Are your actions linked with God's Kingdom mission? Is what you are doing accomplishing what God
intends? We all want to do right, and do well. We all want to
advance God's mission to make disciples.
And we want to do it effectively.
Alan Hirsch defines church as “a
community of God’s people that defines itself and organizes its life around its
real purpose of being an agent of God’s mission around the world.” This describes a church that is doing the
right things right. Its actions focus on
its mission. However, this isn't always the case. Here are four scenarios describing how
actions relate to mission:
Right things Wrong
-- This scenario describes a well-intentioned, but ineffective effort to
advance God's mission. My golf game
describes this scenario. If I hit twenty
approach shots from 120 yards, the balls scatter wildly, almost randomly, in
the region of the green. I had a clear
look at the flag and my intentions were good.
However, I demonstrated a distinct inability to execute. Mission focus paired with skill-building can move
toward doing the right things right.
Wrong things Right
-- In this scenario, churches use effective strategies in pursuit of non-critical
goals. Continuing the golf analogy, this
is like hitting twenty beautiful chip shots in a row . . . to the left of the
pin. The beauty of the shots shields a hard
reality: each shot missed the target completely. The focus here is on the competent execution
of insignificant goals. Only prophetic
leadership will re-focus actions back on God's mission.
Wrong things Wrong
-- This is the worst of all cases. Here,
a church ineffectively works to accomplish insignificant goals. Shots miss the target because the target is
unknown or unclear. Focus and vision are
both mission. This situation demands leadership
to bring fresh focus on the mission of God.
Right things Right
-- This scenario describes a disciplined focus on accomplishing God's mission
effectively. The target is clear and the
strategies are effective. This doesn't
happen by accident. Leaders relentlessly
focus on God's mission. Continuous
feedback, reflection, and correction keep actions linked to God's mission.
Two questions to consider:
- Which scenario best describes my own life? My church?
- What actions can I take to move toward doing the right things right?
Rich Johnstone
1 comment:
Good Word Rich. Your association is blessed to have you at the helm! Rick Curtis
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