Vision Discernment Guide
Vision Discernment
What is a ministry vision?
A vision is a portrait of a preferred future that your church is committed to help bring about. We generally refer to "the church's mission" in terms of a purpose that is general, broad and unchanging. (See "What Is the Church's Mission?" tool #7, and "General Characteristics of Local Mission," tool #8, for a description of mission in this general sense.) In contrast, a church's ministry vision is specific, focused and contextual.
A ministry vision is found at the intersection of the needs and dreams of the community, the church's unique capacity and calling for ministry, and the eternal designs of God's kingdom. The church envisions coming alongside the community to address a particular need, share God's love with a particular group of people, or achieve a specific goal for change. A ministry vision completes the sentence, "Our church will participate in God's work of making the community stronger and more like heaven by . . ."
There are many ways your church could fulfill its mission. A process of discernment can help clarify which ministries are part of God's plan for your church at this time. A vision statement identifies the ministry goals that the church will implement over the next few years, usually by mobilizing and leveraging congregational resources to create or collaborate with a ministry program. Many churches also have a short, general statement of the church's external mission (such as this one from Faith Assembly of God: "To love and serve our community by living out the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Frankford section of Philadelphia, addressing both the physical and spiritual needs of our community"). A ministry vision specifies how the church will carry out that broader mission.
In a paragraph, the vision statement indicates the main focus of outreach (helping children in poverty reach their potential, sharing God's love with single moms, promoting access to safe, affordable housing), and points to specific actions by which the church can address this goal in a holistic, transformational way. The statement can also show how the preferred future envisioned by the church in this focus area connects with God's larger story of hope, redemption and restoration.
A vision statement becomes the anchor for a detailed ministry plan. It can also serve as a rallying cry to mobilize the congregation. In dialogue with members of the community, a shared vision can become a focal point for collaborations and community organizing.
A ministry vision is not etched in stone. It will adapt and grow as the congregation mobilizes and puts the ministry into practice. The discernment process should be renewed every three to five years as the church discovers new horizons for community ministry.
Factors to consider in the process of ministry vision discernment
The needs and desires of the community. Which concerns are the most pressing, or the most neglected? Which ministry possibilities best reflect the hopes and dreams expressed by people in the community?
Potential partners (such as nonprofits or other churches). What opportunities for collaborative ministry are available? How might your church come alongside the assets that God has already placed in the community?
Your congregational profile. Consider the skills, interests, resources, experiences, demographics, and “personality” of your congregation. What ministry options fit with your church's strengths and style? What could you do with passion and excellence?
Your congregation's existing outreach. How can a new vision build on what the church is already doing well, and capture the momentum of successful volunteer experiences? Are any individuals or groups in the congregation serving the community in informal ways, whose work could be supported and expanded?
Your church's mission statement, which describes the church's broader purposes. Which ministries are consistent with your church's stated priorities? (Sometimes the process of vision discernment can lead a church to reexamine its mission statement!)
The congregation's own needs. Consider areas where the needs of the church and the community overlap, such as counseling or day care. Also consider the congregation's spiritual needs and how outreach can strengthen discipleship.
Strategic impact. Which forms of outreach may represent the wisest investment of your church’s resources? Look for ministries that address root causes of needs and work toward long-term solutions.
Timing. Is your church sensing a “kairos moment” or special timeliness for a particular ministry opportunity?
Risks and rewards. Ministry vision should stretch the congregation's faith, without pushing the church beyond what it is ready to handle. At times, though, it is appropriate to ask: What seems so impossible that it just might be a God-thing?
Last on this list but not least, the leading of the Holy Spirit. Jesus declared, "The Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing" (John 5:19). In the same way, your church can only accomplish what God is already doing.
The discernment process
Seek God. Since the church's mission is God's mission, the church's vision is dependent on God's guidance. Make prayer central to the discernment process (see tool #1, Prayer Guide). Study Scriptures together that shed light on the church’s mission in the world (see list of verses in tool #2). Prepare yourselves personally to hear and follow God’s leading (see tool #3).
Gather information. Draw on the ministry inventory, program evaluations, community study and networking. You can also take the pulse of the congregation’s preferences for ministry – either through a formal survey (such as the Survey of Community Ministry Interests, tool #20) or informal dialogues.
Consider options. Lay out possibilities suggested by the study of your community and congregation. Glean ideas from other churches and ministry models (but use as an inspiration, not a blueprint). Use tools #36-41 to help you generate options, particularly the Ministry Ideas Brainstorming Chart (#41), and also the exercise Connecting Community Assets (#34).
Start somewhere. Your vision discernment team may know the who before the what — you may begin with a desire to reach youth, for example, and then explore ways to do that. Or your church's strengths might point toward a certain kind of ministry, such as mentoring or health care; in this case, the team might look for ways to deploy its strengths where they could have the most impact.
Balance top-down and bottom-up. Sometimes a church leader has a clear sense of where the church should go. Other times the direction and energy for local mission comes from church members who are already involved in the community. Seek a balance between the corporate ministry of the church as discerned by its leaders, and the initiative of individuals called to make a difference.
Narrow your focus. Taking into account the factors listed on the previous page, prayerfully decide which one to three options represent the best pathway for your church’s ministry journey at this time. Resolve ahead of time how much consensus on the team will be required to move ahead.
Flesh out the vision. Begin to sketch out possibilities, listing what resources and relationships will be involved. Reflect on the relevant theological principles of ministry (see tool #5). Examine how to integrate the core ministry values (see tool #43). Look for ways a ministry could "affirm the dignity of people, motivate them, and help them to take responsibility for their own lives" (Communities First). Consider the potential for sharing God's love in both word and deed.
Put it in writing. You may end up with several ministry vision statements describing different programs. (Since every church has its own vocabulary for concepts related to "mission" and "vision", feel free to adapt the terminology used here to make it relevant to your congregation.)
Get feedback. Present the draft vision statement to the church’s governing body for refinement and confirmation. Also seek input from a broad range of stakeholders, or people who may be involved with the ministry: beneficiaries, ministry partners, “gatekeepers” of influence in the community, leaders of similar programs, and church members who are especially interested in or affected by the new ministry focus.
Get personal. Alongside the process of discerning the church's vision, each team member can explore your own individual vision. How do your gifts and interests intersect with this ministry vision? How is God calling you personally to share the love of Christ in word and deed? Try to put your personal vision statement into words. What lifestyle changes might be needed to fulfill these goals?
Take time. Allow the team time to listen to God and to one another. Consider taking a retreat to permit an undistracted space to focus on seeking the Spirit and learning from one another.
Once you have established a vision statement, a ministry leadership team can begin developing a detailed ministry plan. Work with church leaders to rally support for the vision within the congregation, and with community partners to build ownership in the community.
Writing a ministry vision statement
The difference between a dream and a vision is that a vision is a call to action. A ministry vision statement lays out not only the preferred future, but also what your church is going to do to help bring it into the present. (This isn't a claim that Christians can bring heaven to earth, because in a fallen world our efforts will always fall short – but we can promote a shared goal of making earth a little more like heaven.)
Start by drafting a one-sentence summary of the proposed ministry. The full vision statement has five basic parts (not necessarily in this order):
An overview of the people group, neighborhood or social concern that the church seeks to impact, and the specific need or challenge to be addressed.
A brief affirmation of the broad goals to be reached, the potential in the community to be affirmed and nurtured, or the community assets to be strengthened,.
An outline of the church's intended ministry response.
A description of the hoped-for outcomes
How the ministry vision connects with God's activity in the community, with the biblical story, or with the overall intentions of God's kingdom. What is God doing, and how can the church get on board?
Sample vision statements:
Summary: Our church envisions a community where everyone has access to safe, affordable housing and to the opportunity to become home owners.
Based on the biblical vision for all families to live in a healthy, productive environment (Isaiah 65:21), our church supports the desire of residents for affordable, safe housing in our neighborhood, where Y% of families are low-income and Z% are renters. To accomplish this, we will partner with ABC housing nonprofit by supplying volunteers, funds and in-kind goods for construction and rehabilitation projects. Qualified church members will also offer home-ownership seminars to first-time home-buyers. We will welcome (without pressuring) families served by ABC into the spiritual support net of our church, for example by offering transportation for children to church-sponsored youth activities. Our long-range goal is to make a measurable difference in the quality of housing for ten families per year, and to assist one family per year to become a homeowner. Another desired outcome is to see twenty percent of the church mobilized in support of this ministry within two years, whether as volunteers, donors, prayer partners, or hosts who welcome new participants into the church.
Summary: We see the kingdom of God in our midst as the body of Christ comes together in support of low-income working families.
We believe that the Holy Spirit is bringing unity to the churches in the vicinity of X housing project to work together for a community where all residents enjoy equal opportunity to achieve their fullest potential. Recognizing the struggles faced by low-income working households to provide sufficient food, reliable transportation, safe child care and adequate health care for their children, we will help to organize a coalition of churches that can "adopt" families in public housing, particularly single working moms, with a range of support services, including emergency sick-child care, a car clinic, food packages, budget training, and career counseling. This ministry will also lead to a study group among members of sponsor churches on the public policies needed to lift working families out of poverty. Through this ministry, the coalition will make a difference in the economic, emotional and physical well-being of three to five families per year, both by improving their immediate situation and by helping them achieve their longer-range goals for a better life. Church members will also become better educated on the concerns of the working poor and organized for advocacy on their behalf.
