Pastors, please share a bit about ...

Glad you asked.. we have just finished writing our working vision statement. Just last week. This is a working vision statement for the next 3 yrs or so. We will reveiw the progress every few months or so.
It is different from our purpose statement which should never change.


This is the way we developed the statement.
We set a date for "vision Sunday" (Sept. 10th)
The church was to be praying for a "vision" from God
On Vision Sunday, everyone wrote down their vision for the church.

I gathered them, and then looked for reoccuring themes throughout the statements...

I then wrote the themes down. We met last Wed. during Bible study and discussed them, and then put forth our statement. Some here may not agree with it, but it is what God has called our church to do. Each church should have it's own statement.
Ours is:
"Our vision is to grow numerically and spiritually, and to work in unity by reaching out to others through various ministries of education, grace, and caring; to be a safe haven in the midst of a cruel world. We will reach the youth and their families through an active youth group; all while staying true to the teachings of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ."

 

Just remember that a mission statement and vision statement need to pass teh "T-shirt test."

In other words, it needs to be brief enough that it can be printed (legibly and readably) on a T-shirt.

 

I am no longer a pastor, but here is the statement we developed at the church I did serve. Largely it was intuited by me from the Scripture and from observing our history and our daily life. I taught it and retaught it at least two or three times a year, sometimes a little more.​

​

​

​

Mission – Values – Vision​

of​

Takoma Park Baptist Church​

Mission


The mission of Takoma Park Baptist Church is to carry out the ministry of reconciliation, helping all to reconcile with God and with one another. (II Corinthians 5:16-21)

Values


Five great spiritual principles lie at the heart of Takoma Park Baptist Church (Ephesians 3:14-21):

• We affirm one another’s gifts – holding in respect the talents, cultural values, and spiritual insights of every person in our fellowship.
• We are evangelical in spirit – believing that every person has the right to hear the good news and that we are commanded by Christ to use every means at our disposal to share it.
• We are inquiring in mind – offering education in all aspects of the Christian faith, from Bible knowledge to training in the art of living and serving.
• We are comprehensive in compassion – seeking to love every person, of every condition, and to serve every need, without regard to race, gender, social, or economic circumstance.
• We are, in all these things, empowered by and centered on Christ – having a central place in our life for worship, preaching, music, and all the things that create a devotion to Him and name Him Lord.

Vision


On the basis of our mission and our values, and in light of our history, we will engage in for forward thrusts as urged on us by God’s activity among us (Jeremiah 32:1-17, 36-41):

• Deepened Discipleship (II Timothy 3:14-17)
• Multiplied Ministries (Romans 12:9-21)
• Winsome Worship (Isaiah 6:1-8)
• Systematic Stewardship (II Corinthians 8:1-9)

 

I am a big fella.... so :thumbs:

I would like to come up with a slogan that reflects our lenghthy vision statement.

 

We have a doctrinal statement of course, but none of the Japanese believers are really mature enough to understand it thoroughly yet.

As for a vision statement, what's that? I never even heard of one until long after I became a pastor. Vision statements are a fairly recent thing in pastoring. No offense to anyone who has one, but to me the vision statement of the church is the Great Commission, particularly the Matthew statement. Someone convince me of the need for something more than that, please. :smilewinkgrin:

 

Mission Statement

My Air Force Misson Statement (1971-1992)
Peace is our profession (but war is our business)
Leave nothing standing--bring all the birds back.

My believer's mission statement:
Mat 28:19-20
Preach Word
Whole World
Make disciples
Baptise them
Teach'em everything
Trust Jesus

(The above would fit on a t shirt I do believe.)

 

Ours:

Our Mission
We are a lighthouse for people on their journey through life.

Our Core Values​

1. We love and adore the light - Jesus Christ.​

2. We care about people.

• We care enough to Pray
• We care enough to Welcome
• We care enough to Connect
• We care enough to Minister
• We care enough to Share
• We care enough to Teach

3. We want to grow so our light will shine brighter.

 

Spoken like a true missionary!!! :tongue3:

For us, a vision statement is what God wants us to do over the next couple yrs.... Of course the GC is the backbone of the vision statement.

But to us, the vision statement is how we will fulfill the GC over a short period of time.

In a couple yrs, we will rework it then to reflect the spiritual growth of the church.

It is a good way to measure the advancement of the church.

If you were to ask your church, "How are we going to fulfill the GC over the next 2 yrs?" Their answers would be your vision statement.

IOWS, Our church is in a farming community...so Urban renewal is not part of our vision. Now a church in downtown Atlanta, will have a different view. God has placed us here to win souls here. (while supporting missionaries around the world to win souls there!)

 

Our Mission Statement and Doctrinal Statements:

Our Mission

Our mission here at Tribulation Ministries is simple: To bring as many people to Jesus Christ as possible through Jesus Christ's help and guidance. We want to spread the Word of God to as many people as we can and to help those who already know Jesus, how to be closer to Him. We also want to help those who are in need of spiritual protection and guidance, those who are in need of healing and those who are in need of deliverance from the evil that saturates this world.

Doctrinal Statement

We believe that the Father sent His only begotten son, Jesus Christ, to earth. That through His death on the cross at Calvary we can be saved and have eternal life through Him. We believe in the Holy Trinity: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We also believe that Jesus Christ is the only way to the Father and the only way to salvation and eternal life in Heaven. We believe in the sacrafice that Jesus made on our behalf to give us salvation from our sins.

We believe in the Holy Word of God: The Bible, Old and New Testaments in their original writing. We base all of our teachings on those of the Bible and those of Jesus Christ, which were written in the Bible. We believe that eventhough we can be saved through the Blood of Jesus, that we are still, by nature, sinful and that God gives us the power to overcome our sinful natures through Him, His Son and His Holy Spirit.

If it wasn't taught in the Bible, then you won't find it here.

 

Thanks for the trustworthy, timely tutoring, TT. :thumbs:

I'm open to the concept, I'm just not sure about it yet. Come to think of it, some years ago I did preach a series in January about "My Vision for the Year." Don't know if that would qualify as a vision statement, though.