Catching A Vision
Where there is no vision [no revelation of God and His word], the people are unrestrained; But happy and blessed is he who keeps the law [of God] – Proverbs 29:18 (AMP).
Vision, from the Christian perspective, is having the ability to grasp the mind of God and what He wants to do in the future. Vision is the bridge between present reality and future possibility. A God-given vision is very powerful; it focuses, it compels and it is a force that delivers the future. At the turn of a new year, it is very important for us to seek and articulate the mind of God for 2019. Below are some of the ways to catch a VISION:
Visualizing: Whatever one constantly beholds is what one becomes. Whatever one puts before his or her face continually magnifies in the heart. God instructed the Patriarch Jacob to mate his sheep before poplar stripped trees. White male sheep mating with white female sheep as they beheld poplar trees while mating produced speckled spotted sheep (Genesis 30:37-39). The Bible says as we behold the glory of God we are changed into His image. The principle of visualization is real and powerful. What are you constantly beholding?
Inspiration: The word “theopneustos” is the Greek word for inspiration. And it means God-breathed or divine influence. Inspiration from the scriptures is more than motivation. Martin Luther King Junior wrote and delivered a speech in August 1964 that inspired many people to seek equality and brotherhood in the polity of the USA. The ‘I Have A Dream’ speech fueled many other dreams that eventually became a reality. One can be influenced (inspired) to catch a vision through the dream of others. Dreams beget dreams. The Word of God which is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16) remains the greatest tool and influence of all times for spawning new visions.
Studying: The Patriarch Daniel learned from reading the scriptures that Jerusalem was going to be desolate and lie in ruins for 70 years. Armed with this information, Daniel began to pray and seek the Lord for the deliverance of Jerusalem (Daniel 9). He caught a vision by studying, and this vision led to further visions for him. Darkness is synonymous with ignorance, while light is synonymous with understanding. Learning enlightens and enlivens, whereas ignorance incapacitates and destroys. Visionaries are always studious researchers seeking to know the mind of God and what is ahead.
Insightfulness/Revelation: Stephen Covey, in his book The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, wrote that all things are created twice. First, there is the mental creation, and then the physical creation. God ofttimes reveal what He wants to do to His own before doing them. The inner witness (Acts 27:10), the inner voice (Acts 13:2), audible voice (Acts 9:4-6), open visions (Acts 9:10-12), night visions (Acts 16:9), word of knowledge (Acts 21:10-11), etc are all workings and demonstrations of the Holy Spirit given to spiritual believers to enlighten and cast vision. These supernatural occurrences will be more in 2019 since we are in the last days.
Observation: A vision can easily be caught as one observes or understudies a visionary. Pastor E. A. Adeboye (the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God) on a visit to Seoul, South Korea in the 1980s saw how Paul Yongi Cho appealed to church members to skip church attendances because of space constraints. He saw hundreds of thousands of people worshipping God together. He said he instantly caught a new vision of multitudes worshipping God in his own church and ministry. That vision is being realized monthly as millions of people gather at the Holy Ghost services in Lagos, Nigeria. A vision can be replicated. It is a spiritual truth that what God has done for one, He is willing to do for another. And what God has done before He is able and willing to do again. Who or what are you observing in order to catch a vision?
Newness: Being born again is to be spiritually renewed. The spirit man of an erstwhile sinner is enlightened by the glory and brilliance of the Holy Spirit. The veil covering the mind of the sinner is ripped off as he or she surrenders to Jesus Christ. This new believer is now given the eyes of faith with which he or she becomes convinced of spiritual realities, and also comprehends as facts things that aren’t revealed to the physical senses. He is able to see the unseen and comprehends the incomprehensible. May we all regain the cutting edge of the new birth in Christ Jesus.
CONCLUSION: Vision makes us live life by design and not by happenstance or chance occurrences. Vision refers to a change for the better. Vision shapes the future. May you catch a new vision in this new year in Jesus’ name.
Ade(Gboyega) ESAN
www.rccgpittsburgh.net
http://gboyegae.blogspot.com