More ‘fo from the FO-rum
Commit this to memory. 🙂 It’s what we commit to, for you.
We commit to:
- teach and live out the Way of Christ, developing children into lifelong disciples of Jesus
- mobilize and equip the Church to be effective in ministry to children
- commit to continuous improvement in our program design and delivery
- engage with each child as active participants in their own development
- treat children and their families with dignity and respect
- design programs that support the family’s central role in raising children
- submit to the Word of God
- NOT compromise the centrality of Christ in our messages and programs
- create opportunities for you to live out your faith by ministering to children in poverty
- financial integrity
- use donations only for the purposes for which you gave them
- align our thoughts, motivations, attitudes and actions with the ethical principles found in God’s word
- tell the truth and communicate honestly and openly, with no intent to deceive or mislead
- protect, develop and deploy all of our resources (people, time, money, knowledge, reputation and materials) as if they were “the widow’s mite”
There! They’re out.
Although they’re numbered, they’re not prioritized.
Help us rank ’em. We want to know what you feel is most important.
Give us your top one, two or three and we’ll calculate the product of your priorities.
5 Comments |Add a comment
I, too, see them in groups, although the ordering within groupings is set in jello:
A. 7,1,8,12 & 13
B. 2,3,4,5,6,9
C. 10/11, 14
Actually, I wasn’t quite sure where to put 9, but…there it is!
I see all of them, tho’, as some of the detail embodied in our 4 C’s, which should never, ever change!
Teach and live out the Way of Christ!
I don’t believe it is an accident that this One wound-up being # 1 (despite that fact that you did not prioritize). I am firm in my assertion that when we put Christ Jesus first, thus dismissing the ways of the world, all these other things will fall into a very nice line that is both pleasing and honoring to God.
Conversely, trouble begins when we attempt to incorporate methods and/or the ideology of those NOT aligned with Jesus.
So how should we proceed in our ministries (and our lives for that matter)? John gives us the best admonition when he writes in 1 John 4:1, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God…”
I think #7 is most important: submit to the Word of God. I think everything *else* will then follow.
Oh, this is tough. I would go with:
1) #8 — Centrality of Christ
2) #7 & #12 — Submission & alignment with the Word of God
3) #4 & #5 — Engage personally with each child and family with dignity & respect
How’s that for combining some of your statements? It’s just so hard to prioritize these! All the points you listed are so excellent and important–this is what I appreciate about Compassion so much!
These are all so great! 7, 12, and 1 would be my top three.
By general topic, I would rank them in this order:
1) Keeping the organization Christ-centered and Christ-focused.
2) Financial integrity — let’s be honest, we wouldn’t send our money to someone who wasn’t stewarding it well.
3) Supporting the children and their families in a way that is practical, respectful and ethical.
4) Opportunities for the church and for sponsors to be involved.