As it draws near Thanksgiving and… the close of another football season for many of us… I read about the Pilgrim Fathers. They settled in America full of vision.
The first year they established a town. The next year they elected a town council. In their 3rd year the council proposed building a road 5 miles out into the wilderness for westward expansion. But, the townspeople decried it as a waste of time and money. This is amazing to me. Years before, these people had been able to “see” across oceans to new worlds. Now, they couldn’t see 5 miles down the road. What happened? The same thing that happens to a lot of us: they lost their vision. The question becomes… how can we keep our vision alive? There are 3 things we can do:
1)Keep your vision before you at all times. It says in the Bible to “write the vision and make it plain… that he may run who reads it” (Hab. 2:2).
2) Make sure the vision is yours— not somebody else’s. Because we want to appear sensible or practical, we too often ignore our God-given desires. Have you undertaken a career to please your parents or your spouse? That will make you dutiful, but it won’t necessarily make you successful. And, it most likely will make you miserable! It is very difficult to fulfill a vision that is not your own.
3) Believe in yourself (even when others don’t!) and trust in God. You may succeed if nobody else believes in you, but you will never succeed if you don’t believe in yourself. The Bible says that “we labor in vain IF God doesn’t guide us in building the house” (my paraphrase). The Bible also says to “seek first the kingdom of God and… He will direct your path” (Matt. 6:33).
Pearl Buck once wrote, “The young do not know enough to be prudent, therefore they attempt the impossible, and achieve it generation after generation.” No matter how old you are, stay young at heart! And… keep your vision alive!!!
