Visioneering
Andy Stanley
Notes by Dave Kraft
Everybody ends up somewhere in life. A few people end up somewhere on
purpose (8) There is no such thing as an emotionless vision (9) Vision will
prioritize your values (12) Unless you discover Gods unique vision for your
future, your life may very well be a rerun (15) Vision is being angry about the
way things are in light of the way things could be. Dissatisfaction with the
status quo. Something could be done, should be done, must be done (17) With
time, you will be able to distinguish between Gods ideas for you and other
peoples ideas (21) Dont be a man with immense ability who awakes every day
to do a job that taps little or none of those skills. Your vision will begin to
fee like a moral imperative (25)
At Calvary we lost our right to devise our own plans and pursue our own
agendas. Waiting does not reflect a lack of faith. Usually it is evidence of
wisdom (26) We see what we are looking for. We often miss what we dont
expect to see (30) Pray for those people who have the power, resources, or
influence to make your vision possible. Pray that God would give you favor in
their presence (34) In many instances, opportunity apart from preparation
results in missed opportunity (36) God-ordained visions are always too big
for us to handle. We shouldnt be surprised. Consider the source (42) You
dont know what God is up to behind the scenes of your life (45)
The vision of an organization acts as its magnetic north-The
Leadership Challenge You will know what God has put in your heart to do
before you know how he intends to bring it about (55) Many visions die in the
time between what and how. What God originates He orchestrates. How is
never a problem with God (56) When God gives you a vision, theres a sense
in which you stand back and watch it happen. Sometimes you have to stand
back for a long time. We must focus on what He has called us to do, not on
how He is going to pull it off. People with vision live with a sense of
expectancy (57) If we arent careful, we can how a persons vision to death
(60) We are prone to allow the question of how either to overwhelm us or to
catapult us into a self-propelled frenzy of activity. You are a player; you are
not the whole team (61) Success often leads to self-sufficiency.
Rare is the successful individual who has not lost sight of what he would be
without God (67) Success has a way of weaning us off our dependency on
God (68)
God, if you dont come through, Im sunk (69) There is a sense in which every
vision is impractical (76) Once God decides something needs to be done, it is
never a matter of if. The issue is usually who? Dont let the discouragement
of a few slammed doors cause you to walk away from the vision God has
birthed in your heart (79) God generally raises up a point person to paint a
compelling verbal picture. Painting a verbal picture is the essence of vision
casting (85) If its a mist in the pulpit, it will be a fog in the pew-
Howard Hendricks.Visions are like lenses. They focus unreflected rays
of light. They enable everyone concerned with an enterprise to see more
clearly what is ahead of them. The Leadership Challenge.
All divinely inspired visions are in some way tied into Gods master plan (97)
The key ingredient is your conviction that this is something that must be
done. You cannot effectively cast your vision to anyone until you are
convinced not only that it could be, but it should be (99) Why are we showing
up again? Why are we being asked to give more money? Why are we being
asked to serve more and pray more? People dont ask the why questions when
they have an exciting, God-honoring vision put out in front of them (106)
This is what could be. This is what should be, By Gods grace, this is what will
be.
Jesus was comfortable speaking to peoples potential while overlooking their
performance (116) What I really lack is to be clear in my mind what I
am to do, now what I am to knowThe thing is to understand myself, to
see what God really wishes me to doto find the idea for which I can
live and die Soren Kierkegaard. Is this what we were going to do? Or was
this one of those things that we were going to talk about until we were forty
or fifty years old? (130) Search the scriptures; Search the pages of church
history. You wont find an example of anyone God used in even a small way
who did not make some kind of sacrifice in order to pursue the vision (135)
Concept of people who are putting their toes back into the religious waters
for the first time.
Ive got to let go of the side of the pool and wade out into the deep water
(136) What was once an idea becomes a passion. What filled your head grips
your heart (138) Whenever you attempt to bring about change, it plays on
the insecurities of those who have grown accustomed to the way things are
(141) A God-ordained vision always has more questions than answers. So the
people around you are questioning your vision to death (145) Nehemiah was
participating in this project because this was what God had put in his heart
to do. Of course it was impossible. Most divinely originated visions are
impossible.
Andy has the following on his desk Lord, you got me into this, Im trusting
you to see me through it. (154) Be stubborn about the vision. Be flexible
with your plan (158) When personal goals and agendas conflict with an
agreed-upon corporate vision, the corporate vision suffers (168) It is okay
to have problems. It is not okay to ignore them (173) Example is not the
main thing in influence others, it is the only thing.-Albert Schweitzer
There is a difference between having a position and having influence (177)
Visionaries must be influencers if they are going to see their visions through
from start to finish. Position is optional. Influence is essential (178).
It is the alignment between a persons convictions and his behavior that
makes his life persuasive. Herein is the key to sustained influence. The
phrase that best captures this dynamic is MORAL AUTHORITY. Moral
authority is the credibility you earn by walking your talk. Inconsistency
between what is said and what is done inflicts a mortal wound on a leaders
influence (179) Leaders and influencers who are driven purely by a desire to
be leaders and influencers rarely maintain their moral authority (183).
As a leader, you must be willing to do the right thing even if it jeopardizes
your vision. Is my ultimate allegiance to God or to the vision (184) Moral and
ethical compromise of any kind lead to the loss of moral authority (185)
Moral authority is rooted in a desire to please God rather than man. Moral
authority is the overflow of character, not leadership ability (186) Men and
women of character do the right thing even when doing right delays or
dismantles their visions (190) When you make a personal sacrifice for
something you believe in, it gives you moral authority (193) Most couples
spend far more time preparing for the wedding than they do the marriage.
What should be gets buried under what must be (202) Entertainment,
athletic, financial, relational, religious, investment, career, business, and
vacation opportunities. The list is endless (204) To accomplish the important
things, you must learn to say no to some good things (205) Our innate desire
for approval, credit, attention, and glory is the thing that causes many well-
meaning visionaries to hijack Gods vision for their own selfish ends. The
leader develops spiritual amnesia. He begins to take the blessing of God for
granted. Little by little he begins to edge toward the spotlight. In time he
comes to believe he is indispensable to the vision (246) The final test of a
leader is that he leaves behind in others the conviction and will to carry
on. Walter Lippman As a visionary, it is an imperative that you remain
blessable. (254)
When you are consumed by a vision, it is easy to sacrifice ethics for the
sake of progress. But when you do, you step outside the realm of what God
will bless (255) Leaders must challenge the process because systems
unconsciously conspire to maintain the status quo and prevent change
The Leadership Challenge. What is considered conventional wisdom to the
visionary is often viewed as radical to the people in the trenches. Thats to
be expected. Visionaries see things differently (262) To deliver on your
vision, you must be willing to make boldand often unpopulardecisions for
the sake of what could and should be (263).
Jesus knew what every visionary eventually discovers: Being nice doesnt
always get the job done. And waiting around for people to catch on by
themselves can be devastating to a vision (266) What is unmanaged generally
becomes unmanageable (267)
