1. Pray For Your Pastor.

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3 1. Pray For Your Pastor. a. Go beyond the cursory Bless him/her. b. Go on your face before the Lord and call on Him to lead, guide and anoint your pastor for the greatest days of ministry ever known. c. Pray scripture over your pastor. d. Do this daily. This is time intensive. Board members who cannot pray daily for their pastor should not be board members. 2

4 2. Pray For Each Other. a. Go beyond the cursory Bless him/her. b. Go on your face before the Lord for your partners in ministry around your board table. c. Pray scripture over your fellow board members. d. Very few board members do this. When you do, your board will see amazing things happen! 3

5 3. Pray For the Church. a. Go beyond the cursory Bless the church. b. Go on your face before the Lord on behalf of the church body as a whole and for specific ministries. c. The church is most blessed when its lay leaders call out to the Lord on its behalf. 4

6 4. Acquire the Ministry Services of the Pastor. a. The single most important task any board has is to call a pastor to lead the church. b. The board should follow these steps in finding their new pastor. i. Pray ii. Talk to other pastors, denominational leaders and those in spiritual authority to seek potentials leaders for the church. iii. You are not seeking to fill a job. You are seeking the senior spiritual leader of the greatest church on the planet yours! iv. Follow a spiritual path to bring God s man or woman to the leadership of your church. (For more information on how The Hardy Group can help go to: 5

7 5. Remember the Elephant in the Board Room. a. The person sitting at the end of your board table (your pastor) will not be there forever. b. Do not take your pastor for granted. c. Pastors and boards generally avoid the questions, What happens if the pastor leaves, resigns, dies, etc. Don t avoid it. Talk safely and securely about it! 6

8 6. Resist the Urge to Be the Pastor s Supervisor. a. Pastors do not work for church boards. b. Pastors work with church boards. c. The Lead Pastor is elected by and serves the church body as a whole. d. When church boards treat pastors like hirelings the church does not grow. 7

9 7. Self-Police. a. When a problem or conflict comes up at the board table and one board member goes sideways, don t expect the pastor to fix it. b. Board members need to monitor the attitudes and actions of their fellow board members and hold each other accountable to right conduct. c. Apply Matthew 18 to all board conflict issues. One board member goes to another. If no results, then two board members go to the one. If no results then bring the pastor into the mix and then the whole board. Keep the pastor apprised of all actions from the beginning. 8

10 8. Cultivate a Spirit of Generosity. a. The level of generosity expressed by the church board will set the stage for what the Lord will do in blessing the church. b. Compensate the staff generously. c. Invest in the personal development of the Lead Pastor and staff. d. Consider online resources like The Hardy Group s Inner Circle. e. Give to missions generously. 9

11 9. Protect the Mission of the Church. a. The mission of the church is the greatest on the planet. Protecting it is of high value. b. Walk with the lead pastor in ensuring the purpose of the church is never compromised. 10

12 10. Be Advisory. a. To be advisory is a high calling. b. To have the ear of the spiritual leader of the church sets the stage for the best of counsel made available to him or her. c. Godly men and women on church boards are of highest value when they provide godly counsel to the wise and discerning pastor. d. Understand that not all counsel will be followed and that is okay. 11

13 11. Avoid the Representative of the People Mentality. a. Church boards are not democracies. If you act like a democracy you ll get what democracies sometimes get -- gridlock -- not good for the mission of the church! b. Church governance is closer to a theocracy. The Lord speaks through the leader (pastor) and it disseminates through to the board and onto the body as a whole. c. Board members do not represent certain blocks or groups of people. If they do, then it pits one group against another. d. Church board members individually represent the entire church. 12

14 12. Always Interact With Courtesy. a. It is as simple as what we teach our children. When interacting with other board members, be courteous. b. Never forget that others around your board table deserve to be heard. 13

15 13. Never Allow Personal Agendas to Flair Up. a. Board members can never have agendas that put them in a conflict-ofinterest position. b. Always maintain a pure heart desiring to see only the agenda of the church as a whole move forward. 14

16 14. Always Defer to One Another. a. Remember the scripture, How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity. Psalm 133:1 ESV b. It s not about you. It s not about them. It is about us as a board. Defer. c. Need we say more? 15

17 15. Listen Well. a. People need to be heard, including your brothers and sisters sitting around the church board room. b. Remember, we have one mouth and two ears. c. You ll learn a lot when you listen well. 16

18 16. Demonstrate Respect. a. Consider your brothers and sisters around the board table as children of God who deserve to be treated with respect. b. We all desire respect. Render unto others what you desire for yourself. 17

19 17. Do Not React. a. When you reach a point of conflict on a church board stop and count to 10. b. Your flesh wants to react. Don t. c. Listening and respect will move the church closer to what the Lord wants than you reacting in anger or frustration. 18

20 18. Never Move Forward on Major Issues With a Split Vote. a. Your board can split on little stuff, although it normally shouldn t do that either. b. On issues such as the selection of the next lead pastor or on the incurrence of debt, do all you can to move forward with a 100% vote. 19

21 So what do these things tell us about church boards? They describe for us what a good, godly church board should look like and how it should act. It defines the role of the board in an advisory role and not a directing role. They advise and provide counsel at the highest level. Their focus is prayer. They listen well, maintain respect, and they are acutely aware of all the roles and actions above. Board members play a vital role in the life of the church. What they mean to a lead pastor will only be told in eternity. Follow these 18 Rules of Engagement for Church Boards and you will watch many come to know Jesus as a result of a unified body of believers accomplishing what the Lord wants you to accomplish. 20

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