Expectations of the Elders

From Thom Rainer:

An experiment I tried several years ago, though, might prove instructive. When I was a pastor in St. Petersburg, Florida, I gave a survey to the twelve deacons in the church (I jokingly said we had eleven good deacons and one Judas!). I listed several congregational responsibilities and asked them to share the minimum amount of time I should average in each area each week. I listed about twenty areas; but they were free to add other responsibilities to the blank lines.

I’m not sure exactly what I was anticipating. I just know that I was shocked when I tallied the results. In order to meet those twelve deacons minimum expectations I had to fulfill the following responsibilities each week:

• Prayer at the church: 14 hours
• Sermon preparation: 18 hours
• Outreach and evangelism: 10 hours
• Counseling: 10 hours
• Hospital and home visits: 15 hours
• Administrative functions: 18 hours
• Community involvement: 5 hours
• Denominational involvement: 5 hours
• Church meetings: 5 hours
• Worship services/preaching: 4 hours
• Other: 10 hours

Total: 114 hours/week

If I met just the minimum expectations of twelve deacons, I would have to work more than 16 hours a day for seven days a week. Or I could take one day off of work each week, and work 19 hours a day for six days a week. And remember, I still would only meet the minimum expectations of twelve people in the church, not the entire membership.