When you plan a vacation,
your tendency is to start thinking about what it will be like. You think about the places you will visit,
the food you will eat, the experiences you will have with family and
friends. Although reality may differ
from what you imagine, your vision of the vacation gives you purpose and
enthusiasm as you plan.
Churches need a vision to
have direction and purpose. The terms “mission’
and “vision” are often used interchangeably, but I differentiate between the
two. Mission is the reason for your
existence as a congregation. If you
embrace a missional theology, your mission is the missio Dei, the mission of God in this world. God is a sending God who sends God’s people
into the world to do God’s work. On the
other hand, vision is what you hope to become.
Throughout their struggles, the priests and prophets held out several
visions to the Hebrew people--to dwell in the Promised land, to be restored to
their homeland, or to become a blessing to all the peoples of the world.
Mission explains why you are
here. Vision articulates what you want
to become.
The best visions are those
based on a clear understanding of what you value and the resources you have
available. Values keep us on track toward
our vision and an assessment of resources gives some clarity of what we might
accomplish.
An example of a clear vision
might be, “Our church will further the Kingdom of God by serving the people of
downtown ________.” The shorter the
vision, the easier it is to remember and use as a guide for what you are
doing. You may have additional information
that defines each term in your vision, but you refer to that when you bring new
people on board or need clarity for those in leadership roles.
Vision statements should
create a level of aspiration or tension in the congregation. They should not be so unrealistic as to discourage
action but they should stretch the congregation, calling for creativity,
investment, and sacrifice.
Most of us are familiar with
Proverbs 29:18 in the King James Version: “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but
he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”
Another translation of this verse in The Message gives a slightly
different emphasis: “If people can’t see what God is doing, they stumble all
over themselves; But when they attend to what he reveals, they are most
blessed.”
As we
articulate a vision for our congregation, we state what we believe God wants to
do in our context. This minimizes
confusion and maximizes blessing.
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