The Risk Management And Mission Conflict

"Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and illness...These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: ‘Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.  Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: “The kingdom of heaven has come near.” Heal those who are ill, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.  ‘Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts – no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep. Whatever town or village you enter, search there for some worthy person and stay at their house until you leave.  As you enter the home, give it your greeting.  If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you.  If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet.  Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.

‘I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.  Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues.  On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.  But when they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

‘Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death.  You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.  When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. Truly I tell you, you will not finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes."  (Matthew 10:1-23)

Now, let's project this calling of 12 ministry recruits into a 2014 western world context and imagine completing a risk assessment of their first mission assignment.  Chances are this scenario would be assessed as a high risk activity with a high probability of failure, exposing inexperienced and unqualified people to an unsafe work environment.  Any responsible manager today would either cancel the mission or recommend a list of control measures to mitigate the known risks.  Either way, the process of risk management would have the potential to seriously compromise the effectiveness of the mission!

This is the climate that the church finds itself ministering in today where governance, compliance and risk management have an enormous influence and impact on the way mission is done.  No one will argue with the principle of creating and maintaining a safe ministry environment, however, the very nature of our mission and ministry to a lost and broken world is that it will take us way outside our comfort zone into unknown and, at times, unsafe situations.  My fear for the church, which is being swamped by legislative requirements and the constant threat of litigation, is that it is becoming distracted from its primary purpose and is risk managing itself out of mission!  

In a culture of risk management there is a fine line between being responsible and restrictive, proactive and protective, faith fueled and fear driven.  This line is easily crossed the moment our primary motivation for risk management becomes more about protecting the service than those we serve, money than mission, reputation than reformation.  In this increasingly complex world of risk management, sometimes the strategies we employ to manage risk exposes a huge gulf between our aspirational values and actual values by the way we implement control measures into our mission activities.

Here are some examples of how I have seen this manifested through my observations from within my context and through conversations with people from a similar context to mine:

1. The threat of aggressive clients prompts the installation of dividing screens between staff and the people seeking assistance in welfare centres. While providing protection, it diminishes the value of human dignity.
2. The insecurity of home visits to asylum seekers and refugees leads to a policy that prohibits staff from taking off their shoes when entering people's homes.  While addressing health and safety concerns, it violates the value of cultural sensitivity.
3. The fear of losing public donations or government funding restricts the ability to take a public stand on issues of social justice or morality.  While maintaining a public image, it compromises biblical values of truth and justice.
4. The concern about establishing a mission initiative in a 'dangerous' neighbourhood inhibits outreach to the most disadvantaged people in the community.  While trying to minimise perceived risks, it discourages the value of incarnational ministry.
5. The belief that mission is driven by money requires mission and ministry proposals to be fully funded before being granted approval.  While good financial management, it weakens the value of faith.

These examples are representative of an emerging reality that could be seen in any church or organisation that is struggling with the same tension between risk management and mission.  

Another dimension to navigating risk in the context of mission is the "cost of discipleship", which includes the act of self-denial and the reality of persecution, and "faith", which is "being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see".  This is foreign to the language and principles of risk management.  Translated into my context of The Salvation Army, whose mission is centred on "others" that includes "the last, the lost and the least" you can see the unavoidable conflict that risk management encounters with disciples of Jesus Christ who are engaged in faith inspired mission.

So, do we throw all caution to the wind and use mission and faith as a justification to disregard risk management obligations?  Absolutely not!  

The church has a biblical and legal mandate to practice good stewardship, which includes the way we manage people, property and finances.  What I do propose, however, is that any risk management process includes an assessment of the risk to mission, through a lens of faith, to ensure the strategies that are considered to reduce risk do not violate core values, compromise effective mission or cause us to step out of obedience where the Spirit is leading.  

We are at more risk of losing the very thing we are trying to protect if we allow a culture of risk management to diminish the cutting edge, faith fueled, Spirit led mission that characterised the early church and inspires generations of church leaders to fearlessly "go and make disciples of all nations." 


Published in April/May 2014 edition of JAC:  Journal of Aggressive Christianity

 

Le Tour Lessons

As we approach the final stage of what has been an exciting year at the Tour de France, there are many life lessons that can be learned from these extraordinary athletes. I've sat up and watched each stage into the early hours of the morning marveling at the physical endurance, mental toughness and team tactics of cyclists putting everything on the line for a podium finish on the Champs-Elysees in Paris.

Amidst the phenomenal efforts by these professional cyclists at the top of their sport have been suspicion of doping, horrific crashes, over zealous fans and controversial tactics.  While it would be tempting to allow these distractions to overshadow the achievements of this event, they do provide some challenging insights worth considering.

1. Suspicion of Doping - It is a tragedy that the actions of drug cheats in any sport robs spectators and sporting heroes of the joy of simply enjoying a victory, without being suspected of cheating.  Chris Froome hit out at reporters who questioned his amazing acceleration on Mont Ventoux saying, "To compare me with Lance is wrong - Lance cheated, but I'm not cheating. End of story."  If only it was that simple!  The reality is we do not live in isolation of other people's actions.  It is naive to think that we can live our lives, our way, without consequence to the lives of others.  Maybe if we took more notice of the classroom discipline method of punishing the whole class for the behaviour of one student society would be less individualistic and hold a greater value for community accountability.

2. Horrific Crashes - When you ride at high speeds within inches of the rider in front of you, accidents are inevitable.  Pushing limits and taking risks are a necessary part of the equation of winning.  No cyclists who have played it safe have ever won the Tour de France, just as no person who has lived a risk free life has ever accomplished anything of significance.  To see cyclists get back on their bikes and continue to race with injuries is inspiring and challenges us to never give up, no matter how hard we fall.

3. Over Zealous Fans - Throughout the Tour I have been frustrated and at times angry at the way spectators have been in the face of the competitors.  They have ran alongside them screaming and yelling, put obstacles in their way, risking their own safety and the safety of the riders.  Yet, despite the obvious aggravation by some competitors, they have remained focused on their goal and have not allowed themselves to be distracted.  The paradox is that I admire the raw passion of the crowd, even when it is idiotic, and I respect the determination of the riders that is unshaken by the crowd.  Passionate people inspire greatness not only in the Tour de France, but in every arena of life!

4. Controversial Tactics - The desire and pressure to win can drive teams to adopt questionable tactics that can seriously damage the reputation of riders and the sport. Riding across the line of another cyclist in a sprint or taking on food after the exclusion zone on a hill climb may win short term gains, but diminishes the value of the advantage at best or results in penalties at worst.  Either way, when the character of a rider or team takes a hit, the focus on their competence becomes blurred.  Many successful sporting stars, executives or politicians are remembered for all the wrong reasons because they allowed winning at all costs to compromise their integrity.

Beyond the insights gained from these distractions, the real appeal of the Tour de France is the pinnacle of human achievement that pushes through pain barriers over three weeks of grueling riding through the stunning countryside of France.  Vive le Tour!

Empowering Leadership

There are those satisfying moments in leadership when simple feedback encourages you to continue to step out in faith and take a risk by equipping and empowering leaders "to do the work of the ministry to build up the body of Christ." (Ephesians 4:12)

The other day I received a text message from an emerging leader in our church who has overcome significant personal and social fears, stepping way out of her comfort zone, to pursue her heart for mission and desire to develop as a leader.  A statement within her message said, "Thank you for having faith in us."  This affirmation resonated with me as only a week earlier my twelve year old daughter sent me a message saying, "My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me."  

Empowering leaders hasn't come naturally to me as it has clashed with my perfectionist nature and desire to get things done in the most efficient way possible.  It has meant letting go of control, learning to value process and giving people permission to make mistakes.  I still need to resist the temptation to say, "leave it with me I'll deal with it" and remind myself to say, "let's talk about how you might go about dealing with that situation."  While I may see clearly where we are and where we want to be and have a strategy in my head about how best to get there, I am not really empowering leaders unless I am prepared to engage them in the process.  

Empowering leadership has become a stated value in the Church and other organisations, but it only ever becomes a real value when it is integrated into the ethos of leadership.  This becomes a reality when we are prepared to step out in faith and take a risk in giving real-time authority to emerging leaders.  Craig Groeshel pushes this point by saying, "You do not just delegate tasks to the next generation or you will just create followers. You delegate authority because then you create leaders."  

Is there a risk in empowering leaders?  Absolutely!  Is there a cost in empowering leaders?  Yes, but there is a greater cost not to or to just giving lip service to empowering leadership.  When we exercise the biblical mandate to "equip the people of God for the work of the ministry to build up the body of Christ," we unleash the full compliment of the gifts of the Spirit and generate an "unstoppable force" (McManus) for the kingdom of God!  

“Good leaders give their power away. They look for good people, and they invest in them to the point where they can be released and empowered to perform.” (John C. Maxwell)