Turn meetings into ministry opportunities

Editor’s note: This column was written by a member of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention’s Shepherds Collective. For more information, visit sbtexas.com/networks/shepherds-collective.

We have all heard the dangers of “death by meeting” where those in attendance leave with information overload and exhaustion. But if you are a lead pastor blessed with a team around you, have you ever considered using your regular staff meetings for accountability and spiritual development?

Like most church staff meetings, our staff regularly discusses visitors, the calendar, ministry events, and we celebrate testimonies within various areas of the church. In addition to these regular topics, we add three rotating accountability questions:

How is your time in the Word?

Starting our meetings with this conversation is always an encouragement. Not only do we get to see how the Holy Spirit is speaking through Scripture in the lives of our brothers and sisters, we also learn from one another. When you compare the potential stress and frustration over the details of ministry to getting a glimpse into the soul life of someone serving in the trenches with you, I hope you would choose the latter every day of the week. Additionally, this serves as accountability for those on your team who may be in a spiritually dry season. We cannot pour out spiritually if we have not gone to that quiet place and been poured into during our personal time with the Lord.

Who have you shared the gospel with lately?

Our church is less than half of an hour from Texas State University in San Marcos. We make a habit of going there as a staff about three times a semester to engage in gospel conversations and exercise the evangelistic muscles the Lord is growing in all of us. If we are not careful, we can become lax in our commitment to live the mission by speaking the good news. Knowing this question is coming in staff meeting is a helpful tool to keep us on our toes. More important than the accountability piece of this question is the life-giving challenge given to the other ministry staff whenever we have good conversations to report to the team. We cannot expect our church body to regularly and boldly share the gospel if we are not leading by example.

What are your top three priorities this week?

This is an opportunity for every person to report on a meeting or project that would not be on their typical weekly to-do list. As a team, we can listen, invest, and show genuine interest in the things the Lord is doing across ministries and the relationships He is growing within the church. Speaking this list aloud with your peers adds a little extra accountability when it comes to having hard conversations with leaders, pursuing lost sheep, dealing with difficult church members, or any number of things we might avoid if we didn’t know our staff may check in later.

Many of you already have systems and processes like these to ensure your team is growing. Or you might be thinking this would take too much important time when the staff gathers. Don’t minimize the impact this can have over the course of time with your team, and don’t feel like you must ask them all every week. We like to rotate them every three weeks.

Pastor, always remember that you shepherd the whole church—including the paid and/or part-time ministry staff. They look to you for spiritual wisdom and encouragement. Give them what they are looking for.