Vision

A vision is a plan for ministry. Perhaps the most well known scripture related to vision is Proverbs 29:18, "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he." We often quote the first half but not the second; yet, proverbs always come in two parts: the premise and the conclusion (my terms). The premise sets up a condition for comparison or contrast with the conclusion. The conclusion finishes the thought. In the Biblical proverb, the conclusion is usually spiritual in focus. Hence, in this proverb, keeping the law (the Torah) provides vision for life; without it, you are bound to perish, physically, morally, and spiritually. Of course, from our perspective after the cross, Jesus came and fulfilled the law for us completely; however, its applicability for our lives is not diminished, we simply are no longer saved through keeping of the law (not that the Jews were ever saved through keeping something that was impossible for humans anyway; they were saved in that through their observance of the law, they acknowledged God's righteousness compared to their sinfulness and looked forward to God's salvation through the promised Messiah).

Therefore, vision is a plan not just for ministry, but for life. We must distinguish between true vision and what many churches pass for vision that is in fact merely a program of one kind or another. Based on our definition above, ministry vision must lead to life physically, psychologically, and/or spiritually. Feeding the hungry begins a relationship that meets a physical need first; however, if that's all that happens, the activity becomes no more than the bread lines of the Great Depression. It has social implications only; certainly it sustains the individuals physically, but if it does not go on from there to meet the areas of need in the soul and spirit, its effect is transitory and lasts only until the person gets hungry again. Starting and operating a private school ministers at the psychological level, working on the mind, the will, and the emotions. Yet, again, although the effect may last as long as a lifetime, that is still transitory; it will come to an end someday. Only a ministry that ultimately reaches the spirit will have results that last for eternity. Pointing the way to salvation and discipling will have eternal impact, but many times it is more effective to begin with a physical or psychological need as a means to gain the individual's attention and then refocus their attention on their spiritual need. An effective frame of reference can be found in this statement: "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care."