I am a temporary ministry specialist. I have served ten churches, three presbyteries, and one synod over the past twenty-five years. While each church posed distinctive challenges, every session expressed the need for quality training. Requests for training are often the result of a perceived need on the part of those in ordered ministries to obtain knowledge and develop skills that will enable them to function more effectively.  However, church leaders have also expressed several reasons for not doing training:

1.                  At a time when church membership is declining, we are afraid that if we require much from our volunteer membership they will withdraw never to be seen or heard from again.

2.                  At a time when discretionary time for volunteer participation is decreasing, we are frequently so grateful to members who agree to serve as officers that we are reticent to require that they give the time necessary for officer training.

3.                  Teaching elders seem to be experiencing more stress these days — too much to do, too little time to do it.  To require teaching elders to teach a 4 or 6 week class every year in addition to their other duties feels particularly burdensome.

4.                  Teaching elders, ruling elders and deacons find it much easier for teaching elders to do everything themselves than to impart the skills necessary for ruling elders and deacons to accomplish the same task. And, let’s face it, many ruling elders and deacons would just as soon let teaching elders do it all.

5.                  While teaching elders acknowledge the concept of parity between teaching elders and ruling elders, we secretly believe that most laypersons do not have the capability to be full partners in ministry.

In such a climate it has been easy to forget that officer training is not an optional activity. The Book of Order mandate for the training of officers reads:

When persons have been elected to the ordered ministry of ruling elder or deacon, the session shall provide a period of study and preparation, after which the session shall examine them as to their personal faith; knowledge of the doctrine, government, and discipline contained in the Constitution of the church; and the duties of the ministry. The session shall also confer with them as to their willingness to undertake the ministry appropriate to the order. If the examination is approved, the session shall appoint a day for the service of ordination and installation. (G-2.0402 -- emphasis added)

Very few of us are persuaded solely on the basis of references to our Constitution. There are, however, other reasons every church can benefit from undertaking a program of quality officer training on an annual basis.

1.                  It may be frightening to embark on a course that requires more from our volunteers rather than less. Nevertheless, experience has shown that many people who join the church are seeking to fill a spiritual hunger. At one level or another they realize they cannot be adequately fed without taking the time and spending the energy necessary to partake of the spiritual feast being offered by the church.

2.                  Many ruling elders and deacons complain of being inadequately trained to do the job they have been elected to do. Often, it takes them a year to figure out what it is they are supposed to be accomplishing. They frequently feel their time and energy could have been better spent doing something else where they could make a significant contribution.

3.                  An increasing number of people are being called to church leadership without having a background in the Presbyterian tradition. They often feel angry at being required to conform to a form of government they do not understand. This can lead, not only to church conflict, but to conflict between the church and other governing bodies over “who is in charge” of the local congregation.

4.                  Many church leaders today do not understand the relationship between the temporal “business” of the church and the “spiritual leadership” role they have been called to fill. What is the difference between fund raising and stewardship? What does the remodeling of the church kitchen have to do with Christian mission? Not understanding these issues can create an attitude of ‘bottom-line’ ministry that does not necessarily reflect a reformed understanding of our relationship with God.

5.                  Letting the pastor “do it all” encourages blame rather than accountability. If the pastor is responsible for the mission and ministry of the church, the session becomes little more than a personnel committee charged with supervising the pastor. This is very different from ruling elders, deacons and pastors engaging in a shared ministry wherein each officer has a unique and vital role that contributes to the overall ministry of the church.

The church does not “belong” to the pastor, the session, or even the congregation. The church belongs to God. While the pastor brings singular gifts and a level of professional expertise, each person involved in ordered ministries brings unique gifts which God calls the church to use at a particular point in its history. It is the aggregate use of all of these gifts that enables the church to carry out its mission and ministry in a way that is most faithful to the will of God. It is possible for each person to make the maximum use of their God-given gifts only to the extent that they are adequately trained and encouraged to do so.

Throughout my ministry I have collected the following materials and arranged them in an easy to lead, easy to learn, flexible format. The purpose is to provide those in ordered ministries with the foundation necessary for them to faithfully fulfill their unique roles as partners in ministry.  It is my hope that this workbook will enable you to make the most of the gifts God has given to church leaders who are called to serve your church.