Creating vision is one thing... passing it on to others is quite another.  Vision casting involves a sender, a message and a receiver.  The sender initially is you as the leader.  Who you are as a leader and a person is of utmost importance since the credibility of the messenger influences the message. 

Aligning with the vision is to align oneself with the vision caster.  The credibility of the vision caster is based on perceptions of his track record, his character and his personal commitment to the vision.  Young Joshua and Caleb did a great job of casting the vision in Numbers 13, but they lacked the credibility of experience to align the Israelites with the vision of entering the Promised Land. The vision was cast but not caught.   Imparting the vision is too important to be left to chance.   To effectively cast the vision you must:

• Be personally committed to fulfilling the vision. "You can't light a fire with a wet match."
• Know your audience. You must know how fulfilling the vision will benefit your audience.
• Use example, metaphor and analogy. Use story-telling more than statistics. Engage the hearts and minds of your audience. Speak positively.
• Use multiple forums (big meetings, small groups, formal and informal interaction) and repetition.
• Write down your vision, publish it, post it, make sure it is frequently talked about (Habakkuk 2:2).
• Meet with each ministry leader or leadership team. Help them to catch the vision by helping them see their ministry in light of the vision. This is vital in recruiting others to the vision. The primary tool you have in recruitment is the vision itself. It is "the magnet that attracts." Begin with those who are most influential and will most likely be aligned with you and the vision. Don't be surprised if people come on board at different rates. Some may never be aligned.
• Listen to and welcome feedback. Make revisions as you progress so that although it is a singular vision it has many, many fingerprints on it.

Catching a vision

Catching the vision is ultimately more important than casting the vision.  To catch the vision is to be aligned with the vision.  Without alignment to the vision you will not be able to move in the same direction and have the synergy to keep moving ahead through the obstacles. This act of alignment is the critical step between vision casting and implementation.  To bring about significant change requires a team to own the dream.  To introduce a plan before aligning your team is to insure a slow, frustrating death of the vision.  People who disagree with the "ends" will argue about every "means."  In the process of aligning your team you are really building the foundations of team commitment, cooperation and community.

How do you know when people have caught the vision?  The simplest test is this: those who catch the vision are able to cast the vision.   They have moved from "customer" to "salesman."  They are actively involved in recruiting others.  Picture the freshly-recruited Andrew inviting his brother Peter to join the Lord's following. 

The litmus test

Vision can be inspiring and energizing but ultimately vision must filter down to what people do differently because of it.  Ultimately, the strategies, tactics and programming communicate the reality of a vision more strongly than the actual vision statement.  The viability of a ministry's vision can be measured by its programming.