When I served as a pastor, there was always an intense focus on numbers. It seems like we tracked almost everything! We tracked attendance at our worship services, Sunday school, children’s ministry, youth ministry, mission trips, camp registration, and we certainly tracked our tithes and offerings. It wasn’t uncommon for me to have Excel spreadsheets tracking any and every trackable number! And, for clarity, I don’t think it’s necessarily negative to track progress, or the lack thereof; it can be very beneficial.
But guess what we oftentimes talked about more than anything else? What conversation could possibly get prioritized above the gospel – above prayer – above the spiritual health of our congregation? So often, we found ourselves talking about the numbers.
I’m certain the church staff would argue that our mission was the Great Commission, but sometimes our conversation indicated otherwise. It was not intentional. It was not malicious. Everyone’s heart was in the right place. Yet, somewhere along the way, the mission shifted to the numbers. The “tools” used to evangelize and disciple became the mission, and we unintentionally lost focus on the true mission.
Dr. Wes Fowler, Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Director
Thankfully, I was surrounded by a very talented and thoughtful staff, and every time we lost focus, one of our pastors would gently remind us of the true mission. We would refocus and move forward with a renewed passion for the Great Commission. And I would put away my spreadsheets for a day or two, but we all knew they would reappear soon!
In my current role, I’ve oftentimes wondered, “Is supporting the Cooperative Program the mission, or is the Cooperative Program a tool used to support the mission?” I suppose this question may seem odd to some, but I believe it’s a question worth considering. In fact, I believe it’s a foundational question we must answer correctly.
In 1925, when the Cooperative Program officially began, what was it viewed as? Was it viewed as the mission, or was it viewed as a tool to support the mission? Based on everything I’ve read, it seems clear that the Cooperative Program was considered a tool. There was no glory in merely cooperating financially for the sake of raising funds. The glory of cooperating was founded on funding the mission! So, hear this clearly – the Cooperative Program was never intended to become the mission. The Cooperative Program was designed from the very beginning to fund and support the mission!
And, that’s exactly where my heart is. I ask our affiliated churches to give generously and sacrificially to the Cooperative Program – not because the Cooperative Program is the mission, but because it helps support and fund the mission.
Supporting the Cooperative Program keeps missionaries on the field, plants churches across the world, and supports the next generation of pastors and ministry leaders. In Missouri, your Cooperative Program dollars support three universities, a ministry to the aging, a children’s home, and a foundation focused on investing resources for Kingdom purposes. Cooperative Program dollars also support your MBC staff as we strive to help churches with prayer, evangelism, missions mobilization, church planting, and church renewal. In Missouri, the Cooperative Program is not the mission, but it’s a vital tool that helps Missouri Baptists support and fund the mission.
In my current role, I once again find myself surrounded by an incredibly gifted staff. It’s my prayer that if we ever lose focus – if we focus too much on the numbers alone, develop too many spreadsheets, or begin talking more about a “tool” than we do about the gospel – I pray someone will gently remind us of the true mission. Because in the end, our true mission is all that really matters.