At least one church's long-range planning committee has had long-term and international impact.

In 1958, Kennon Callahan, then minister of evangelism at Lovers Lane United Methodist Church in Dallas, Texas, began working with the church's long-range planning committee, developing a plan for the future mission of that congregation.

Other churches, sensing their need for long-range planning but uncertain how to proceed, heard about the approach and began to ask him to come and help them. Such grapevine invitations accelerated rapidly when in 1970 he joined the faculty of Emory University in Atlanta. From there, the reputation and consulting opportunities of Kennon Callahan expanded extraordinarily.

Kennon is a man who, with a quiet and steady passion, aims to help the church reach the world. He does that by putting to full use his "gifts, strengths, and competencies" (to use his phrase) in research, analysis, and long-range planning.

In 1983 he authored Twelve ...