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THE PLANNING STEPS

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THE PLANNING ARROW

planningBy Ken Blue

NEED, THEN PURPOSE GO IN THE TARGET. OBJECTIVES GO ON THE LINES ON THE SHAFT. THESE MUST SUPPORT YOUR PURPOSE. GOALS ARE DETERMINED FROM THE OBJECTIVES.

GOALS MUST BE:

  • S – specific, significant, stretching.
  • M – measurable, meaningful, motivational.
  • A – agreed upon, attainable, achievable, acceptable, action-oriented.
  • R – realistic, relevant, reasonable, rewarding, results-oriented.
  • T – time-based, time-bound, timely, tangible, trackable.

A VIEW TO GROWTH: ENLARGEMENT

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Crafting ministries with a view to growth

view to growth

 

By Ken Blue

“Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;” Isaiah 54:2.

God will keep his promises to Israel. In anticipation of the returning remnant, Israel is called upon to enlarge their facilities in order to accommodate them. Their faith will determine how they respond to that command.

The question is; are your plans, facilities, and ministries crafted with a view to growth? Do you really expect God to bless your church with a numerical increase? You need not answer; your plans reveal your faith.

Is your baptistery ready to baptize new converts, or is it like many that are decaying in dry rot? Are your nurseries staffed, clean, and ready for the infants of young families? Do you have trained teachers and workers for children when they arrive? Are your greeters prepared for guest each Sunday? If not, why not? Is it because of a lack of faith?

[pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Your preparation shows your faith or the lack thereof.[/pullquote]

Don’t wait for families to show up before you prepare. Get ready for them now! “And sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready.” Luke 14:17. Jesus said, “I go to prepare a place for you.” The average church is surprised if they have visitors on Sunday. You should be surprised and disappointed when you don’t have visitors. Is your church pregnant with expectation, that visitors will come? Once again, your preparation shows your faith or the lack thereof.

The experts tell us that the average church building can only maintain about 80% of its seating capacity. So, if your building is 80% full, you must take action to grow. “…lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;” Isaiah 54:2

Sad to say, some pastors do not want their church to grow. It is just large enough to pay them a salary, and just small enough to be a comfortable little family. If a church is doing what the Lord commanded, it ought to see new visitors and new converts each week. Pastor, the truth is we plan our church ministries according to our faith and vision. I challenge you; enlarge your existing ministries and expect growth from the Lord. Get a view to growth!

HOW TO ORGANIZE YOUR MINISTRY

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HOW TO ORGANIZE YOUR MINISTRY

organize your ministryWebster’s Dictionary defines to organize as: “To put together into an orderly, functional, structured whole. To arrange in a coherent form; systematize.  To arrange in a desired pattern or structure. To arrange systematically for harmonious or united action.”

Once the planning process of setting objectives and goals has been completed, the next step is to organize the work. The way to do this is to ask key questions of each ministry goal. The questions should be: Who is responsible for this project? What materials will be needed? How much money is needed for it? When will the project begin and when will it be completed?

A look at the above paragraph shows that men, money, materials and minutes are the assets needed, and they must be properly organized to complete the task in the most efficient manner.

I believe an organizational chart should be created for the entire church. Each position on it must show the ministry title and the name of the person for that position. The lines between the boxes are a language to let you know who each person reports to and what authority they have, if any. The chart gives you a complete picture of the church, what its ministries are and who is responsible for every ministry. A glance at this will remove the ministerial fog that so often obscures ones vision of what their church should be about.

Remember, your chart should be built on your ministry objectives and not on the existing organization. You may shoot an arrow into the wall and then draw a target around it. It does not prove that you are a good archer. Likewise, by drawing a chart around your existing ministries does not mean that you have planned or that you are doing the right things.

So, the first thing is to plan your ministry with an annual planning conference, then create your organization from those plans. The reason many churches are a train wreck and the people are confused is poor planning or no planning. A carpenter friend of mine said, “It is better to measure twice and cut once than to measure once and cut twice. So, measure your ministry and make a clear cut distinction with a good organization.

If you would like more information on this subject, please let me know.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

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division in the local churchDivision in the local church

By Ken Blue

“Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” 1 Corinthians 1:10.

I know of nothing that causes strife and division in the local church like voting and giving undue attention to the church constitution. There are churches that cannot make a decision without first consulting the constitution to see if it is permissible and then voting to see how many will oppose it. Growing churches cannot function when hamstrung with policies which require a vote on every decision.

Why not plan the entire year with your leadership; then build the budget around those plans? Having done that let the membership review it. Tell them to contact the deacons if they have questions. The pastor and staff should not be contacted about budget matters. Finally, have a Victory and Vision Banquet where the budget is approved, but not discussed. Once the budget is approved, move forward in freedom to accomplish the ministry goals that have been set.

The pastor should also have liberty to appoint men and women to fill all needed ministry positions. It is unwise to vote on these people.

[pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The fewer things a church votes on, the less division it will have.[/pullquote]

The fewer things a church votes on, the less division it will have. There are four things, if voted on, that will allow the church work to go forward. These are: 1. Vote on the annual budget. 2. Vote on any change in the constitution. 3. Vote on the purchase of property or building new buildings. 4. Vote on the hiring of a new pastor. The pastor should take the leadership in all these matters; otherwise there will be much ado about nothing.

PLANNING YOUR MINISTRY

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PLANNING YOUR MINISTRY # 1

planning

It is a fact that most pastors and churches never create plans extending beyond next Sunday’s sermon. They have no written annual plans for outreach, maturity, worship, buildings or missions. One reason is the pastor may not understand its value. Another might be fear or laziness. You may wonder why one would be fearful to establish a plan. The answer is simple; if you plan, you might fail. Thus, the safest course of action is not to act or plan.

October is a good time to hold the planning session for your church. The date, time, place and who will attend should be put on your calendar months prior to the scheduled date. The pastor must spend some time alone looking at his purpose statement and asking himself some questions about it. Each question must be prefaced with “What do we need to do to…” The answers should be written down for his personal guidance at the planning meeting. This is pre-planning.

Prior to the meeting, an agenda should be created and distributed to all who attend. The time to be granted on each item must be listed. The moderator should ensure that the meeting stays on course and adheres to the allotted time. 

Write the question on the board, and then the moderator should ask, “What do we need to do to…” Answers should be written on the whiteboard under the question. The only response allowed to each idea is, “good, write that down. Now, what else do we need to do…?”  Do not allow any discussion or comments on the ideas until the team has run out of suggestions, if you do, you will squelch the meeting and people will stop giving ideas. Follow this procedure with all major ministry questions. This is the brainstorming of the session.

[pullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]A clear plan not only gives direction, it liberates and gives purpose.[/pullquote]

Once all the ideas are in on each ministry, decide which ideas the church should turn into ministry goals. Once this has been done on the major ministries, set dates on when each idea will be implemented and completed. Also, determine who will be responsible for that goal and what the expense will be. This gives ownership and responsibility for each goal. Review points should be set to determine progress.

A clear plan of how you are to achieve each goal, not only gives direction, it liberates and gives purpose. I want to challenge each pastor to schedule a planning session for his ministry. It will be one of the most helpful things you can do. So, start planning to plan.