Ministry Leadership Final

Front 1

1. As presented in the lecture, "Transitioning from Seminary to Vocational Ministry" there are five stages in your ministry development. State which of the five stages (other than stage 1) you think will be the most difficult for you and then present a strategy for how you will overcome the challenges of that stage.

Back 1

•Stage 1: Getting Acquainted (months 1 to 12)
•Stage 2: Getting Established (years 2-3)
•Stage 3: Getting Rolling (years 4-5)
•Stage 4: Developing Insights (years 6-7)
•Stage 5: Gaining Appreciation (years 8+)

Front 2

2. The Chairman of the Search Committee of a church with which you are interviewing, asks you to verbalize your Personal Mission Statement. However, one of the members of the Committee asks, I have never heard of a Personal Mission Statement; what is that. How do you answer the Committee member using descriptors presented in the class lecture. Explain to the Search Committee two ways that your Ministry Values and Principles, as presented by the lecturer, would guide the way you conduct your work among them.

Back 2

• Your personal mission statement summarizes or encapsulates your philosophy of ministry.
• Your personal mission statement reflects your values.
• A personal mission statement is derived from your divine design and succinctly expresses your understanding of God's call upon your life.

Front 3

3. In the midst of your interview with a Search Committee, one of the members is visibly bored and says, I am not interested in issues of Philosophy, I want you to communicate to us the practicalities of how you would minister among us. Explain to the Search Committee why the wide variety of expectations represented in the church make it essential that you present your philosophy of ministry to them. List and explain the three covered in the slide entitled To Navigate a Wide Variety of Expectations.

Back 3

1. To fit a traditional or contemporary style that is not your calling
- knowing my philosophy of ministry, you will have an understanding of how I want to do ministry, one that fits a more traditional view, or contemporary or a mix
2. To be like your predecessor or senior pastor or staff person
- I am not the previous person and I want to show you how I have similar qualities as the previous person but at the same time different qualities so that you are not surprised.
3. To be like a popular Christian personality on radio or television
- Many times public leaders become the cookie-cutter model of the perfect pastor or leader. But people have different styles and different philosophies of ministry that may be different and so if you want a person more like Tim Keller, I am not going to be your person

Front 4

4. You are assisting the officers of the church you serve in developing their individual Philosophy of Ministry Statements. Explain to them the three corners of the triangle that make up the Philosophy of Ministry and provide the short question that describes each.

Back 4

The first corner is your theological convictions (the normative element). The question is “What is the biblical mandate to accomplish my mission.” Your theological convictions come from the Scripture and keep your mission aligned with the mission of God.

The second corner is your personal ministry style (the existential element), determined by your personality, gifts, and values. The question is “How do I uniquely represent Christ in ministry?” This is your individual calling and it shapes what you seek to do in the kingdom.

The third corner is the values that guide your ideal ministry (the situational element). The question is: “What is my best place of ministry?” While the second corner is about your individual personality and gifts, the third corner is about the personality and values of the body you will serve in.

Front 5

5. In explaining to the people of the church how to choose their ministry values, you present four guidelines as explained by the lecturer during Week 6 on the slide entitled: Identify Ministry Values That. . . List and explain those guidelines.

Back 5

1. Direct the choices you make
- it is like taking your decisions through a funnel of your values, and the choices you make are based on these values
2. Compel you to take a stand
- They are so important to you that you will oppose someone or stand up against someone who is opposing your values in ministry.
3. Supply meaning to your life and service to the LORD.
- it shapes your relationship with the LORD, with others and yourself
4. Describes a purpose that is compelling enough to orient your praxis
- It will shape how you do ministry, ie: I am a shepherd so I want to spend a lot of time in small groups or one on one pastoring or counseling

Front 6

6. Respond to the following case study by interacting with the two outreach styles presented by the Instructor; i.e., front door and side door. You are candidating for a ministry position at a church. In the course of the interview, one of the Search Committee members asks you to present to them the outreach style with which you most resonate. Upon hearing your statements, he then states that the outreach style with which the church resonates is the other style presented by the Instructor in class. Respond to this case study by: 1. presenting to the Search Committee the outreach style with which you resonate; 2. interacting with the Search Committee member regarding the church’s outreach style and how you would be able to minister in that different outreach context.

Back 6

My outreach style is the Side Door style. This outreach style emphasizes people to come in with an individual or group of members outside of the church. Evangelism and nurture occurs before they come into the church services. The ministry draws people through felt need activities, small groups open to the community and friendship evangelism. This is a form of evangelism shown in Scripture.
You current evangelistic style is bringing people through the church doors through high visibility and large events or through advertising or survey visitation. Most of the evangelism and the nurturing happens after the people come onto the church property. Both are correct ways of evangelism and one is not necessarily better than the other. Now, I can help supplement the current evangelistic style by offering a different form of evangelism for the people. Some people may not feel as comfortable in coming into a church without some form of relationship. I can help train and equip church members who are highly relational to interact with neighbors, love them and share the Gospel with them and bring them to the church. A relationship is built, relational capital is there for people to come and visit and stay at a church. It is just another means of equipping God’s people to spread the Gospel and offering a way for different people to come into the church.

Front 7

7. You are in the process of discipling a member of the church you serve and have completed with him the Divine Design Discovery study that has resulted in the following fifty word mission statement: Joe Smith is an Encouraging Shepherd called of God to show compassion for those who are straying for the purpose of helping them form long-term, in-depth spiritual relationships with Christ and His people through small groups, service projects and missions in order to help them mature in their walk with the Lord. On the basis of this mission statement, what six theological convictions would you help him develop as the foundation for his calling.

Back 7

I. Encourager
II. Shepherd
III. Community
IV. Spiritual maturity / Discipleship
V. Outreach/Evangelism
VI. Faithfulness

Front 8

8. According to the lecture, Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there is a First Level of Conflict called Tension. Drawing on the Cause, Community, Corporate paradigm, choose which of these three Cs fits your ministry style the best and which fits your ministry style the least. Next, describe a ministry scenario in which you can see yourself engaged in a conflict with your opposite ministry style and then describe the steps you would take to resolve the conflict.

Back 8

CUBS Perception
1. Clarify Essentials
2. Understand and Cooperate
3. “Both/and ”Solutions
4. Perception Checks

Front 9

9. According to the lecture, Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there is a Second Level of Conflict called Opponents. Drawing on the Win-Win paradigm, describe a ministry scenario in which you can see yourself engaged in a conflict with another staff member, a lay leader or member of the church and then describe the steps you would take to resolve the conflict.

Back 9

PS PC C
In a level two conflict, people talk to third parties rather than to each other, the information is vague, unclear, and partial, feelings are guarded and often denied, the other person’s views are trivialized, and these differences are debated. This could easily happen when a church makes a significant ministry change. In those cases, while there is still high trust and respect, people may begin to debate amongst themselves without ever actually speaking to those who enacted the changes. Since the aim is win/win, the two sides need to come together and ask questions of each other. To avoid misperception, the two sides need to explain why things have happened and work together for a mutual solution. Instead of allowing the conflict to spread, we should seek out those who are disgruntled and contain the problem. (1. Problem Solving 2. Perception Changing 3. Containment)

Front 10

10. According to the lecture, Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there is a Third Level of Conflict called Adversarial. Drawing on the Win-Lose paradigm, describe a ministry scenario in which you can see yourself engaged in a conflict with another staff member, a lay leader or member of the church and then describe the steps you would take to resolve the conflict.

Back 10

In these types of conflict there are low levels of trust and respect and each side is trying to manipulate and criticize the other. As this type of conflict has already shown itself to be malignant, a pastor should SET THE GROUND RULES for conflict, APPEAL TO HIGHER COMMON INTERESTS (as opposed to the smaller divergent interests), and DEVELOP A FEAR OF DISCIPLINE. If a church chose to fund one ministry over another and some people are strongly invested in the other option, this could easily happen. It would be best to find the people, meet with them individually, try and set the ground rules for helpful discourse, draw on their love of the church over and against their love of the particular ministry, and make sure their aware of the danger of the manipulation and criticism they are pursuing.

Front 11

11. According to the lecture, Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there is a Fourth Level of Conflict called Antagonist. Drawing on the Matthew 18 and Covenant Vows models, describe a ministry scenario in which you can see yourself engaged in a conflict with another staff member, a lay leader or member of the church and then describe the steps you would take to resolve the conflict.

Back 11

1) Differences are seen as absolutes
2) Individuals warn of serious consequences if…
3) Information is spiritualized into “good” and “evil”
4) Feelings become tense and justified
5) Other person’s views are attacked as sinful
6) fighting mentality that is clearly evident (fight or flight)

Antagonists make insatiable, selfish demands. Often uses slander accusations with little or no evidence against the person being slandered.Their aim is to humiliate, punish, reject the other person.

Resolution: Follow Matthew 18: 15-17; Remind the parties involved of the vows they took as a member of the church: A) Do you promise to support the Church in its worship and work to the best of your ability? B) Do you submit yourself to the government and discipline of the Church and promise to promote its purity and peace?

Front 12

12. According to the lecture, Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there is a Fifth Level of Conflict called Destroyer. Kenneth Haugk in his book, Antagonists in the Church, presents five characteristics of “Destroyers”. Choose and describe two of the five that you may have seen in an individual or group at some point in your life or ministry.

Back 12

1.Negative view of the world:
a.To antagonists the world appears frightening, angry, hostile, and threatening. They have an excessively pessimistic view of people and the world
b.Therefore, they enter into attack mode by tearing down others.
2.Narcissism
a. Cannot conceive of being in error
3. Aggression
a. Seek, invite, collect injustices against themselves and then justify their aggression.
4. Rigidity
a. Inflexibility of thought, coupled with excessive concern for precise and accurate procedure; rules as weapons
b. Can’t conceive of being wrong
c. Why?
i. Feelings of peace, security, harmony heavily dependent on the integrity of their world view
ii. When they can’t ignore dissent, they strike out against those who topple their system
5. Authoritarianism
a. Want to be in authority and make others submit
b. Will dominate those they view as weak.

Front 13

13. You find yourself having difficulty finding volunteers to serve in the youth ministries of the church. Drawing on the section, Rules for Recruiting in Chapter 23, and your own experience with the writing of your Divine Design through the Equip the Saints packet, present your strategy for recruiting volunteers.

Back 13

1. Don't just go for warm bodies
2. Communicate with potential volunteers about their divine design
3. Engage in ongoing monitoring and discipleship
4. Start with minimal involvement and ramp up as gifting, integration, and passion increase
5. Start recruiting early in the year
6. Think about other potential areas of service should the present placement not work out

Front 14

14. A member of the Search Committee interviewing you for a staff position challenges you by asking, Are you saying that our ministry style or church personality) is all you need to know about us. How do you respond in the context of the instructors point that there are at least six elements that define a church.

Back 14

No, of course not. I’m sorry I gave that impression. The most important thing that trumps everything else is Godliness. CHARACTER What is God's role in sanctification/holiness? What is the Christian's role? CONVICTIONS How is personal piety practiced and encouraged? How you deal with sin in your own life and the life of others?
Others aspects: THEOLOGY- What do you believe Scripture teaches? How do you understand/interpret certain parts? How do you handle controversial and non-essential topics? COMPETENCIES- What do you excel in? What do you need training in? LIFE STAGE - How old are you? What generation are you? What changes have you experienced or are waiting to experience (kids, empty nest, parent's health, etc)? EXPERIENCE - What have you done or seen? Who have you worked with? What programs have you used or been trained under?

Front 15

15. You are a few months into your first church ministry position and you discover that you are serving a kinship church. How did you come to that conclusion.

Back 15

You can tell you are at a kinship church when you discover that the vast majority of the church is related and that this family controls the balance of power in the church.

Front 16

16. There is a church interested in you joining their staff, but you begin asking questions about their particular ministry style (or church personality). A member of the Search Committee asks you to clarify what you mean by a church’s ministry style or personality. What is your explanation.

Back 16

We would all agree that people have different personalities. Because of this we are going to approach problems or tasks in a different ways. When I say my “ministry style” I’m not talking about my competencies, life stage, experience, theology, or godliness, but my unique personality working itself out in ministry. And in the same way that people have different personalities, so do churches. It’s easy to see this reality when we compare a high steeple formal church, with an urban informal house church. Neither one is wrong or sinful; it’s merely different styles of ministry. In order to find out your ministry style, just find the 30 opinions leaders in your church, get them to take the Myers Briggs personality inventory, and whatever personality the majority of those 30 people fit into will be the guiding ministry style of the church.

Front 17

17. Towards the end of your interview with the Search Committee of a church, you discover that your two predecessors in the same position did not continue past 5 years in that church. What questions would you ask the Search Committee (reflecting interaction with John LaRue’s research from the lecture) that describe the first four reasons that pastors experience conflict in the ministry.

Back 17

A: LaRue’s research showed that the first four reasons in forcing pastors to exit were:
1. Conflicting Visions;
2. Personality Conflict with Board Members;
3. Unclear or unrealistic expectations;
4. Personality Conflicts with non-Board Members.
Four questions we should ask:
1. What programs are you planning to implement in the next ten years?
2. What were the circumstances of the last pastor leaving?
3. In what areas did you wish your former pastors had more expertise?
4. How does the governing board operate?

Front 18

18. The Chairman of the Search Committee of a church with which you are interviewing, asks you to verbalize your theological convictions. However, one of the members of the Committee asks, Why should we be interested in this persons theological convictions. We are not that sophisticated around here. How do you answer the Committee member using descriptors presented in the class lecture.

Back 18

Theological convictions are how our calling is grounded in the norm of Scripture. It is the biblical mandate to accomplish our mission

Front 19

19. The Chairman of the Search Committee of a church with which you are interviewing, asks you to describe your ideal church from among the eight presented by the lecturer. How do you answer the Committee member using descriptors presented in your Philosophy of Ministry paper.

Back 19

My ideal church is a fellowship church that has an strong commitment to outreach and gospel-centric change.
Worship Style:
• Gospel-centered
• Trinitarian
• Ancient & contemporary
Leadership Style:
• Is committed to making disciples of those they lead
• Patiently helps others navigate through new contexts and challenges
• Pays careful attention to the personal histories of those they lead
• Seeks to make goals and expectations clear by providing regular communication and feedback
• Seeks to launch those whom they lead beyond themselves
• Seeks to learn from their own histories
Evangelism Style:
• Relational - Seeks to communicate the gospel within a relational context
• Engaging - Seeks to engage the various art forms in their culture for the sake of the gospel

Front 20

20. Respond to the following case study by interacting with the four leadership styles presented by the Instructor during the Week 8 lecture on Church Styles. You are candidating for a ministry position at a church. In the course of the interview, one of the Search Committee members asks you to present to them the leadership style with which you most resonate. Upon hearing your statements, he then informs you that the leadership style with which the church resonates is one of the other styles presented by the Instructor in class (for this case study choose one of the other four styles). Respond to this case study by: 1. presenting to the Search Committee the leadership style with which you most resonate; 2. interacting with the Search Committee member regarding the church’s leadership style and how you would be able to minister in that different context.

Back 20

1.I most resonate with the (INSPIRATION FELLOWSHIP) participating/supporting leader. This leader is low task focus, high relationship focus. He sits as an equal and leads the group to consensus; finds out why people are not participating and persuades them to cooperate. The leader listens, encourages by pointing to the blessings when people make the necessary commitment.
2.If I was interacting with someone who functioned as a (ORGANIZER / STRATEGIZER) benevolent leader type, I would try and avoid taking things personally, recognizing that this leadership style is highly directive and not as relationally focused. While I am more relationally focused and this type of leadership is more task focused, I would proactively try and seek a middle ground, recognizing the need for more emphasis on task while still valuing relationship.

Front 21

21. According to I Corinthians 12, what is a fundamental cause of conflict in the church. Outline a Sunday School lesson from this passage on this topic.

Back 21

A fundamental cause of conflict in the church is the lack of understanding that the body does not consist of one member but of many, each serving an essential purpose (1 Cor 12:14-20). The idea that “you must be like me to be of value” is fundamentally flawed.

Possible outline:
•God’s Spirit is the source of our many giftings. (vs. 1-11)
•Though there are many gifts/members, there is one body. All these are united in Christ and work together for his glory. (vs. 13-30)
•How this particular church can explore their gifting and work in unison, the many members working in concert as one body (i.e. how do their gifts complement each other?)

Front 22

22. In the instructors Communication Wheel there are temperaments or styles of communication and receptivity. According to the instructor, you generally have the greatest difficulty understanding and communicating with your opposite temperament: INTJ with ISFJ, ESTJ with ENFJ, etc. First, briefly describe which of the 16 temperaments describes you most accurately. Second, using the guidelines presented in Week 9 Church Personality and Evangelism, explain how you might effectively communicate the gospel to those of your opposite temperament.

Back 22

My personality temperment is an ESFJ - a personality that is attracted to personal relationships. Consequently, I enjoy forms of evangelism that pursue and sustain personal relationships. One of the ways that I could effectively communicate the gospel to those of my opposite personality style is by conducting lectures on topics relevant to those in the elite suberbs followed by an open forum for Q&A. Or, I could bring in a well-known apologist and have him / her conduct an open forum and then create a follow up class designed to engage those who were interested in further communication.

Front 23

23. Using the material provided in Week 9 Outreach Examples by Style, present an evangelism program that best fits your personal evangelism style.

Back 23

Personal Answer: Possibly a series on contemporary film and the gospel. Also creating and implementing a one step closer to the gospel program.

Front 24

24. According the lecture: Week 10 Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church, there are generally five ways that people are tempted to respond to conflict as NTs, STJs, SFJs, NFs and SPs. Describe which of the five seems to fit you the best and then explain your strategy for overcoming those temptations in the midst of crisis and conflict.

Back 24

Tempted to give in to keep the peace and reduce conflict. May appear to agree even when they really disagree.

Front 25

25. You find yourself embroiled in a church conflict. In discussing the problem with the elders, how do you state your three assumptions regarding your understanding of the nature of the conflict. Draw upon the material at the beginning of the lecture, Week 10 Ecclesiastical Conflict and Antagonists in the Church.

Back 25

1. Not all conflict is the same. 2. One’s gut reaction is not a reliable indicator of the actual level of seriousness. 3. Response to conflict should be adjusted to the level of seriousness.

Front 26

26. According to Robert Clinton in the lecture, Ministry Timeline, Christians who plateau early reveal a common pattern. They learn new skills until they can serve comfortably with them, but then they fail to seek new skills deliberately and habitually. They coast on prior experience. Develop a ministry scenario for yourself in which this quote could become true for you and then outline a plan to prevent its occurrence.

Back 26

This could possibly happen to me in a situation where I’ve been at a job for a long time and other pressures are piling up. The cumulative total might tempt me to lean on past skills rather than developing new ones as time is precious. To prevent this from happening, I need to regularly ask myself diagnostic questions. For instance, if things have gotten so busy that I cannot actually take time to develop new skills, then perhaps I need to find a way to cut thing out. If I’m so busy I can’t develop new skills, then I’m likely not doing anything well. Further, I need to schedule regular times of training for myself, things like regular conferences, accountability on my reading, etc.

Front 27

27. According to the lecture, Ministry Timeline and the slide: Tell Your Story and How It Fits into Gods Story, how might you explain in a Sunday School class how the Creation, Fall, Redemption, Glorification paradigm can be expressed through the Ministry Timeline exercise.

Back 27

5 Phases of the Ministry Timeline:
Phase 1: Sovereign Foundation : 16-26 years
Phase 2: Inner Life Growth : 5-12 years
Phase 3: Ministry Maturing : 8-14 years
Phase 4: Life Maturing 12+ years
Phase 5: Convergence and Finishing Well

Tell Your Story and How It Fits into God’s Story:
Creation: How from your birth, God has been sovereignly at work in your life.
Fall: Your sins and failing from the past he has/is using for good.
Redemption: How God has/is transforming you.
Glorification: Manifestations of God’s glory that he has/is working into your life.

The Creation, Fall, Redemption, Glorification paradigm is one which we use to illustrate God’s work throughout history (and into the future). It shows us God’s actions and sovereign control in the course of the world. While we often use this paradigm in big brush strokes to get a look at the whole picture, the Ministry Timeline exercise is helpful in allowing us to see the CFRG paradigm at work in our personal lives. It helps us to see that our stories are not divorced from the larger one. In fact, God is working out his larger story in our lives.

Front 28

28. According to the lecture, Ministry Timeline and the slide: The Descent of a Leader, what are four ways you can guard yourself from the descent experienced by more than 70 percent of Christian leaders who do not finish well.

Back 28

1. Continue to listen to the assesements of others and seek to never stop growing mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. 2. Stick to my convictions. 3. Find ways to fan into flame my passion for leaving lasting contributions. 4. Work to maintain a vibrant relationship with Jesus Christ.

Front 29

29. Using the material you may have included in the last section of your Philosophy of Ministry, describe in 100-150 words your personal evangelism style.

Back 29

Do this on your own.

Front 30

30. You have just concluded your first year serving in a church when you realize a pattern has developed in your relationship with the Church Board of their turning down your requests for ministry initiatives that seem to you to be relatively modest. As you think back about the way you spent your ministry time over the previous 12 months, you realize you neglected some basic ministry activities. What are several of those ministries you could have conducted better as presented in Stage 1 and Year 1 of the lecture, Transitioning from Seminary to Vocational Ministry.

Back 30

I realize that I haven’t spent time with as many of the people as I can, so that they don’t relate to me yet. I haven’t learned about any of their strengths and weaknesses, hopes and desires. I haven’t any them through a divine design packet. In short, I haven’t built relationships with them. I also haven’t participated in much hands on ministry by doing something like a staff training event, a retreat, a volunteer appreciation banquet, or a short term outreach effort.

Front 31

31. In Chapter 22, p. 304-306, the author provides four images of ministry in order to lay the theological base for church volunteers. How would you present these four images in a Sunday School lesson.

Back 31

1. The Servant Leader (John 13)
2. The Holy Priesthood (1 Pet. 2)
3. The Body Concept (1 Cor. 12)
4. The Equipping Leader (Eph. 4)

Front 32

32. During your interview with a church Search Committee, they acknowledge that the church has limited numbers of volunteers, a lack of gifted leaders and inadequate resources. Drawing upon the four questions presented in Chapter 22, p. 309, what four questions can you ask to help them make the most of what they have.

Back 32

1. What are we doing well?
Churches, like people, have unique strengths and gifts to offer. It is more wise to focus on our strengths than weaknesses. With the limited resources available it is wiser to focus on the things God has enabled us to do well.
2. What are our potential fatal flaws?
A potential “fatal flaw” is a ministry deficiency that either drives people away from our church or keeps significant numbers from coming in the first place. Ministry weaknesses that scatter people to the wind require immediate attention.
3. Whom are we reaching?
In marketing this is called “finding your niche.” Every church has a profile that they reach well. Those who do not fit that profile are more likely to be reached by other churches. Since our resources are limited it is probably best to focus on reaching those who we are best equipped to reach.
4. Who else is already doing it?
This question should be asked more often. If other churches are doing something well, like children’s ministry, or a Christian school, or a thriving seniors ministry why not send people to those ministries and focus more on what you and your church do well? If its not vital your churches health, we have the freedom to leave it to those God has burdened and gifted to do the job well.

Front 33

33. Two of your ministry volunteers ask you to explain to them the distinction between spiritual gifts, natural gifts, fruit of the Spirit and roles in the church. Drawing upon the material in Chapter 22, p. 310, how would you respond to their inquiry?

Back 33

Spiritual Gifts (Rom 12; 1 Cor 12; Eph 4)
Special attribute given by HS to every member of Christ’s body, according to God’s grace, for use within the context of the body.
Natural Gifts
Naturally sharpened skills of believers and unbelievers alike. Spiritual gifts are reserved for believers; given by God.
Fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23)
Not discovered like gifts are, but developed through believer’s walk with God. Spiritual Gifts: What a believer does; Fruit: What a believer is.
Roles in the church
Christian practices like having faith or witnessing the gospel. Similar to gifts in that involve more doing than being. Similar to fruit in that they are expected of all believers.

Front 34

34. By drawing on the material in the right column on p. 319, present to a Search Committee a strategy for redesigning the church’s volunteer endeavors to attract the people the church needs.

Back 34

ConsReReOffer
1.Consolidate training - Instead of doing training once a week for an hour, make it three hours one Saturday a month.
2.Rewrite volunteer tasks - make jobs more manageable and realistic, giving the time that people have available.
3.Recruit retirees as volunteers - they will be most effective in recruiting their peers
4.Offer quality training - this communicates the church’s devotion to a quality program that demands excellence

Front 35

35. In Chapter 24, p. 331-332, the author says in the section, Create Encounters, that there are strategies that can help us develop meaningful relationships with those we mentor. Use those strategies to describe how you might identify those whom you would mentor for leadership in the church.

Back 35

1.Create encounters - Get into contact with people.
2.Fade into the relationship - slowly let them know they can trust you to speak into their lives
3.Offer regular check-ins - be purposeful in getting regular time
4.Fade out of the relationship - after periods of more intense meeting time, slowly fade out, keeping up sporadically.

Front 36

36. In chapter 25, p. 337-338, Hersey and Blanchard state that two factors, the ability and willingness of your volunteers, tell the pastor and-or staff member how much and what type of support that workers in a ministry need. Name and describe the type of support these four need.

Back 36

1. Unable/unwilling: insecure about skills, lack of commitment. Prevolunteer who has made no decision to give time or energy.
Best support is to have those involved in ministry stay in contact, so when they feel less insecure the supports will be ready to involve them.
2. Unable/willing: express a personal commitment to do work, amidst insecurity. Lack of training and/or lack of experience. Needs three types of support. 1) formal training for underdeveloped skills and encouragement of mentor/coach. 2) supervised exercise or apprenticeship for rusty skills. 3) At all times, willingness must be reinforced by meaningful relationships with fellow workers and leadership.
Focus is skill development.
3. Able/unwilling: skill is not an issue, but there is a relationships problem with the task. Support comes from three directions. 1) for those in direct contact with people, they need affirmation from those people. 2) those in a team need a positive team spirit. 3) all volunteers need the support of related leadership members
Best support is preventing relationship breakdowns that cause burnout. If breakdown already occurred, find out the cause of interpersonal strain and seek to reestablish a sense of fellowship. Like healing wounds, this takes time and attention. Sometimes they interpret their lack of willingness as lack of ability, so we must help them discover new, exciting ways of using those gifts.
4. Able/willing: may see encouragement and support as interruptions or even insulting. Though this can be prideful, it also helps free the leaders to focus on those who need more attention and encouragement.
Support is usually material in need, not relational. Supplies, space, freedom to be creative, along with the occasional word of affirmation, are more than enough.

Front 37

37. You discover that several of your volunteers are not thriving in their ministries and are in need of your care. Drawing upon the four methods or styles of support presented in chapter 25, p. 338-340, how would you meet their needs for support.

Back 37

1) Teach/Tell - tell why volunteers are/have been essential to the church and what Scripture teaches. This must be in formal and informal settings.
2) Encourage/Train - “catch them while they are good.” compliment strengths and provide emotional support and opportunities for development. Give the opportunity to practice appropriate ministry skills.
3) Support/Discover - Recognize the diversity of gifts and support the members expression of their own gifts. Help those who are unsure to discover them and to begin new ministries yet untried.
4) Affirm/Empower - Not all are willing or capable to begin ministry but may be able to look at old problems in new ways. Guard against jealousy and control. They need a vote of confidence and to be asked, “What can I do to make your ministry easier?” Remove obstacles from their way.

Front 38

38. You are being interviewed for a position at a church, when a Search Committee member says, Our last staff member was the worst leader and manager I ever saw. What do you know about these two roles in a church. In response, quote and comment on the definition of leadership and management provided in the last two full paragraphs in chapter 26, on p. 350.

Back 38

I. Though often overlapping, it is important to distinguish leadership and management
A. Leadership – “Doing the right things,” diagnoses, vision, goals, motivation, etc.
B. Management – “Doing things right,” stewardship of resources, planning, budgeting
II. Apply to your specific ministry position (i.e. Assistant Pastor)
A. How I will manage – as an assistant I will carry out and implement the vision of those in authority over me.
B. How I will lead – as one responsible for certain areas of ministry within the church I will lead in that sphere well, provides vision, motivation, etc. to those working under me.
Well, the paragraphs state that there is no clear, broadly agreed upon definition. It lists several potential ways of viewing a distinction between the 2 concepts:
Leadership = doing the right things / determine whether the ladder is leaning on the right wall
Management = doing things right / successfully climbing the ladder

Front 39

39. In chapter 26, p. 357-358, the author presents four descriptions of management styles. Choose the style that fits you the best and describe how you would explain that management style to a Search Committee.

Back 39

As a SHEPHERD, I like to build on relationships in my management style by facilitating others in ministry work. (people-pleasing, spontaneous, informal, sharing, participative, sensitive, accommodating, procrastinating, emotional, conflict-avoiding, contemplative)

Front 40

40. According to the author in chapter 27, p. 360-361, what is one of the first tasks you should accomplish upon arriving at the first ministry you might serve?

Back 40

One of the first tasks that should be accomplished upon arriving at the first ministry is finding out the rules; both the written and the unwritten rules. Written rules are those that are documented at should generally be easy to find and understand; this includes past events/decisions the church has made. Unwritten rules “are made up of a series of traditions and powerful assumptions that members or lay leaders have about the way things are supposed to be done.” (p. 360) The author says the quickest way in doing this is to ask the right questions to the right people (author calls these people, “… the movers and shakers in the ministry, those whose opinions can influence the entire congregation. They wield the power of being the interpreters of the rules.” (p. 361) The author also notes, “It's important to note that those who establish and interpret the unwritten rules are not always in official leadership positions.” (p. 361)

Front 41

41. Your one year honeymoon has concluded in the church you are serving. You find yourself reflecting on how your ideas for bringing change to the church, which were so enthusiastically received by the Search Committee, have not been accepted at all by the church as a whole. According to chapter 27, p. 361, what fact have you had to learn the hard way and what could you have done differently during the interviewing process.

Back 41

According to our reading, “what happened is simple. The interpreters of the rules weren't on the committee. The committee hadn’t been deceitful; they simply didn’t know the rules of the game—the unwritten rules.” One of the ways our books suggests dealing with this issue, is by asking a variety of people in the congregation who the movers and shakers of the congregation are. Questions like, “who are the three to five people you think, by their support can make virtually any new program or idea successful?” (pg. 325)



Front 42

42. You find yourself candidating with a church that has had 70-80 people in average attendance for the last 2-3 decades. What are some questions you will want to ask the Search Committee in regard to kinship issues. Refer to p. 361 in the book and the lecture.

Back 42

You would want to ask about the history of the church, who the major movers and shakers are in the church, who can make or break a ministry, why has the church hovered at around the same numbers, ask about the families in the church.

Front 43

43. On pp. 364-365, in Developing New Guidelines and Policies, the author makes this statement: “. . .focus on the functions of ministry rather than on the forms of ministry.” Drawing on the author’s insights, how do you plan to make sure that new policies and procedures foster, rather than thwart, the long-range organizational goals of the church.

Back 43

We need to adopt a spirit of humility, trusting that others besides us will have both a brain and the Holy Spirit to guide them. Then we need to put in guidelines that are loose rather restrictive. We need to differentiate between patterns and rules, and because they can change, patterns shouldn’t be codified. Every rule that we make should be explained so that future leadership will know how and why to change it if they need to. In general, we should move slowly when creating guidelines and policy.

Front 44

44. You have been at your new church for a year and you discern that your problem-solving strategies are conflicting with the style of some of the key people on the Committee who oversee your ministry. Present your strategy, as guided by Swindoll on p. 369, regarding practical ways you can diminish these struggles.

Back 44

1. Schedule time together between official meetings,
2. Get away for overnight retreats,
3. Translate attitudes into actions,
4. Support each team member.

Front 45

45. In chapter 32, on pp. 458-459, the author lists five fundraising roles for the pastor. Even if you do not plan to be a pastor, everyone in a ministry vocation should be involved to some degree in stewardship ministry. Therefore, interact with the one role that best describes how you envision yourself being engaged in stewardship in the ministry you might conduct after seminary.

Back 45

Stewardship preacher: I have no problem preaching on stewardship.

Front 46

46. According to the author in chapter 33 on pp. 464-465, there are distinctions among three generations in the church in reference to their attitudes towards stewardship. Analyze the description of the one generational attitude that you find the most inconsistent with your theology and values.

Back 46

The Buster's idea that they purchase the services of the church is ridiculous and has a principled continuity with paganism insofar as paganism views its relationship to God as a kind of bartering system.

Front 47

47. The senior pastor of the church you are serving, gives you the responsibility of forming a Budget Committee to revamp the way the church develops an annual budget. Based on the information provided on pp. 515-516, how would you lead this process.

Back 47

1. I would start by forming the committee with non-business men that represent a broad range of people in the church.
2. The budget will be determined based on each ministry within the church giving an estimated budget for their expenses (“bottom-up budgeting”).
3. I will implement zero-based budgeting so that each year everything in the church budget must be measured based on its effectiveness. This budgeting starts at zero and works up based on the priorities and plans of the coming year.

Front 48

48. During an interview with a church Search Committee, you are asked which type of budgeting you prefer: Unified or Separate. Drawing upon the material presented on p. 471-472 what is your response and reasoning for your preference.

Back 48

I would opt for a unified budget as it more easily allows for the church to move in a single direction. Even within this unified budget, a church could have accounts for various departments in the church.

Front 49

49. In chapter 38, on p. 510-512, the author presents five guidelines for introducing effective change in the church budget. Describe and interact with one of these five guidelines regarding a ministry you might conduct after seminary.

Back 49

Introduce the change before you request the change (510). This way you can solicit feedback from those involved and integrate any helpful feedback into the proposed change.

Front 50

50. Soon after you begin your ministry, you discover that the church in which you are serving is violating copyright law in one or more of three ways. Drawing on the material in chapter 38, on p. 540, how would you make a presentation to the Session regarding ways the church can avoid copyright infringement.

Back 50

I would affirm our desire to use copyrighted material for the building up of the church and edification of the body of Christ to the glory of God. Then, discuss how easy it is to violate rules that constitute copyright infringement: making copies of copyrighted materials, make a derivative work or publicly perform a copyrighted work. I would further explain that we have an opportunity to model before the church how to carefully implement ways to avoid copyright infringement: obtaining permission from the copyright owner, obtain a license to use the material, or claim “fair use.”