Leading With Vision Through Loss

1. Ken McFayden The Main Event August 10, 2013 Leading With Vision Through Loss

2. A Brief Recap of the Keynote

3. For Reflection and Discussion • What signs of floundering do you see in the church in general, or in your church in particular? • What visions do you have of the church’s future, or of your church’s future, that may diminish the signs of floundering?

4. Embracing Change: Easier Said Than Done Is it change, or is it a variation of something we already know?

5. What is driving a visioning process? • A desire for more resources? • A fundamental question of purpose

6. The Power of Why

7. Seeing Red Cars • As you watch the video, identify two or more key themes that are critically important to you. • How do these themes shed light upon the opportunities and challenges of leadership in constructing a vision for the future?

8. For Reflection and Discussion • What do key leaders in your church seem to be focusing on— • What do they want? • What do they not want? • How does their focus upon what they want vs. what they don’t want impact their capacity to lead with vision through loss?

9. Leading With Vision: A Fresh Look • Strategic Visioning is about taking a fresh look at self and context— … of exploring how mission may be embodied in a new vision that draws upon the strengths of a church and the particularity of a context.

10. Some Foundation Questions • What’s your purpose? • What’s your passion? • Why do you exist? • What’s your why?

11. Some Foundation Questions • To what do you aspire? • What do you yearn to look like in ___ years? • How do you identify words that can capture this vision?

12. Some Foundation Questions • What is God calling you to do and be? • Who is your neighbor—and how might you re-present God to your neighbor?

13. The Power of an Undertow • Hope? • Fear? • Pain? • Grief?

14. The Power of Vision

15. The Power of Leveraging Priorities • What are these? • Why might these be a helpful alternative?

16. An Example: First Church, Athens • A brief description of the context that sets the stage for a strategic visioning and planning process

17. An Example: First Church, Athens • Core pieces of a visioning conversation • Congregation’s identity among rich and diverse core values and core stories • Sources of hope, pain, and fear that motivate the conversations toward a new vision • The identification and description of a vision that is positive, inspiring, and compelling • The identification of three priorities that will provide a crucial starting point for embodying that vision and leverage new energy and hope

18. An Example: First Church, Athens • Phase 1: Involving the SPC and Leadership Team • Meeting #1: For conversation about core values and stories • Meeting #2: For conversation that links core values and stories with hopes, pains, and fears • Meeting #3: For reflecting upon vision and priorities

19. An Example: First Church, Athens • Phase #2: Involving the SPC and Leadership Team with the Congregation • Meeting #1: For conversation about core values and stories • Meeting #2: For conversation that links core values and stories with hopes, pains, and fears • Meeting #3: For reflecting upon vision and priorities

20. What does this mean for you? • If you were designing a strategic planning process for your church, what would you include? • What, do you envision, may generate the most enthusiasm? • What might generate some hesitancy among others?

21. Beginning to Recap What is one think you want to look at differently in your context?

22. A Golden Opportunity • 20/20 Vision • Significant change within cultures in the USA and world • Significant change within congregations and religious life in the USA and world • What is God calling your church to do and be in the future before you?