But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. – Mark 12:42

Today's Scripture Reading (February 4, 2024): Mark 12

I believe that two competing principles govern the church. The first is the Great Commission, Jesus's words to go and make disciples of all nations. It is an instruction that applies to all of us. These words send missionaries to far flung nations to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the same words send us to build relationships in our neighborhoods and workplaces. Sometimes, the Great Commission is stated using a different phrase out of the Bible that describes the actions of Jesus during his ministry on the earth; "For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost" (Luke 19:10). But all of this really comes straight out of the stated mission of the church given to us by Jesus Christ; it is our first governing principle: Go and make disciples!

The second principle that guides the church is actually an economic principle. It is known as the Pareto principle, named after Alfred Pareto. Pareto observed that 20% of the people possessed 80% of the wealth. In the church, the Pareto principle is seen in many ways, including that 20% of the people give 80% of the church's operating budget, and 20% do 80% of the work. Usually, the excuse for the 80% who are sitting on the sidelines is that they don't have anything substantial to give. What they have, the church can probably do without.

I call them competing principles because churches that consistently do better in fulfilling the Great Commission violate the Pareto principle. Those churches that struggle to fulfill the great commission hold strictly to the Pareto principle. The church can decide which set of expectations it will satisfy. Churches that successfully fulfill the Great Commission create an atmosphere of release in their congregations, and those restricted by the Pareto principle reserve ministry, either officially or unofficially, for the few.

There is an excellent story about a little girl who wanted to attend Sunday School. But she was told that there wasn't enough room. She began to save her pennies to help the Sunday School have more space. Two years later, she became sick and eventually died. After her death, they found a small pocket book under her pillow with a handwritten note – To help the build the little temple bigger so that more children can go to Sunday School. Inside the pocketbook were 57 pennies.

The Pastor told the story to his congregation, and a newspaper spread it nationwide. Today, there stands a church that will hold 3300, a University, a hospital, and a Sunday School, and it all started with 57 pennies, really an insignificant amount of money, that was released to God. All because a child didn't wait for something significant to give; she gave what she had, just like the widow Jesus saw in the Temple.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Mark 13