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At 5:30 on Saturday morning, December 11, 1982, a passing patrolman spotted flames shooting from the roof of Arlington Heights (Ill.) Evangelical Free Church. Within minutes, fire fighters were dragging hoses into the sanctuary to combat the flames and 400-degree heat. Other firemen scrambled to punch vent holes in the roof.

By the time the fire was brought under control, the $150,000 pipe organ was destroyed, the pews were charred, the electrical control boards melted into the bricks, and the plastic globes on the chandeliers had dripped to the floor. Our vaulted, 600-seat sanctuary was ravaged, the stained-glass windows blackened. The offices and educational wing suffered smoke damage.

Fire trucks were still on the scene as the church board convened in the garage, the only place not filled with smoke. Trying to shake the trauma, they wrestled with a double crisis: within eight hours, hundreds would begin arriving for the first of four very popular Christmas concerts, and by Sunday morning, 1,200 faithful would need a place to worship.

What do you do first? This was no time to consult the minutes for past policy. Quickly the board arranged to use nearby Hersey High School for Sunday services, and the Saturday concerts were switched to Sunday evening in the school auditorium.

In one short week, the church learned volumes about crisis management. Associate Pastor Dave Wardle shares the lessons learned:

1. Concentrate on immediate needs and issues. Keep asking, "What do we need to do now" and then do it.

2. Establish clear lines of authority. Let everyone know who is in charge of specific areas such as cleanup, security, and communications. ...

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