The safest road to hell is the gradual one — the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts*
by chuckofish
It was a funny week — for the most part, frigid weather left me muffled up at home puttering around the house, reading, and thinking. I even skipped a department meeting! Yet all has not been blissful coziness. I am on the board of a local church-affiliated charity organization (comprised of several member churches) that runs a thrift shop and food pantry and gives emergency aid to those in need. We are bursting at the seams at our present location, and we need to find a bigger place. Yesterday a sub-group of us met with a realtor to look at a huge, 8000 square foot property. Some board members want to start a capital campaign to raise money for the purchase. They have ambitious plans to expand our services and they want to run the organization on a business model.
Their enthusiasm is laudable, but I cannot help feeling that we are getting away from our mission, which is to help people in our small catchment area. In my view we should be closer to the widow’s mite than the money lenders. In other words, our operation should concentrate on the human aspect, rather than fiscal growth.
William Teulon Blandford Fletcher’s The Widow’s Mite
Why do we need to act as if we are in a fund-raising competition? And isn’t it true that the bigger we get, the more overhead cost we’ll have? Won’t the money simply go to support the charity and not the people who need help? Bigger is not necessarily better, right? Perhaps I should remind my colleagues to “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it” (Matthew 7:13) — they mean well, but good intentions without clear thought just get everyone into trouble.
The moral of the story? Easy charity isn’t charity at all. We should always examine our motives and think deeply about the consequences of our actions before we act.
Just in case you are interested in feeding your stomach as well as your soul, I’m going to share the easy and delicious dinner I made last night. Gnocchi with beef and zucchini. Here’s the sauce,
and here’s the gnocchi.
I recommend frying them for crispness but you can also follow the recipe and boil them if you prefer your food soft and mushy. I did not have the chili paste called for in the recipe, so I just added a few red pepper flakes. The mascarpone adds a subtle sweetness, and while the sauce would probably turn out fine with another cheese, try it first with the mascarpone!
Have a great weekend, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:17).
dual personalities 
I am with you. Maybe you can find someone to donate a bigger space. Re the food, I do not even know what gnocchi is/are. Maybe I can interest the OM in trying the recipe (i.e. cook it).
Gnocchi are little dumpling things made of dough or potato. I usually get potato ones. I buy them fresh at the deli, but you can get them frozen as well.
Good on you for skipping a department meeting! The world would be a better place with fewer department meetings. Good luck with C&C program.
Your thoughts on your charity I think speak to a larger problem I’ve observed among non-profits (including universities) these days. They’re so obsessed with raising more money that raising the most money rather than doing the most good becomes the primary concern.
(Sarah here:) Yep, you’re exactly right. It has become all about the money and numbers (how many people donate), rather than figuring out the best way to achieve an objective.