Church Governance

Within the context of local ministry today, it is not uncommon for churches to struggle over issues of health, effectiveness and relevance. Often at the very heart of the struggle are issues of governance and organization, leadership and teamwork, decision-making and communication. Not all of these struggles are wrong and to be avoided, yet often conflict arrises over roles and responsibilities, authority and power, control and freedom. Often the governance and organizational structure employed do more to inflame the issue than resolve it. 

For this reason it is time to rethink the way we engage ministry from the perspective of governance. It is time to refocus the purpose of governance, to clarify the roles and responsibilities of boards, to harmonize the work of the board and that of the pastor or pastoral staff. We need to reposition governance to a role of service rather than that of control and hindrance. 

It is time to ask some important questions about church governance, including:

• Does our governance structure help or hinder the effectiveness of ministry?
• Does our governance structure promote the health and growth of the church?
• Is there clarity regarding roles and responsibilities?
• Are we using Scripture correctly in the design and implementation of our governance model?
• How can we improve communication, decision-making, and the flow of information?
• How can we make being a board member one of the most fulfilling, spiritual and enjoyable experiences in Church life?

In an effort to assist churches and church leaders in addressing these questions and concerns, the ABA has engaged a number of regional and local initiatives. It is the desire of the Regional Ministers to come along side churches who are in a period of transition and help them think through the issues, arriving at improvement for the sake of effective ministry.

For further help or information contact:

Bob Walther at: 780-438-8852 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Jim Leverette at: 780-438-8852 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Links to articles and helps developed by Jim Leverette:

Board Development

Board-Pastor Relationship

Board Member Covenant

Board Member Orientation

Board Self-Assessment

Character Assessment of Potential Board Members

Clarifying Values

Values Audit

Values Examples

Retrofuture Strategic Process

Senior Pastor Evaluation and Annual Performance Review

Motion Guide

Recommended Reading

1. Spiritual Formation

Gire, Ken. Seeing What Is Sacred. Nelson: Nashville, 2006.

Nouwen, Henri. The Living Reminder. Harper: San Francisco, 1984.

Rutland, Mark. Character Matters. Charisma: Lake Mary, 2003.

Willard, Dallas, and Don Simpson. Character Revolution. NavPress: Colorado Springs, 2005.

Willard, Dallas. The Great Omission. Harper: San Francisco, 2006.

2. Leadership

Allender, Dan B. Leading With a Limp. WaterBooks: Colorado Springs, 2006.

Boa, Kenneth. The Perfect Leader. Victor: Colorado Springs, 2006.

Brady, Chris, and Orrin Woodward. Launching a Leadership Revolution. Business: New York, 2008.

George, Bill. True North. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2007.

Gibbs, Eddie. LeadershipNext. InterVarsity: Downers Grove, 2005.

Greenleaf, Robert K. Servant Leadership. Paulist: New York, 2002.

Kellerman, Barbara. Bad Leadership. Harvard: Boston, 2004.

Kouzes, James M., and Barry Z Posner. The Leadership Challenge, 4th ed. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2007.

                         Credibility. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2003.

                         A Leader’s Legacy. Jossey-Bass, 2006.

Ogden, Greg. Leadership Essentials. InterVarsity: Grand Rapids, 2007.

Malphurs, Aubrey. Being Leaders. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2003.

                         Building Leaders. Baler: Grand Rapids, 2004.

                        Values-Driven Leadership, 2^nd ed. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2004.

 McNeal, Reggie. Practicing Greatness. Joosey-Bass: San Francisco, 2006.

Pue, Carson. Mentoring Leaders. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2005.

Sanders, Oswald. Spiritual Leadership. Moody: Chicago, 2007.

Spears, Larry C., and Michele Lawrence. Practicing Servant Leadership. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2004.

3. Governance

Berkley, James D., ed. Leadership Handbook of Management & Administration. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2007.

Bowen, William G. The Board Book. Norton: New York, 2008.

Brown, Jim. The Imperfect Board Member. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2007.

Carver, John. Boards That Make a Difference, 3^rd ed. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2006.

Laughlin, Fredric L., and Robert Andringa. Good Governance for Non-Profits. Amacom: New York, 2007.

Malphurs, Aubrey. Leading Leaders. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2005.

Stahlke, Les with Jennifer Loughlin. Governance Matters. Imperial: Edmonton, 2003.

4. Ministry – Current, Emerging

Dever, Mark. Nine Marks of a Healthy Church. exp. ed. Crossways: Wheaton, 2004.

Getz, Gene. The Measure of a Healthy Church. Moody: Chicago, 2007.

MacDonald, Gordon. Who Stole My Church? Nelson: Nashville, 2007.

Malphurs, Aubrey. A New Kind of Church. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2007.

Minatrea, Milfred. Shaped By God’s Heart. Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2004.

Towns, Elmer, Ed Stetzer, and Larry Bird. 11 Innovations in the Local Church. Regal: Ventura, 2007.

Rainer, Thom, and Eric Geiger. Simple Church. B&H: Nashville, 2006.

Stetzer, Ed, and Mike Dodson. Comeback Churches. B & H: Nashville, 2007.

Stetzer, Ed, and David Putman. Breaking the Missional Code. B & H: Nashville, 2006.

White, James Emery. Rethinking the Church. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2003.

5. Strategy

Drucker, Peter. The Five Most Important Questions.  Jossey-Bass: San Francisco, 2008.

Hrebiniak, Lawrence. Making Strategy Work. Wharton: Upper Saddle River, 2005.

Malphurs, Aubrey. Advanced Strategic Planning, 2^nd ed. Baker: Grand Rapids, 2005.

Raynor, Michael E. The Strategy Paradox. Doubleday: New York, 2007.

Trout, Jack. Trout on Strategy. McGraw-Hill: New York, 2004.