• Use every communication vehicle possible to promote the meeting:  bulletins, announcements, letters, personal invitations.
  Insure that the whole congregation or group involved is fully aware of the meeting.
  Take time to clearly and fully describe what is being done, and why.
  Explain why the meeting is being called?
  Clarify the objectives?
  Explain what is to be accomplished.
  Make sure the congregation or group understands that the meeting will be meaningful, that what comes out of it will result in actions that are needed, and that the leadership really wants the congregation's participation.
  Put a Biblical wrapper on the comments or announcement, possibly by preaching on the concept of the body and the need for body parts to be active and to participate for the body to function properly (Rom 12:3ff and Eph4:12-16).
• Produce a humorous flyer asking for full congregational participation .
• For extended meetings form an agenda that might include some fun event, maybe snacks and refreshments, a "pot luck meal," and devotional period.
  Have a heavy dose of prayer, Scripture reading, & songs during the devotional element of the meeting.
• Meetings that are intended to be brief can dispense with fellowship time, but should include some form of brief devotion.
• Consider sending personal invitations to homes or attractive notices in the bulletin.

NAMING THE MEETING

• It is helpful for members to understand that the meeting is not simply to discuss physical aspects of the congregation, but involves spiritual concerns.
  The business of a congregation is indeed spiritual!
• Announce the meeting as an important "spiritual business meeting".

AGENDA

• Publish a well worded and manageable agenda.
• A brief devotional should be designed in the agenda to include prayer, and scripture reading.
  Plan to broaden the involvement by inviting different people to lead in the devotional different subject oriented prayers.
• Refreshment breaks should be strategically placed in the agenda to allow time for discussion.
• Participation of everyone attending the meeting should be encouraged.  Discussion opportunities for all should be made possible and prompted.
• It is a good policy to adopt a modified and abbreviated form of Robert's Rules of Order for conducting the meeting. 
  Click here to go to a web page presenting Robert's Rules of Order resources.
  Click here to go to an adapted and abbreviated form of Robert's Rules of Order suitable for congregation meetings.
  All proposals should be made by motion, seconded, and time made available for discussion before action is taken for approval or denial of the motion.
• Written Minutes of a previous meeting should be presented to the group.
  Discussion on the minutes should be requested.
  Approval of the minutes should be solicited.
• If the meeting is to involve ministry effectiveness, encourage all ministry groups to make reports.
  It is a good policy to open the meeting report session with a report from the elders on their ministry.  This encourages others to offer reports.
  Following this, a written and oral budget report should be presented to the group.
  Prior instructions should be given to specific ministry groups regarding reports to be made.
• Some vehicle for assessing the success of the meeting must be built into the agenda.

PROTOCOLS AND PARTICIPATION GUIDELINES

• Appoint a capable, well informed chair person to lead the meeting.
• The chairman must be well informed as to the purpose of the meeting and the NGT process.
• The chairman must maintain the progress of the meeting according to the agenda - stick to the agenda!
• Appoint a capable meeting secretary who will record the names of those present at the meeting, the decisions and pertinent steps taken during the meeting, and the summaries of groups discussions..
• It should be stressed that no one has bad ideas!  Remember the NGT rules.
• Everyone should be encouraged to participate, comment, and make any observation relevant to the topic.
  Only when everyone feels free to comment will they engage in the process both mentally and actively.
• Divergent points of view are often both correct!
  Problems and solutions are not always clear-cut black & white.
  There are often good rational points of view from different sides of the spectrum, encourage everyone to appreciate and assimilate alternative views.
  Doing so might moderate and enrich the outcome.
• Do not permit anyone to engage in personal remarks or attacks.
  The meeting is to discuss ideas and solutions, not personalities.
• If there is a concern that some might dominate the meeting consider using a time limit for observations for all participants.
  When the time limit expires the chair should pass the discussion on to the next person for comment.
  Should a speaker feel that they have other thoughts to add, encourage them to make notes to comment on when there next turn comes to speak.
  When discussion comes back around they can choose what to say in that time.
  Either they’ll move on or they’ll finish what they “had to say”.
  This process  relates mainly to situations where one or two, or a group seek to dominate the discussion.
• Make sure that everyone, including the women, are encouraged to participate!  Prompt individuals to  comment so they get pulled in.
  Ask individuals "What do you think about the subject or discussion?"
• Seek consensus agreement rather than majority decisions.
   

HANDOUT MATERIALS 

• Prepare copies of the agenda for every participant.
• Prepare a statement of purpose for the meeting which should be made available to all participants.
• If such are pertinent to the purpose of the meeting, provide statistics for review and reflection.
• Use flip charts and handouts related to the purpose of the meting.  Too many handouts may appear that one is manipulating the process.
• Flash process slides periodically in front of the group to focus attention on the purpose of the meeting.
  Do this several times.
• Have a handout that specifically reminds the group of the protocols and rules of discussion.
• If strategic planning is the purpose of the meeting, follow strategic planning steps.
  Click here to go to a program outlining the strategic planning process.

OBJECTIVES, ASSESSMENT, AND IMPLEMENTATION

• The meeting participants should already have been advised of the objectives of the meeting.

• The meeting should be recognized only as a planning or strategy meeting.

• Some vehicle for assessing the progress of the meeting should be built into the agenda.
  This could be in the form of reports of summaries form the different groups, if groups are an aspect of the meeting.
  Remember NGT rules and procedures.

• Some form of summarization should conclude the meeting.
  The chair may ask for brief summaries of salient comments or observations.

• Procedures for communicating and implementing the plans must be formulated and carried forward.