Some years ago, I reported to the board of directors of the ministry where I then served that we could definitively say that we were among the most well-intentioned ministries in the world.
It was not a compliment.
I should also quickly say that in the years immediately following this conversation, we managed to both raise our intentions and take action to make them reality.
This week, four cancer charities made the news because the gap between their words and actions grew so large that it called their integrity into question. I don’t know the leaders of these charities or what representations they made regarding their response to cancer, but the public outcry is informative. No one is complaining that their vision was too audacious. No one is complaining that their research or services were ineffective. The complaints are that they were overwhelmingly self-serving.
Serving others is the very definition of charity. It is the absolute minimum requirement.
Integrity requires that our actions match our words. But aiming low in order to guarantee success serves no one. Aiming for an unprecedented impact may reduce the probability of success, but this is how progress occurs. Exerting the faith, energy, and creativity required to achieve unprecedented impact is good stewardship of our lives.
Aim high. Serve others.
