THE BASICS OF CHURCH MANAGEMENT

Introduction:
Many have asked the question; Is management necessary in the Church? At the beginning of the
Pentecostal movement of the 20th Century, most Pentecostal Churches experienced radical growth
and yet they lacked proper structure. Many independent Churches sprang up, yet many believed that
organization would quench the move of the Holy Ghost. However we see that even at the time of
Apostle Paul, there was already need for order. See 1 Corinthians 14:26-33, 40.
With the enormous sizes of the Churches of today, there is even greater need for organization/ order.
In the above Scripture Paul concluded by saying God Is a God of order, not confusion. Many
Scriptures confirm this fact all the way form the time of creation e.g.
The instructions God gave to Moses for construction of the Temple/ Tabernacle.
The instructions given to Joshua at crossing of the Jordan and the overthrow of Jericho
Jesus recruiting the disciples and sending them out tow by two (First the twelve, then the
seventy two).
A simple definition:
Management is getting things done through other people.
Pastors are called to be managers not to carry the whole load. Christ expects every member of the
Body (Church) to be active. Ephesians 4:16; 1 Corinthians 12:28.
A manager is equivalent to an Overseer. You are expected to delegate to your leaders, to minister to
the whole Church but keep personal touch with your leaders pour your life and vision into them on
a one to one basis as well as in corporate relationships.
Specific examples of this are Jesus with the twelve disciples and later the 72 whom he sent out.
With the seven Churches in Asia minor (Rev 3) He commends, rebukes ,corrects and advises the
Churches. This is management.
The importance of management:
1.
Management leads to excellence
2.
If you carry out management you are following the example of successful men of God
e.g. Nehemiah, Joseph, David and Moses on the advice of Jethro. Exodus 18:17-23.
Paul always had a trainee along on his journeys. He advised Timothy to do similarly in
2 Timothy 2:2.
Jesus raised a team to carry on with His work. The gospel would not have spread out
without the team. In John 17 He Pray for the team.
3.

Management helps you to fulfill your role as a good steward. Mathew 25:14-30.
(I.e. management helps you to use wisely whatever God has given you. Health, strength,
time, education, finances, talents, maturity etc.

FOUR MAJOR STEPS IN MANAGEMENT

A. Planning
B. Organizing
C. Leading
D. Monitoring/Controlling.

A. PLANNING

A simple Definition: To arrange before hand or design a way of proceeding.

Planning is pre-determining the course of action.
Biblical reasons for planning:
1.
God Himself a planner.
2.
God commands us to lead orderly life. 1 Corinthians 14:33; 1 Corinthians 14:40.
(Paul an anointed servant of God cherished order.
3.
Jesus taught us to plan. Luke 14:28-30- A man planning to build a tower; Luke 14:3132- A King planning for war.
4.
Both Old and New Testament has great examples of anointed men whose planning God
directed and blessed.
Steps in Planning
1.
Hear from God God gives us visions for our lives and instructions for specific
projects/ issues.
2.
Determine your objectives.- Objectives are long term goals. While goals are stepping
stones that lead to the objectives.
E.g. if your objective is to build a house for God. The goals comprise or involve detail
planning e.g. fundraising, purchase of land etc.
3.
Plan your strategy How the objectives will be reached.
4.
Put a time frame to it - When do you plan to achieve the different goals a, b, c ? i.e.
relate your plan to the calendar.
5.
Marshal (assess) the resources:- Resources include manpower, money and materials.
How much do you need each?
How much do you have at hand?
How do you plan to mobilize the additional required?
N.B
Plan a little beyond your strength. Heightens your dependency on God e.g. Gideon- Judges 7.
Be ready (prepared) to change your plan. 2 Samuel 5:19-23; 1 Corinthians 13:9
(After careful evaluation or hearing from God).
Involve others in the planning process. (I.e. participatory management.
Take care of existing policies and procedures. - The standard way things are done in the
organization.
Planning is an ongoing process.
You need to market your plan well. You sell it to those who will help in its implementation.
E.g. Nehemiah

If we fail to plan, we plan to fail

B. ORGANIZING
A Simple definition:
Organizing is the process of placing people into a structure to accomplish objectives.
It is the work a manger performs by identifying and grouping the works to be done so that it can be
performed effectively.
The importance of organization:
1. We accomplish more.- more people on the job
2. We are able to excel.- the right people at the right places.
3. We are able to involve more people.- this is a biblical principle.
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The results of lack of or poor organization:

1. Many things are left undone.
2. Tasks get done by people who are ill equipped to carry them out.
BASIC PRINCIPLES OF ORGANIZATION
1. Establish your plans and objectives before establishing a structure. E.g. Nehemiah first
carried out enough ground work before he brought in others. Neh 2:12-17.
2. Avoid extremes- if you over organize-there will be too much bureaucracy, it slows down the
work. Under organization also slows down the work in that so many are reporting to one
person.
3. Organize using the basic gifts or training skills of the people; We are all members of one
body but with different functions. Romans 12:4-6.
STEPS TO FOLOW IN ORGANIZING:
1. List and group the activities that will be carried out; The activities identified in the
course of planning are listed down and related ones grouped. A heading or name to describe
each group is then given.
2. Draw an organizational chart in line with the groupings. As an organization grows, so
does its organizational Chart.
3. Identify and list the people to assist in the work; this listing is followed by assessing them
in terms of strengths and weaknesses.
4. Place the people into the organizational chart: The placing is done following the areas of
strength.
The Organizational Chart will only function effectively if the following are done:
1. Giving of job descriptions: This is basically a formal agreement between employer and
employee (in our case a pastor and his leaders) and it should have the following aspects:
The Title or position of the person in the organization.
The purpose of appointment; this is a brief description of the job to be done by the person.
The scope of the job.
The responsibilities to be held; these should be as detailed as possible for clarity.
The levels of authority of the person usually 3 levels
a. Act. b. Act and inform
c. Act after approval.
Working relationships (i.e. a. To whom do I report? b. Who reports to me? c. With whom
must I work closely?
2. Delegation of work; (i.e. the assigning of authority and responsibilities;
The following are the techniques for good delegation;
a. Delegation combined with motivation brings success.
b. Delegated responsibility ought to be accompanied with authority otherwise it becomes
frustrating.
c. Delegation should be accompanied by a follow-through (i.e. model, mentor, monitor)
d. There are actions and attitudes that jeopardize the delegation process e.g.
Giving of responsibility without authority,
When the person delegating continues to make all the decisions,
Giving instructions directly to the persons under the person the work is delegated to.
The process to follow when planning to delegate;
a. List the duties, prioritize them, and make a decision which ones can be delegated.
b. Scrutinize the persons you want to delegate to in terms of strengths and weaknesses.
c. Delegate and follow up.
d. Plan necessary training in the area of delegation.
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C. LEADING:
Simple definition:
Leading is causing people to take effective action.
To lead is to go before, guide or direct. To stir the team in to action.
God always works though leaders right from the Old Testament.
The following is an outline of the essentials of effective leadership;
a. An effective leader should be visionary.
b. Should have good communication ability.
c. Should be in position to motivate others.
d. Must be able to make decisions.
e. Must have a servant heart.

E. MANAGING OR CONTROLLING:
A Simple Definition;
Managing or controlling is the action taken by a manger to ensure that performance conforms to
plan. E.g. through reports, visits, meetings.
The importance of managing/ controlling:
1. Without managing or controlling all prior efforts of planning, organizing and leading become
fruitless or wasted.
2. Managing helps to maintain the initial momentum.
3. It helps one to make necessary changes in time.
4. It helps the Manager encourage normal operations as well as handle problem areas.
5. It helps to identify and tackle problem areas before they grow big.
Practical guidelines for managing;
a. Establish effective ways for receiving feed backs.
Must be regular
Must be specific.
Must be accurate.
Must be concise.
b. The feed backs received should be related to the job description.
As part of the monitoring exercise, one should have in place ways of measuring results/ success. We are not only called to be faithful, but to be successful as well.