The Organ of Meaning

How much happier you would be, how much more of you there would be, if the hammer of a higher God could smash your small cosmos, scattering the stars like spangles, and leave you in the open, free like other men to look up as well as down!”

via Orthodoxy by Gilbert K. Chesterton, Chapter 2.

The organization that I minister with is, relatively speaking, huge… we’re active in 191 countries (I’m still amazed that there are that many countries at all) and have 25,000 staff members. I am always impressed at how honest our leadership is with our shortcomings. Just this month the Vice-President of the Americas wrote up a response to a question about our organizational strengths and weaknesses; I was far less interested in what he had to say about our strengths as I was in the weaknesses. This is what he summed it up with:

I’d say we need to have a humble attitude, knowing that we’re just a part of God’s overall plan. And, also, we need to be willing to push the outer-limits of what He’s called us to do.

This is interesting because this is pretty much what my answers would have been. I’m thankful that the leadership of our organization is actually aware of it and addressing those issues.

If I would have answered that question, I would have gone into more specifics about where we’re not “pushing the envelope”, but it would have just been where that is true where I am working. Also, most of the field staff (myself included) are painfully aware of the damage that those who have gone before us have caused with the overdone pride in our organization and our methods – because we’re constantly working to repair damaged relationships with other organizations.

Thank you leaders, you’re doing a good job!