DISCERNING VISION - Part 1

Leadership and vision go together. Leaders motivate and inspire followers by articulating a compelling vision, a mental image of a desired future. A widely shared vision can impel organizations, including churches, toward fulfillment of their goals and purposes.

Some leaders attempt to conjure up catchy phrases and promote them as vision statements. But a good vision statement goes beyond clever slogans. It must reflect the passion that drives the organization. From a Christian perspective, it must flow from the passions and purposes of God and express concisely -- but compellingly and clearly -- what the organization is ultimately about. The vision statement motivates people to action so that they embrace what they are doing as truly meaningful for both the organization and for the Kingdom of God…

Scripture reminds us that where there is no vision, “people stumble all over themselves” (Proverbs 29:18, The Message). “Vision,” in this context, points to a prophetic revelation where people hear from God and obey Him. Similarly, Christian leaders need to hear from the Lord concerning their lives and their organizations in order to articulate the vision God desires for them. Jesus said, “The Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does” (John 5:19, NASB). The leader seeking to discern vision must listen to God in the Word and in prayer, receive a fresh understanding of God and His purposes and then follow His leading.

This process may be somewhat slow as the leader wrestles with interpreting God’s direction in the midst of challenges, setbacks and opportunities. Leaders open their hearts to the Lord as they seek Him. It can be like peeling an onion as God deals with the leader at different levels. It can be a time of brokenness for the leader as he or she seeks the face of the Lord. Once discerned, vision sparks a passion in the leader and doesn’t let him or her go. The apostle Paul testified before King Agrippa, “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19, NKJV). The Christian leader is called to embody the vision discerned from the Lord and to articulate it passionately in word and deed, in humility and conviction.

-- Steve Irvin


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