What is Mission Drift?
If you’ve ever been in an elder meeting a staff meeting or on a committee, and you feel like you just keep coming up with lots of ideas, but none of them seem to go anywhere, then I’ve got a suggestion as to what might be happing.
INTRO
Hey there, and welcome to another edition of the Church Helper Podcast. Our Mission here is to help churches make every decision on purpose, so they can reach their communities with the message of Jesus. My name is Mike, and I'm excited to help you and your church today, so let's get into it.
WHAT IS MISSION DRIFT?
This week we're going to talk a little bit about Mission Drift.
Simply put, Mission Drift is what happens when your church slowly moves away from where it's called by God to go. And we call it a mission drift because, typically, it happens very slowly. So slowly that often you don't even notice.
It's not a sprint away from your Mission; it's a slow, unnoticeable, sometimes undetectable, drift.
YOU’RE STILL MOVING
Here's an easy example.
Have you ever been out on a boat? I'm talking like a kayak, or canoe, a paddleboat, even a motorboat works here. When you want to get somewhere in your boat, you point your boat in that direction, and you start paddling. And for as long as you keep paddling, you keep going.
But paddling is a lot of work, and sometimes you might like to stop and take a break.
So, you pull the paddle out of the water, and you float for a little while.
Floating is relaxing – it's the best because when you're out on the water, you can just relax. You can stop paying attention to the world around you and enjoy the sounds of nature and God's beautiful creation all around you.
But in the moments that you stop moving on purpose, what happens? Most of you will know that just because you're not paddling anymore doesn't mean you're not moving.
Depending on the wind, the current or the time of day, your boat slowly starts to drift. Often it drifts so slowly that you don't notice -- until you decide to start moving again, because when you do eventually pick up your paddle, you might look towards your intended destination and say:
"Wow, how did I get over here?"
That's what Mission Drift is. It's when you stop paying attention to the Mission for a little while, and you forget that even though you're not propelling yourself forward, you're still moving.
You're drifting away from your intended destination.
In a church, Mission drift often happens when you or others become more Method Focused than Mission focused. Practically, it happens when you ask "how" more often than you ask, "why?"
MISSION DRIFT IS SNEAKY
And Mission Drift is sneaky because it can disguise itself in many different ways.
For example. Sunday morning services.
Everyone knows there are lots of things to do on a Sunday morning. And depending on your church's traditions or rhythms, Sunday service planning can involve many moving pieces.
There's the greeters and the ushers; maybe you call it a hospitality team.
There's the music, the sound, the projection, and the lighting.
There's the sermon, the scripture reading and the sacraments.
There's the announcements, the welcome table and the greeting time.
There's doors to unlock, there's rooms to keep clean, there are things that you hide, so they're never ever seen!
And because there's always a to-do list, a last-minute volunteer to find, or something that needs to get fixed, you can get pretty focused on just getting it all done. When you add that most churches have had the same rhythm on a Sunday morning for quite a while, there's one question that rarely gets asked…
"What is the purpose of today's service?"
In part, you don't ask because it sounds like a silly question. Of course, we know the purpose of the Sunday morning service is.
But, I'm going to ask again.
Do you know the purpose of your Sunday service?
Do you know what your church is trying to accomplish on a Sunday morning?
What is your church's Mission and objectives for that hour or so each week?
ONE THING YOU CAN DO
If you asked every volunteer and staff member in your church that question, do you think you'd get the same answer?
If you're not sure, then you might be drifting a little from your Mission.
And that's why Mission Drift is so sneaky. Because when all of your methods look great, it's easy to assume you're on Mission. But it's just like when you're on the water. Admiring the beauty of God's creation around you doesn't always mean you're headed in the right direction you want to go.
So, then here's the question. How do you know if your church is drifting from its Mission?
I'm going to give you one step you can take right now, using the free Mission Drift Assessment Tool on our website.
DIAGNOSING MISSION DRIFT
Head to ChurchHelper.ca/tools to download the assessment tool.
Next, choose a ministry area in your church – this could be your youth ministry, a seniors ministry, your Sunday morning service – whichever one you'd like.
Once you've decided on one, give the leaders of that ministry these five questions to answer.
The theme of all the questions is the same; How does this ministry's Mission fit in with the church's Mission?
If you get a clear, concise answer that doesn't take long, it's likely your ministry leaders understand the church's Mission, and how the ministry they lead fits in. If you get a long-winded answer while the person searches for what they should say or what they think you want to hear, then it's a likely sign you've got some Mission Drift.
REACH OUT
If you're a staff member or volunteer and you're still unsure how to identify Mission drift. At Church Helper, we love having these conversations because it helps churches make every decision on purpose, so they can reach their communities with the message of Jesus.
If there's someone in your life you think should hear this Podcast, but they're not a Podcaster or Youtuber, we've got you covered. Head over to our website, churchhelper.ca/podcast, for a printable transcript of today's episode.
Thanks for watching, listening to or reading the Church Helper Podcast. I'll talk to you again real soon!
