The typical church attendee sees Sunday morning through the lens of how the service impacts them and those around them. From the time they pull into the parking lot, they notice if they are welcome through simple acts like open gates and available parking spaces. As they enter the facility, they assess how quickly and easily they can check in their kids, evaluate if the rooms are clean, and if the volunteers are ready. When they finally make it to the Worschip Center, is it clean, are there enough chairs, how’s the room temperature, what about the lighting, is the music too loud, too quiet, or just right? Was the message biblical, did it share the gospel, and deepen the faith of believers?
That’s what most people see when attending a church service. However, it is often what is unseen and goes behind the scenes that allows for a safe and distraction-free worship service. For example, without a strong child safety policy like one that adheres to AB-506, how can the church make every possible assurance that the children are safe? While every organization must have policies to define and guide expected behaviors and ensure compliance, it’s essential to understand the difference between a policy and a procedure.
Policies
Without overcomplicating the definition, church policies define expectations and ensure compliance. A policy is never a substitute for leadership. In other words, don’t make a policy because leadership lacks the courage to address an issue with an individual or group. For example, if you prefer that the worship leader doesn’t wear a hat on stage during the service, making a policy forbidding hats is a bad idea. Talk to the worship leader. A good church policy guides the expectations of everyone while ensuring compliance with laws and regulations and supports the church’s mission, vision, and values. The earlier example of a child protection policy hits all of the points:
- Guides Expectations: People dropping off their children expect them to be safe. Therefore, the policy sets the expectation that every person serving with children completes a background check that includes Live Scan and passes all required and approved training.
- Ensures Compliance: AB-506 requires screening, training, and a written policy.
- Supports the Mission, Vision, and Values: It would be impossible to share the good news of God’s love for them if the children were not safe and loved.
It’s also essential that churches revisit policies and update them as necessary. Imagine operating on a financial policy written before the proliferation of online donations and banking. If the church is not following the policy, it probably shouldn’t be a policy.
Procedures
Where a church policy guides expectations and ensures compliance, a procedure provides the “how to” accomplish tasks in accordance with the policy. For example, if the church’s policy for volunteers working with children requires screening and training, the procedure will provide the church and children’s workers with the “how to” get screened and trained. Procedures are more likely to change as technology and other factors change, whereas policies remain the overarching guide. For example, methods for processing online donations will change with every software update and change in bank or processor. However, the policy ensuring timely and accountable donation processing is likely to remain for a long time.
One of the best compliments a church can get is for people to walk on the campus and enjoy their entire worship experience without wondering if it’s safe, secure, and if the church treats everyone fairly. That’s because of the incredible behind-the-scenes work of the operations teams creating and enforcing policies and providing updated procedures.
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