Mission Drift: The Unspoken Crisis Facing Leaders, Charities, and Churches

by Peter Greer, Chris Horst, Andy Crouch (Foreword)

Named a 2015 leadership book of the year by both  Christianity Today  and  WORLD Magazine.

Is your organization in danger of Mission Drift?
Without careful attention, faith-based organizations drift from their founding mission.

It's that simple. It will happen.

Slowly, silently, and with little fanfare, organizations routinely drift from their purpose, and many never return to their original intent. Harvard and the YMCA are among those that no longer embrace the Christian principles on which they were founded. But they didn't drift off course overnight. Drift often happens in small and subtle ways. Left unchecked, it eventually becomes significant.

Yet Mission Drift is not inevitable. Organizations such as Compassion International and InterVarsity have exhibited intentional, long-term commitment to Christ.

Why do so many organizations--including churches--wander from their mission, while others remain Mission True? Can drift be prevented? In Mission Drift , HOPE International executives Peter Greer and Chris Horst tackle these questions. They show how to determine whether your organization is in danger of drift, and they share the results of their research into Mission True and Mission Untrue organizations. Even if your organization is Mission True now, it's wise to look for ways to inoculate yourself against drift. You'll discover what you can do to prevent drift or get back on track and how to protect what matters most.

Genres: Leadership, Christian, Business, Nonfiction, Church, Christianity, Professional Development

225 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 10, 2014

About the author

Peter Greer is an author, speaker, and president and CEO of HOPE International, a global faith-based economic development organization serving throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe. Peter received a B.S. in international business from Messiah University and an MPP in political and economic development from Harvard's Kennedy School.
As an advocate for the Church’s role in missions and alleviating extreme poverty, Peter has co-authored over 14 books, including The Gift of Disillusionment, Mission Drift (selected as a 2015 Book Award Winner from Christianity Today), Rooting for Rivals (selected as a 2019 Leadership Resource of the Year in Outreach magazine), The Spiritual Danger of Doing Good (selected as one of the top 40 books on poverty by WORLD magazine) and Created to Flourish. More important than his role at HOPE is his role as husband to Laurel and dad to Keith, Liliana, Myles, and London. While his sports loyalties remain in New England, Peter and his family live in Lancaster, PA.

Blog: peterkgreer.com. Twitter: @peterkgreer. Facebook: @PeterKGreer

Reviews

[Jeremy Gardiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book contrasts Christian organizations which experienced mission drift (Harvard, ChildFund, YMCA etc.) with those that stayed mission true (Compassion, Intervarsity, Taylor University etc.). It also contrasts influential leaders like Henry Parsons Crowell (founder of Quaker Oats) who put in safeguards to protect his Crowell Trust to stay mission true with leaders like Howard Pew (President of the oil company, Sunoco) who though in his day he funded Billy Graham's ministry, Christianity Today, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, today (after his death) his trust funds Princeton University and Planned Parenthood.

The authors say that the board is the defender of the mission and being intentional about who is on the board is the biggest thing an organization can do to stay mission true. Putting successful people on the board who are spiritually immature and who are not fully on board with the mission will be its downfall. Therefore, it stresses attention to the character, and spiritual life of all who accept board positions.

Additional chapters cover the character of the leader, partnering with donors who believe in the mission, mission-true metrics and habits, as well as partnering with the local church as God’s primary institution.

This was the best book I’ve read thus far in 2019. It is a must-read for any faith-based institution or charity.

[Kevin Halloran · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for Christian non-profit leaders.

[Janet Richards · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm on two church boards, and this is a great book to consider the role of the board, how essential it is to remaining true to a core mission, and healthy practices. I found the examples (both good and bad) gave credibility to the concepts and were impactful to both warn of the dangers and highlight the benefits of staying mission true.


The one star I took away has to do with the fact that it was very Western focused, I'm not sure if it applies 100% globally. I also believe staying "Mission true" has enabled the Western church to stay rooted in some tragic errors - it's complicity in slavery, it's silence on the suffering of women and the poor, it's most recent alliance with the political right. There is a time to change direction when a mission goes against the 2 greatest commandments that Jesus taught. I didn't see any regard for catching and correcting these errors, only moral errors. We need more books that shine a light on the moral failings of greed, misuse of power, tribalism, and sexism. However, I doubt the audience this book is geared toward is ready for confronting these sins.

[Brookelynn Dinkler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Case studies on Parachurch organizations who have remained steadfast to their mission and those that have drifted. Highly recommend for those working in the nonprofit faith-based sector. Relevant to you and instrumental to your ministry.

[Jake Bronson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fine book about remaining true to one's organizational mission. It has had a big impact in the faith based NGO community, so it was worth a read in that sense. The authors pose reasonable questions about maintaining one's faith based status amidst a changing climate. I listened to it an audiobook and it was okay. I don't think I would pay to buy the book though.

[Bethany Jobe Witzig · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had read select chapters of this book in the past, but actually read it entirely this week in preparation for a training. This book asks challenging and thought-provoking questions about para church/NGO organizations remaining “mission true” and avoiding “mission drift.”
Mission drift is detected with the level of clarity in Christian mission & intentionality it safeguarding it. Working in HR for a large Christian NGO, I found this book helpful, and I recommend it to those in leaderships or on boards of organizations like this.
Through reading this, I was able to identify and appreciate practices my organization does to remain mission true including hiring those that align with the statement of faith and beginning every meeting with prayer.
One of my favorite parts was the emphasis on holding fast to the church:
“Wisdom lies in anchoring ourselves to the church as the church is anchored to Christ. Across time and culture and trends, the church remains.”

[Josh Sieders · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm very interested in institutions, in particular, Christian ones and how they remain so in a culture that is post-christian. This is especially challenging if that organization seeks to help, work with or engage it's neighbours who hold different values and worldviews. This book was a great primer on some of the major reasons for drift, and the corresponding efforts required to avoid it.

Not everything in this book was new to me, nor was everything earth-shatteringly revelatory, but it combined a lot of different examples and thoughts coherently into one package. That is valuable and makes this book is a must read for every board member of every Christian non-profit and their leadership as well.

[Scott Hayden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through historical survey, contemporary interviews, and personal experience, these authors paint the portrait of what it takes to stay Mission True.

Our school board and administration read this together.

I recommend this for faith-based organizations.

[Jeremy Pitman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid

[Adam Balshan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars [Business]
(W: 2.58, U: 3.17, T: 3.19)
Exact rating: 2.98

[Phillip Nash · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very useful and practical book that challenges Churches, para-church organizations and none-for-profits to remain true to their mission. Essential reading for the leaders of such groups including Evangelical Christian schools, some of which have already begun to drift.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vital book for any Christian organisation. Points to the dangers of small, incremental comprises that take an organisation away from its original purpose. Lots of practical advice on staying true to the mission.

[Carol R. · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you lead a church or organization or business, or if you simply want a life that is lived on purpose, get Mission Drift. Savor it and learn from it. Only diligence keeps us on mission.

Greer and Horst's book, which they provided for me to read and review, contains stories of organizations that have so departed from their original stated mission that they've changed their names to reflect their new identity. They interview leaders of Mission True organizations to plum their wisdom on what keeps their organization on track for the long haul. They share their own stories from Hope International on how tempting the small steps can be that ultimately pull you away from mission. You'll find key questions you, as a donor, can ask nonprofits to ensure the organization is staying Mission True before (and after) they get your money.

To be Mission True takes vigilance. It's not always simple. Sometimes it means turning down the easy answer now to enable your future ministry. People may not understand. But Mission Drift—through targeted examples, a smattering of statistics and true wisdom—gives you reason to care and to make the hard choices to stay Mission True.

[Brad · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for anyone leading a mission-driven organization--not-for-profit or otherwise. It has strong warnings--with well known examples--regarding the great tendency for organizations to drift from their strong founding principles. But also some very practical areas of focus to help ensure that does not happen.

[Peter Krol · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good, quick read. The material was foundational and of utmost importance, yet it rarely moved past the rudimentary. That's okay, because the rudiments are what we often forget most quickly.

[Krystal Chico · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for any Christian Leader. I used this as a framework for our Strategic Leadership Conference of 2021 and introduced parts of the book at our National Summit for 2021. The concepts of this book were transformative enough that some of our leaders even picked up the book after each conference.

First, one of the chapters has a quiz of sorts that helps you figure out the health of your organization. Is it in mission drift? It is at a point of no return? Or are you thriving in the Lord? We all took the quiz, which we all found super helpful. We discussed each of our individual results, which helped us better understand the perspective of each individual on our Board. This then helped us figure out where we wanted to take the organization from there and how we could remain a Christ-centered organization for generations to come.

Second, each chapter of this book really focused on guardrails organizations can have to help their organization thrive in a Christ-centered mission. We took the concepts to heart and earnestly evaluated our organization. We were encouraged by our strengths. We were also encouraged by the guardrails we were missing and looked at what creating some of the guardrails would look like for us. The concepts of the book were a framework for our collaboration sessions, which allowed us to collaborate productively for the glory of God. Even to this day, many of us refer back to the concepts we learned from the authors.

Lastly, I was worried that this book would only focus on organizations that had done it wrong. While it’s important to have examples of such in order to understand why Mission Drift should even be a topic of conversation, I worried about it being too focused on failures. However, the authors focused more on success stories - people that had stayed true to their mission, altered their mission in a way that better glorified God, or turned back from mission drift. And that was very encouraging, because it showed us that it is completely possible to keep an organization Christ-centered for years to come, even in increasingly difficult circumstances.

Overall, the book was short and to the point. It was a very quick read. The examples were encouraging and the concepts helpful. I’d recommend this book to the leaders of any Christian organization.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

We've all done it - you start out burning some scrap wood and wind up with a bonfire. You planned to share a link, and wrote a lengthy post about it. You started cleaning the living room and wound up redecorating. We see it all the time, charities, even businesses, compassion, passion and innovation, that end up cold and heartless bureaucracies. We observe that some "Churches and denominations abandon the truth of the Gospel as they age ... have lost their saltiness. They have forgotten why they exist and have moved away from a core commitment to the Gospel. Today, they resemble little more than a country club without a golf course. And so their light dims and pews sit empty" (p 78). Sam Walton's vision for Wal-Mart was not only about making money, but "saving people money so they can live better" and making employees partners sharing in the company's success, but succeeding generations have changed the focus from benefiting employees and customers to solely focus on profit. Mission Drift is everywhere.


Mission Drift: The Unspoken Crisis Facing Leaders, Charities, and Churches
Greer and Horst are President/CEO and director of development at HOPE International. Mission Drift came out of an experience they had with a wealthy donor offering to give them substantial funding provided they would tone down their organisation's Christian identity. Realising that this threat to staying "Mission True," as the authors phrase it, was not unique to them, they undertook a study of organisations that had drifted and had stayed Mission True to examine the causes of drift and what might be done to prevent it.

Using examples from the past, such as Harvard and Yale, the former dedicated to the mission of training preachers, and the latter founded just 65 years later by a group of pastors "concerned by the secularization at Harvard" (p 18) and hoping to avoid the drift they saw there. Obviously neither university bears little resemblance to their original mission. They also examine YMCA and Christian Children's fund, now entirely removed from their originally gospel centred missions, and now just called The Y and ChildFund, amongst other examples of organisations who have forgotten their original reason for existence. In contrast to these they use examples such as Apple, Compassion, Quaker Oats, International Justice Mission, InterVarsity and Southwest Airlines. But don't mistake Mission Drift as "an exposé of organisations that have drifted," as the authors have "intentionally chose[n] organisations that have publicly and widely communicated their own drift" (p 31). Greer and Horst desire to equip, encourage and build up, not tear down, even if, as they admit, it can be a tough and painful process for an organisation to take steps "to protect and reinforce their mission" (p 31).

Throughout the book, Greer and Horst identify and outline sources of, risks for and signs of Mission Drift, and offer strategies and example practices of how to guard against and steer away from it. They identify two kinds of drift - that which happens under current management, and that which happens after the current leaders are no longer around to keep an organisation on mission. The key seems to be deliberate planning against Mission Drift, from intentional definition of the mission and identity of an organisation (particularly when faith and evangelism are key parts of the mission), to concrete practices and metrics for evaluation of how the organisation is measuring up to them. Such practices cover a wide range from those that ensure the organisation is actually achieving the mission (eg not just measuring support given to those in poverty, but how effective it is in releasing them from poverty) to strategies to imbue the organisation with a culture, not just in the 'now' but that will be propagated to future generations of organisational leaders and workers.

If you're a manager or involved with an organisation (or ministry, business), Mission Drift provides a detailed discussion on effective hiring, communication, branding and building procedures, the importance of changing with the times, yet without changing identity, and the organisational culture that is more important than the rules, to ensure that your organisation stays Mission True. Their emphasis is towards faith-based organisations, whose Christian identity and distinctiveness they show is vital to the work that they do, with definite advantages and strengths over their secular counterparts. However, their guidance is equally applicable to secular organisations, churches and individuals. They point out that "too often, institutional drift is fundamentally unintended, the result not of sober and faithful choices in response to wider changes, but simply unchosen, unreflective assimilation" (p 13) to outside influences and culture, and this is why purposeful measures are needed to prevent a passive inadvertent Mission Drift.

There are helpful summaries at the end of each chapter, review questions, notes on the methodology they used in their study, a good list of further reading, and thorough endnotes sourcing ideas and quotes.

One aspect that stood out to me, as particularly relevant to us who are not leading or involved with organisations, was the importance of board members (as opposed to the day-to-day leadership), and donors in keeping an organisation on track with their mission. We as supporters of various stores, charities and other organisations play a big part in the path they take - no more money = no more organisation. Greer and Horst point out that not only do small donors like you and I generally provide the lion's portion of funds (so it's not as necessary to change under pressure to gain funds from big donors and government grants as it may seem), but we can play a critical role in monitoring and speaking up if we see organisations we support straying from their purpose and character. We also have the responsibility to make sure we're supporting organisations we actually agree with - those with values and methods line up with ours.

This book would not have been at the top of (or possibly even on) my reading list, had it not very been kindly sent to me for review by the publisher (via LibraryThing) prior to its release date (giving me something of a deadline) but I am glad that it was. Even though the book is written "to and for evangelical nonprofit leaders," I think it can be profitable to individuals and anyone involved in almost any organisation or endeavour. I found myself examining my own life, as a Christian living 'on mission,' as a husband and father - even to my blog, to see where I might be less than Mission True. I am tempted to chase more followers and write catering to that growing audience, and to use the blog as a platform to preach, forgetting that my 'mission' is simply to get back into writing, and to write about things I find interesting and care about, particularly reviewing books. Mission Drift has shown me that I needed to remain true to my mission, not to be pressured to make lots of posts and engage in strategies to draw reads, to keep it fun rather than a chore.

toonarmycaptain.wordpress.com

[Christopher Humphrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just completed reading “Mission Drift” by Peter Greer and Chris Horst. The premise of this book is that all organizations tend to drift from their central purpose unless the leaders of those organizations purposefully work to prevent that mission drift. This book should be required reading for every Pastor, para-church leader, philanthropist, and non-profit board member.

The principles in this book are applicable to secular and faith based entities. But the primary challenge set forth by the authors of this book is that faith based organizations take affirmative action to prevent drifting away from their primary purpose of glorifying God in all things. This book is intensely practical and easily read in a few days. The authors provide useful examples of organizations and institutions that have experienced mission drift and they highlight those that have instituted best practices to prevent such drift from occurring.

If you lead or serve on the board of a non-profit organization and it is your desire to see generational faithfulness, then this book is for you. Read and discuss this book with your Board and apply the principles. Generations to come with thank you for your efforts.

Finally, if you have the gift of generosity and you are purposeful in your giving, you need to read this book. Why would you give money to a ministry that does not implement mission drift safeguards? How can you be sure that your generosity will not be squandered on a short term mission that is bereft of eternal results? This book will help you be a faithful steward.

There is a reason this book received a 2015 Christianity Today book award. This book is worthy of your investment of time. Happy reading!

[Marco Ambriz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing to me because I found it misleading in its title.

I thought this was about helping Christian organizations stay true to their mission vision and values. While it certainly promotes that...it is mostly about how to avoid becoming a "secular" organization. Chapter after chapter is filled with negative examples of organizations that are no longer distinctly Christian and positive ones of those that are resisting that temptation to become 'secular'. I have no problem with being a distinctively Christian organization, (I'm a pastor of a church). I just wish the book was called something else so I could know it wasn't for me.

Suggestions

"How did we get here? Organizations that are no longer Christian and how you can avoid that drift"

Faith Drift: How Christian organizations can avoid losing their soul to secularism"


That said, this book IS for a Christian Organization that is confused or misguided on its Christian foundation and wanting to maintain its distinctive as a Christ centered organization.

While I don't see things in the polarity of the authors (Secular vs Christian) I do understand where they're coming from and if thats your worldview and your organization needs to be encouraged to not becoming "secularized" then this book is for you. Definitely not my perspective and not my issue at a church that is very clearly Christ centered.

I'll be checking out other books on how to focus mission vision and values as a church that already believes in Jesus but needs clarity on how to be more effective.

[Stephanie Sheaffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

The thesis of Mission Drift is that the natural course for organizations is to drift from their original mission and it takes active attention and focused intentionality to safeguard against it.

The authors organized the book into fifteen chapters in which they share characteristics of what they call “Mission True” organizations. In other words, they outline best practices of organizations that have successfully stayed true to their mission and provide related practical applications.

Greer and Horst support the thesis through a combination of case studies and personal anecdotes. Case studies cover well-known schools, businesses, and non-profit organizations that have either veered dramatically from their original foundation or who have remained steadfast in pursuit of it. The authors also humbly and effectively use their own experiences as the CEO (Greer) and Director of Development (Horst) at HOPE International, a global non-profit focused on addressing poverty through microfinance.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book, despite it being about something I'll likely never have to deal with personally. The issue is how to prevent organizations from suffering mission drift - straying away from its original intention. Specifically, it's about how Christian organizations can remain faithful to their calling through time. I don't think I'll ever run this type of organization. But the book was nonetheless very insightful, looking at many examples of organizations that drifted and some that stayed true. Most people know Harvard started as a school to train Christian clergymen, and it's obviously far from that now. But more interesting is seeing why it changed. The book mentions an incredible fact that pawn shops were originally started as microlending outlets to help the poor. How did that happen? Really interesting to read.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book showing how easily an entity can drift off course if it's founder if measures are not set to focus it on it's original intent. It starts with the countries first two theological seminaries Havard and Yale Universities and shows many others who have stayed true like the Crowell trust and Buck knives. A must read if you have intentions of building a legacy entity, or wonder what measures will hold you true to your intent, without wavering from your original focus. The companion pdf download Mission True Workbook: is available for download at Mission-True-Workbook-interactive-1
PDF (www.peterkgreer.com)

[Travis Heystek · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a great read. I highly recommend it to any church leaders or faith based organization leaders. Even if your church is on mission I believe this book does a great job helping you look beyond what you’ve already considered.

In a world where are values are often questioned and scrutinized it is difficult to remain steadfast. Many small compromises, although they don’t change the message, lead to drift. I enjoyed reading this book and I believe it would be eye opening to many church boards and pastors.

[Lawson Hembree · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read for anyone in leadership. Has your organization started to stray from its founding mission? Over time, many do either in the pursuit of money, a poor succession plan, an eroding culture, or any number of other compromises. The principles in this book are a gut-check for leaders who must stay vigilant of Mission Drift and set the expectations for those they lead. While the book is geared towards nonprofits, ministries, and churches, the underlying lessons apply to for-profit organizations as well (which would make a great follow up to this book).

[James Barnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mission Drift.
Helpful book that doesn’t say anything groundbreaking, but a really good reminder of core tenets of keeping on mission.
Key take aways.

Gospel most important asset.
Have clarity what the mission is.
Make hard decisions to stay on mission.
Mission drift is constant – entropy.
Leadership and boards are key to mission drift and mission focus
Heart of the leader and character key for mission focus
We measure what is most important.
- Measure something
- Measure more than just numbers – but key numbers. i.e. not just new people, but new people connected in.

[Jeff Turnbough · Rating 5 out of 5]

“It’s the exception that an organization stays true to its mission,” said Chris Crane, president and CEO of Edify. “The natural course—the unfortunate natural evolution of many originally Christ-centered missions—is to drift,” he said.”

The above quote pretty much describes the reason for this book. It was a good read and well worth the time. I recommend it especially for the leaders of organizations or entities of any kind.

[John Dube · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the title suggests, this book addresses the tendency organizations have of drifting away from their mission. The book addresses parachurch mission drift more than church mission drift, although there are many similarities. To be clear, authors are passionate about the gospel and the church. This is a helpful resource for older churches facing the threat of mission drift and newer churches establishing their mission.

[Rob · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is dealing with an identity crisis. It's kind of a leadership book, kind of a ministry, kind of a book on board membership, kind of a book on business leadership. It scratches the surface on all of those things and only excels in being 1-2 of them.

A great book to start understanding the topic, but further learning is needed. Probably a good starting point for an undergraduate ministry student.

[Judy Hansen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book from a very Christian point of view (and perhaps more of an evangelical point of view). It does explain Mission Drift and gives excellent, concrete examples of what the authors are saying. The book focuses on what I'll call accidental Mission Drift. It does not particularly address well-orchestrated and intentional shifts in Mission.

Easy to read. Great background for a discussion with others.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Mission Drift twice, and in my opinion this is a "must read" for anyone, staff or board member, committed to a Christian Non-profit ministry. Your organization will drift with the currents and inevitably drift away from its original purpose if you do not take the initiative to prevent this from happening. The book has much helpful advice.