Understanding God's Vision

So why is a vision so important to us? Well... the bible says "Where there is no vision the people perish.... Proverbs 29:18"

Without a vision we struggle...., we lose hope...., we die.... This page is about realizing your vision.

T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) once said, "All men dream but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds awake to the day to find it was all vanity. But the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for the many act out their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible..."

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines vision as: Something seen in a dream, or trance; a supernatural appearance that conveys a revelation. A thought, concept, or object formed by the imagination. A manifestation to the senses of something immaterial. Its also described as the act or power of imagination, mode of seeing or conceiving, unusual discernment or foresight or direct mystical awareness of the supernatural usually in visible form

So where do visions come from? God gives us visions. There are three types of visions and three dimensions to a Vision

The 3 types of visions are:

Personal: This where God reveals to an individual a vision.

Corporate: This where God has choose to work through a body (a church or ministry.) GHere we are speaking of a churches vision, your leadership, etc

Great: The Great Commission. God';s vision for us all

So how exactly do we get a vision? Well you can say vision is three dimensional. We can recieve a vision from God in one of 3 ways. Did you know the number three in the bible means Resurrection, Divine Completeness and Perfection (John 14:6, 2 Kings 4:18-35.) is that cool or what. So lets look at this. We have:

The Word: this is scripture (vision or revelation reading your bible)

The Prophetic: vision through a Prophetic Word (prophetic ministry)

the Spirit: The Holy Spirit (the voice in the night that wakes you. "Noah... build an Ark!")

All three of these can reveal vision and can confirm vision. The question is what is God or the Holy Spirit revealing to you?

So Once vision is revealed then what? What or how do we implement what God has spoken to us. In Habakkuk 2:2-3 God says this about vision:

And the Lord answered me, and said, "Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that reads it. For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry."

Folks...... Vision once revealed, becomes your responsibility to see it bear fruit. God promises to us are NEVER broken, or return void. If you don't work to see your vision realized, it will fall to another. Your natural children or your spiritual children. It is our responsibility to start actively working towards it. So let’s break down what God said.

Step 1:

"write it down and make it plain." How hard is that? Having a plan on paper is the first step we take. This is what’s called a vision statement. Essentially this is a description of the organization; its size, its basic structure, its sphere of influence. A vision statement focuses on tomorrow; it is inspirational; it provides clear decision-making criteria; and it is timeless. A vision statement is future oriented.

How you attain your vision is the purpose of a mission statement. What a mission statement does is it describes the needs the organization was created to fill and answers the basic question of why the organization exists. It makes clear the sport organization’s purpose, principle business aims, identity, policies and values. It declaration of values, goals, and aspirations that authoritative groups agree upon as being the central account of the organization’s unique sense of direction.

Seeing your vision(s) brought to life it requires hard work. Often a lot of elbow grease and sweat. Like the Good book says, we "write it down and make it plain." Having a plan on paper is the first step we take.

Step 2:

The "appointed time" We must understand what "appointed time" means. Any vision takes time to build. What this means is, while your waiting for the appointed time are you need to be actively preparing. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 speaks of how "Everything has its Time". In there we learn that proper "time" or "seasons" take preparation which is then followed, by an action. You must prepare before you take action to see the vision God gave you come to life.

What we all really have a know, is what "appointed time" means. All that you have read above is nothing more than a blueprint on how to achieve your vision. But you have to know that when it happens is all up to God. Getting to the end can take months, for some years or decades, and even generations. Moses had a vision (see Exudus 3), all he got at the very end was a glimpse of it (see Deuteronomy 32:49-52 & 43:5). It was up to Joshua to fulfill the vision and take the Israelites into the Promised Land (see Joshua 1:2).) King David never built his vision of the Temple (see 2 Samuel 7:27). His son Solomon did it (see 1 Kings 5).. In both of these cases, Moses and David prepared the ground (made changes, were willing to learn, made sound decisions) and then took proper action to make the vision become a reality. These are great examples of generational changes, it took their sons (Joshua being Moses spiritual son) to bring these visions to fruition.

So how do we go from a vision to the appointed time? Well... there are 4 basic steps we need to follow. They are:

• The desire to change.
• The willingness to learn.
• To make sound decisions.
• Taking proper action.

Looks pretty easy, but you can get tripped up easily on the last two without breaking a sweat. But the most important thing is the desire to change. Change takes time and work. You must start making changes and being consistent in them, that being done or in-work, the other steps become easy to do. Once these 4 steps are in place we next need to understand how that vision is implemented.

To make our vision work, we need to follow the next three steps:

a) Right Knowledge and Training

The desire (vision) alone is not enough. You need information and facts (this is knowledge, training, mentoring, etc) and then to be released (this means NOW) to start building that vision.

“My son, if you will receive my words, and treasure my commandments within you; So that you incline your ear unto wisdom, and apply your heart to understanding; Yea, if you cry out for knowledge, and lift up your voice for understanding; If you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; Then you will understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge (revelation) of God.” ....Proverbs 2:1-5

Just in case you missed it, that scripture said "to listen", "to treasure" and "find revelation" or knowledge. We have to be receptive to hearing from God. We need to treasure that which He has revealed to us. Once we have done that we will later understand or come to revelation within this knowledge. Basically we have all we need right now, however some of that knowledge isn't to be understood until later when the time is right.

b) Right Tools and Support (Waiting Going & Doing)

We wait because were are patient. Building a dream isn't an overnight experience. Its takes time and patience. Often we have to wait for something to happen before we can take the next step. Meanwhile we learn more. We get mentor (see Galations 4:2). We get more education. We build....., we go forward to our vision piece by piece.

Money and Tithes. we've all heard it take money to make money. Think of this wisely. What are you investing financially into your vision? Are you putting money aside? Is you credit bad, mediocre, outstanding? Are you improving your credit? How do you pay for school or classes to take you to the next step of your vision? As for tithes, it’s about stewardship. You give to God because you make sure His storehouse is full. When you praise and worship give or tithe to Him, His blessings rain down upon you. Wouldn't it be awesome to see your vision return a 60-fold or a hundred-fold? See Proverbs 3:9, Matthew 10:8, Romans 12, 2nd Corinthians 9:6

Support and Encouragement. Who is supporting you in this vision? Is your church leadership aware of your vision? Are your church leaders active in supporting and encouraging you? Are you active in non-profit or business support groups that mentor and support you in your vision? Galatians 4:2 says we are "under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the Father." Are you?

c) Taking (righteous) Action (doing)

All of the steps above will thrust (force) you into the right direction (turn you)

Moses had a vision (see Exudus 3), all he got at the very end was a glimpse of it (see Deuteronomy 32:49-52 & 43:5). It was up to Joshua to fulfill the vision and take the Israelites into the Promised Land (see Joshua 1:2).) King David never built his vision of the Temple (see 2 Samuel 7:27). His son Solomon did it (see 1 Kings 5).. In both of these cases, Moses and David prepared the ground (made changes, were willing to learn, made sound decisions) and then took proper action to make the vision become a reality. These are great examples of generational changes, it took their sons (Joshua being Moses spiritual son) to bring these visions to fruition.

Your vision, might not be for you, but for your sons or daughters.. You might get the door to the place open, but the true fruits of that vision (a multi million dollar corporation for example) might not happen until your kids or grandchildren run it. Your vision can be a small piece of an even bigger puzzle. Keep in mind He does not reveal all His mysteries to us...

If your vision isn't bigger that one generation. It's not from God... Dr. Kelly Varner