Upper and Lowercase Vision

For an introduction to this series, check out my article The Preferred Future (or Why I Get up at 5am) at WorshipMinistry.com

I want to make a distinction between two kinds of vision. (And this distinction is somewhere between "thinking out loud" and a working hypothesis. So if you don't agree, that's OK. In six months, I may not either.)

When it comes to vision, I think there’s the big, almost "capital-V vision" that gets put in the hearts of people by God. Nehemiah’s vision of rebuilding the wall would be an example of that. That kind of Big-V vision is something that I can’t act on right away or it’d be ruined. It needs be developed and refined. I need be developed and refined. Andy Stanley’s book Visioneering* will help guide you through the process of a Big-V vision.

Then there’s what I would call the "lowercase-v vision" that simply sees a problem and sees a solution to that problem. (And the people without vision see problems to solutions– but that’s an issue for later.) A lot of the building blocks spelled out in Visioneering are the same for little-v vision – just on a smaller scale. And it seems like, for me, operating within this realm of small-v that God starts to instill a Big-V vision.

Vision, big or small, at its most basic definition, is a preferred future. And the path between vision and our current reality is one part strategy and planning, one part “continual course-correction,” and two parts getting off our keisters and moving towards it.

Speaking of keisters, yours might feel like it’s being kicked right now. Some people are not future or vision oriented. That’s OK. Some people are so big-picture/future oriented that they can hardly function in the real world. Some are so tied to the practicality of real world that it’s difficult to see the big picture. The good news is we need all of us to make this work. (Of course, the bad news is, we need all of us to make this work.) If you have a hard time seeing thinking about vision and future and you’re not sure why, spend $15 and buy StrengthsFinder 2.0* book and take the assessment. It will show you your top five strengths and explain them in way that lightbulbs will be going on all over your brain. It will also help you understand what areas are NOT your strengths and how to work with people who have those.

In the next post in this series, we'll use a simple exercise to start developing a vision for our worship team.

*Full disclosure - affiliate links for Amazon.

RadioShack Sound Systems & Faith-Infused Realism

Most leaders (volunteer or paid) find it easy to think about what they want to do and have and be after their ministry or organization grows. A preferred future is fun to think about. The current reality, especially for those in small churches, well, not so much. Here was reality at my first church:

• My annual worship budget: less than my current Wii bowling average.
• My band: Me. And occasionally Lori, a pianist who couldn’t read chord charts or leadsheets. So when she played, we had to do everything from the Maranatha! Green Book.*
• My sound system: Two words, squished together–RadioShack.
• My video tech: an 80-year old gentleman who sat 3 feet to my left and moved the transparency up and down (quite rapidly) on the overhead projector.

We can dream and scheme and spreadsheet our preferred future all we want. But no plan for future growth will succeed without faith-infused realism. Here’s what faith infused realism is NOT: [Read the rest at WorshipMinistry.com]

28 Ways to Make Great Segues: Segue #16: Vision & Mission

Vision and mission are two big buzz words that keep buzzing. They sometimes take on new forms or variation, like "missional" and "purpose". And they all get attached to a "statement." At worst, a church's vision/mission/purpose statement is ripped off from another church and then slapped on a banner or bulletin cover. At their best, these statements offer clarity about and direction towards the heartbeat of the church.

This post won't deal with the differences of mission, vision and all that. What I want to say about it is this: If you got it, flaunt it. And here's a place to flaunt it: segues.

If you're moving towards the offering, say something like, "Here at [insert some trendy metaphor] Community Church, we believe God has called us to [rattle off mission/vision statement, without sounding canned]. The money you give helps us fund [name one or two specific ministries/events/initiatives, etc.]. Thanks for giving to help change lives.

If you're inviting people to stand and worship - something in your statement likely points towards worshiping God with our whole heart and life. At a previous church, we had simple mission statement - "love God, love others, live to serve." So inviting people into our corporate worship would go something like this, "One of our primary missions is to love God. Through worshiping Him and experiencing His love, we are able to love and serve others."


This isn't rocket surgery. But a few extra minutes of prep during your worship serving planning can make a difference. Reread "Talking Transitions" for other ideas on how approach a verbal segue.

Andy Stanley says it best: "Vision leaks." You need to keep repeating and reinforcing vision in multiple ways for people to remember it and engage with it. Your worship segues are a great way to do this.

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What are some ways that you've incorporated vision, mission, purpose, core values, etc. into worship segues? Let me know in the comments here, on Twitter (@jonnicol).