In the United States, more than 450,000 churches, ministries, and non-faith-based organizations combine into an ecosystem. This is more than double the number of fast food restaurants across the country, and quadruple the number of libraries. An ecosystem this large has the potential to make a massive impact, especially because it’s united by a singular purpose: to help people flourish.
But what does it mean to help people flourish? Flourishing is a multilayered concept. Someone can thrive at work but face deep conflict in their personal life. Others are surrounded by loving relationships, but struggle with mental health or financial stability. Holistic human flourishing is inherently interconnected — it’s the “heart, soul, mind, and strength” Jesus outlined in Mark 12:30. This flourishing is brought about through a combination of individual (spiritual disciplines and the work of the Holy Spirit) and communal (the organizations that make up the ecosystem) effort.
Researchers at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard, Barna Group, and Gloo have collaborated to identify 7 interconnected factors that contribute to whole-person health:
- Faith: The dimension of spiritual vitality is measured by the desire in someone’s life to put God first and believe in the authority of the Bible.
- Relationships: This dimension measures satisfaction with one’s closest relationships, from family to friendships.
- Purpose: This dimension runs deeper than work alone, measuring someone’s sense of meaning derived from everyday life and the role they inhabit — whether at work, home, or leisure.
- Finances: This dimension measures not wealth, but worry and stress surrounding money and basic needs like food, housing, and monthly living expenses.
- Health: The health dimension encompasses how someone would rate both their mental and physical health.
- Character: The dimension of character is measured by someone’s response to the world and their engagement with the culture around them.
- Contentment: Finally, this dimension considers a high-level measure of happiness and satisfaction in life as a whole.
These seven factors, when combined and measured, indicate someone’s overall level of flourishing. The ability to identify and measure flourishing is good news to the over 450,000 organizations and millions of people who are committed to helping people grow. How much more could they achieve if they could leverage these measures, along with technology, to scale their missional impact?
Technology is inherently neutral and can be used to amplify the purpose of its user. Throughout history, technological advancements have inspired greater connection and human flourishing. Consider the steam engine: a simple principle that, when constructed perfectly, changed the world. Steam engines catapulted the world into the Industrial Revolution, powering factory machinery and enabling train transportation, which connected people to each other at greater speeds. Or the printing press: another simple invention that transformed the world by enabling the mass production of printed literature, like the Bible. Because of this, knowledge was democratized, and literacy skyrocketed.
These inventions, along with many others, are not only lauded for their financial or industrial impact but for the way they expanded capacity for human flourishing. In our generation, technology can serve in a similar way. Some organizations are wary of technology, fearing that automated tools and artificial intelligence can filter out human connection or fail to align with their vision and values. But when shaped for good, today’s technology can have a similar effect to the steam engine or the printing press: breaking down silos and barriers to allow for greater connection and purposeful impact.
Today, the faith and flourishing ecosystem remains siloed and largely underserved by modern digital technology — but what if the millions of men and women committed to helping others grow had values-aligned technology to help them?
Gloo is doing just that – shaping technology as a force for good, so people flourish and communities thrive. Gloo is building the leading technology platform to serve the faith ecosystem, including products, tools, and services that help ecosystem leaders do what they do best — help people flourish. As co-founder Scott Beck says, “We believe relationships catalyze growth and when technology serves relationships, the world can be transformed, one life at a time. Through technology, we connect this greater ecosystem so it can achieve more together than it could alone.”
Imagine the faith and flourishing ecosystem powered by this collective might. It could truly unlock a new trajectory of human flourishing in the country and around the world. And by building tools that serve the people who spend their days serving others and helping them flourish, Gloo aims to help these nearly half a million organizations scale the ways they’re called to serve.
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