Steps Forward
Pray.
Don’t take anything for granted—prayer is the foundation for the work to be done. You want unity in your discussions, and you want to hear the heart of God as you consider His vision for your church. So, pray.
Create a vision team.
Invite 8-10 men and women, a combination of both intuitive and detailed thinkers who are key influencers and leaders. Begin discussing where the church has been, what gifts and passions are present among its members, what the church’s core values are, and where the Holy Spirit seems to be leading.
Listen.
Listen, carefully, to each person you’ve invited onto the team. If you really want buy-in for the vision, it cannot be one person’s vision. Consider every corner of your congregation and how the proposed vision would speak to them.
Identify a timeframe.
Because a vision represents tangible goals, consider when you wish to reach those goals (after which you’ll recast a new vision).
Be patient.
Articulating a vision that represents your church’s unique DNA doesn’t come easily. Be prepared to invest in a lot of searching and discussing.
Be brief.
The vision statement of Kaiser Hospital is a single word: Thrive. That might be too short for your church, but aim to be as descriptive and compelling as possible in as few words as possible.
Consider available resources.
No other church is the same as yours, but other people have walked a similar path. Consider what you might glean from their proven processes:
Mancini Vision Pathway Process
“Seven Vital Steps Prior to Implementing Major Change,” by Ron Edmondson
Re: Vision: The key to transforming your church, by Aubrey Malphurs and Gordon Peenfold (Chapter 10, “How to Create and Cast a Compelling Vision”)
Seeking the Pillar of Fire: Uncovering God’s direction for a local church, by Steve Musser and Eric Orke
Winning On Purpose: How to organize congregations to succeed in their mission, by John Kaiser, Thomas Bandy, William Easum
Developing a Vision for Ministry in the 21st Century, by Aubrey Malphurs
The Art of Virtue-Based Transformational Leadership: Building strong businesses, organizations and families, by Mark McCloskey and Jim Louwsma
Church Unique: How missional leaders cast vision, capture culture, and create movement, by Will Mancini
Leading From the Sandbox: How to develop, empower, and release high-impact ministry teams, by T.J. Addington
By Andy Stanley:
Making Vision Stick (Leadership Library, Kindle)
“Casting a Vision That Sticks” (Defining Moments Video), also with Bill Hybels and Jim Mellado
Visioneering: God’s blueprint for developing and maintaining personal vision
Deep and Wide: Creating churches unchurched people love to attend
