How does one measure success?
Sometimes, it’s easy – High score wins!
Low score wins! First to cross the line wins! Last one standing wins! Tab A
into slot B = success! No parts left over = success! Starts up after overhaul=
success! But there are many more experiences in life for which the assessment
is much less clear than win/lose or success/fail.
Of course, the culture in which we live
seems to provide some universal guidelines for measuring success, benchmarks we
can use to assess our life’s achievements. In one’s career, salary and perks are easy measures,
while authority (how many people
report to us) and indispensability
(how little can be done without our input) are also crucial to assessing one’s
level of success. In relationship, the measurement run the gamut from who loves us, who is our friend, and how
desirable are they? to are one’s
children reflecting well on their parents?
In Spiritual matters, the culture seems
ask but two questions: Are we happy, and
if not, are we doing something about it?
In the film The Green Mile, there is an scene depicting an improperly prepared
electrocution which is both arresting and gruesome. When asked by the warden
what happened, Corrections Officer Paul Edgecomb, (played by Tom Hanks)
responds, “An execution – a successful one.” The warden, incredulous, wonders how
he could call the prolonged, graphic, painful episode a success. The answer is
simple: “Edward Delacroix is dead.”
Success here is measured in its definition; what we’re after determines how we gauge whether or not we have achieved it. In the case of Edward
Delacroix’s execution, success was defined, simply, as achieving the stated goal – the death of a condemned inmate. Of course, the warden’s questions
demonstrate the truth, that there was much more at stake than the execution of
a lawful sentence on a prisoner. We all know success is more than simply doing
what one sets out to do – there is always another agenda, a fundamental truth
by which we measure every thought, every action. The truth is, when it comes to
defining that kind of success, the culture does a pretty poor job; objectives
are set unattainably high, or using the wrong benchmarks; stated goals often
have very little to do with truth, or real success.
Here in the church, success is measured
by a very different standard. One way to describe it is to use one of those
trusty visual aids from elementary set theory, the Venn diagram:
It all boils down to this: if we can
figure out A.) our gifts and talents, and 2.) what God wants for the world,
then we can measure how well we’re using our gifts to do God’s will. That is
the fundamental truth, the basic agenda from which we operate – as individuals
and as the church.
That is also the essence of what we
Presbyterians call The Mission Study
Process. Because they begin with this fundamental premise, Mission
studies can be crucial for figuring out what lies ahead for a particular
congregation; not just who the next pastor will
be, but also questions of property use and improvement, ministry opportunities
and initiatives, and community cooperation – all with an unwavering focus on what God is calling us to do with what we
have been given.
In the Mission Study process, we will
be gathering data in a variety of ways to answer these basic questions:
Who are we as a congregation?
What gifts and talents do we have? What
resources?
What is our community like? What
opportunities for ministry can we identify?
What is God Calling us to do in this time
and place?
How can a pastor help us use our gifts,
talents and resources to fulfill that Call?
While the Session is entrusted with leadership of the
congregation, and will appoint a Task Force to oversee this process, the fact
is, each member of the congregation is
essential for this mission study to be a success.
Look for more information about the Mission Study and how
you can be a part of this important process here at Smyrna Church.