As I write this article, our association is in the midst of compiling a survey related to resourcing, equipping, and assisting churches.  One of the leading topics for assistance is in the area of “church staff”.  At this point there is no clarity as to what aspect of “church staff” those responding to the survey want.  But – I have a few guesses!  Competency, chemistry, and character would appear at the top of my guesses.  At least that is what phone calls and meetings over the past 15 years indicate, as well as the previous 24 years pastoring.

Competency encompasses the skills, abilities, talent, and spiritual giftedness required to do a job.  Chemistry reflects the relationships with other staff members and the congregation.  Character speaks of personal values, integrity, and spiritual transformation.  The staff member who rates an “A” in all three categories is greatly valued and sought after.  The staff member who rates a failure in any of these three areas creates conflict within a church and usually becomes unemployed.

In my mind, while each of these areas have importance, they do have a priority order and emerge from different stimuli:

Character is at the top of my list when preparing to hire a staff member.  While values may be reinforced or sharpened, most of us have embraced the values we will live by as we moved into being adults.  While a spiritual transformation will create a character shift, we presume that we are hiring persons who have already experienced a spiritual transformation.  Just as a person should not marry someone in the hopes of changing the new spouse into a better person, we shouldn’t hire a person lacking in character hoping that working on a church staff will finally develop their character.

The competency needed for a certain position will change regularly.  Fifteen years ago churches were just beginning to consider using computers.  Today computers are a must in record keeping, finances, desktop publishing, and communication.  Who knows what will be needed tomorrow.  I believe that a church needs to hire intelligent individuals who are willing to continue learning and developing new and varied skills.

Positive chemistry is the result of employees having time to hear each other’s dreams and visions, to meet their families, to laugh and cry and pray and eat together.  The goal is to become a team working together for the Kingdom rather than individuals focused on separate tasks that never seem to connect.

Pastors, specific task ministers, and ministry assistants compose the face of the church staff.  Behind the scenes are facility managers, food service personnel, and day care workers. While we may be have a tendency to value these positions based on salary paid or background required, all of them compose a team.  If your goal is to have a strong church staff that functions as a team, hire people of solid character who have a teachable spirit, and give them time to build trust relationships with one another.  The end result will be a benefit to your church and a benefit to the Kingdom.