“Visionists or Visionless?” Pt 5 on His Church

"I will give you My message in the form of a vision. Write it clearly enough to be read at a glance. At the time I have decided, My words will come true (‘the vision awaits its appointed time’ ESV) You can trust what I say about the future. It may take a long time, but keep on waiting-it will happen! (‘If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay’ ESV). (Habakkuk 2:2-3, CEV) "Spiritual vision" is so vitally important for God’s people for it provides to us the spiritual fuel - God’s direction and purpose – which is so vitally needed to journey from where we are to His future where God desires us to be / arrive (Jeremiah 29:11). It is imperative that we understand that as ‘followers of The Way’ (John 14:6, Luke 9:23), our direction in life can ONLY come from God – it is to never come from nor be determined by popular opinions, the latest trends or advances, the traditions of man, not ‘necessarily’ the experiences of the past, institutional leaders, circumstances (i.e. obstacles/challenges), ‘our’ emotions / feelings / dreams, the criticism, jeers or rejection of others nor the praises / words of our fellow man nor the “majority” nor the “minority!” Yet it seems more and more Christians today, to include a growing portion of our spiritual leaders, are seemingly lost … wandering around without clear direction, with little passion and much confusion in their purpose. God warns us of this spiritual malady and its origin in Proverbs 29:18, “Where there is no vision [no redemptive revelation / of God], the people perish (‘are unrestrained NASB>'.” (Amplified Bible) The word ‘vision’ in the original Hebrew of this text is ‘chazown’ (pronounced khaw-ZONE) which means ‘a divine revelation / dream of God’ which affirms our definition earlier. This verse makes it very clear when we fail to receive God’s ‘vision,' or if we choose not to follow it, then we will surely become a people without purpose, a people without passion and a people without divine prudence. In his article “How Do You Say Chazown?” online at In Touch Ministries website (www.intouch.org), Craig Groeschel affirms the criticality of the need for divine vision in the heart of God’s people (His Church), “Where there is no chazown—no dream for God's best in this life—people limp along halfheartedly, hoping tomorrow will be better than today. It rarely is. Life without a vision is actually a dangerous experiment: Where there's no vision that you were created to have a growing, personal relationship with your Creator, your inner being withers. Where there's no vision that you've been placed on earth to matter deeply to others, you live in loneliness and your relationships die. Where there's no vision that your body is property on loan from God, your health slips away. The pure joy of living fades. Where there's no vision for a financially wise lifestyle, you can end up drowning in debt (in the richest country on Earth). Where there's no vision for a thriving, godly family, you tend to contribute to a broken, angry one. Where there's no vision for meaningful work, you live for five o'clock. Your goal is to survive—pay the bills, stay married, keep the kids out of jail... But you and I were made for so much more” … “much, much more than anything we can (ever) ask or imagine!” (Ephesians 3:20, NCV) Today I pray that His Word - His mannan for our soul - has helped to further equip you and I for the journey He has divinely ‘enVisioned’ for each of our lives! God says we need to write that vision down so that we can ‘see’ it clearly as we journey forward with Him in faith. But we must understand that we have a CHOICE - to either you choose to receive His ‘chazown’ and become His passionate ‘Visionists’ (a visionary for God) or we reject/dismiss His ‘chazown’ and become ‘Visionless’ (a wanderer/nomad without divine guidance / purpose in life). God lovingly awaits your ovedient response (James 1:22)! …Selah!
Today's Spirit-led video is by CCM artists Newsong and can be viewed by clicking on the on the praise & worship song title, "Defining Moment" - G3 for sharing His power-filled words thru CCM & Praise!