Month: October 2016

The Development of Vision (Part Two)

Ryan A. French1 Comment

The Threefold Cord of Development

In the last post, I laid a foundation to emphasize principle aspects of developing vision. That vision, obtained at the heights of the mountain, must be brought into the valley where life is lived. One of the greatest failures of attempted visionaries is the attempt to cast vision from the tops of mountains. Why? Because nobody lives on the mountain. Flags are planted on mountains, but tents are pitched in the valley. One of the most significant examples in Scripture that captures this top-down approach to vision development is found in the narrative of Moses and the Tabernacle. There are three primary elements revealed in this narrative that will translate to success if present in a local church! I call this the “Threefold Cord of Development.”

Cord #1: The Visionary 

Seldom has anyone considered the tremendous responsibility given to Moses while he stood in communion with God at the top of Mount Sinai. Consider with me the obstacles of Moses. First, Moses had to somehow transition the vision he received vertically (mountain) to the horizontal (valley). Second, somehow he had to take what no one in the valley had seen or heard and compress it into a vision the people would understand and promote. Every leader reading this recognizes what a challenge this can be. Secondly, Moses had to convince the people to join together in a unified effort to build the Tabernacle. While this may not seem difficult at first glance, one must remember that Moses’ congregation was one of the most negative, rebellious, and discontent groups of the entire Old Testament narrative! Thirdly, and this takes the proverbial cake, God not only sought an offering from the people, but He demanded that the people must have a genuine desire to give freely (Exodus 24:1). Consider with me the ramifications of this! God wasn’t going to accept an offering of obligation. In other words, God refused to allow His vision to be built upon compulsory and begrudging givers. Every leader reading this should grasp the enormity of Moses’ task! How many offerings have you seen turned away today because people felt “obligated” to give? Exactly! However, Moses casts the vision, and the people give exactly the way God had desired, so much so, Moses is forced to tell the people, “enough!” How does this happen?

First, it is important to recognize that vision without a clear and easily posited purpose is destined for confusion and noncommittal response. Clarified purpose in vision is crucial because purpose always drives design. In turn, this drives commitment to a vision. When the Wright Brother’s set out to design a flying machine, they did not draft blueprints for something meant to traverse underwater. Their underlying purpose drove their design; they wanted to fly! Because of this, their designs were driven to facilitate that specific purpose. People are willing to invest in something that has purpose! This very thing motivated the Israelites to respond the way they did when Moses (the visionary) presented the vertical vision on a horizontal level.

God never gave Moses the blueprint for the Tabernacle without an intended purpose. In the case of the Tabernacle, the intended purpose was that God would “dwell in the midst of His people.” Obviously, seeing the people’s activity in designing the golden calf, they desired a “God in the middle.” This purpose (God’s dwelling) was enough to motivate the people to buy into a vision they themselves had not heard or seen. Thus, the abstract vision that Moses had received at the top of the mountain became a recognized reality for the people because it tugged at a deep longing within their hearts.

This is seen again in the events of Nehemiah as he stood before the people and declared, “Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste and the gates thereof are burned with fire: come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach” (Nehemiah 2:17). As a visionary, Nehemiah put his finger on the pulse of the people and offered them a purpose to rebuild. Thus, Nehemiah tied two things together: 1) the hand of God was involved in the action of rebuilding and, 2) rebuilding would put a stop to the reproach they were living under. Instantly, due to a visionary that articulated a clear purpose, the people declared, “Let us rise up and build” (Nehemiah 2:18). In both instances of Moses and Nehemiah, vision grabbed the people’s hearts and stimulated internal desire, which motivated them to action. They saw the extreme benefit of what the visionary was asking, and, in turn, they were willing to give their time, treasure, and talent. Therefore, vision must have a visionary! It must have one that can articulate the possibilities of things caught at the heights of spiritual mountains. One that can unify, motivate, and inspire a group of people to invest in grand designs of spiritual origin! This is the first element vision must have; a visionary.

Cord #2: Vision Crafters

It is essential to understand that a visionary leader is only as good as the team that assists in developing the vision. For a church, this is true among the departmental heads and figures of the church. God understood the dynamics of having men who could articulate the Divine blueprint by means of anointed craftsmanship. It was one thing to give Moses the design but another to raise up men who could bring about the abstract vision into the present world of concrete reality. Bezaleel and Aholiab were such men. They were men that God filled with the “spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship” (Exodus 3:3). They were given insight and spiritual direction to “devise cunning works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in the cutting of stones, to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship…. that they may make all that I have commanded thee.” (Exodus 3:4-5). The word “make” means “fashion, shape, or squeeze.” It is a creative word (cf. Genesis 1:26; 2:18) that implies the action of bringing “thought” into tangible existence. Just as God fashioned man according to His own image, these men would fashion a Tabernacle after the pattern God had delivered to Moses. Therefore, every visionary must have spiritual, key figures that are anointed with wisdom, understanding, and knowledge to devise “cunning works.”

The Hebrew word for “cunning works” is used 56 times in the Old Testament, primarily as a word that connects to the idea of “thought.” Ultimately, when used in the context of fabrication, it signaled the ability of the workman to fabricate from imagination. Steven Covey once wrote that “all things are created twice.” First, there is the mental creation, the mental blueprint of design. Second, there is the physical creation where the mental becomes the physical. Moses had men, led by the Spirit of God, that could bring the vision from mental thought to concrete reality. A visionary must have men and women that are plugged into the spiritual current of Divine vision. Nothing can replace God-anointed individuals who support and establish the visions cast by a visionary. Nothing can replace men and women who, down to the smallest detail, fabricate the Divine purposes of God within a local assembly. This is one of the most crucial ministries in a church today. A visionary must have individuals that he can trust to get the job done without strife, deviation from the specifics of the blueprint, or personal ambitions of glory. I have preached across the nation that we need a revival of vision-crafters! We need men and women that will get into a place of prayer and “anticipate” the direction of the visionary! A visionary must have vision-crafters!

Cord #3: The Congregation

This leads us to the third and often overlooked element of vision development; the congregation. A visionary that casts vision and vision-crafters that bring vision into concrete reality are impotent without the congregation! Usually, when consulting the commandments of the Tabernacle, we fail to realize the importance of congregational support! Moses cast the vision, and vision-crafters were present among the people to build, but the congregation was needed to provide the materials to bring the Divine blueprint into reality! However, the congregation needs to understand their crucial, needed place within the threefold cord of development! Nothing arrests development more than a disconnected congregation! When God set about to implement the Tabernacle’s construction, He recognized that the foundation of success rested on congregational support! The materials that the vision-crafters would need to design the pattern cast by the visionary were in the congregation’s hands! This is how God develops vision! However, and this is crucial, purpose always comes with provision! Let me explain.

When God asked the Israelites for the materials to build the Tabernacle, He wasn’t asking for what He hadn’t already provided them. So, where did the Israelites get the gold, silver, and materials? In fact, where did they get so much of the materials that Moses had to turn away their offerings? The answer is found in Egypt.

Exodus 3:21-22
21  And I will give this people favour in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: 22  But every woman shall borrow of her neighbor, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians.

When you begin to trace out the materials given to support the Tabernacle building, you realize that God had made provision for every facet of the design. God had ensured that everyone would have something to give toward the construction of the Tabernacle. The men, as Scripture reveals, above a certain age, gave a half-shekel of silver for ransom. That combined half-shekel of ransom served to cast the foundation sockets of the Tabernacle. The women and children, well, they carried on themselves the gold, silver, jewels, and raiment they had taken from Egypt. However, all provision comes with an assignment. God provided, but He had an intended purpose for the provision! Sadly, when you look at the events of the Golden Calf, God’s provision was assigned to a purpose that God had not designed. As a result, the golden earrings in the women, sons, and daughters’ ears were broken off and cast into the forge of idolatry. Anything that is used outside and apart from the intended purpose is called abuse!

The vision-crafters were assigned talents and abilities for the intended purpose of building the Tabernacle. The congregation was given provision for the intended purpose of supplying the materials the vision-crafters needed to build the Tabernacle. I have taught this concept throughout my travels, and the one question I have asked is, “how many Golden Calves are we building?” In other words, are we being stewards of God’s provision and using provision as God intends? After receiving a monetary blessing, a job with more free time, or a myriad of other blessings, when is the last time we got down in prayer and asked God, “is there an intended purpose for these blessings?” In other words, maybe these blessings aren’t strictly for my own pleasure or enjoyment. Perhaps you are giving me more time to accomplish something you need done at the church? Perhaps you blessed me with this substantial bonus because you need me to help buy a church van?

Unity of Purpose

I have said many times, and I will repeat it: “God has the cattle on a thousand hills, but He often asks me for my cow!” Why? Within the threefold cord of development, the economy of God involves the active participation of every member within! The visionary, the vision-crafters, and the congregation must act as a unified unit! Suppose these three things can operate according to their intended purpose, and the time, treasure, and talents God has provided are appropriately assigned. In that case, you have the resulting visitation of God’s manifested glory. As Moses stepped out of the Tabernacle door, built by the vision-crafters and provided for by the congregation, the glory of God fell. The threefold cord of development effectively moved God from the mountain and into the middle.

About Timothy Hadden

Timothy Hadden is happily married and the father of three young children. He has traveled extensively, both in the United States and Internationally, as a sought-after Apostolic evangelist. Many of his revivals, often spanning several months, focused on creating a spiritual environment that promoted a profound move of God, thus enabling a spirit of revelation that further developed existing local ministries and empowered local church congregations to a greater dimension of Apostolic understanding and authority. The effects of these revivals are still being witnessed throughout many church congregations nationwide. Having felt the call of God to leave the evangelistic field, he and his family have relocated to the Portland, Oregon Metropolis, where they are developing a church plant called Antioch Northwest. Already, They are seeing unprecedented signs and miracles in one of the least churched cities in the Northwest. He curates an excellent blog called Search of Kings (searchofkings.com). In addition, he has authored a much-needed apostolic exegetical commentary on Exodus (Exodus: A Literary Commentary on the Book of Exodus).

Related posts:

  1. The Development of Vision (Part One) by Timothy Hadden
  2. The Number One Reason Small Churches Stay Small
  3. You Can’t Be A Church Leader If…
  4. 8 Preacher Traps – That Can Develop Over Time
  5. Kanye West Might Be Sincere (But Sincerity Alone Is Not Salvation)
  6. You Cannot Be A Church Leader If… (Part 2)
  7. 9 Types of Church Services and Why We Need Them (Article + Podcast)
  8. Church Growth (Practical and Spiritual Insights) – Part 1

The Number One Reason Small Churches Stay Small

Ryan A. French6 Comments

Let me make a few disclaimers right from the beginning. First, not all big churches are healthy and not all small churches are unhealthy. Big churches are not necessarily better than small churches and the reverse is also true. However, if the body is not growing it is dying. This is true spiritually and physically. That’s not to say setbacks, sicknesses, and dry seasons won’t temporarily stunt growth, but the key word there is “temporarily”. Long-term stagnation or decline is a sure sign of an impending downward spiral if something drastic doesn’t take place to fix the problem.

I grew up in a small church plant that my father started in 1983 (the year of my birth), and I grew up alongside the growth of that church. Churches must grow into maturity just as a child grows into maturity. If a mother church grows strong she will give birth to daughter churches that will repeat the process over and over again.

The Number One Reason

The number one reason small churches stay small is that they want to stay small. This reality is often hidden stealthily beneath the surface making it difficult to spot. But if you watch carefully you’ll see it manifested in dozens of little ways. They literally have no desire to grow. Again, I love small churches, but small churches are in direct violation of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20) if they have no desire to see new souls added to the church. And if a church doesn’t want to grow it will not grow.

One final clarification, 99.9% of the time the pastor desperately wants the church he oversees to grow. The lack of desire for growth typically comes from the congregation, not the clergy. In best case scenarios, the church (or an influential portion of the church) is simply complacent towards the churches growth. In worst case scenarios, the church (or an influential portion of the church) actively tries to hinder the churches growth. Regardless, this is a problem that must be addressed head on or it will choke the life out of a small congregation. Here are nine contributing reasons that small churches often don’t want to grow. 

1. The church simply doesn’t want to suffer through a building program.

This usually stems from either a faith problem or a stinginess problem. Sometimes well-meaning church members confuse good stewardship with stagnation. A small building that’s been paid off for 20 years is a wonderful thing, but if you can’t continue to grow in that building (or the location hinders growth), it’s time to take the necessary leap of faith. For other less sincere saints, they simply don’t want to commit financially to the vision of revival (think Ananias & Sapphira).

2. The church has lost sight of its purpose.

Many churches gradually forget the urgency of the hour. They become content with their own salvation and forget that Hell is still a reality for their community. They forget that God has placed them within that community to reach the lost. It doesn’t matter how many missionary plaques you hang on the wall if you aren’t being a missionary to your own region. I often hear people say, “some give by going, and some go by giving.” I know what they mean, but it gives the impression that only certain elite people are called to reach the lost. Wherever you are right now, that’s your mission field. Far too often we allow our giving to replace going into our own harvest field.

3. The church has lost its love for people.

Many times, it is that simple. Bitterness, pride, harshness, and unresolved anger can rip the love of Christ right out of the hearts of a congregation. At its peak, it results in a harshness so severe that it rejoices rather than weeps at the lost condition of “reprobates” and “sinners”. Hell, is a reality that should move us to tears, not cheers.

4. Spiritual lethargy, exhaustion, and laziness.

I understand that revival and evangelism are just plain hard work; emotionally, spiritually, and physically. People who have participated for many years in the process can easily grow weary in well doing (check out my writings on this subject here and here). Some folks are just lazy by nature and this bleeds into their spiritual life as well. Revival and laziness are like oil and water; they just don’t mix.

5. Institutional racism or a clique mentality.

I’m truly afraid that the church is still one of the most segregated places in America (click here for a related article). But God has called the church to be multicultural and accepting of all races, ethnicities, backgrounds, and cultures. Some congregations want revival only if all the new people look and sound just like them. Yikes, that’s a big problem. I’m just glad the apostle Peter allowed God to change his heart so a Gentile like me could be a part of the Body of Christ.

6. Rampant carnality and materialism.

When a church grows carnal they just don’t have room for spiritual concerns. They’re too busy with sports and movies to care if their neighbor is going to Heaven or Hell. Financial blessings are a wonderful gift from God, but we should never squander that gift on trivial things that constantly distract us from the Kingdom of God. Churches fraught with carnality and materialism would rather talk about anything other than spiritual things. They don’t have time to be inconvenienced with revival, and they do the absolute minimum they can do for God (check out this article entitled You Might Be a Carnal Christian If…).

7. The church doesn’t want to lose constant or immediate access to the pastor.

This one is very common and even understandable to a certain degree. Saints instinctively know that as a church grows it will become harder and harder to gain immediate access to the pastor for counseling or anything else for that matter. In many ways, it’s like an only child who resents the idea of a baby brother or a baby sister. They grow jealous of the attention that their parents must devote to their new sibling. This is understandable but only to a point, if it turns into outright aggression towards new babies in the Lord it must be dealt with lovingly but firmly.

8. A certain element within the church desperately wants to maintain power, position, and influence.

Ah, this is a big one. It’s very insidious, extremely dangerous, and usually carefully disguised. It can be anything from worship leaders and singers who feel threatened by new people who are talented or lay ministers who feel threatened by young babes in the Lord who feel called to preach. It can be anyone who feels like their position might be threatened by an influx of new people. It can be a wealthy saint who enjoys being perceived as the wealthiest saint in the church, or a talented musician who enjoys being perceived as the most talented person in the church, or board members that want to keep their authority consolidated. It can even extend to the entire congregation and their desire to keep a strong influence over every aspect of the church, therefore, they perceive new people as a threat to that power. This is almost never articulated out loud but the signs are there if you are paying attention.

9. The congregation has an institutional bias against the culture of growing churches.

Some people are just conditioned either by their upbringing or their preconceived ideas of how a church should be to dislike large churches. In extreme cases, people like this consider big churches evil, but they’ll usually use code words like “full of compromise” or something of that nature. The reality is that small churches and big churches alike can fall into the trap of compromise. Some people fear that large churches are incapable of being friendly or warm. The reality is that small churches and large churches can fall into the trap of being unfriendly and cold. A church shouldn’t desire to grow just to be large, but it should want to be large because it wants everyone to be saved.

Final Caveats

I realize there are other reasons small churches stay small. Local economies, transient locals, spiritual onslaughts, poor leadership, tragedy, rapid leadership turnover, seasons of sowing, difficult locations, and more can all be relevant factors. Also, churches go through seasons and holding patterns that are temporary conditions. I am talking about chronic conditions. However, it would be unwise to casually ignore these points without at least considering the very real possibility that one or more of these problems could be at work.

Related posts:

  1. Church Growth (Practical and Spiritual Insights) – Part 1
  2. Church Growth (Practical and Spiritual Insights) – Part 2
  3. The Development of Vision (Part Two)
  4. 8 Preacher Traps – That Can Develop Over Time
  5. What Churches Can Learn From Chik-fil-a
  6. Prayer, Revival & Spiritual Warfare with Joe Campetella (Article + Podcast)
  7. It Filled the House – The Journey from Tabernacle to Temple to Earthen Vessels with Samuel Vaughn (Article + Podcast)
  8. Radically Apostolic! with Charles G. Robinette (Article + Podcast)

The Development of Vision (Part One) by Timothy Hadden

Ryan A. French5 Comments

What is vision, and how does one define such an abstract concept? Vision can speak of physical sight, divine premonitions, dreams, or abstract ideas and thoughts. Therefore, vision as a word can vacillate dependent upon its context and, for each user, can mean something completely different. For many, vision is merely a projected goal that serves to motivate either self or others. However, in the context of religious leadership, vision is often a dynamic projection of a seemingly unattainable possibility that challenges the status quo.

Horizontal & Vertical Vision

Vision for the true spiritual leader, unlike the secular, is both horizontal and vertical. Think of a ladder whose bottom feet are set upon the earth (horizontal) and whose top reaches into the heavens (vertical) to explain this best. This best encapsulates vision as it relates to the spiritual leader. Therefore, the success of the religious leader (the visionary) is the ability to connect the vertical to the horizontal. Think of vision as a seed. If vision is not cast into the soil of earthy ground, it can never take root and develop. Vision, by itself, is an unplanted seed whose germination depends upon its being sown in the fields of the horizontal. However, casting the seed of vertical vision into horizontal fields merely engages the process of germination. This is just the beginning.

Visionary Stillbirth

Consider the human body. First, everything begins with conception, and, from that point forward, the developmental stages of growth begin to occur. Vision is no different. First, vision must be conceived, yet failure occurs within the visionary process too often. Improper development of vision results in visionary stillbirth. Because of this, vision often remains static and results in an unchanging environment that returns to repeat an infinite cycle. Sadly, too many men desiring to act as visionaries do nothing more than proclaim the conception of vision as the actual breakthrough. Did breakthrough occur? No! To better illustrate this, there is a vast difference between promising technology and breakthrough technology. The former speaks of the potential of something in the future, whereas the latter speaks of the actual realization of here and now results. Promising vision is a long way from the realization of vision, but there is a bridge between the two called development. When a child is conceived in the womb of the mother, conception is the initial stage, and everything from that point forward leads toward the eventual breakthrough of a healthy child. The bridge between conception and breakthrough is development. The pregnancy itself is laborious, painful, and uncomfortable. Everything about the pregnancy and the anticipation of breakthrough demands changes in almost every area fathomable.  However, and this is crucial, breakthrough (birth) doesn’t end the narrative of development! Breakthrough is the beginning! Vision is no different!

Malnourished Visions

Herein, in regards to vision, too many would excitedly pump their fists in the air and declare, “It’s happened!” The relief, after all those long weeks and months carrying around the weight of a developing vision, can become a lulling siren of complacency. Too many churches are stumbling over the headstones of infantile visions because they didn’t realize the work was just beginning. Let me make a statement, loud and clear: the devil has adopted way too many spiritual newborns that were left in the field due to the negligence of a mother (Ezekiel 16:4-5). A newly birthed vision is exciting! It’s exciting to look around and see, touch, and partake in the labor of bringing the vision to realization. However, at this point, one should expect less sleep, fewer vacations, and fewer hobbies. The first moment that newly birthed vision is held in the arms of tangible realization, the mindset of the church must go into a mother’s protective process. Ears must become attuned to the myriad of cries, and eyes must watch for subtle signs of sickness or abnormalities that may arise. Call the visionary breakthrough revival, harvest, or a myriad of other religious pseudonyms, but I call it the beginning! Talk about having another baby (vision) only after you have secured the maturation process in the current baby (vision)! Don’t develop malnourished visions!

Singular Committed Focus

Resources must be in place to ensure the proper development of the vision. This is why, all too often, long before the birth of a vision, we put the proverbial cart before the horse! Many times, latching on to an Old Testament principle, we “build the extra room” but exhaust our resources so that we come up lacking the necessary staples of infancy development! A large room with a comfortable bed means nothing to a starving baby! Secure the horse before you buy the cart! The strength of developing vision lies in its singularity. It is impossible to find a needle in a haystack…or is it? What if one were to take a very large magnet and place it alongside the haystack? Exactly! A concentrated, singular force would draw upon that needle, once deemed unfindable, and bring it to the surface! This is why, when one gives birth to vision, peripheral issues seem to arise. The enemy recognizes that a singular, committed focus on newly birthed vision is crucial! Suppose the enemy can implement anything in our peripheral to break our alignment. In that case, he will succeed in potentially killing, stealing, or destroying what we have fought so hard to bring to breakthrough!

Undivided Focus & Commitment

“No man,” Jesus declared, “having put his hand to the plough and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God!” In other words, don’t start the process without dedicating all of your time, treasure, and talent to the entire process! Consider what Jesus was saying! Those that aren’t committed to the whole process to ensure maximum development are not fit for the kingdom. Although the word in Greek carries the connotation of not being “useful or prepared for,” it literally means “well-placed.” In other words, the man who doesn’t commit to the development process with a singular, undivided focus is “out-of-place”! God doesn’t cut crooked paths; he straightens them! Nothing stands out in Scripture more poignantly regarding undeveloped vision than the condition of the house of God that Hosea confronted. “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste? …. Consider your ways! Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink, ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.”

Note from the Author

This concludes, in part, a greater portion of a more extensive treatise. Part two, which will serve as the conclusion of the matter, will deal with the three key things every church must have in order for vision to reach maturation. These three elements have served to turn the tide in many churches across the nation. In fact, if found in a local church, these three elements cannot lead to anything but success.

About Timothy Hadden

Timothy Hadden is happily married and the father of three young children. He has traveled extensively, both in the United States and Internationally, as a sought-after Apostolic evangelist. Many of his revivals, often spanning several months, focused on creating a spiritual environment that promoted a profound move of God, thus enabling a spirit of revelation that further developed existing local ministries and empowered local church congregations to a greater dimension of Apostolic understanding and authority. The effects of these revivals are still being witnessed throughout many church congregations nationwide. Having felt the call of God to leave the evangelistic field, he and his family have relocated to the Portland, Oregon Metropolis, where they are developing a church plant called Antioch Northwest. Already, They are seeing unprecedented signs and miracles in one of the least churched cities in the Northwest. He curates an excellent blog called Search of Kings (searchofkings.com). In addition, he has authored a much-needed apostolic exegetical commentary on Exodus (Exodus: A Literary Commentary on the Book of Exodus).

Related posts:

  1. The Development of Vision (Part Two)
  2. Politically Incorrect Prophets (Speaking Truth In an Age of Timidity)
  3. If We Want Our Kids To Stay In Church (Here’s Five Things We Need to Talk to Them About) – Article + Podcast
  4. You Can’t Be A Church Leader If…
  5. Buried Alive (The Gospel According to the Bible) – Article + Podcast
  6. Connection vs. Carnality – In Student Ministry
  7. 9 Types of Church Services and Why We Need Them (Article + Podcast)
  8. You Cannot Be A Church Leader If… (Part 2)