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TL;DR:
Every Christian is called to help make Christlike disciples in the nations, and everything a church or believer does should align — or be mission-fit — with that purpose. Being “mission-fit” means programs, people, resources, practices, and decisions work in harmony with the church’s core mission of making disciples in the nations, rather than drifting into unrelated or inconsistent activities. The mission-fit concept extends beyond “good chemistry” to include strategic alignment and core value compatibility.
Ideas Affecting World Missions Today
Two or three decades ago, "to make Christlike disciples in the nations"1 became the officially stated mission of the Church of the Nazarene. Of course, while that exact wording may be somewhat recent, what it says is not. Global outreach has been in the Nazarene DNA from the very beginning.
Our mission statement announces that we go beyond counting "decisions for Christ." Our stated core value of being a "holiness people" suggests the Christlikeness theme of the mission statement. In addition, we Nazarenes have never been isolationists. From the start, we have been involved in disciple-making around the world as well as in our own neighborhoods.
That mission of making Christlike disciples in the nations is not something just for global missionaries sent out by the World Mission office. Finances, personnel, and planning at every level of the denomination should "fit" or be synchronized with both phrases of that mission statement. There must be coherence between what we do and what we say our mission is. Our actions must contribute to the end result we have in mind. For this reason, every Nazarene should be involved in some way with both phrases:
On the local, district, regional, and global levels, we must allow the mission statement to determine what we do, when we do it, and how we do it. We must be prayerfully asking: Does this activity or emphasis or decision fit who we are? Do the core values and vision of people in my church congregation match up with our mission statement? Is what we are doing and how we do it consistent with the objective of making Christlike disciples in the nations? Do we avoid activities undertaken merely because we can do them or because an opportunity happens to present itself? Do we, as a church, do things because they have meaning for us regarding our stated mission?
Organizations, businesses, and churches have often said there was "good chemistry" when people, programs, and resources came together to accomplish the group's stated goals. In recent years, organizational leaders have increasingly used the term "mission fit" instead of the less precise idea of "good chemistry." This includes making sure that positions in the church are filled by people who "fit" the needed qualifications and skills and whose core values and vision are in line with those of the church.
If we are to carry out our church's mission, the following items need to be "mission-fit" for us:
If some of these things fail "mission-fit" inspection, we may have settled for things that are inconsistent and perhaps even incompatible with our denomination's stated mission. We need to ask:
Many words ought to describe how we carry out our God-given mission. Words that come quickly to mind include God-centered, transformative, sustainable, culturally appropriate, transparent, reproducible, and empowering. Wouldn't the "icing on the cake," though, be having "mission-fit" stamped on everything from how our church spends money to the activities we seem to be the most passionate about?
1Note: In the Bible, "nations" frequently refers to peoples or ethnic groups rather than only to modern political states. In the Great Commission, the phrase emphasizes the worldwide scope of Christ's call to make disciples among all peoples.
Other ways to express the concept of "mission-fit" include:
Something is considered to be "mission-fit" when it conforms closely with the objectives, values, and goals of a project or organization. "Mission-fit" means that something or somebody embodies the qualities or characteristics that directly contribute to fulfilling that mission or advancing its objectives. This alignment can include skill sets, values, attitudes, and approaches. For an individual, being mission-fit means possessing the skills, mindset, and dedication necessary to excel in a given role within the organization or on a project. For a project or initiative, being mission-fit means that it will serve the intended purpose and help achieve the goals. Ultimately, mission-fit makes certain that whatever it may be — whether a person, project, or strategy — can be integrated into an organization's work in ways that will contribute to the intended objective.
To achieve the mission of making Christlike disciples in the nations, we must check the "mission-fit" harmony of everything we do. Programs, people, and resources must contribute toward the goal of disciple-making. Every Christian must be engaged in some way in making Christlike disciples locally as well as globally. Challenges will arise as we work toward cultural relevance and sustainability. However, insisting that our ministry activities be "mission-fit" will help make them effective, transformative, and pleasing to God.
— Howard Culbertson, hculbert@snu.edu
This reflection on a key issue in world missions outreach is one of 12 articles in the "Mission briefing" published in Engage magazine. Articles in that series dealt with issues such as unreached people groups, contextualization, indigenous churches, dependency, sustainability, leadership development, go-ers/senders, culture shock, and globalization.