Spiritual Priority

It might seem that spiritual issues are optional in meetings of the Church, great or small. There is the temptation to get to the "real" business and not waste people's time. In a Church, however, spiritual things must have priority both in placement and in emphasis. They don't need to occupy much time, but they need to have strong emphasis. I believe this is critical to the strength (or revival) of any Church. In meetings of the whole Church, I have done it like this. Before any business is discussed, the whole meeting is involved in devotions (the Word of God, worship of God, and prayer to God), the whole Church reports on all that God has been and done in the Church (typically someone appointed by each section of the Church), and the whole Church hears and brings spiritual input concerning the Church. Only after this does one table any material or temporal matters. OBSERVATION: This is not my own idea, but is historically the focus of my Congregational tradition -- and other traditions.