If you are looking for the flavour of the month around many
churches, go no further than the dreaming up of vision statements,
the setting of goals and the identifying of measurable objectives.
If you are really taking the Gospel seriously, you will surely be
drafting up a directions manual for the next five years or so.
Otherwise you are obviously on the plateau with a happy commitment
to going nowhere.

Now, let’s get a few things straight. Is the exercise of pondering
the congregational future a pointless one? Of course not. Is it
wasted time to shape up those dreams? Hardly. Is there any purpose
in trying to sort out the difference between goals and objectives?
No, that can be time well spent too. So what is the issue here?
Simply this: there is always a subtle danger in imagining that the
adoption of the vision statement is the ticket to the future growth
and health of the church. It is simply not true.

Change is Tough

Too many churches have embarked full steam ahead on their visioning
but have actually stayed in port. The gang plank has not moved.
The vision and its attendant goals and objectives have been duly
signed off by a hopeful church meeting after numerous conferences
but the ropes still tie the ecclesiastical ship to the wharf.

Instead of becoming a chart to new and previously unsailed waters,
the vision statement may have been just a rush of blood to the
collective head and little more. It becomes a constant reminder of
how little has been accomplished, of how tough change really is, of
how cautious your average church member is when you scratch them a
little. It is not too surprising when thoughtful leaders begin to
feel that all the effort was a great investment at the time but the
likelihood of a return now seems remote.

What are the underlying problems then? Try these:

* Putting the vision statement on paper is only the first step.
The tough part is implementation. It is surprising how much
enthusiasm can be generated by all those planning conferences
only to discover that your ordinary church member often likes
things the way they are when it comes time to start bringing in
the changes. Many churches have done well with the planning but
that’s the end of the action.

* There is a danger that the vision statement may become a burden
rather than a delight. Any pastor who has struggled to find new
ways forward is conscious of how much anxiety is generated in
some members of the congregation (if not many) by the very
thought of change. It is a bit like a soured romance. The first
flush of young love was marvellous until it was ruined by the
marriage proposal. (Oops, he’s really serious!)

* But for those who are the nervous nellies, there are a similar
number who are the addictive adventurers who consider that the
Kingdom should have been brought in yesterday. They simply
cannot understand why the pastor is dragging the feet. They have
not been on the receiving end of searching questions asked in
quiet corners after the service, nor have they received the
anxious phone calls, or had the letters with a “word from the
Lord” in them. The idea of change being a delicate balancing
act with profound pastoral implications never crosses the
adventurer’s mind. Indeed, they too have their quiet
conversations, make their phone calls and slip their notes to
the pastor.

* The truth is that a serious commitment to new ways forward
always, repeat always, leads to unsettlement and an increase in
tension and stress of one sort or another. Don’t embark on the
shaping up of your vision statement if you are unwilling to take
on board all the strain which is so central to change. If you
have never had a wilderness experience, try implementing a new
vision. It always delivers plenty of stifling heat and sand in
abundance.

* There is another rather more subtle risk: it is entirely
possible for a vision statement to become an object of worship
(believe it or not). It is not too long before it attracts more
attention than the Scripture itself. Exegetical exercises on
the meaning and implications of the vision are pursued with
passion and intensity. It can become so preoccupying that our
attention can be drawn away from the rather more essential
spiritual disciplines which actually keep our feet on the ground
and give us the Kingdom perspective.

* Strangely, a vision statement can become a liability. The real
value of a vision statement is its embrace of what could be, of
what God might be calling us to do, of all the possibilities (if
only we had the courage and daring). These dimensions are fine
and to be applauded. Yet a vision statement can sometimes become
tyrannical, an instrument of constraint and criticism rather than
liberation. “If it’s not in the vision statement, we are losing
our focus” or “We cannot be serious around here; we are not
getting on with it.” The non pastoral types in the
congregation may continually push for progress in ways which so
often can be less than helpful , even detrimental to the gentle
art of carrying most people along with you.

* And not too far away is another choice issue: an increasing
number of strategies in our life together are finding their
inspiration in the world of business and management. This does
not mean that they will not be useful and effective in the
ministry of the congregation. But it is all too easy to loose
sight of what the church really is: a living organism, the Body
of Christ, the place where the movement of the Spirit can come
unexpectedly with new and unanticipated promptings. The
congregation is not there just to be managed, to be organised, or
to be directed like a business but to be nurtured, to be loved,
to be kept sensitive to the purposes of the Author and the
Finisher of the faith.

* Now there are some pastors who relish the development of
strategies for every conceivable aspect of church life. They are
the schemers par excellence. There is a process for every
program. Lord, bless them. But Lord, help them if they lose
the priority to be quiet in Your Presence, to listen to Your word
which sometimes comes from left field. Remind them that the best
laid plans are always going to be too small since You love to do
much more than we could ever ask or think of. Slow them down
when their commendable planning leads them to a busy-ness which
seduces them to barren places. Give them the grace, patience
and wisdom to stand back a step or two if something is not
falling into place.

Our Loaves and Fish

Somewhere around here is the need to remember the five loaves and
the two fish. With the blessing of Jesus, that’s all it took to
feed the five thousand. At the best of times we still have only
those few loaves and fish. We may have all sorts of schemes to
multiply our congregation’s ministry but without the touch of
Jesus, they remain just that: good schemes springing from faithful
hearts.

The vision statement arises from a sincere and prayerful desire to
be effective witnesses to the Gospel. But our faith must remain in
the Giver of the vision who loves to bless the daring and encourage
the nervous. So we need to hold lightly to the vision itself no
matter how exciting and motivational it may be. God will want to
do more.

Is the effort required for the shaping of a vision statement
misdirected energy? Not at all. Without vision we perish. The
discipline of pondering what the Lord may wish to do on our turf
and how we can be part of this is a sensitive response to Him. But
let’s be careful that we leave room for Him to do it His way.
Let’s not be held too slavishly to words on paper (no matter how
good they are) if this blocks out the serendipity of walking with
the Lord of Life each day. A vision statement is there as a launch
pad for great adventures, not a straight jacket to dictate every
movement. It is the outcome of the desire to dream and not a
ticket to frustration and disappointment.

It all Takes Time

Now there is another word worth attending to. If the Lord gives
His people a vision, He will also move His people to change but in
His own way and in His own time. Pastors and leaders who sink into
quiet depression or systematically tear out their hair because of
the reluctance of their people to move to fresh ways of being have
a little more to learn about life.

You cannot be a change agent without drinking deeply at the wells
of patience and wisdom. There are no easy solutions here. But
remember that they are the Lord’s people no matter how intransigent
they may be. It is remarkable how open many people will be to the
exploring of new ways provided time is spent noting their
hesitations, hearing their ideas and nurturing their fellowship.

If a pastor has taken the time to win the confidence of the
congregation, there is a chemistry which creates a climate where
significant advances can be made without spilling blood on the
church carpet. The key ingredient is trust. Miracles occur when a
congregation trusts their pastor. And trust is not won overnight.

It has to be earned over a long period. It is the natural
consequence of a life devoted to Christ and the service of His
people. It does not mean that the pastor always has to be right or
relaxes by walking on water every evening. It has to do with the
quality of the life lived; the power generated by faith in action;
the inspiration of a leader who loves mercy and walks humbly with
God.

This healthy trust between pastor and people has enormous
implications for change: the vision is actually incarnated in the
life of the pastor: the pastor becomes the living expression of the
vision. The power of the vision statement is observed in a
multitude of different ways: a genuine optimism about the future, a
contagious anticipation, a belief that the hurdles of the present
are all part of moving towards new ways of worship, witness and
ministry generally. True, not everyone will catch on but this
healthy, expectant climate will influence the congregation in
subtle and profound ways.

Finally….

So, you have a vision statement at your church? Great! But it is
only the start. Take your time. Listen carefully to the keen and
the cool alike. Live the vision not in a superficial, cosmetic way
but sincerely, expectantly, hopefully. Get alongside rather than
tearing ahead in reckless enthusiasm.

A marvellous vision statement is a wonderful first step but there
is more to learn yet: about our own leadership, about change, about
people, about life. And the outcomes may be quite different. You
may end up with twelve baskets of surplus blessings!

– John Simpson <>