Rosters. Rolls. Regulations.

Now there's an answer to these perennial church administration problems.

It seems that Google is constantly coming up with new technologies, and its Google Docs is no exception. It already has Microsoft's Office suite shaking in its boots from fear and trembling (and no doubt, anger too). Google Docs is a Web-based word processor and spreadsheet application that allows users to create and edit documents and spreadsheets online while collaborating in real-time with other users. The application supports popular Microsoft Office file types such as .doc and .xls.

The key advantage to Google Docs is having much-used documents stored in the one place online. That documents can be shared, opened, and edited by multiple users at the same time is a boon for collaborative projects between church staff and church members.

For example, in our own congregation doing the roll for our Bible study groups was up until recently a huge headache: collecting rolls, chasing up missing information, typing up new contact details, updating the master roll, sending said updated roll out to all leaders, etc. Now, every leader logs on to Google Docs and updates their roll at their convenience. Any of us can log in to Google Docs at any time to see how our group and the other groups are going.

Church rosters for any number of responsibilities can also be put online, allowing changes to be made and OK'd without having to contact and check and then rejig assigned personnel.

The possibilities are only limited by your imagination: church camp programs, mission statements, group brainstorming ideas for ministry, and more (even church constitutions and regulations could be done this way!). Anything that requires input from several people at once or by a certain deadline can be made smoother and easier with Google Docs.

Best of all, it’s free. So you haven’t wasted your budget just checking it out.

PS Watch out for Google's new presentation software set to take on Microsoft's PowerPoint. You might also want to check out my previous article "In Search Of" PowerPoint".

PPS How many guys are you bringing to the TRAIN Evangelical Men's Conference? Check out the TRAIN web site for details and downloadable content.

Andrew is Sydneyanglicans.net's resident digital scholar and the pastor of the Asian Bible Church (ABC), a congregation of St Andrew's Cathedral, Sydney. ABC, it's easy as 1-2-3, do-re-mi"