As we enter 2012, it is important to start this year right. At the beginning of each year many Americans make some type of resolution, e.g., many resolve to exercise, others resolve to quit smoking, and a few resolve to pay-off their debt.
However, the right start that I am referring to is not a resolution to begin or quit some action. Rather, it is to have a vision that will guide and sustain you through these next twelve months, and for the rest of your life.
Competing Visions
Vision is one of the most important assets we can have because it speaks to our ability to see ahead. I have come to define vision as God’s version of our future. The problem is that there are three competing versions for our future: (1) Our version, (2) Other people’s version, and (3) God’s version.
Our version is the future that we think up on our own. It is a future that has no connection to God because He was not consulted about it. It is a future that we think is best for us based upon our life’s experiences. Oftentimes, it is a response to our childhood because we seek to compensate for the circumstances in which we were raised. For instance, a child that grows up in the ghetto will have a vision to be rich. A child who is bullied in school will have a vision to be the boss. In each instance, the vision was self-originated.
Other people’s version is the future that they think up for us. It also is a future that has no connection to God because He was not consulted about it. It is a future that others think is best for us based upon their own selfish motives. Oftentimes, it is a response to their failed dreams or their opposition to us. For instance, a father who did not make it to the NBA will push his son to make it to the NBA. A college administrator may suggest that certain groups of people pursue the nursing program instead of the doctoral program because of bigotry. In each instance, the vision was other-originated.
God’s version is the future He wills for us. It is a future that is connected to God because it originated with God. Below are three principles about God’s version of your future that will guide you through the next twelve months.
Vision Comes From God
“That night God spoke to Israel in a vision” (Gn. 46:2 HCSB).
The first principle of God’s version of our future is that the vision comes from God. This is important because it speaks to the reliability of the source. Our own version and other people’s version are not reliable because we are fallible creatures, but God is infallible and inerrant. Therefore, He is incapable of giving us a vision that is unreliable or wrong.
In Genesis 46, Israel (Jacob) is headed to Egypt to see the son he thought was dead. While he was at Beer-sheba, God spoke to him in a vision. The word vision refers to a revelation of a divine word (HAL). As part of His divine word to Israel, God told him that He would make him a great nation in Egypt. It was this version of Israel’s future that comforted him in his journey to Egypt.
As God spoke to Israel about his future, He wants to speak to us about our future. In the month of January, it is our responsibility to make time to hear from God about what He desires to speak to us concerning our future.
Vision Provides Direction
“Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained” (Pr. 29:18 NASB).
The second principle of God’s version of our future is that the vision provides direction. Navigational systems have made many happy wives. Today, a husband has access to several electronic maps to shorten his family’s road trip: MapQuest, GPS Systems, and cell phone apps.
The importance of these electronic maps is that they provide driving directions from one location to another. Highways can be very intimidating: interstates crisscross, speed limits constantly change, and road constructions force detours. Despite all of these variables, a navigational system will keep the driver on course.
Proverbs 29:18 addresses the importance of vision as it relates to staying on course. When a vision does not exist, we are left without restraint. To be unrestrained means to run wild (HAL). This suggests that God’s version of our future protects us from running after the two other competing versions for our future.
Life is full of crisscrosses, changes and detours. God’s version of our future is His navigational system that keeps us on course. As you make time to hear from God this month, the vision He gives you will be the restraint that directs you to your destiny.
Visions Are For A Set Time
“For the vision is yet for the appointed time” (Hab. 2:3 NASB).
The third principle of God’s version of our future is that the vision is for a set time. One of the most important lessons that I have learned about God is that He does not manage to our timetables. He is sovereign (in control of everyone and everything) and omniscient (all knowing). He has the power to manifest our vision. He also has the wisdom to know when that vision should be manifested.
When God reveals His vision to us, we set an arbitrary deadline and expect the vision to come to pass by that date. Yet, we consistently notice that our deadlines come and go without the visions being manifested. As a result, we assume that God has failed to deliver what He promised, when in reality we have placed demands on Him that He did not agree to.
Habakkuk 2:3 teaches us that God’s version of our future will be manifested at an appointed time. The prophet Habakkuk was in the process of receiving a vision from God about the destruction of the Chaldeans, but it would not take place right away. That vision would come to pass at the appointed time. Appointed time means fixed appointment (HAL). God sets the appointment, not us. Our responsibility, as was Habakkuk’s, is to trust Him to do what He has promised.
A Year of Breakthrough
believe 2012 is going to be a year of breakthrough, particularly in the area of vision. Each January we are given an opportunity to reflect on the previous year and prepare for the current year. There is no better time than now to sacrifice space each day to hear from God. He has a plan for each of us. It is His boundaries that will keep us on the right path. And that plan will be fulfilled in His time.
Rev. Hayes is the President of Heat on the Streets Ministries, a holistic-based ministry designed to reconnect people to their God-given destinies. You can learn more at www.hotsministries.com.
