5 Questions Every Church Needs to Answer

1-VISION… Where are we going?

The Vision is the picture of a preferable future. Those in your church or ministry need to be able to grasp where you and the ministry are headed. This allows them to make the decision of where to hop on the “train” to join you for the journey. The vision does not provide all the detail, but is a summary statement that should inspire and compel your team and others to action.

2-MISSION… What do we do?

The Mission is what the church is called to accomplish or the work we are called to do. While this should be expressed in a clear yet creative manner for every context, the Church’s marching orders come from Scripture (the Great Commandment and the Great Commission).

3-CORE VALUES… Why we do what we do?

The Core Values describe the personality of the church and how we relate to one another, the community and how we operate in general. They are the root-belief a person or a group of people operate from.

4-STRATEGIC PLAN… How we will accomplish the mission?

This is where the rubber meets the road. It is where we say yes to some ideas and no (or not yet) to other ideas. While every church is called to the mission of Evangelism (GO), how each church will accomplish reaching their community with the Gospel of Jesus will be different. It will look like the leader, like the team, like the community and certainly like the Lord.

5-CLARIFYING THE WIN: How do I contribute?

When we clarify the win, it allows every department, every program and every leader/volunteer know how they will contribute in an effective way to the Vision, the Mission and the Strategic Plan. Without clarifying the win at each level, your people will either create their own version of what a “win” looks like or they will operate in a fog of uncertainty. Clarifying the win helps your ministry to move from Program-Driven (where the goal or “win” is to keep the program going), to being Purpose-Driven (clarity on their part to accomplish the vision and mission/purpose). It answers the question, “How does my part fit into the whole?”.

Where is a good place to start? Practice clarifying the win for a department, then for a program. Then for a specific staff or leadership position (i.e., children’s pastor, small group leader).