People of Vision

People of Vision

May 18, 2011

By Jerry D. Scott

Look at the ground; you see rocks. Lift your eyes; you see mountains!  Are you a person of vision? How you live, who you become, and what you leave as a legacy are determined not by chance but by your vision. Let me illustrate this in the ordinary stuff of life.

In the here and now, a married man sees a very attractive young woman. But he lifts his eyes and sees his children¹s future, his lifelong integrity with his wife and his eternal relationship with God. He lets that vision lead him past the immediate temptation and keep him from pursuing an inappropriate relationship.

An employee struggling to pay her bills knows she could use dishonest accounting procedures to steal company funds. She lifts her eyes beyond the immediate temptation and sees future opportunities for promotion, the ability to sleep peacefully at night with a clear conscience, and chooses to trust God¹s promise for provision.

A student sees that a website offers to do the work of preparing that end-of-term project he has not yet completed. He lifts his eyes and sees the character that comes from diligence. He knows if he pushes through long hours of tedium to accomplish his goal and do his own work, he will feel good about the choice and will appreciate his grade as honestly earned.

What kind of person do you want to be? The Holy Spirit works deeply in each one of us, inspiring us with greater vision so that the petty temptations and problems of our lives do not consume us.

Paul wrote to the Colossian believers: ³We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves² (Colossians 1:9-13, NIV).

The way that passage unfolds excites me. A life worthy of the Lord, full of spiritual fruit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control) flows from knowing what God wants. That¹s vision! Further, we are promised His strength so we can stand against the winds of trial. That¹s provision!

Don¹t let your heritage in Christ become about just getting through the day.

Pray for the ability to see all the way to heaven!