Vision Problems

[March/April 2006 - Your Church - Christianity Today] ... As futile as it is to depend on past successes, adopting the current methods of others can be equally impotent. Mimicking the successful strategies of others is enticing to some leaders because it eliminates the need to think. Martin Luther King Jr. lamented the shortage of leaders willing to pay the price of prolonged, creative, problem-solving thinking. He concluded: "There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think." ... A painfully common motivation behind many leaders is vanity. People cast a vision for their organization based on what will bring them the most personal success or praise. The growth of the organization merely feeds the leader's pride. Countless businesses have crumbled under leaders with self-serving motives. Churches have been saddled with crippling debts as they sought to repay bills incurred by former pastors looking to make a name for themselves. More