By George Bullard
The idea of congregations expecting the next pastor to bring them vision implies some very important things about the ongoing understanding and practice of vision within congregations.
First, it implies vision comes from the pastor. Second, it implies the last pastor did not have a vision for the congregation. Third, it implies vision comes and goes with pastors, and is not always present. How do you feel about these understandings?
For me these understandings are problematic in several ways. Most important is the point covered in previous posts that vision is from God and not from pastors. If this is true, then a second point is obvious. If vision is from God and is not present for a congregation, then is God’s vision for a congregation temporal and comes and goes? If so, is a third point valid? That is, God does not always have a vision for some or even all congregations.
I actually believe God has a perfect vision for all congregations for all times. The challenge is that congregations too often do not connect with God’s vision for them. Or, they allow the vision to wane and even die as an active movement in their congregation.
This leads to several vision insights that are important for congregations to consider about God, vision and pastors. The first 20 overall insights about congregational vision are found here.
Vision Insight 21: Visionary leadership is about who we are, what we believe, where we are headed and how we are getting there.
In one sense this is a restatement of mission, purpose, core values, vision and the alignment of congregational actions to live into or fulfill the vision. It asks the question, “Do we know who we are in relationship to the Triune God, why we were founded as a congregation, what we value or believe, where we are headed and how we are going to get there?”
Vision Insight 22: Vision plus intentionality is the core formula for an enduring visionary leadership community to follow.
Congregations seeking to transform really only need three words to describe the essence of a transformation strategy. Vison. Plus. Intentionality. If the deep meaning of these three words captivate the imagination of at least 21 percent of average number of active attending adults then it is likely the congregation has vision. This 21 percent is the enduring visionary leadership community.
Vision Insight 23: If congregations focus on the pastor’s vision, when the pastor leaves vision often leaves. Vision from God never leaves.
Does your congregation want a temporal vision or an eternal vision? For many people that is an easy question. Of course, they want an eternal vision. If so, then why do they expect the pastor, staff and key lay leaders to provide it? Any vision of humankind is going to be temporal. It comes and goes as the fads and trends change. It focuses the congregation on short-term actions rather than long-term actions.
Vision Insight 24: If vision is deeply felt throughout the congregation, it does not diminish when there is a transition in pastors.
This is a key reason why congregations should never want the vision they are following to be the pastor’s vision. That is a lot of power and authority to give to the pastor. When the vision is primarily the pastor’s vision, the congregation seldom deeply owns it.
If a congregation is captivated by God’s vision, deeply feels ownership of it, faithfully, effectively and with innovation is seeking to live into it, then when a pastor leaves vision remains. Rather than diminishing it may flourish as any existing staff plus lay leaders come forward to work more fervently on vision fulfillment.
Vision Insight 25: When congregations expect the pastor to provide vision, they often mean a vision with which they agree.
Even if a congregation is sold on or blind to anything except the pastor being the CVO (chief visionary officer), CCO (chief casting officer) and CIO (chief implementation officer), they often mean that the content of the vision and the action to fulfill it must meet criteria that is typically unknown to the pastor.
The congregation has a set of hidden core values. They are well known to the long tenured members, only slightly known to the short tenured members, and possibly totally unknown to a new pastor who comes in excited to lead the vision he or her has for the congregation.
This is the 11th in a series of posts on congregational vision. To see all the posts go here. Look for the next post, entitled “Excellence eludes pastors not passionate about vision.”