Unlocking the Gap Between Reality and Goals in Church Leadership Vision with Joseph King Barkley

In ministry, leaders carry both a holy calling and a heavy load. You juggle preaching, discipling, managing volunteers, raising resources, and trying to keep your own soul healthy. And if you’re honest, the gap between where your church is today and the vision God has placed in your heart can feel overwhelming.

That’s exactly what Joseph Barkley—executive coach, former church planter, and president of the Meta Performance Institute—helps leaders wrestle with. In our recent conversation, Joseph unpacked the “Reality–Vision–Gap” tool, a framework that helps pastors face the truth about where they are, clarify where God is calling them, and embrace the uncomfortable (but transformative) space in between.

The Power of Vision in Church Leadership

At its best, church leadership vision is a clear picture of the future that ignites passion and justifies the pain of transformation. For a church planter, that may mean dreaming of a congregation full of new believers in a city that doesn’t yet know Jesus. For an established pastor, it could be seeing a stagnant congregation rediscover discipleship and mission.

But vision without reality is just wishful thinking. And vision without execution is simply a daydream.

Facing Current Reality

Current reality is often where pastors stumble. We love dreaming, but reality feels messy. Maybe your attendance is flat. Maybe giving is down. Maybe your volunteers are exhausted.

It’s tempting to inflate the numbers to make yourself feel better—or to shrink your vision so the gap doesn’t feel as scary. But Joseph reminds us: honesty about reality is where breakthrough begins.

Learning to Love the Gap

The gap is the distance between your current reality and your vision. And it’s here that pastors feel the most anxiety, shame, or fear.

Joseph reframed it: “The gap is your life. You will always die with gaps. The question is: will you learn to love it?”

Instead of shrinking your vision or pretending your reality is better than it is, leaders are called to grow into the gap. The gap is where God stretches your faith, forms your character, and develops your team.

Moving Beyond High Performance

Many pastors operate in what Joseph calls high-performance mode—trying to “win” at ministry by working harder, adding more programs, and burning the candle at both ends. High performance produces activity, but not always transformation.

Meta performance—and the vision–reality–gap framework—invites leaders to ask a different question: “What are we truly capable of if God is with us?”

That shift moves leaders from mere survival or self-driven success into Spirit-empowered significance.

Practical Steps for Church Leaders

1. Name your vision clearly. Write it down. Make it specific. If it doesn’t stir passion, it’s not clear enough.

2. Face your reality honestly. Gather the data. Ask your team. Resist the urge to sugarcoat.

3. Acknowledge the gap. Don’t fear it—embrace it. The gap is where discipleship happens in you and in your people.

4. Develop your team. Stop underestimating what your people are capable of. Release authority, give feedback, and let the work itself form leaders.

5. Ask better questions. Instead of “How can we survive?” ask, “What are we capable of together in Christ?”

Final Word

For pastors and church planters, the temptation is to measure success by numbers and busyness. But Joseph Barkley’s Reality–Vision–Gap tool reminds us that leadership is about transformation—our own and our community’s.

When you learn to love the gap, you’ll find that the work isn’t just about performance. It’s about becoming the kind of leader God designed you to be—and leading your church into the future He’s already prepared.

AI assisted in writing this blog.