Behind Closed Doors: Staff Meeting

Staff meetings were one of the first changes Pastor Scott put in place. We meet, as a staff the first and third Tuesday's of each month. Depending on the hot topics of the month, Pastor Scott uses the meeting for various purposes. We've had meetings that were primarily teaching times, where Pastor Scott leads us in an in-depth Bible study. We've had meetings that were primarily business oriented and we reviewed procedures or discussed upcoming events. And we've even had a pop-quiz or two.

If you were a fly on the wall at staff meetings, you'd observe:

that while the meetings are quite productive, we have a lot of fun during those 75 minutes. It's a time usually dominated by laughter.

that over the past year-and-a-half we've grown closer as a staff. We have more transparency with each other and some of the sharing times have been deep and moving.

that if you happen to be a guest speaker, be prepared for a practical joke to be played on you. Just ask Ed Lewis of CE National.

that through the sharing time that leads each meeting, God is doing some amazing things in the lives of the people to whom we are ministering.

what 1 Corinthians 13 is really saying about love and it's application to the body of Christ.

how each staff member reacts to change and which Who Moved My Cheese character (Hem, Haw, Sniff and Scurry) they relate to the most. (Or if you happen to be in the conference room, the flip chart is still on the wall).

how we all squirmed the day Pastor Scott asked us to write five positive comments about each of our co-workers.

that you should always bring a Bible to a staff meeting.

that first comers always sit the furthest away from where Pastor Scott usually sits. Latecomers who sit next to Pastor Scott are advised to bring a poncho.

that each staff person has a passion to reach the lost.

that a hot seat is when you're on the spot and the rest of the staff can ask you any five questions they want and you have to answer. Each staff member has been on the hot seat in the past year.

that at our first staff meeting, most staff arrived a few minutes early and waited patiently and ultra-quietly for the meeting to begin. Now, 18 months later, some staff still arrive early, some arrive late, but the pre-meeting conversation noise is deafening to the point that it takes Pastor Scott about 5 minutes to reign us in and get the meeting started.
The time we invest in these meetings is valuable not only to coordinating our efforts, but in us learning as a team and becoming more unified as we work together.

Our next staff meeting is this coming Tuesday. I'll be reviewing with the staff the key elements needed for every ministry at Grace. It's actually going to be a series of blog entries next week as well. These elements won't only apply to existing ministries. They'll also apply for anyone who has a passion/burden for something we aren't currently doing that they want to elevate to ministry status. That'll start on Monday. Until then, enjoy your weekend!