Recently I came across a web page for a ministry called Vision360 co-founded by Steve Johnson, together with Al Weiss, President, Worldwide Operations, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts. (this has to do with the little church big church postings….the little church was to be a part of Vision 360 if they decided to hand themselves over to big church). The mission of Vision 360 is to “serve and empower a collaborative church planting community in 500 global cities by 2025.” The plan is as follows, “Each city will have a City Catalyst who will work closely with the pastors to recruit church planters and business leaders, assess church planters at the national assessment center, raise the funds necessary for the church planters and then supervise the church plants. After money has been raised, each city movement becomes self-sustaining as each church plant will then give back 5% of their general fund offerings to fund future church plants.” This means there will be an outside person involved in each of the church plants, answering back to this organization. It’s almost as if they are setting up a denomination that people in each individual church may not realize they are a part of. These churches are “non-denominational” from what I can see. Each city has a “visionary” and I know one of them myself…from my former church. He’s the lead pastor.
More information on this Vision360 organization is that they are naming the training center after Bill and Vonette Bright. Erwin McMannus is on the board. A Google search cache shows Dan Southerland (I believe he’s from Saddleback originally) was one of the “visionaries.” They are using the Lausanne Covenant, this is something I know little to nothing about. Anyone out there know about it?
http://74.125.155.132/search?q=cache:a8lOoYioBD0J:www.vision360.org/contentpages.aspx%3Fparentnavigationid%3D1341%26viewcontentpageguid%3D7fe6c057-79bc-4c27-903d-c00b93ef49f4+vision+360+dan+southerland&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us
So what is this all about? http://www.vision360.org/
I am a C...I am a CH...I am a CHRISTIAN 
Hi Christian Lady. Red flags immediately came up for me with the name of Erwin McManus- big emergent and contemplative guy. Note this interesting quote from him: “my goal is to destroy Christianity as a world religion and be a recatalyst for the movement of Jesus Christ.”
There’s that very word- catalyst.
Saddleback connection is also a red flag for me.
Thirdly, without doing a lot of research, the plan reminds me of the G12 movement (Master Plan) in the Nazarene and other denominations, especially in Argentina and other countries, which is causing a lot of division in the churches.
One of the main problems in it is the full allegiance required from all, under the leader of the groups. Cult-like?
That being said, I don’t know anything about the 360 plan- My gut feeling, another system that ultimately focuses on numbers of people, money, instead of focusing on preaching the gospel as the main plan.
Oh, one last thing… Bill Bright/Campus Crusade for Christ- has gotten involved in some ways with promoting some of the contemplative stuff.
I see it all as a bad deal because the pastor of Big Church (my former church) is the local visionary and in meeting minutes listed right on Big Church’s web page, Little church (that decided to not join up with all this) would be required to be a part of this Vision 360 thing. They would be overseen by Vision 360…maybe not my former pastor but at least someone from Vision 360. It’s a strange thing to see “non-denominational” churches join something like this. Former pastor was a bit angry, I think, when the little church didn’t join up. He commented (on the church site) that at least his town would see one church who was not territorial and wanted the best for their community. Strange comment.
Sounds exactly like the MO of the G12 movement- get everyone in line with the leadership’s vision- and follow to the letter. Often, if someone has a complaint, they would have to bring it to the leader of that smaller group of 12, and then the small group leader “might” bring the problem to the attention of the “big” leader. It would have to be something very unique for you to be allowed to directly bring your concern to the head honcho.
Good way to keep everyone in line with “the vision” of the main leader of all the G12 groups.
I wonder if they are related? It seems things are being spawned all over the place.
I would not be surprised- repackaging the same things in different ways. In the Nazarene denomination, they call it the Master Plan- but it is really the G12 system- which was created by Cesar Castellanos and his wife, after he visited David Yonggi Cho in S. Korea, whose church has over 8oo,ooo members (oops, Cho is another red flag!).
They also call it Groups of 12 or Government of 12, and is based on cell church growth. Nothing biblical about this method at all- just more man-made methods to drive church growth- numbers, which brings in more money- that’s the main goal, right?
(Hmmm… somebody’s computer clock seems to be off- we seem to be writing these comments for tomorrow 🙂
Hi,
Did you once have your testimony on your blog?
I do come by every now and then to read your posts and always relate to your observations.
I did “speak” to you on another blog awhiles back!
tcd,
I think I may have it…but I do not know. I looked back and none of the shortened versions seem to be my official, “how I became a Christian” posts.
I do have some small bit of history at “Who Am I” but not the whole “where I have come from.” I do try to protect the id of my former church because, in reality, it doesn’t matter. There are many churches with the same issues so it can be “Any Church USA.”
May God purify all our motives and may initiatives like Vision360 mature and be purified by the Spirit of God so that in all things Christ would be exalted among the nations.