Reading: Applying Chapter 16

APPLYING CHAPTER 16 

1. Do you belong to a denomination or group that specifies leadership positions in the local church, with required qualifications or disqualifiers? If so, what are the reasons for these requirements? 

2. The chapter lists four ways leaders can be selected or officially recognized. 

a. List the officially recognized leadership positions in your church, and which of the four ways applies to each position. 

b. Is that working well, or should anything change? 

3. Does your church have a personnel team or group that identifies or nominates people for leadership positions? (This could be a group that also has other responsibilities, such as a church council.) 

a. If so, what are their responsibilities? 

b. Are those responsibilities clearly defined and understood? 

c. If you don’t have such a team, why not? 

4. Think about your leadership selection process. 

a. How does it assess the Christian maturity of those under consideration? 

b. How does it assess their Biblical qualifications? 

5. List any spoken or unspoken cultural expectations in your church about who is qualified to fill what positions, and who is not. 

a. Does the Bible support these expectations, condemn them, or is it silent or neutral on the subject? 

b. If the Bible does not support the cultural expectations, pray about whether this is the time to say or do anything about it. 

6. How would you describe your leadership style? 

a. Are you able to adjust that style for different situations and different people? 

b. If not, how do you plan to learn that skill? 

7. The section on “Working with Leaders and Workers” contains seven things you should be doing with and for your leaders. For each one, write down your specific practices or plans to make that happen: 

a. Spend time with them 

b. Encourage them 

c. Train them 

d. Resource them 

e. Protect them 

f. Give them feedback 

g. Celebrate them 

8. Does your church or denomination have a policy about how to remove a leader who is not effective? If not: 

a. Write a draft policy. 

b. Prayerfully plan how and when to introduce it to your local church leadership team. 

9. Analyze your church’s communications based on the criteria in the chapter. Where can improvements be made? 

a. Your personal communications 

b. Communications between church leaders

c. Communication with the congregation 

d. Communication with the public 

10. If your church uses social media: 

a. How does it help your ministry? 

b. How can it be improved? 

c. What problems should you beware of, and how will you guard against them? 

11. Does your denomination or church have a policy for dealing with leaders who are guilty of moral failure? 

a. If yes, are you and your leaders familiar with it? 

b. If no, list some established churches or denominations that have policies you might consult for ideas. 

c. After a little research, write out what you believe are the basic policies and practices your church needs to safeguard God’s money and property and your church’s reputation. 

d. Make plans to discuss this with your church leaders.