what determines and motivates your vision? how do you know when things are getting blurry? are the people you lead getting cataracts trying to stay focused on it?
lately, I have become convicted that as I receive vision from God, I need to embrace and distribute it within the framework of the convictions He has also given to me. that is, what values are non-negotiables in my life and ministry? what in my life have I been convicted about beyond any doubt to hold fast to at any cost?
I am learning that God will give us fresh vision to test and train our sensitivity and to see if we will stay true to our convictions. if He is calling you to extend your ministry's reach to the nations, do you pack up your stuff and your family and head off to Zimbabwe or do you filter this new vision through the convictions He has instilled in you?
how will this impact your family, your current ministry, the fulfillment of your life calling. maybe there is another way to accomplish this without you personally going to the mission field. maybe God is calling you to stick to your value of developing people and is calling you to equip and train others to go to the nations, quite possibly with greater effectiveness than you would ever realize. or maybe He is calling you to go yourself, if it fits in the framework of your God-given convictions.
can our convictions change? I guess that may depend on what they are grounded in.
one thing is for sure, God desires humility and integrity. the vision is not ours anymore than our convictions are self-invoked. we must look to Him and depend upon Him for both and operate as if they come from the same source.
we can not be called to be a husband and father (or wife and mother) and then take a vision to create life transforming ministry and allow the pursuit of that vision to sacrifice our marriage and family on its altar! if God convicts us that as His children we must reflect His priorities in all of our relationships, especially in those with the ones closest to us, then we must make sure that any vision we have is never allowed to compromise that value.
I say start with the values that God wants to be uniquely and strongly adhered to in your life and then pray for fresh vision that supports and undergirds those values. we can not operate in a realm of visioneering that devalues our convictions and we can not lead forward with a vision that has no clear values as its foundation.
Good News for Zoey
5 days ago
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2 comments:
God does desire humility and integrity.
Thanks.
Will -- found you via the swerve/lifechurch blog. Love your thoughts here -- wondering if you've read Church Unique by Will Mancini (founder of the group I work with, Auxano)? You can check it out if you like at www.ChurchUnique.com.
I think you might really appreciate the Vision Frame concept he lays out, where vision is understood within the framework of mission (missional mandate), values (missional motives), strategy (missional map), and measures (missional life marks).
The idea is to create a strategic thinking and acting framework, so vision becomes contagious, dynamic, viral, and wed to God's unique calling for your church, rather than a particular leader. In our experience, this frees up visionary leaders to lead, and encourages a real team dynamic that moves beyond an impoverished vision that is linked primarily to a personality, program, place (building), or people (us 4 and no more, etc.).
Interested to hear your take on this. BTW, I am somewhat of a "consultant," though I don't like that word much either -- hope you don't hold that against me :)
Blessings
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