Andy Stanley provides twenty great qualifiers of a vision in his book Visioneering (p. 16). Whether you’re a stay-at-home mom, a senior-level executive or a sophomore in college, each point is worth prayerfully considering:
- A vision begins as a concern.
- A vision does not necessarily require immediate action.
- Pray for opportunities and plan as if you expect God to answer your prayers.
- God is using your circumstances to position and prepare you to accomplish his vision for your life.
- What God originates, he orchestrates.
- Walk before you talk; investigate before you initiate.
- Communicate your vision as a solution to a problem that must be addressed immediately.
- Cast your vision to the appropriate people at the appropriate time.
- Don’t expect others to take greater risks or make greater sacrifices than you have.
- Don’t confuse your plans with God’s vision.
- Vision are refined — they don’t change; plans are revised — they rarely stay the same.
- Respond to criticism with prayer, remembrance, and if necessary, a revision of the plan.
- Visions thrive in an environment of unity; they die in an environment of division.
- Abandon the vision before you abandon your moral authority.
- Don’t get distracted.
- There is divine potential in all you envision to do.
- The end of a God-ordained vision is God.
- Maintaining a vision required adherence to a set of core beliefs and behaviors.
- Visions require constant attention.
- Maintaining a vision requires bold leadership.
Which do you find the most challenging?
Stanley expounds each building block in his book: