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I’ve said before, I frequently get useful ministry ideas from marketer Seth Godin. Here’s a useful word from July 7 when he wrote:

When people compete on the same metrics (how many followers, how much income, how many points scored) the focus gets very tight. With a simple metric, there’s no confusion at all about how to earn more status. The irony is that the simpler the metric, the less useful the effort is. Big ideas, generous work, important breakthroughs–to pursue these goals is to abandon the metric of the moment in favor of a more useful sort of contribution.

Pastors use a single simple metric: Sunday attendance, with the result that comparisons are unavoidable. How can I become the biggest church in town? Or be among the largest churches in my denomination? Unfortunately, that’s not what Jesus asked them (and us!) to do: “Make disciples…” was his clear directive in Matthew 28. The word for church leaders is also clear:

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up… (Ephesians 4.11, 12, NIV) 

Unfortunately, such work is harder to measure in the near term, and if there’s pressure just to be bigger (from the denomination, the church lay leadership, from other pastors), often the slower, under-the-radar disciple-making objective is relegated to an optional “program.”

Seth counsels us to “abandon the metric of the moment in favor of a more useful sort of contribution.” One pastor said, “We’re pretty good at measuring how many people come. Maybe we should count how many people go!” I couldn’t agree more.

For our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance, as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake. And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became examples to all in Macedonia and Achaia who believe. For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place. Your faith toward God has gone out, so that we do not need to say anything. (1 Thessalonians 1.5 – 8, NKJV, emphasis mine)