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Serving on a church committee may not sound like a spiritual-growth
opportunity, but it is. Certainly meetings can be long. Assignments can be difficult. Feelings can be hurt.
But, as the author of The Effective Church Committee says, the Gospel gets carried out in the
real world — and a church committee is as real as it gets. Besides, committees are where the
action is. If you learn to play your part, committee work can proceed more smoothly and even become a
pleasure. This entertaining book tells you how to make it happen. It spells out your role, tells you what
to expect of yourself and your leader, and gives you some ideas for making your time on the
committee easier and more productive.
About the Author
Louis A. Towson has served as an Episcopal priest in various settings for
25 years. Currently he is rector of Church of the Holy Apostles in Satellite
Beach, Fla. He also authored How to Run a Committee or Organization:
A Manual for Church Leaders. He is a graduate of Florida
State University and received his master of divinity degree from Virginia
Theological Seminary.
Table of Contents
Chapter One: Now That You’ve Been Asked
Chapter Two: Defining Our Terms
Chapter Three: The Unspoken Covenant
Chapter Four: Getting Specific: Purpose, Vision, Goals, and
Objectives
Chapter Five: A Creative Approach
Chapter Six: Making Decisions
Chapter Seven: Your Committee Notebook
Following is an excerpt from The Effective Church Committee. All
rights reserved. Copyright © Resource Publications, Inc.
Chapter One: Now That You’ve Been Asked
If someone has asked you to serve on a parish committee or group you
might be pondering several questions, the chief one being: Do I really want
to get involved?
For most of us the church is a place to worship and learn. We go on
Sunday and at other times to hear good preaching, celebrate our faith in
worship, and maybe take a class. But the church does much more. Prayer
groups, parish dinners, retreats, and festivals abound. Youth ministry often
takes a large share of parish resources. Ministry to the elderly, sick, and
homebound also requires a lot of time and energy. Churches help the less
fortunate with food, housing, medical care, and advocacy. They reach out
to the unchurched with the message of Jesus Christ. Caring for buildings
and grounds and managing financial and legal matters requires constant
attention, too.
People like you are needed to serve on elected boards and energize parish
organizations and committees. Is it worth taking the next step, especially if it
means a greater demand on your time and energy?
“I want my church to lift me up spiritually,” some say. “If I
take a job, I will probably be over there at odd times haggling about money
or debating about what color to paint the nursery. Where’s the
spirituality in that?” True, it is one thing to sit next to people in
worship, but quite another to sit with them in a group that is wrestling
with a knotty problem. In the first case not much is demanded, unless they
sing off-key or fidget. You can always sit somewhere else next time. In the
second, though, you might be on opposite sides of a question and have
your patience tested to the breaking point.
Scripture warns us about the danger of segregating worldly concerns from
holiness. In Jesus, God entered human flesh. During his travels he saw
everyday challenges as opportunities for the glory of heaven to shine,
evoke faith, and transform unlikely people. Crossing a lake in a
storm-tossed boat, facing the task of feeding a multitude with meager
provisions, and even attending a wedding party where the wine ran out
provided chances for God’s love and power to blossom. Spiritual
growth does not come only through worship or study but by lifting common
tasks up to serve God’s purpose.
Let’s suppose we go backstage after attending a play. We will find a
score of people unseen by the audience who handled sound effects,
adjusted lighting, and assembled scenery to create settings for the players.
Those realistic trees in the forest scene were painstakingly crafted from
papier-m#ch#. The actress who portrayed the sprightly young girl now sits
exhausted in her dressing room, soaking her feet.
What met our eyes and ears was a moving drama that touched our hearts,
yet behind it lay years of training, months of preparation, and an army of
dedicated people working to tell the story.
In the same way, Sunday worship lifts up the truth of the Gospel. Behind it
lies writing the sermon, choir rehearsal, preparing the bulletin, arranging the
flowers, polishing, and cleaning. When we arrive for the service, does a
well-kept yard greet us? Who did the cutting and trimming? Who wrote the
check for the electricity that illumines the building, powers the organ, and
controls the temperature? There’s a new family sitting in the third row
because last Tuesday one of your members saw the moving van arrive and
stopped in to invite them to church. Who visits the sick and prays daily for
them? We petition the Lord for social justice, but who serves in the soup
kitchen or volunteers in the clinic?
The Author of Life needs a production company to enact the saving story.
All we do flows into and out of worship. It is a signal event in which
everything finds purpose and direction as it’s offered to God.
Becoming involved in the inner workings of ministry does not hamper our
spirituality but deepens it.
Difficulties do arise. We have heard people say, “I’ve had my
feelings hurt,” or “Church politics gets vicious!” Because
its aim is high, its failings are more obvious than those of other institutions.
That simply means that we have to deal with people realistically, knowing
that inside we’re all a bit like turtles with hard shells over our hearts. If
we have come to faith in Jesus Christ, we should be equally realistic about
God’s grace. The shell has been broken. Alienation from God
doesn’t have to be the last word. As surely as Christ rose from the
grave, we can be forgiven our wrongs and have power to forgive others. It
is part of picking up our cross and following Christ, and it will make the
winding path we travel a way of blessing.
A project’s success never lies merely in getting something done. It is
linked with what happens to the team on the way to its completion. With
everyone paying attention to Jesus, who is always present where two or
three or a dozen committee members gather, a group can overcome
differences, surmount obstacles, and accomplish something significant for
others, often with a unity that’s a joy to experience.
Is involvement really worth it? To answer that, we have to go into the
innermost places of our hearts and pose the question a little differently: Am I
being called through God’s church to deeper awareness and more
faithful response to his limitless and loving work with me?
Once we move beyond that question, another arises, Can I do it? I heard of
a man who had been called to serve as lay leader for a weekend religious
conference. It was a big responsibility, and he grappled with doubts about
his worthiness and ability to fulfill the required tasks. “I’m not
going to do it unless God gives me a concrete sign that he wants me
to,” he announced to his wife. The following week he was driving to
another town over a stretch of road he’d never traveled before.
As he passed a church these words leaped out at him: “God
doesn’t call those who are equipped; he equips those whom he
calls.” They were inscribed on a concrete sign.
It’s often easy to sell ourselves short when assessing our abilities.
Usually it’s not highly specialized skills that are needed—just a
willingness to let your gifts blend harmoniously with those of others. If you
function smoothly in your occupation, you can be useful in your church as
well. Self-doubt is humility. Pride is being sure that even God can’t
use you for any good purpose. Faith is the belief there’s no limit to
what God can do through you.
Next, examine your commitments. Can I make the meetings? Will I have
time to do the required work? Will I need to adjust my schedule? Ask for a
detailed job description. Get a definite picture of the demands and put
yourself realistically into it.
After due consideration, the yes or no is up to you. Pray hard, reflect on
Scripture. In Exodus 3 note Moses’ reluctance to undertake the
mission the Lord called him to. Let God’s promise, “I will be
with you,” bring assurance that a child of God is never alone.
I’m tempted to pass on what a minister friend of mine always told
those he invited to do a big job: “Pray hard about it; then say
‘Yes!’”
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