Soon the clock will strike and 2027 will make its debut. With the celebration of a new year come resolutions, 21-day fasts, fitness challenges, and, of course, vision board parties! We have great expectations and the best of intentions.
We commit to turning over a new leaf.
We fervently believe to see what God said.
We start on fire. But as the weeks pass, the steadfastness begins to fade.
A LACK OF DISCIPLINE POINTS TO
A LACK OF VISION
Dr. Myles Munroe
OUCH! As hard as that statement hits, I can’t argue against it…
Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but happy is he who keeps the law.
Proverbs 29:18
The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines restraint as control over the expression of one's emotions or thoughts. In an ideal world, vision for the future shapes our present values. Those values govern our actions. Thus, closing the gap between what is and what shall be. Boundaries/discipline/restraint protect our values and our God-breathed vision.
WHAT IS THE VISION FOR YOUR FAITH?
Vision for the Future, Pastor Michael Hamilton
More often than not, I think of faith as what fills the space between revelation and manifestation. And it is that.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen.
Hebrews 11:1
Faith is a sustaining substance that serves as a bridge between what God declares and what our eyes perceive. Faith undergirds vision until fulfillment comes. But Pastor Mike asked, “What is the vision for our faith?” We can easily identify the visions that require faith, but pinpointing the vision for our faith requires introspection. It requires getting still in the Secret Place.
What is the vision for my faith? In other words, what is God’s will for the measure of faith entrusted to me?
How has He ordained my faith to exist?
22 So Jesus answered and said to them, “Have faith in God. 23 For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. 24 Therefore I say to you, whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them.
Mark 11:22-24
14 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.
1 John 5:14-15
The size of the mountain is irrelevant. Is moving it within God’s will?
Is what I’m petitioning Him for aligned with heaven’s reality and backed by Scripture?
Is my faith in God or the mountain’s willingness to obey my voice?
WHAT IS THE VISION FOR MY FAITH?
If my faith truly existed according to God’s will, it would be boldly, boundlessly convinced of His love and faithfulness toward me. It would unwaveringly believe that His mercies are new every morning, His compassion does not fail, His decrees are free from fickleness, and His joy is indeed my strength. Faith according to God’s will believes that my victory is secured and my freedom is sure because Christ is my Redeemer and His Spirit fills me with dynamic power.
If my faith existed as the Lord prescribes, it would rest in the steadiness of His nature. It wouldn’t waver because God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
My faith would believe what God says more than what my eyes see, because He is not a man that He should lie.
If my faith were fully in God, my life would look and sound like surrendered discipline.
Lord, help me to place my faith wholly in You.
Sincerely,
LaToya NaShae