Thoughts on Vision

There are dangers connected with not having a vision. Here are three.

Without a coherent vision...
1. energies of leaders go in many different directions and produce little benefit;
2. leaders feel like they are competing with each other for the available resources;
3. leaders are more vulnerable to the attacks of the forces in the congregation that are opposed to change.
--Gary Straub & Judy Turner, Your Calling as a Leader

Voice Recognition

Amidst the chaos and moral confusion, God raised up a new generation, mentored by Eli, who learned to distinguish God’s voice among the myriad of competing voices. A very unlikely young person learned “voice recognition” long before the technology was ever invented. The boy Samuel spent time in God’s house and quieted his soul enough to hear God calling in the night. Spirit Leaders are people trained to listen and distinguish the Word amidst the words of culture.
--Gary Straub & Judy Turner, Your Calling as a Leader

How much time do you spend quieting your soul so you can distinguish the Lord’s voice from all others? Most people think that sitting quietly is a waste of time when we could be doing ministry.

Years ago one of my sons asked me how I distinguished the voice of God from the ramblings of my own mind. I said “Time and experience. I have spent a lot of time listening to God and a lot of time rambling around in my own mind and I’m getting pretty good at telling the difference.” When I like Samuel was too inexperienced to recognize God’s voice, I leaned on the Eli’s around me to help me discern God’s voice.

If we have not spent the time in quiet listening to hear God’s voice, then whose voice are we listening to as we do ministry?

Am I becoming who God calls me to be?

I think Straub and Turner point us in the right direction.

The most important question is not, “Have I found the ‘thing’ God wants me to do with my life?” The most important question is, “Am I becoming who God calls me to be in Christ?” Some indicators help us affirm that we are fulfilling our primary calling from God. We know this when we can say: I am...
• sensing and enjoying God’s presence more than I did yesterday
• trusting God more today than I did yesterday
• expressing more compassion and concern for the people around me than I did yesterday
• realizing I am more trustworthy today than I was yesterday
• caring less about what our culture values than I did yesterday
• caring more about Christ’s values today than I did yesterday
• devoting more of my resources to God’s work than I did yesterday
--Gary Straub & Judy Turner, Your Calling as a Leader