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Transforming Church Boards into Communities of Spiritual Leaders

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Charles M. Olsen awakens new thinking for the Church's traditional mode of organizational operation. He sees the primary objective of a church board doing its necessary business, but in a format that is fresh and new. Leadership is encouraged to take on a new objective, that of becoming a core of Spiritual leaders within the body of people for whom and with whom it is making decisions, that is, the congregation. He proposes that the format of worship become the church board's business format. Devotions, the traditional meeting opener, becomes a brief worship service that sets the mood. Worship then continues throughout the meeting. Committee reports are transformed into an offering. Prayers, seeking God's discernment on issues, are interspersed throughout the meeting. Closings become a blessing and an encouragement as guidance for the journey that lies ahead.

If there is a criticism of this writing it is the redundance of certain thoughts. Some work could be done, in a revision, to improve the flow of the words. On the other hand, these recommendations become secondary to the theme and its potential effectiveness as it is outlined by the author.

Having been in the ministry for more than forty years I have found the book Transforming Church Boards into communities of spiritual leaders an idea whose time has come. Though the idea is not new-it is what the early church was all about-it is something that can transform the culture of the congregation because influence flows downhill.