WHY DO WE NEED A VISION?
Proverbs 29:18 says:
Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction. (Proverbs 29:18)
This verse is especially interesting, because it uses the word “revelation” — or, we might say, “prophetic vision.” When we hear the word “vision,” the first thing that comes to mind is some dream or supernatural experience, or a picture that God has shown someone during prayer. In this way we somehow wrap the word “vision” in the supernatural, in mystery and mysticism. But vision does not mean five angels coming to you and handing over some secret messages from God.
In fact, vision is nothing so frightening. It is to have a clear sense of where you are going and what exactly you want to do. Vision is a picture of the future as you want it to be. Of course, when it comes to the church, that picture must come from God’s Word and from the Holy Spirit.
Without vision the church drifts along with the current and carries out its routine duties week after week. Without vision, “people cast off restraint.” We grow slack and begin to run on empty. When you do not know where you are going, you are lost and perishing. If you do not know where you have set out for, you will not arrive anywhere. Without vision it is as if you had taken the bridle out of your horse’s mouth — it gallops across the field… And what happens? A great deal of energy, but no work done.
It is vision that creates focus and direction. It tells us what we must do in order to reach a certain result. It helps us to be mobilized, aimed, and focused on what we want to achieve. Vision inspires us to get involved and to change.
God’s kingdom on earth becomes real only where we stand and where we share and live out the gospel. It will not happen because of the building, or because we have the most wonderful preacher in the world. The church is neither a building nor a single person. It is a body. And that body must be built up and strengthened so that, within our culture, it may represent Christ in the strongest and most dynamic way it can.
WHAT IS VISION?
Vision is a clear picture, a mental portrait of a preferred future, given to us by God. Vision must be built on the foundation of an accurate and clear understanding of God, of ourselves, and of our circumstances.
The phrase “preferred future” in this definition is the key. Why? Because it commands, requires, and calls for change. Without belittling or discarding the past, vision is bound up with the creation of something new. Through vision God takes us from where we are and begins to build on the foundation that has already been laid in the past, in order to bring us to a better reality that is possible.
HOW DO WE ACQUIRE A VISION?
First, vision begins with an honest assessment of our present situation. The process of change or reform consists in this: to realize where we are, to decide where we want to be, then to find the paths that lead there, and finally to walk them.
Second, in order to have vision it is important that we begin to see the world through God’s eyes. If we do, we will be troubled by what is happening on the earth. God will give us a holy dissatisfaction — so that we see something and cannot bear for it to go on being what it is. For Moses it was slavery; for David it was Goliath; for Nehemiah it was the reproach of the broken-down walls of Jerusalem. For a servant of God today it is people in the church who care nothing for those who are perishing in the world.
You see, Moses saw the suffering of his people, and it wounded his heart. That suffering became his burden and his concern. It became his passion. What is in your heart? What troubles you? Do you see the world through God’s eyes, and when you see something wrong, does it wound your heart?
What needs to change? That is the question that will help us build our vision. And what if there are many things we cannot bear? Looking at these problems, which is the main source that causes them? Where do they begin? There is always some central issue or problem from which all the rest flow.
How do we follow this holy dissatisfaction? You must seek out the aim that grips your heart and will not let you go. Do not despair if you cannot immediately understand the reason for the dissatisfaction. Keep seeking, keep praying. Do not run away from your own storm of feelings, from your unease. Usually in such cases our natural reaction is to flee. But I would say that this holy discontent is the key, and so you must feed it, give yourself to it, and in a time of communion with God the vision will begin to come into focus. And I think you will come to understand what God wants you to do.
Third, forming a vision involves two questions. First, “Why?” Why does this church exist? What is the reason? This prepares us to write out our mission and to give the grounds for it.
The second question is: “What if?” For example, what if we fulfill our mission in ten years? How would the church, or our lives, look then? For your vision must be such that it contains long-term goals. If we can achieve it in a month, then it is most likely not big enough.
When I have acquired some vision, how do I know, how can I be sure, that this vision is from God?
First, we must know God and His mission and purpose for our world.
Second, we must know ourselves — each one of us is unique and different and has his own individual and distinct abilities and gifts. We must come to know ourselves, accept ourselves, and see our own abilities and potential as God sees them.
Third, the vision must be valid and appropriate to the context of the situation in which we find ourselves.
Acquiring a vision for the church is not something that will happen overnight. It is a process that involves learning, observing, praying, sharing ideas, testing, writing a first draft, improving the vision, seeking the participation of the church’s leaders, refining it, and finally — accepting it. All of this is part of the refining fire that God uses. It is not an easy process to pass through. Vision is given when God is ready to give it to us and when we are ready to receive it.
HOW DO WE COMMUNICATE OUR VISION?
For it to take effect, once it has been received and formulated, the vision must be communicated — or “sold” — to the people. They must accept it, believe it, and take it as their own. Selling anything at all depends on the way it is presented.
How long should the vision be? It should be very short and simple. Applying that vision is far more complex and may take our whole life. The vision must be clear enough to be understood and short enough to be remembered.
It is important that the vision be written down. That way we will not forget it, and, besides, later on we can adapt it further. Habakkuk 2:2 says:
Then the Lord replied: “Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it. (Habakkuk 2:2)
I believe that the mission of our church in Dolno Ezerovo is this: “We are committed to establishing Christ’s disciples and preparing them for ministry by building relationships with God and with one another and by extending God’s kingdom in Dolno Ezerovo.”
HOW DO WE CARRY OUT OUR VISION?
In order to carry out our vision, we must build a strategy, set long-term goals and short-term goals, draw up plans, and get down to the concrete small tasks that can be assigned to particular people and particular times. Merely to have a vision is not enough. For change to take place, reforms must be carried out. That means stepping out of our comfort, getting moving, putting in effort, bracing ourselves, mobilizing, harnessing ourselves, and getting to work.
One of the conditions for carrying out the vision is not to lose it. God had given Abraham a vision that he would become the forefather of a great nation and that this nation would inherit the land of Canaan. That vision was on the verge of being fulfilled when Abraham’s descendants multiplied in Egypt. Moses led them out of the house of slavery, and they were about to enter the promised land. These people came out of Egypt with a vision. But the ten spies discouraged the people, and the Israelites gave up their vision. And so they died in the wilderness. The same holds true for the church with respect to its vision. The first and strongest nine words of the church are: “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13). And the last, dying nine words of the church are: “We have never done things this way before.” Those who kept their vision, even though its fulfillment seemed impossible, were the ones who entered the Promised Land.
Carrying out the vision will most likely even require a battle. The Canaanites did not hand over their cities without a fight. The Israelites had to attack them and stain their hands with blood in order to take them. Nehemiah did not build the walls of Jerusalem without trouble. He was threatened. They tried to stop him. The people had to build while dressed in armor for war.
You see, a vision has its price. In Luke 14:26-33 Jesus taught that discipleship has its price.
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ (Luke 14:28-30)
“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. (Luke 14:31-32)
Discipleship has its price. If we want to be Christ’s disciples, we must give up everything, take up our cross, and follow Him. Reaching a given vision also has its price. And so, when we plan, we must count the cost of carrying it out and be ready to pay it.
But if we set out to carry out our vision, God will help us. In Matthew 14:22-34 we read how Peter walked on the water. Of course, before him Jesus was walking on the water, but for us that is nothing extraordinary, since now, from the distance of time, we know that Jesus Christ is God. For Him nothing is impossible. For me the greater miracle is that Peter — a limited, sinful man, a man like every one of us — walked on the water. This happened right after Jesus had fed five thousand men, besides women and children, with five loaves and two fish.
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. (Matthew 14:22-34)
Notice Peter’s boldness: “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water!” Peter is an example to us in asking God for what is impossible for us. Peter dared to ask to walk on the water. And the Lord did not rebuke him for asking something too great or impossible. He simply said, “Okay! Come!” I would say it is the same with our vision. If we dare to dream of accomplishing something that is within God’s will, God will hardly refuse us, even if it is something humanly impossible. In Acts 19:21 we read how Paul set himself the goal of reaching Rome, passing on the way through Macedonia, Achaia, and Jerusalem:
After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem, passing through Macedonia and Achaia. “After I have been there,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.” (Acts 19:21)
This was his vision, and God helped him fulfill it. Peter, for his part, decided to walk on the water. And God said to him: “All right, go ahead!” Was it God’s will for Peter to walk on the water? Yes. Did Peter want to walk on the water? Yes. But for this miracle to happen, Peter had to step over the side of the boat, get out of the boat, and set out on the water. Action was required; certain steps had to be taken. And Peter set out on the water toward Jesus! God’s vision can take us very far. It can take us into the impossible. But we must set out, we must take the risk, we must trust God and act.
But was it all smooth? Trouble-free? No. There was wind, there were waves, there was a struggle against the circumstances. But notice: when Peter fell into the water and began to sink, he did not turn to the disciples for help, but to Jesus. He cried out to God: “Lord, save me!” And Jesus immediately reached out His hand, caught him, and pulled him up. He rebuked him for his little faith, but Peter went back into the boat with Jesus and kept on walking on the water. When we begin to sink, we need only cry out, “Jesus!” and He will pull us out.
You see, the problem is not with God’s power, but with how far we allow it to work in us. In Ephesians 3:20-21 the apostle Paul says:
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21)