Risk-Taking/Risk-Giving

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Every once in awhile we at the Care Center like to write about something that is geared toward Christians. As a Christian organization, we hold certain beliefs about God, the Bible, and Jesus that departs from our general culture. That doesn’t negatively affect our care for clients; in fact, it only serves to fuel our care for clients. Our faith fuels our mission to serve the community.

For Christians, our faith should fuel everything we do. The reason is because we believe we serve a God who is not only loving, kind, and generous, but who can also do anything because he’s the Creator of everything. Our faith in that kind of God—the God of the Bible—fuels what we do and how we do it. It also leads us to attempt great things, and possibly even risky things, in order to see his mission carried out in the world.

Risk-Taking: The Parable of the Talents

One good example of this can be found in Matthew 25 in the parable of the talents. If you don’t remember, it’s about a man who leaves his property for a time in the care of three of his servants. He gives one servant five talents, another two, and another one, and then leaves. When he returns, he finds out what his servants have been up to. Two of the servants took that money he had given them and produced more! They took a risk to invest money that wasn’t theirs (and that they likely could never have paid back if they lost), but the risk was worth it in the end for their master. One servant did nothing but hide the money away.

What’s most striking about this story is that Jesus commends the two servants who increased their master’s property, even though they risked it. But of the servant who did nothing, he called him “wicked and slothful.” That seems strange at first! It’s not like the servant used the money for personal gain or something like that, so what’s the big deal?

Well, that servant didn’t know the master like the others did. Because he thought the master was a “hard man” he didn’t trust the master to be gracious if he lost the money, so he chose to do nothing with it. He didn’t grasp the will of the master, either, or else he would have realized the master is always about increasing his property.

So, we have a conclusion where the servants who risked everything to advance the owner’s property are to be commended, but the servant who risked nothing and did nothing for the owner (only thinking of himself) was thrown out of the household.

Risk-Giving

We have to be willing to take risks to advance the mission of our Master. While commenting on this parable, a pastor named J.D. Greear wrote,

Any worthwhile kingdom attempt involves risk. C. S. Lewis said that the way to know you are living by faith is that what you are doing for God scares you. If it doesn’t, he said, there is no faith involved. So get comfortable with being scared. We have a Master who not only has commanded us to risk, but also has promised us that as we do so, led by his Spirit, he will multiply our investments in the harvest of his kingdom. ¹

At the Care Center, we have a 3-Phase Plan to end up as a reproductive health clinic. After much prayer and consideration, we believe this plan is ultimately going to advance God’s mission (as it plays out through us) most effectively.

Believe it or not, we’ve been met with some skepticism and doubt. But just think about it. If we want to make abortion unnecessary for women in our community, how can we do that if we can’t even provide basic reproductive health care like Planned Parenthood? Our goal is to be the better alternative!

We understand the risk involved in taking this direction, but we believe the women and men of our community are worth it, and we think God believes they are, too.

Will you consider taking a risk? Will you become a long-term partner with us, and give even when it might be risky? You’re not just investing in some organization that’s “doing good” for people in need, you’re participating in a greater mission. If you’re ready to start now, check out our upcoming Benefit Dinner on Friday, October 2. This major giving event is one easy way to start partnering with us. You can also give online by clicking here.

Take the risk; it’s worth it.

Carter Mundy is the Assistant Executive Director at Greensboro Pregnancy Care Center. He enjoys spending time with his wife, daughter, and the family dog. He also loves his church family, Mercy Hill, where he serves as an elder. You can follow Carter on Twitter @carterpmundy, or on his blog at carterpmundy.wordpress.com.

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