21Aug 2009 by Nigel Ring

Practice and Faith go hand-in-hand

Administration in the Church, Administrative Skills, Biblical Administration, Conference Administration, Equipping, General
We have already considered four administrative skills which Jesus demonstrated when he fed the 5000. We shall now look at two more. 5. Implementation Mk 6:40 So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. A plan had clearly formed in Jesus’ mind and in order to fulfil it he needed not only to reassert his authority but also to bring order back to the crowd. Feeding 5000 men plus women and children was certainly no picnic! Order brings security to those involved, whether it is order of the crowd, of the recording of finances, or of the allocation and recording of materials and other resources. Having been involved in organising many substantial conferences over nearly 3 decades (e.g. Downs Bible Week, Stoneleigh Bible Week, Newfrontiers Together on a…
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18Aug 2009 by Nigel Ring

Resources and Authority

Administration in the Church, Administrative Skills, Biblical Administration, Conference Administration, Equipping, General
Continuing to learn Biblical administration from Jesus’ feeding the 5000 we shall now consider two more aspects. 3. What resources are available? Mk 6:38 And he said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they had found out, they said, "Five, and two fish." In formulating a plan an accurate assessment of existing and needed resources are core to the fulfilment. Resources here are material. But much wider consideration should be given when planning a task – Human (Character and Skills), Finance, Materials, Facilities, Natural (Sun, wind, rain etc), Physical (roads, electricity, water supplies etc), and so on. I have been involved in running many substantial conferences for Terry Virgo and the Newfrontiers family. When assessing a venue for a Bible Week, for instance,…
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15Aug 2009 by Nigel Ring

People first

Administration in the Church, Administrative Skills, Biblical Administration, Conference Administration, Equipping, General
In previous postings we have looked at the story of Jesus feeding the 5000 as recorded in Mk 6. Now, so much for the narrative. What are the administrative points – the skills and processes – which we can learn from this passage? 1. Jesus was a people person Mk 6:34 .. he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. Administration in the church is all about people. Because of our experience in the world, where the faceless bureaucracy of government is often making decisions affecting our lives, we are inclined to dismiss administration as impersonal. However, in the upside down world of the Kingdom of God it is the exact opposite. Administration is about making the environment or activity as conducive as possible to allowing…
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07Aug 2009 by Nigel Ring

Mission accomplished?

Administration in the Church, Biblical Administration, Equipping
Mar 6:42-45 And (the people) all ate and were satisfied. And (the disciples) took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men. Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. Through feeding perhaps 10,000 people the plan Jesus had made was fulfilled – ‘they all ate and were satisfied’ (v42). At this point it would have been possible to say ‘mission accomplished’. But that would not have been true. The account has two more verses. First, we find the disciples on the hillside clearing up the left-overs (v 43). How typical this is of so many tasks. When the people are…
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31Jul 2009 by Nigel Ring

Strategic delegation

Administration in the Church, Biblical Administration, Equipping
Mar 6:41-42  And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied.  Once order was established, with all the people sitting down, and his authority recognised, Jesus turned his attention to the Father, from whom he was expecting a miracle (v 41). Knowing the Father had heard him, but without the evidence to show it, he took action and started delegating, handing out the loaves and fish to the disciples. It is not clear at what point the loaves were multiplied. It is possible that this happened as Jesus gave the…
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27Jul 2009 by Nigel Ring

Who is in charge around here?

Administration in the Church, Biblical Administration, Equipping
Mar 6:39-40  Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. Up to this point the crowd would have seen Jesus being interrupted and discussions taking place. ‘What’s going on?’ ‘Why has he stopped speaking?’ ‘Can you hear what he is saying?’ Those near him were pushing forward to listen and were passing rumours back to their neighbours. It could have appeared that no one knew what to do. So it was important for them to acknowledge Jesus’ leadership. By now Jesus clearly had a plan in mind for he next started to engage the people’s attention. He commanded them to sit in groups of hundreds and fifties. It is difficult to cause a…
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