Category Archives: Advice to a New Elder

In theory, all ministries of a church are important and all have the same issues as those ministries headed by a minister. But you wouldn’t have hired a full-time, salaried person to run the worship service or the teen program … Continue reading →

To me, the other ministers — the youth minister, worship minister, education minister, etc. — are critically important but not as important as the preacher. The way American churches do church, you can’t get around a bad fit in the … Continue reading →

I think of the church in terms of concentric circles. (Sorry: I majored in mathematics and Venn diagrams are hard-wired into me.) The inner circle is the elders — together with the preacher. I think in just about any church, … Continue reading →

Having now spent a few weeks thinking about being an elder, while also posting a series on mission (which should be thought of as part of the eldering series), some things have kind of become clear. First, churches can be … Continue reading →

There are circumstances where the elders should not lead a church to exercise the freedom that the church has in Christ. When there’s a choice between love and freedom, love wins. Most good elders get this. Where we elders tend … Continue reading →

So let’s try a thought experiment. (Einstein made up the phrase to explain relativity. But this is not relativity. It’s church. Which is much more complicated.) Elders are called by God as shepherds, leaders, guides, teachers, and instructors in God’s … Continue reading →

So if your church is moderate (political), how do you best shepherd the church? Well, I really don’t know. I’m not sure anyone does. These things usually wind up pretty ugly — and I’ve seen good elders try all sorts … Continue reading →

This is not about the church-state issues. It’s about internal church politics. By “politics” I mean doing things to please a constituency rather than because it’s what you think God wants. Now, nearly all churches are political in that nearly … Continue reading →

Here’s the rule: You don’t know your flock at all if you only get information reactively — that is, in response to complaints. To know your flock, you have to proactively solicit input from a representative sample. Nothing else works … Continue reading →

The greatest talent that God can give a church may well be the ability to recruit volunteers. If a church has a skilled recruiter, find him or her, take them to lunch, and pepper them with questions. Take notes. Learn from … Continue reading →