Simon Senik’s 2009 Ted Talk explores why certain leaders and organizations are successful. His argument is that what made someone like Martin Luther King Jr so inspiring or a company like Apple so perpetually innovative is clarity regarding their purpose. Its typical to focus on how objectives are met or what is achieved, but great leaders and organizations start with why they exist. Some aspects of his presentation have not aged particularly well – e.g. the celebration of Big Tech– but I find Sinek’s insistence on having a compelling sense of purpose is helpful. 
 
Tim Keller makes a similar point in his book Center Church. He relates how pastors would visit his congregation (Redeemer Presbyterian in New York City) because it was thriving in one of the most secular cities in the U.S. They would then imitate Redeemer’s forms of worship and discipleship in their churches in the hopes of experiencing similar results. However, following “the Redeemer model” never worked. Keller explains that the secret of Redeemer’s fruitfulness wasn’t its particular ministry expressions, but rather the way in which they arrived at those expressions: “It was the character of [our] analysis and decision-making process rather than its specific products that was critical to the fruitfulness of our ministry” (16).
 
Their specific decisions, in other words, flowed out of a larger vision for how the kingdom of God could be brought to bear upon peoples’ hearts and lives in their unique setting and cultural moment. In Senik’s terms, what they did as a congregation and how they went about it flowed out of a gospel why.
 
It can be surprisingly hard for churches to articulate this why. But we’re going to try. Over the next few weeks we’re going to use the Coffee and Catechism hour (Sundays from 8:45-9:45 am) to explore COTC Foundations. The plan is to discuss the core convictions that animate our life as a community. We’ll review questions like: What is the human condition? How does God save us? What God desires to accomplish in our life in Christ. Some of the information may not feel ‘new,’ but rather than being novel, our hope is express how our biblical and doctrinal convictions relate to our time and place.
 
If you’ve never been to Coffee and Catechesis before, this course is a great place to start. 
 
See you Sunday-
Nick