Pilgrimage Ponderings
Beneficial and Essential
So difficult to know where to start....
When an organization is seeking clarity on its mission and purpose, often questions arise regarding focus. In the midst of all the good things being done, which of those good things are merely beneficial, and which are essential to the organization's mission and purpose?
I find that thinking in these terms is useful for local churches, the annual conference, and even the general church. We need to be thinking about our work in terms of what is essential to our mission and purpose and practice letting go of things that may be beneficial but are not essential to fulfilling our mission and purpose.
For The United Methodist Church, I think the harder questions come when we try to decide which work is more effectively done at each level of the church. In my mind, confusion here can muddy the waters between what is essential and what is beneficial.
These terms are not mine, by the way. I have heard people speak about the beneficial vs. the essential at least twice.
I think it is rather sad that money and fears about the future of the church tend to be what drive these conversations. If we could somehow have the conversation before we get desperate, perhaps we could operate from a sense of God's direction rather than our own desperation.
