Time for Restructuring at your church?

A lot of churches could drastically improve their health and growth by doing a complete retool of their entire ministry operation.  Businesses do this on a regular basis when their old ways of doing things are getting stagnant.  For various reasons, we never seem to admit to the need or possibility of this in the church life.  Part of this is because we sanctify everything about the church, that to alter it would be to, somehow, mess with the will of God; as though God were personally responsible for how your particular church is designed.  But while Jesus Christ is the Lord and the head of the church, and the foundation and cornerstone, that does not make Him the author of your Constitution and By-Laws, and it may just be time to admit that those very human documents are out of date.  It's not a sin to say so.  Come on, say it with me:  "Our Constitution and By-Laws are out of date."  There was that so hard?

Once you've admitted it, you are on your way to a healthy restructuring of your church.

Here are some signs that it may be time to restructure your church:

(The headers (but not the comments under each) are taken from the July/Aug 2007 edition of 'Your Church' mag, which quoted from the Vision Training edition of BuildingChurchLeaders.com)

#1  - Rapid Growth

If your congregation has crossed any of the key growth barriers of 200, 500, 800, 1,000 or more, it is time for a retool.

#2 - Development of a Multi-Pastor Staff

Many times By-Laws are written to govern the development of various committees before multi-staff are hired.  Then when they are hired, there is often an overlap between what committees are tasked to do, and what staff are hired to do.  This develops an unhealthy situation where the lines of authority and control are unclear.   In many cases, it also puts your associate staff in the unenviable position of reporting both to their Senior Pastor, and to a previously established committee. 

#3 - Conflict between major boards or committees

Some C&B's simply have too many boards and committees on paper, and the entire organization needs to be streamlined.  Unclear lines of authority are a major cause of division and conflict within the church.  And too many governing boards and committees will cause overlap and confusion.

#4 - A clear gap between formal and informal leadership

Formal leaders are elected (or hired), but every church has those informal, non-elected people of influence who need to be approached before any major decision is enacted.  This would indicate that the election or nomination process is not sensitive to the leadership gifts which God has already placed within your church.  The nomination process may need to be retooled to include recognition of spiritual gifts, and informal leaders, who are true leaders, and not just church bosses, need to be placed on leadership boards.

Many of the issues related to restructuring need to be talked out thoroughly before embarking on such a dangerous journey in the life of the church.  A good coach can be a sounding board to allow the senior pastor to weigh the impact of church-wide changes to the Constitution or By-laws.  Contact me at DrBill@HighPowerResources.com if you want to talk about this.

Remember that the reason you are considering a restructure is not to 'consolidate power' or 'take over the church' or any of those crazy objections that people throw around when considering a revision of the By-Laws.  You are restructuring for growth, so that your church is more effective at reaching people for Jesus Christ.  So you are streamlined and smart and not weighed down with bureaucracy when you want to move your church forward in the cause of the Great Commission.  No other reason would justify the sometimes daunting task of restructuring an entire congregation, unless we are talking about making a difference for eternity.

Yours for the Kingdom,

Dr. Bill