Without A Vision The People Perish

Without A Vision The People Perish

Proverbs 29:18

I was in Denver for four days last week. I wasn't there on vacation or for sightseeing, even though I did see some awesome sights like the snow-capped Rocky Mountains at the end of July. I will never understand how that can happen no matter how many times I see it!

I went to Denver for four days for a special project I have been asked to participate in and to attend the General Assembly of our church. You need to know something about me when I go on trips. I talk to everyone who will stand still long enough for me to strike up a conversation with them. I have found over the years, as I have had the opportunity to travel and speak, that there are incredibly interesting people all around us. I have also found that the Lord will speak to me powerfully through some of these folks if I will only stand still long enough to listen. Let me give you an example.

On Sunday morning I was sitting on the sofa in the lobby of the Ramada Inn waiting for an airport shuttle to take me to Denver International Airport. An elderly couple came into the lobby after they got off the elevator. I noticed that the man had a long cane that he was using to find his way around the lobby and that she was at his side to give him assistance. They made their way over to the sofa and sat down beside me. I introduced myself and asked where they were from. The lady said they were from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their names were Eunice and Gerald Frederick and I found out that they were in Denver for a conference on reaching the blind for Christ. Eunice had a Bible in her hands and I asked if they were going to church. She told me their nephew was a minister and that he was coming to get them so they could attend his church while they were in Denver. At one point in the conversation I asked Gerald, "How long have you been blind?" Eunice said, "My husband was born blind and I am legally blind, but the Lord has been so good to us. God has His purpose for everything and we know that we are experiencing all of this so that we can share His love with others who are blind." Gerald leaned over, looked my direction, and said, "I was born blind, but I believe that I can see better than a lot of folks who have their sight. The Bible says, 'The things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are unseen are eternal.' God has allowed me to see things that eyes can't begin to see!" (2 Corinthians 4:18)

Gerald's words jumped out at me and grabbed me by the throat! I sensed in my spirit that something significant had just taken place and that I needed to pray about what Gerald had said. I thought about his words all the way home on the plane and I have not been able to escape those powerful words since. I met a 70+ year old man who has every excuse under the sun to just sit back and wait for life to pass him by, but God has given him a vision to reach those who lack sight for the Kingdom of God!

Helen Keller, probably the most recognized blind person who has ever lived, once said, "What would be worse than being born blind? To have sight without vision." I am convinced that the vast majority of our population today has no vision for their lives, their families, or their church. I am also convinced that there is not a single person who has ever committed themselves to serving Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior whom God did not desire to give a glorious and gigantic vision of what could be, if we will only pursue His heart.

I want us to spend our time today focusing on "vision" 1) What does it mean to have a vision from God? 2) How do we get a vision from God? 3) Once God gives us a vision -- then what? After we make our way through these important questions I want to share with you the vision God has given me for this church. I am excited about what God has done in the past at Britton Christian Church. I am also excited about what He is presently doing at this church. I am most excited about what I see God purposing to do through you and me and others who are yet to come in the future! God has an incredible future planned for this little church if we will only pursue His vision for us.