Strategy vs. Virtue: Exploring the Tension

I just had an epiphany. Everyone who has talked to me about the “Separate but Equal” post has had basically the same reaction – “It sounds so right but something feels really wrong.”

Let’s keep exploring that dissonance on that post but this brings up a topic I’ve longed to explore.

Thesis: In the church it’s considered Christ-like to allow the slightest appeal to virtue to trump the most prudent strategy.

I can think of hundreds of examples in the church when the smart thing to do was overturned because it might be seen as mean or unloving. Many churches seem to distrust strategic planning as a lack of faith of feel strategic moves that involve people would threaten relationships. Probably the best examples I’ve seen of this have been incompetent people elevated into leadership positions and then left there indefinitely to inadvertently damage the ministry because it would be unloving to remove them.

Bill Hybels, Pastor of Willow Creek, chose to recruit much of his staff from the business world valuing competence and real-life experience over theological education. Our church model is worlds apart from his but I believe this was one of the keys to their success.

Counter Thesis: Choosing the most strategic path is an act of love with a heart for the future.

Paul taught us that love is the most excellent way. I agree, therefore, that love does trump any other virtue but I believe it’s easier for our heart to feel an action with short-term good result is more loving than an opposing action with a long-term much better result. This kind of thinking sounds like – “I can’t discipline my kids because I love them too much”.

This is not an appeal for smaller hearts and bigger brains, it’s an appeal for bigger hearts for the bigger picture.

Our hearts and minds create a wonderful internal system of checks and balances but beware of limiting your heart to the present. God’s love reached through the ages of time to you and me and our love must do the same for others.