The title verse reads like this: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”.

I have ears… but I can’t hear. I went to the doctor today unable to hear out of my right ear… just a congestion / blockage issue that I’ve experienced several times… And I’m still not quite sure why it was a two-hour visit or how I managed to leave the doctor’s office unable to hear out of my left ear, instead! — But without standing on a soap box in an indictment of incompetent medical services, I do notice a parallel between this situation and the process of culture alteration in a church or business.

In any organization, there are always going to be things that need improvement. There will be methods, policies, and systems that become ineffective, whether due to incomplete foundations from the outset, or because of some shift in skills, resources, or values within the organization or your target market. Change is uncomfortable and it’s easy to fall into avoidance of it, but it is necessary in some situations.

Like my blocked right ear, some things in your operation may already be at the point of dysfunction. Maybe you have several programs or assets that are “banging, flopping, and dragging” as my new Pastor and boss, David Stephens, once put it. If so, you have a responsibility as the director of the organization to, first, assess the need and evaluate the possible solutions, and second, to administer the treatment quickly. The health of your company depends on both the constant observation and evaluation of your operations as well as the swift and confident execution of actions that address the problems that you find.

Most people can accept that notion… When something is broken, you should fix it. Furthermore, I believe that many could agree that the longer you leave a deficiency unresolved, the worse its impact. But what about that left ear?

When everything seems fine in your organization and when nothing crazy is going on, should you avoid change? When things are all pretty good and you have only minor complaints, can and should you bring yourself to upset that equilibrium? — Only if you want to be great.

My friend and mentor, Pastor Ben Liles of GenesisChurch.TV, likes to quote author Jim Collins in saying, “Good is the enemy of great”. Let’s face it… Good feels pretty good. When things are going smoothly and you’re getting by without incident, there isn’t much natural motivation to take action and risk conflict or trouble. But when the personal, God-given passion that I mentioned in yesterday’s post enters the equation, good is never good enough.

Some would say that the doctor just couldn’t leave well enough alone in the case of my left ear. I came in hearing pretty well. I hadn’t had much trouble with it, at least not anything that I couldn’t work out on my own time… But by meddling where there was no immediate problem, a much bigger issue was created.

Maybe they’re right… Maybe the doctor did at least expedite the presentation of hearing trouble in the left ear. But the vision and the intention was to improve my condition and to give me an even greater level of auditory capacity than I came in with. Great intention… Great vision… and even a great plan. The method that was used to attempt to repair a minor, potential problem was the same treatment that worked perfectly on the more problematic right ear. So what happened?

I’m not saying that you’re never going to fail. There will be times when you choose to move when inaction just feels right and you’ll end up creating more conflict and malady than you began with. However, for those who understand that such risk is necessary to truly pursue greatness and fulfillment, there is only earnest prayer and study prior to making the move. Not trying is not an option when you realize that your effectiveness impacts countless lives.

And the knowledge that however badly you manage to mess things up in your well-meaning hunt for your best offering and effort, God is capable and faithful to transform that failure into something useful, provides the support and confidence to dream big and pursue greatness – not for yourself, but for the glory of God and for the salvation of all who will have it by the mercy and grace of Jesus.

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[I wonder if the doctor had all of that in mind? ]