Jeremy Haroldson continues the organizational roles series by tackling "probably the most misunderstood and sometimes the most uncomfortable gift": the Visionary [Prophet]. Uncomfortable? Because "the Visionary often brings disruption. They don't speak about maintaining the status quo; they speak about the preferred future."
This isn't abstract mysticism or fortune-telling. The ancient term Prophetes literally means "one who speaks before" or "an interpreter of higher will." But the modern distortion focuses on foretelling (predicting dates and events) instead of forthtelling (speaking current reality from a higher perspective). This teaching reclaims the Visionary's actual function: bringing clarity and direction when everyone else is comfortable with the status quo.
Jeremy references the ancient organizational principle from Ephesians 2:20: "The organization is built on the foundation of the architects and visionaries [apostles and prophets]."
His clarification is crucial: "The Architect lays the structure, but the Visionary brings the direction." Then comes the devastating insight: "You can have a great foundation, but if you build the wrong thing on it, it doesn't matter."
This is the nightmare scenario: brilliant execution of a flawed vision. Perfect systems serving the wrong mission. The Visionary's role prevents this catastrophe by ensuring the what aligns with the why before the Architect builds the how.
Jeremy breaks down the Visionary's actual job into three concrete operations:
Function 1: The Visionary Brings Clarity and Vision
"The Visionary sees things that the ordinary eye cannot see." This isn't mystical—it's perceptual. They pattern-match across data points others miss. They sense trajectory shifts before metrics confirm them. They carry "the burden of the next season" while everyone else optimizes the current quarter.
Why does this matter? "They are crucial for giving the entire team a clear target." Without this function, organizations drift. Everyone's working hard, but toward what? The Visionary answers that question. And critically: "The Architect needs the Visionary to ensure he's building the right thing."
Function 2: The Visionary Challenges and Corrects
Here's where comfort dies. Jeremy's tone shifts to confrontational: "A true Visionary is not always popular."
Their job? "Often to come into a comfortable situation and say, 'We are off course. We have become complacent. This is what we need to change.'" They challenge systems that have become stale. They expose "dysfunction or faulty thinking that is hindering the mission." [sin or faulty thinking]
This makes them uncomfortable to be around. No one wants to hear "we're complacent" when things feel stable. But stability without direction is just stagnation with better PR.
Function 3: The Visionary Validates the Mission
The third function is confirmatory: "The Visionary confirms the vision the Architect is carrying."
When the Visionary speaks, "it should resonate deeply in the spirit of the people, saying, 'Yes, this is the authentic direction; this is where we are going.'" [voice of the King] This isn't about creating vision—it's about validating it. The Architect proposes structure; the Visionary confirms alignment with higher purpose.
Jeremy grounds the role in ancient example: "Look at the story of the Early organizational movement. They had Visionaries who gave specific, directional warnings." [Early Church, Prophets]
His case study: "Agabus foresaw a crisis [famine], which allowed the organization to prepare and send aid (Acts 11:27-30)." [prophesied a famine] Notice what this isn't: vague spiritual platitudes. It's "practical direction, not just spiritual 'fluff.'"
The Visionary didn't say "tough times are coming" (everyone knows that). They said "specific scarcity in 18 months, prepare logistically." That's actionable intelligence, not fortune-telling.
Jeremy names the Visionary's greatest struggle: "The challenge for the Visionary is often rejection."
Why rejection? "People reject the message because they prefer comfort over correction." The Visionary sees trajectory problems six months out. The team sees current stability. Who wins? Usually, comfort—until the crisis arrives and everyone wonders why no one "saw it coming."
The emotional cost is isolating: "The Visionary feels the isolation because they are operating outside the normal parameters of human conversation." You're describing futures others can't imagine. You're challenging systems others find comfortable. You're alone in what you see.
Jeremy shares a story that captures the role's agony: "I remember talking to a Visionary who was deeply frustrated."
The Visionary's complaint: "'I see the end result, but no one wants to take the first step. They just want to stay where they are.'"
This is the Visionary's chronic pain: clarity without action. You see the destination. You map the path. And everyone nods politely then returns to business as usual. The vision dies not from opposition but from organizational inertia.
Jeremy's response reveals the long game: "Your job is to keep speaking the vision, even if only one person listens. Because that one person will turn the ship."
The Visionary doesn't need majority buy-in. They need one committed actor who believes the direction enough to move. That single pivot point can redirect entire systems—but only if the Visionary persists through rejection.
Jeremy uses a perfect metaphor: "The Visionary is the directional radar of the organization." [ministry]
What does this radar prevent?
Without this function, everyone optimizes locally but drifts strategically. The Visionary ensures directional coherence across all functions.
Jeremy diagnoses the broken model: "The biggest struggle for modern Visionaries is trying to be a foreteller—trying to predict dates and events—instead of being a forthteller—speaking the current will into the current situation." [God's will]
The distortion obsesses over when (prediction) instead of what (direction). This creates celebrity "prophets" making date-specific predictions that inevitably fail, discrediting the entire function.
Jeremy's correction is blunt: "Vision isn't a crystal ball; it's a microphone for higher purpose." [King] The job isn't predicting lottery numbers. It's "bringing the reality of transcendent purpose into the natural organizational realm." [supernatural reality of God's presence] When they speak, "the atmosphere shifts."
People stop debating tactics and start aligning on why we exist. That's the Visionary's power: reorienting everyone toward ultimate purpose when daily operations have become the de facto mission.
Jeremy closes with the organizational cost: "Without the Visionary, the mission lacks direction, and the people lack anticipation."
Two critical losses:
1. Direction: Everyone's busy but drifting. Lots of activity, no trajectory. The organization becomes reactive, responding to crises instead of proactively moving toward a clear future.
2. Anticipation: People show up for duty, not destiny. There's no compelling future pulling them forward. Work becomes obligation instead of participation in something transformative.
The Visionary provides "the urgency and the clarity needed to keep the entire Five Fold system moving forward." Without them, the system stalls—not from lack of effort, but from lack of compelling direction.
The Visionary role will always be uncomfortable because disruption is uncomfortable. Challenging complacency feels threatening to those invested in current systems. Describing futures others can't yet see sounds impractical—until the future arrives and proves them right.
But organizations without directional clarity drift. Architects build brilliant structures serving the wrong mission. Shepherds maintain systems that should be transformed. Connectors gather people toward outdated purposes. The entire ecosystem operates efficiently toward nowhere meaningful.
The Visionary prevents this catastrophe by bringing three critical functions: (1) Clarity on where to go, (2) Challenge to complacent systems, (3) Validation of aligned missions. They're the directional radar keeping everyone on course.
The cost? Rejection. Isolation. Frustration when people prefer comfort over correction. But the alternative—organizational drift disguised as stability—is far more dangerous. Better uncomfortable clarity than comfortable stagnation.
If you're a Visionary exhausted by rejection, remember Jeremy's counsel: Keep speaking the vision, even if only one person listens. That one person will turn the ship. You don't need majority buy-in. You need directional persistence and one committed actor.
And if you're leading an organization that feels busy but directionless? You're probably missing this function. Find the person everyone finds slightly uncomfortable—the one who challenges status quo and sees trajectories others miss. That discomfort might be the directional clarity you desperately need.
Perfect for:
Foretelling tries to predict dates and specific events (crystal ball mentality). Forthtelling speaks current reality from a higher perspective—addressing present dysfunction and future trajectory based on observable patterns. Modern visionaries fail by obsessing over prediction instead of providing directional clarity for current decisions. The job is microphone for purpose, not fortune-telling.
Because people prefer comfort over correction. Visionaries challenge complacent systems and describe futures that feel impractical. They "see the end result, but no one wants to take the first step." This creates isolation—operating outside normal conversation parameters. But rejection doesn't invalidate the vision; it often confirms you're challenging necessary comfort zones.
The Architect needs the Visionary to ensure they're building the right thing, not just building efficiently. Visionaries provide direction; Architects provide structure. Without visionaries, architects build brilliant systems serving wrong missions. Without architects, visionaries have clarity but no execution capacity. Together they create directional structures—the right thing, built right.
Two critical losses: (1) Direction—lots of activity but organizational drift, reactive instead of proactive. (2) Anticipation—people show up for duty, not destiny; work becomes obligation instead of participation in transformation. The system operates efficiently toward nowhere meaningful. Architects overbuild in wrong locations; Shepherds settle into complacency; Connectors gather toward outdated purposes.
Key Historical Reference: Ephesians 2:20 & Acts 11:27-30 (Ancient organizational texts)
"The organization is built on the foundation of the architects and visionaries [apostles and prophets], with the chief cornerstone being the ultimate model... And visionaries [prophets] like Agabus foresaw coming crisis [famine], which allowed the community to prepare and send practical aid—demonstrating that visionary insight produces actionable direction, not just spiritual platitudes."