One of the things I often hear from pastors is, "I hate meetings." When I ask them why, some of the answers include, "They're painful," or, "They're a waste of time," or, "They're too long,' or, "We rarely accomplish anything." Maybe you have felt the same way.

I have both sat in meetings and led meetings for a long time. When I first started leading meetings, I quickly discovered the problem was not the meeting, but me, and the way the meeting was led. So, I adapted! When I became the senior pastor of a multi-church, I quickly realized the value and importance of productive staff meetings. Over the years, I found church staff persons, whether full-time, part-time, or volunteer, were among the most scarred by bad staff meetings, and I vowed to change this.