Building Teams That Build The Church

Leadership thought: The size of your dream should determine the size of your team.

If you are dreaming of big things for the church, then you should also be doing things that increase the size and number of people involved on the team. We cannot achieve the dream without the team.

There are some basic principles that have to do with building teams within the church. Church is a unique organization in that our mission is to take as many people possible with us on the journey called the Christian walk of faith. So why is it that we seem to have trouble understanding that just as it is our responsibility to win people to the Lord, it is also our responsibility to recruit people to be on our teams?

Everyone belongs on a team. But not every team is for everyone.

You cannot fire volunteers. If a volunteer fails to stick, more often than not, it is our fault and not theirs. When volunteers don’t fit it is usually because they have been positioned in a wrong role, or it is a personality mismatch between team members. In almost every circumstance, the leader should see this in advance. Repositioning the volunteer to a different team, a different role, or a different place usually works. The best way to avoid misfits is to prevent them. But remember this: a volunteer should never be “fired.” Firing a volunteer is devastating to the volunteer and can result in their leaving the church or leaving their faith altogether. Find a win/win scenario if you need to reposition someone.

Not all positions on a team are equal, but all people are equal. The person doing the smallest task is just as important as the person doing the biggest task. The tasks may be more or less important, but the people are equal in value. If you operate out of this thought, you won’t have people on the team acting like they are more important, striving for titles, and acting self-important. The leader of the team or department needs to be very clear on this – all people are equal on the team, but their roles may be different.

It is better to have many people doing small things on a team, than it is to have a few people doing many things. When you have just a few people doing the work, you close the doors of opportunity to many other people who would and could enjoy the benefits of being on the team. People who say that they only want a select few on their teams are usually just making excuses for their lack of ability to recruit, train and keep people. It’s selfish. The benefits of being on a team are so huge that they cannot be ignored.
- People receive a blessing when they do the work of the Lord.
- Everyone wants to feel like they belong to something greater than themselves. The team opportunity gives people a chance to be part of growing a church.
- In a big church, the best way for people to make new friends is for them to be on a team.
- People can learn skills, try things they have never done before, and expand the interests in their lives through involvement in the church.
- People who are happy on a team will overlook minor and petty things that happen at church.
- People who are on a team are much more likely to financially support the church in tithes and offerings.
- People who are on a team will speak positively about the church to others.

The person who has the most influence –either positive or negative –is the team leader. The team leader can make or break the team.
- fun v. not fun
- organized v. disorganized
- growing v. shrinking
- successful v. unsuccessful in the duties of the team
- positive v. negative experience
- atmosphere that promotes friendships and relationships v. an atmosphere that is all about work and the job at hand

The growth of the church is totally dependant upon our ability to grow our existing teams. We can only reach people if we are able to care for them when they come. It does us no good to pack the place out week after week if we are not taking people beyond that first visit. Our ability to grow the size and number of teams we have is the essential key that will make or break our future. The way that we have done things in the past is not sufficient to carry us through today, and certainly not into tomorrow. Connecting people is the number one priority we should all have.
- The strength of our church is impacted by our weakest link. Are you the weak link?
- Do you have trouble keeping up with everyone else?
- Are you growing in your area of responsibility?
- Do you see the big picture?
- Do you recognize and are you working on your personal weakness?
- Are you working by yourself or are you working with the rest of the team(s)?
- Are you consistently fulfilling and meeting the expectations of your team and/or pastor?

We are not called to be like eagles, that fly alone and live a solitary existence. We are called to be more like Canadian geese.
- They fly together in tight formation with a leader up front. No one flies outside the formation doing their own thing.
- The geese follow their leader.
- If the leader tires, another moves quickly into place without the team every missing pace.
- If a goose falls ill or is injured, two healthy geese will stay back and accompany the injured goose to the ground remaining there until the goose is able to fly again, or until it dies. They will not leave it to die alone. Afterwards, the two geese will return to the flock as quickly as possible. The flock does not miss pace or is not held back, but there is a compassionate attendance made to the sick or injured goose.
- The geese at the back of the flock are very noisy as they cheer those on in front of them.
- Alone, the single goose’s flapping of wings propels at a slower pace per hour than that of the group flying. The wind draft created by a multitude of wings actually increases speed of the flock together. The synergy of the team is greater together than the single strongest bird could ever create on their own.