How To Share A Vision For Your Ministry

I spent a week at Hanging Rock Camp in West Lebanon, IN. Awesome facilities and excellent hospitality. During the week, the executive director took the Harvest Team on a tour. It’s a beautiful 200 acre camp with the main campground, a wilderness camp, a paintball course, fields, ravines, a pond, creeks, and lots of wildlife. During the tour, I noticed some ways in which a vision for the camp was shared.

This vision was specific to this camp. But this camp isn’t too much unlike many other camps across the nation. There is typically a leader, lots of history, several die hard supporters, lots of hard workers and a great potential.

How do you share the vision for the organization you lead? Here is the when, what, who and how of sharing your vision!

Who You Tell

Who you tell is important. Tell your staff and the team the vision. Remind them often. They will, in turn, tell others. Tell your boss, your board and all those who are over you. Tell those who give toward the ministry. Tell friends and family.

What You Tell

Tell them stories. Tell them of changed lives through the ministry. Tell them stories about your staff, your team and your volunteers. Tell them about the people who have attended. Tell them about major donations that have been given. Tell them your dreams for the future!

One of the best things to cultivate in your conversations is a vision for what is next. Too often, leaders talk about the weaknesses and the gripes about what they have been given charge. People can probably already notice the weaknesses (and if they don’t, even better!). Your job is to tell them your dream for the camp or ministry. What are the next steps? What are you currently working on? What is the next project?

How do you get a vision for your organization? How do you get a new idea for your camp or ministry? Take time to survey. Survey what you have and what could be. Drive through the grounds. Look at your calendar. Take a look at the ministry website. Dream about what could be. It’s been said that “vision is discovered, not invented.” Take time to pull away and be alone with God as the vision is shared with you through the work of the holy spirit!

You can have big dreams and little dreams. You can have concrete plans and grand ideas. Share both. Share timelines, share success and tell people how they can join you.

When You Tell

Potentially the most impact is when you can share the vision face to face on your own site. I have learned that when I share the vision of Harvest Ministry while people are experiencing a ministry event, it’s an easy sell. They grasp it on several fronts – through words and experience.

You can share a vision for your ministry through writing, videos, and presentations. But take time out of your schedule to give tours and show people the grounds of your ministry each chance you get.

How You Tell

Be thankful and confident. Be proud of the work you have done in your ministry and organization. Be grateful to God for the blessings and let that spill out. Have an abundance mindset – God brought us this far and has provided! I’m confident we can do this in the future. Tell with a smile, with an optimistic future.

Tell others about the vision confident that God is at work in amazing ways and may very well be using this conversation to plant a seed for something bigger than you can imagine. Let the story and vision inspire and draw in others. Don’t try to manipulate people into something they don’t feel led to be a part of, but genuinely share your enthusiasm about this place God has called you to serve!

Thanks again, Gary, for the awesome golf cart tour and for sharing your vision with us!

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