committee members soon after it was held. • Move the committee: toward a decision.
The Committee Chairperson • 1 st Item on the agenda: reading and accepting the minutes of the committee’s last meeting. • Caution: • Do not let any person dominate or manipulate other committee members. • Clarify the issues under consideration. • Keep discussion on the subject. • Summarize occasionally.
- Slides: 15