I've served in a senior pastor role over 20 years and each year I've preached an annual vision sermon.

As I look back, though, I wonder how much Kingdom difference those sermons really made.

Pastors from large mega-churches that I've followed from afar encourage us to bring an annual  message. As a result, I've prioritized it as a necessary leadership tour do force upon which I thought the health, vitality, and future of my church depended. I had engrained into my leadership DNA that a vision message must include content (the what), the motivation (the why), and the inspiration (the impetus for everybody in the church to be moved to take on hell with a water pistol after listening to me for 30 minutes).

The kinds of vision messages I've brought have included these general themes.

• the I just got back from this great pastors' conference and this is what we will do next year
• the I just read a great book on church growth and this is what we will do next year
• the I have no clue about what next year holds but I have to bring a vision message or else I'm not a good pastor
• the I have to fire up the church with this message because, well, we need firing up
• the I've come from a Mt. Sinai planning retreat and here is what God told me we're to do next year
• and as I've gotten more mature the I humbly bring this before you as a word from God

The responses to my annual vision sermon have included...

• 100 people leaving the church the following year (after I attended Willow for the first time and decided we would be the Willow Creek of Atlanta; I'm not dissing Willow, I was simply too filled with myself when I brought that vision sermon)
• a phone call from a leader saying he was not motivated at all
• usually lower attendance on those days
• nice, smiling faces in the audience that telegraphed, "You go get 'em Charles. We'll be praying for you."
• yawns
• kind people telling me afterwards, "that was a very cool acronym you used."
• a few (I can count them on my hands and toes) who said, "Pastor, that motivated me to embrace the vision with you."

Vision dripping is more important than vision casting: Great churches produce visionary teams, and visionary people that share (drip) the vision in the course of daily leadership and life. Vision ought to be a team sport and engage an army of everyday story-tellers in the community. Vision should never be relegated to special gifting of a the point leader only.

I'm currently in a coaching relationship with seven other pastors through Will Mancini's organization, Auxano. It's a great experience and I highly recommend it to pastors who want to get clear on their vision and want to lead their churches well.

In Will's seminal book on how to capture and lead through vision, Church Unique, he lists 9 benefits of being clear as you lead your church.

Here's why he says we must lead with clarity.

1. Clarity makes uniqueness undeniable
2. Clarity makes direction unquestionable
3. Clarity makes enthusiasm transferable
4. Clarity makes work meaningful
5. Clarity makes synergy possible
6. Clarity makes success definable
7. Clarity makes focus sustainable
8. Clarity makes leadership credible
9. Clarity makes uncertainty approachable

How would you rank your clarity using these 9 as a benchmark?

Related post:  Strategic Planning for Dummies

As a Pastor, if you lead, you will face turbulence in your ministry or organization.

One of the most revered men in history, King David, constantly faced turbulence as he led. When King Saul died, Israel faced a leadership future fraught with obstacles.

I Chronicles 12 describes how many groups stepped up to help David make this transition. The Scriptures describe one group, the men of Issachar, in this way.

(they) understood the times and knew what Israel should do — 200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command.... (v. 32)

All these were fighting men who volunteered to serve in the ranks. They came to Hebron fully determined to make David king over all Israel. (v. 38)

This group modeled what every leader and pastor must live during turbulent times.

As leaders and pastors, the 4 four essentials we must model in turbulent times, as did the men of Issachar, are...

1. Define reality
2. Shape your vision
3. Develop a coherent strategy
4. Implement your strategy with passion and courage

Related post: 8 decisions leaders should make during a crisis