I had dinner with a pastor friend this week, and one of the topics we discussed was "Systems Thinking". Systems thinking is really the application of policies, plans and procedures to ministry programs. All churches have policies and procedures, but in my experience it is rare that they have policies and procedures applied to the creation, maintenance, operation and staffing of ministry programs.

In many churches, running the church "like a business" is anathema. It is considered unspiritual. Systems thinking is often perceived as unspiritual, or interfering with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Many churches claim to be "spirit led" but it is just a rationalization for disorganization or chaotic management practices.

I think that people forget that "stewards" and "managers" in the bible are very closely related. Good stewardship is in fact good management. So why is good management anathema to the operation of ministry programs. God calls us to be good stewards of His resources. What is the problem. Really? In the bible the word that we sometimes translate as "elder" is also translated "overseer". How different is an overseer from a supervisor? Not very to my mind.

In the parable of the talents, Jesus himself correlates stewardship and fruitfulness. Right? So what is the problem?

I think that part of the problem is that pastors are not educated in stewardship as it applies to ministry programs. Seminaries teach them to handle the word of God correctly, to shepherd a flock, to lead worship, but not as much how to manage a staff, or how to run a non-profit organization. I also think that perhaps the aspects of ministry that attract people to those schools, do not attract people who like to plan. I never attended seminary or Bible college, but I have never heard a pastor talk about the classes they had in organizational behavior or ministry planning, or the professor who taught them church accounting and planning. They may have taken courses like that, but I never seem to hear about them. Not very inspirational?

Perhaps church boards do not value management skills or aptitude when calling paid staff. Perhaps they are simply focused on the more "spiritual" aspects of ministry. I have been on a couple of pastoral search committees, and in those cases, philosophy of ministry or leadership style were topics of conversation, but not qualifiers.

When I look for examples of "systems thinking" in the bible, I don't have to look further than Acts. After Pentecost, the church grew so rapidly that the 12 were spending too much time serving communion, to the point where it was interfering with their praying and teaching. So they create a brand new job description for "deacons". If you look closely, the Bible has all kinds of examples of systems thinking.

• Exodus – Moses delegating judging of the people
• Nehemiah – The organization of clans and families to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem
• Acts – Appointing of deacons
• Timothy – qualifications of deacons and elders

If a church is not to be run "like a business", then what is it to be run like? What is the alternative operating model? As a kid, I often heard adults use an expression for something disorganized, by saying that it was run "like a church picnic". So it was clear to me that church as a well understood example of poor management practice.

There are two words that describe (for me) the attitudes of stewardship: intentional and diligent. If we apply these two stewardship words to all aspects of our ministry, I think we get very close to systems thinking. We are stewards of not only the financial resources that God provides, but also the human resources of time and talent, and beyond that the spiritual gifts God gives to equip His church. When we diligently marshal these resources with the intention of producing fruit, we are not running the church "like a business", but in fact "like a church".

Jesus, as he turned his attention toward Jerusalem, began to utter some of his most difficult teaching. He talked about going to the cross, yet at this time, most of his followers (including the 12) were still thinking that he would lead Israel out of Roman occupation. After the feeding of the 5000, followers came to him, and basically asked for another miracle meal, and a spectacle. And when he started with the hard teaching about sacrifice and suffering, many of them turned away. They were looking for "dinner theater" and he told them to eat his flesh and drink his blood.

How many of us decide what church to attend, based on the ministry programs, and how they meet our needs. How are the children's programs, how are the youth ministries, how is the worship service, how is the teaching from the pulpit?

How exactly is this different from Jesus followers looking for dinner theater. Where do these criteria lead? Often, they lead to a church becoming all about the needs of the congregation, and when the congregation selfishly expects their needs to be met, they can revolt when they are not. Church can become an inward facing club – far removed from the great commission.

So how do we (ministry leadership) combat selfism in ministry? Teaching is one way. Having a consistent message that Christians are expected to produce fruit is important, because it combats the Christian as Spectator (dinner theater) mentality. Getting people involved in ministering outside the body as well as in, is another way. Community ministry – serving others in the community as an outreach is another way to help people see this. Last is accountability. Having your members understand their accountability for working in the fruit production area is key. Challenging individual attitudes that smack of self-seeking, with the command to pick up your cross daily is important. When people complain about their needs being unmet, ask them what they are doing to meet others needs. Each of us should be reaching out in whatever way possible to meet the needs of others, and focusing on opportunities to serve, rather than to be served.

And how do we (as Christians) combat these attitudes in our own life? See the church not only as a way to get fed, and as a place for our children to grow in Christ, but as a place for us to express our gratitude to our Lord by giving our gifts, talent, and time to serve others. Our criteria for selecting a church should be equally focused on how we can get involved in serving, as it is how we can be ministered to. How does the church help us grow in Christ, how does the Church help us reach our neighbors, how does the church allow us to use the gifts and talents the God has given us, how does the church hold me accountable?

I was reading a management blog this week, and thought that ministry leaders are not that different from corporate managers. Stay with me on this, the job of a manager is to recruit, develop, and retain human resources, building and managing system or programs to ensure that important work gets done. Managers do these things by making decisions. One of the most important decisions that any manager (or ministry leader) makes is how they will spend their time.

So I ask you – ministry leader – how will you spend your time? The two blog posts below clearly articulate the power of delegation.

http://managementblog.org/2011/03/10/tasks-only-you-can-do/

This first post is about leverage – how much leverage do you get from delegating work to others? How much help do you need to get work done?

http://managementblog.org/2011/03/08/two-purposes-for-delegation-one-more-powerful/

This second post is about what delegation means to the person you are delegating to. How much does it help them to participate in your work? How does it help them grow?

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I know that ministry work is not like a "regular" job. You have less "control" over volunteers, and your staff "compensation" comes from a different source. But leadership is always more about influence than control, trust is the conductor for all forms of influence, and delegation is about trust. Answer these questions, and see if your answers change the way you think about what you need to do this week?
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How much time do you spend on the mechanics of running ministry programs?
How much time do you spend developing ministry teams?

Which one will give you the most fruit?

Ministry is service. Jesus came to serve. We are to follow his example and serve. Our service is ordained by God. We are to serve by doing the good works that He has prepared in advance for us to do.

Our service is to build each other up. Our service is to share the good news of salvation with others. Our service is to produce Fruit.

We are called a "holy priesthood". We are called "saints". What this means to me is that God has called each believer to a life of sacrifice and service. To a life of ministry. This ministry is expressed to family, to friends, to co-workers, to others we encounter.

Here are the Hebrew words from the old testament that are translated ministry:

Shareth – Priestly service or work in the temple or tabernacle
Abodah – labor (of a servant), service (of God)

Here are the Greek words from the new testament that are translated ministry:

Diakonia – service, ministering, esp. of those who execute the commands of others; of those who by the command of God proclaim and promote religion among men
the ministration of those who render to others the offices of Christian affection esp. those who help meet need by either collecting or distributing of charities
Leitourgia – a public office which a citizen undertakes to administer at his own expense; a service or ministry of the priests relative to the prayers and sacrifices offered to God

Ministry is the body of Christ using the gifts and talents and resources given by God to pursue or promote the production of spiritual fruit in others.

Fruit is part of a new testament analogy the talks about the results of our labor in God's kingdom.

Most of my thoughts on Fruit derive from the parable of the fig tree in Luke 13, in which Jesus describes the state of the Jewish nation, but which also applies to us individually, and to ministries or churches that we participate in.

In the old testament, fruit is a symbol of God's blessing, and points to the harvest in a primarily agrarian society. So what do I mean by fruit?

Fruit is the harvest – therefore evangelism, the great commission, the winning of souls in which we are to participate.

Fruit is spiritual growth – therefore discipleship, engaging God on a continually deeper level, and growing to spiritual maturity, growing in ever deeper dependence on and trust in God.

That is it. In our ministry to others, that is what God cares about. What is really unbelievable, is that while God allows each of us to participate in this fruit, we are not responsible for it, He is. That is why the analogy of the fruit and the harvest is so powerful to me.

We are like farmers. We cultivate the soil, we continue to work to keep weeds and animals from destroying the plants, and we reap the harvest. God is what causes the fruit to grow. We are just farmers. If we do not work the field, the harvest is small, like picking wild berries.

We are not God who makes the fruit grow, nor are we biologists and geneticists who are changing the nature of fruit, we are simple farmers.

The principle behind fruit is multiplication. You plant 1 seed, and a whole plant grows that produces lots of fruit that has its own seeds. These in turn are planted and grow into many plants, that produce more fruit.