Event Management

Although Event Management is not a term found in scripture, the role is clearly defined in the lives of many key Biblical figures.

In the Old Testament we read of Nehemiah and how he managed rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem similarly to how we manage events today.  Firstly he first prayed and received direction from God on what to do and how to carry out the task. He then networked and planned with people in high places to put the vision into place. He spied out the land and put the right people in the right places to achieve the objectives.  He knew it would be challenging so he strategized, encouraged and worked with the people through a difficult process, until they broke through. He stood against the taunts of the enemy and kept his team on track to reach their God-given goal.

Today, event managers must play a similar role to Nehemiah; to listen to the Lord, obey, strategize, resist the enemy, develop their teams, find resources and work to see the breakthroughs needed for God's will to be done. 

Nahum 1:15 (NIV) says “...celebrate your festivals...”. Accordingly, as event managers we are often called upon to develop celebrations, conferences and to provide a platform for artists to evangelize and impact communities. Our role is to serve the Lord and see His purposes accomplished. Events can be as diverse as hosting secular celebrations with Christian content in your local community to managing a missions conference to train and release 1000’s of Christians into the nations. 

Jesus was the ultimate event manager. He demonstrated how to put together events tailored to multiple demographics. He knew how to draw a crowd and the best venue to address an audience. He prioritized time with the Father and attended celebrations, even highlighting the value of hospitality by turning water into wine. Though He faced attacks from His enemies He always looked after His team. He loved, wept and partied. He had a timeline and knew when and what needed to be accomplished. He didn’t tolerate injustice but called for righteousness and He knew that doing the Father’s will was the priority when pushing through to accomplish the goal even though it ultimately cost Him everything.

We need people with a mission’s focus and a love of events to be trained in organizing and managing every component of an event. From marketing and promotion, budget and timeline, programming and backstage management, technical requirements and team management, through to the event debrief and SWOT analysis. Training is imperative to equip us to deal with the challenges that will inevitably come the way of event managers working to extend the Kingdom of God.  We need to be equipped with skills and spiritual understanding to accomplish the task, knowing that there is an enemy trying to undermine all we do for God’s glory. 

Through its capacity to support artists and sports people, Event Management is listed under the Faculty/College of Arts and Sports. We build the platform so they can utilize their skills and fulfill their call to influence our world with Godly values.