part 3. Discipleship/character development series. (Management)

Management is one of the principles of the kingdom we must pay attention to in order to accomplish the assignments that was given to us. The dictionary meaning of the word manage connotes success and achieving a goal. The advanced d  English dictionary defines management as the act of managing something or those in charge of running a business. Words like administration, supervision, organisation, manager, governance etc, are connected to this principle of the kingdom called management.

The importance of management is so critical to God, so He did not allow  plants to grow because there was no man to manage the earth.

Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.  Now the Lord God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed.
Genesis 2:5‭-‬8 NIV.

To understand the mind of God towards the importance of management, let's look at another version of the Bible.

This is the account of the creation of the heavens and the earth. When the Lord God made the earth and the heavens, neither wild plants nor grains were growing on the earth. For the Lord God had not yet sent rain to water the earth, and there were no people to cultivate the soil. Instead, springs came up from the ground and watered all the land. Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person. Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made.
Genesis 2:4‭-‬8 NLT.

The principle of management is one of the principles of the kingdom that some western world embraced from our master while rejecting His person.
For the Africans, we know we love Jesus with all our mind body and soul, but His principles are far from most of us. I don't know who did this evil to us. Today I will open your eyes to the importance of this principle and how our Lord and master demonstrated his seriousness in this kingdom principle.

Before we delve into our master's teachings and instructions about management. Let me show the physical effect of this kingdom principle using united Arab Emirate (UAE) as an example.

In December 1971 UAE was formed as a country, from that time to this present day, their development was fast and steady, this is traceable to this principle of good management. Unlike some African countries where the managers vowed to make their nations ungovernable because of mismanagement and that is where we find ourselves today.

Have you thought about the emergence of supervisors in organizations, where all they do is to only watch people that are working and they are handsomely paid? This is because managing people and products is a big assignment. Therefore we ought to pay ernest heed to the workings of the principle taught by our master.

In genesis 1 vs 26-28, God showed us the purpose of creating man.

Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
Genesis 1:26‭-‬28 NLT.

Man was created to manage and govern the earth. You were put here to manage God's resources and this comes with promotion, protection and prosperity.

In genesis 41, God needed to promote  Joseph.

Joseph responded, “Both of Pharaoh’s dreams mean the same thing. God is telling Pharaoh in advance what he is about to do. The seven healthy cows and the seven healthy heads of grain both represent seven years of prosperity. The seven thin, scrawny cows that came up later and the seven thin heads of grain, withered by the east wind, represent seven years of famine. “This will happen just as I have described it, for God has revealed to Pharaoh in advance what he is about to do. The next seven years will be a period of great prosperity throughout the land of Egypt. But afterward there will be seven years of famine so great that all the prosperity will be forgotten in Egypt. Famine will destroy the land. This famine will be so severe that even the memory of the good years will be erased. As for having two similar dreams, it means that these events have been decreed by God, and he will soon make them happen. “Therefore, Pharaoh should find an intelligent and wise man and put him in charge of the entire land of Egypt. Then Pharaoh should appoint supervisors over the land and let them collect one-fifth of all the crops during the seven good years. Have them gather all the food produced in the good years that are just ahead and bring it to Pharaoh’s storehouses. Store it away, and guard it so there will be food in the cities. That way there will be enough to eat when the seven years of famine come to the land of Egypt. Otherwise this famine will destroy the land.”
Genesis 41:25‭-‬36 NLT.

It took the management abilities of Joseph to preserve the nation of Egypt knowing what God had deposited in the life of Joseph, He made sure that pharaoh did not choose any other person than Joseph.

Joseph’s suggestions were well received by Pharaoh and his officials. So Pharaoh asked his officials, “Can we find anyone else like this man so obviously filled with the spirit of God?” Then Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Since God has revealed the meaning of the dreams to you, clearly no one else is as intelligent or wise as you are. You will be in charge of my court, and all my people will take orders from you. Only I, sitting on my throne, will have a rank higher than yours.” Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the entire land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh removed his signet ring from his hand and placed it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in fine linen clothing and hung a gold chain around his neck. Then he had Joseph ride in the chariot reserved for his second-in-command. And wherever Joseph went, the command was shouted, “Kneel down!” So Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of all Egypt. And Pharaoh said to him, “I am Pharaoh, but no one will lift a hand or foot in the entire land of Egypt without your approval.” Then Pharaoh gave Joseph a new Egyptian name, Zaphenath-paneah. He also gave him a wife, whose name was Asenath. She was the daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On. So Joseph took charge of the entire land of Egypt. He was thirty years old when he began serving in the court of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And when Joseph left Pharaoh’s presence, he inspected the entire land of Egypt.
Genesis 41:37‭-‬46 NLT.

So you can see that Joseph got promotion even before he started the job because he was equipped and positioned to manage the crises in Egypt.
Have you seen why you should be ready at all times to charge whenever is given to you or when an opportunity presents itself.

In the parable of the talent, Jesus taught about this management principle by empowering the servants with the three and five talents respectively.

“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. He called together his servants and entrusted his money to them while he was gone.  He gave five bags of silver to one, two bags of silver to another, and one bag of silver to the last—dividing it in proportion to their abilities. He then left on his trip. “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more.  The servant with two bags of silver also went to work and earned two more.  But the servant who received the one bag of silver dug a hole in the ground and hid the master’s money. “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.  The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’ “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together! ’ “The servant who had received the two bags of silver came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two bags of silver to invest, and I have earned two more.’ “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’ “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a harsh man, harvesting crops you didn’t plant and gathering crops you didn’t cultivate.  I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’ “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate,  why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’ “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver.  To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away.  Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Matthew 25:14‭-‬30 NLT.

The wicked and lazy servant was the one that choose not manage what was given to him may be because of his judgement about his master. But the other servants got promoted because they were able to manage what was given to them not minding the size or the quantity.
What is the lesson for us here?
1.Stay on your lane and take care of what is given to you not minding  how small it may be.
2. It is in your obedience and your performance that brings your promotion.
3. A higher responsibility is waiting for whosoever that can manage what has been handed over to him or her.

Jesus again in his teaching demonstrated His seriousness about managing what we have, II His ability in handing the left over of the food, when He performed the miracle of multiplying the five loafs of bread and two fishes.

As soon as Jesus heard the news, he left in a boat to a remote area to be alone. But the crowds heard where he was headed and followed on foot from many towns. Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick. That evening the disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said, “That isn’t necessary—you feed them.” “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered. “Bring them here,” he said. Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers. About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!
Matthew 14:13‭-‬21 NLT.

Can you see that the leftovers were picked and managed appropriately, coupled with the wisdom, compassion and power that our master exhibited in managing the situation.
This is what the most political, religious and traditional leaders lacks, even the captains of industries also fails to feel what the masses are going through. This lack of compassion for the people had led leaders to mismanagement and has kept us in this madness called corruption.

Now for you, it is the time to wake up and take responsibility. As a citizen of the kingdom, you are bestowed with some gifts and talents, you are also in one position of authority or the other, no matter how small it may be, you are expected to manage your position properly so that the result will be beneficial to both you and the people under you. Do not forget that things are to be used while people are to be loved. Your mismanagement of any responsibility given to you will have effect on people that are dependant to you directly or indirectly.

When the godly are in authority, the people rejoice. But when the wicked are in power, they groan.
Proverbs 29:2 NLT.

Bear in mind that the Scripture above is for both the godly and the wicked. Remember that Jesus called the servant that hid his one talent in the ground wicked servant, this shows that you can be in the church and heaven will see you as a wicked person just because you refuse to take charge and do the right thing that is expected of you. But you can also be referred as a righteous person because you are doing the right things that expected of you at right time.
Do you know that God hates wastage, that was why Jesus made sure that the leftovers was picked and managed effectively. Now may be the reason  many people are not receiving promotion and prosperity from God is because they are waisting what He had sent to them. So you need to wise up to save and Invest whenever you have surplus with you. May be that surplus was sent to you to see how you will handle it.
The principle of management is a vital tool in the kingdom that we cannot exhaust in one teaching class, I like to stop here to continue the next time we will meet again God bless you. See you again. God bless you.