Sharpen your vision
by Bob Prouty
Writing down your vision will help keep your team on the same page. The amount of detail is up to you. Start with something simple, like the questions at the bottom of the page. Change the document as you learn more about your community. Later on you may want to use the Ministries to Movement Wallchart.
Purpose or Passion
What drives you forward? A short statement is great for recruiting new team members and also explaining to outsiders what you are on about. Here is what my team wrote:
"We want to transform communities by changing the way that people relate to God and to each other".
Product
It is hard for some people to think in terms of product, but answering this question will help sharpen your vision tremendously. What will people be equipped to do if they stay involved in your effort for an extended period of time?
Here are how my team answered this question:
"We want to raise up teams of passionate followers of Jesus who will raise up teams of passionate followers of Jesus in other communities".
Process
What are the steps that will enable people to move toward your desired product? In our movement we are starting with the following:
- People in the community who are close or far from God will see us meeting needs and socially interacting with a wide variety of people in our community.
- These people will hear us talk about God in everyday conversations.
- At some point we will ask them "Would you like to discover for yourself what God is like and how He wants you to live?"
- If they say yes, we will invite them to start a Discovery Group in their home, or join an existing Discovery Group.
- We will start building leadership qualities right away by asking them to lead part or all of the Discovery Group from the first or second meeting.
- We will encourage them to start their own Discovery Group as soon as they find friends who want to know more about God.
- When we get 30 or more believers in one community we will start a Gathering to disciple believers.
- We will expand our leadership team and provide opportunities for new people to lead portions of the Gathering.
- We will prepare teams of leaders to go to new areas to repeat what they have seen happen in our community
- We will keep in touch with the teams we send out, learning from their successes and failures
Questions to get you started
Start with something simple, like the questions below. I have given you sample answers. Change the document as you learn more about your community. Later on you may want to use the Ministries to Movement arrow.
- Which community are we trying to reach?
We are trying to reach the families which go to the local primary school. Many of these are recent migrants. - What are their felt needs?
Many feel a need for community. They have left family and friends behind in their home country. They need help learning about our local culture and how to obtain the government assistance they need. - Which of these needs can we meet?
- We can help meet the need for community by inviting people to community parties in the park.
- We can help at school events and invite others to join us.
- How will meeting each need lead to opportunities to talk about God?
- In the park there will be lots of time for informal talk. We can weave stories about Jesus into our conversation
- The school events may be very busy and we will not have time for deep conversations.
- How will we introduce people to Christ?
Will we ask people if they want to start Discovery Bible Studies in their home. We will use the Four Spiritual Laws to help clarify the need for a decision when we study John 3. - How will we disciple those who have come to faith?
When we have more than 20 people meeting in Discovery Bible Studies who have become followers of Jesus, we will begin to meet twice a month as a Gathering. - What are our plans for sending people to start groups in new areas?
Within six months of forming a Gathering we will send out a team of four people to focus on reaching the suburb next to us.