Asking Why
Why does Lord of Grace exist? Why does the larger Church exist? In his TED talk titled the Golden Circle in 2016, Simon Sinek stated, “Every organization on the planet knows what they do. Some know how they do it. But very few people or organizations know why they do what they do. By why, I don’t mean to make a profit. That’s a result. By why, I mean what’s your purpose, your cause? People don’t buy what you do. They buy why you do it.”
The ‘why’ we do what we do breathes life. Jesus transforms lives through you and me. The ‘how’ and ‘what’ we do are processes that change with time, resources, and environment. How and what supports the why. In simplest terms, the why of the Christian Church (you and me) is to make Jesus known through word and deed.
The Church sometimes defines ‘success’ using business priorities, such as profit and number of customers. In the words of the faith community, it might be translated as offerings and members. But as Sinek reminds us, those are results rather than our mission/purpose. Our calling is to develop and nurture relationships with the hungry, sick, poor, stranger, and the prisoner (Matthew 25) and make Jesus known. If we are laser focused on our mission/purpose, the results should come.
The question then becomes; if developing relationships and making Jesus known is our purpose, then how do we measure our effectiveness? (Hint: While we need money and participation to fulfil the mission, they may not be the most accurate measurements of effectiveness.) How will our commitment to the ‘WHY’ of Church impact the ministries at LOG and the support necessary to complete our purpose/mission?
Thank you for your commitment, passion, and generosity to our Lord Jesus Christ through the ministries of Lord of Grace!
Peace,
Pastor Randy