Vision 1 – Gaining A Vision

Sunday Morning Bible Study

December 28, 2003

What’s one of the things that many people traditionally do at New Year’s (besides getting drunk)? They make resolutions.

Here’s some interesting New Year’s Resolutions. These are ones you can actually keep:

1. Gain weight. At least 30 pounds.

2. Stop exercising. Waste of time.

3. Read less. Makes you think.

4. Watch more TV. You've been missing some good stuff.

5. Procrastinate more. Starting tomorrow.

What I want to talk about over the next couple of weeks goes beyond simple “New Year’s Resolutions”. I want to stir up “God-resolutions” in you.

Why do I need a vision for my life?

1. The great men and women of faith had a sense of direction in their life from God.

Noah had never heard of rain before, but God spoke to him and gave him direction and he and his sons built an ark. Building an ark would take time and planning. It didn’t happen overnight.

2. God has good plans for your life. Your responsibility is to find out what He wants for you.

(Eph 2:10 KJV) For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

The very first step in finding God’s plans for you is to come to know Him.

(1 Tim 2:4 NASB) who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

God loved you so much He sent His Son to die on a cross and pay for your sins, all so you could know Him.

Andy Stanley (in Visioneering): “Everybody ends up somewhere in life. You have the opportunity to end up somewhere on purpose.”

Week #1 – Gaining a “Vision” / #2 - Pursuing the Vision / #3 Finishing the Vision

Nehemiah 1:1 – 2:8

(Neh 1 KJV) The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, {2} That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. {3} And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.

When Nehemiah asks about Jerusalem, he has already had a burden for the city. But when his brother brings news, things really start rolling.

Lesson

When do we get vision?

Sometimes it comes at a time of difficulty or need.

Nehemiah gets an update from the situation in Jerusalem and things aren’t good. This is what prods him on to action.

Isaiah had a vision from God (Is. 6) where he saw God’s throne and heard God call him to serve him. But it came the year that good King Uzziah died, a time of national tragedy.

Sometimes it comes when we go away and spend time with God.

Habakkuk had a lot of questions about life. He took his questions to God.

(Hab 2:1-3 KJV) I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. {2} And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it. {3} For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

The “vision” came when he was up in the tower.

Take time to get away from distractions and confusion and hear from God.

In all cases it comes to a person who is seeking God and looking for help.

(Jer 33:3 KJV) Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

{4} And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, {5} And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: {6} Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned. {7} We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. {8} Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations: {9} But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. {10} Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. {11} O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer.

Lesson #1

Pray for the “how”

Sometimes we have an idea of the “what” of a vision. We have this notion of what ought to happen, but we don’t have a clue as to “how” it’s going to happen.

Nehemiah did have an important position in the Persian empire, but by himself he didn’t have the means to get this grand vision accomplished. He wasn’t going to be able to do it by himself. The vision was bigger than he was.

Instead of quitting, this is when we need to be praying.

The “how” is God’s problem. This is the kind of thing He does best.

Nehemiah knew the “what”, but didn’t at first know “how”, and so he’s going to be spending the next four months praying, asking God for help.

The following is from the book Visioneering by Andy Stanley, son of Charles Stanley, who served as a youth pastor at his father’s church before starting his own church (pgs. 51-55):

Illustration

Chris had a vision. His vision was to share the gospel with every student at Dunwoody High School. Chris first let me know about his vision at the beginning of his senior year. He and I met together on Tuesday afternoons for discipleship. As his youth pastor I was both thrilled and humbled. Thrilled at his zeal. Humbled by memories of my senior year. I don’t know about you, but my senior year “visions” were not what you would consider positive illustration material. Anyway, Chris told me about his vision, and we went to work trying to figure out a way to make it happen. One of our obstacles was that Chris was not what you would consider a mainstream kind of guy. He wasn’t the president of anything. He wasn’t on any teams. He didn’t date a cheerleader. He wasn’t an honor student. He didn’t even dress like everybody else. Chris was a skater. Now in certain communities around Atlanta, being a skater would put you in one of the top echelons in your local junior high or high school. But not at Dunwoody. At Dunwoody High, skaters got no respect. There weren’t that many to begin with. And the handful that were there were alternative before alternative was cool. Bottom line, Chris wasn’t going to be asked to speak to the student body in this lifetime. He had no leverage. All he had was a vision. But Chris wasn’t discouraged. He felt this was something God would have him pursue. He felt it was his responsibility to make sure everybody in his school had at least one opportunity to hear a clear gospel presentation once before he or she graduated. So we explored every option imaginable. We thought about writing everybody a letter. We discussed doing a phone blitz. I suggested dropping notes in everybody’s locker. But none of these ideas seemed right. The year came and went and Chris’s vision never came to fruition-or so it seemed. Like Nehemiah, however, Chris was faithful to do what he could while trusting God to do what he couldn’t.

During his senior year, Chris took advantage of every opportunity to share his faith with other students. One of the fellows he had an opportunity to share with was Mark. Mark grew up with his mom in Miami. His folks had split up when he was younger, and his dad eventually moved to Atlanta. When Mark hit adolescence, he did so with a vengeance. He fell prey to the allurement of alcohol and drugs. He was flunking out of school. By the end of his tenth grade year, his mom had had enough. She packed him up and sent him to Atlanta to live with his dad. Mark didn’t want to leave his friends in Miami. He didn’t really want to live with his dad. As far as he was concerned, life... Well you get the picture. With that in mind, imagine his first day at Dunwoody High School. He had an attitude that preceded him by about ten minutes everywhere he went. This was not a kid you walked up to and greeted in the halls. Consequently, nobody reached out to Mark. Nobody except, you guessed it, Chris. One of the most remarkable things about Chris was that nobody intimidated him. He wasn’t put off by Mark. He saw him for what he was: an angry, hurt young man in need of a friend and a Savior. So Chris went right up, introduced himself, and showed him around. As it turned out, they both liked some of the same music. In fact, Mark was a drummer and Chris played bass. That weekend, Chris invited Mark to spend the night with him at his parents’ house. At this juncture in Chris’s life, he assumed all bets were off with his vision. There was no way he was going to be able to share the gospel with the student body. God hadn’t provided a vehicle. The best he could do was get in as many one-on-one exchanges as possible before the year ended.

Little did he know God had not given up on the vision. He was still quietly at work behind the scenes. And Mark was going to play a key role in seeing to it that Chris’s vision became a reality. Late that evening, after several hours of listening to music, Mark opened up with Chris. He told him about his life in Miami. He shared his reluctance about coming to Atlanta. He admitted he was pretty much mad at the world. When he finished, Chris, a seventeen-year-old high school student, told Mark that he had a heavenly Father who loved him in spite of all he had done. He told him about Christ dying for his sin so he could be forgiven. That night, Mark put his trust in Christ and became a Christian. Then Chris told him about his cool youth pastor (me - Andy!) and about his church. The next Sunday Mark showed up. He joined our student ministry. The school year came and went. Chris graduated and went to college. Meanwhile Mark had one more year at DHS. I asked Mark to be in my discipleship class. Through that year we became good friends. Then one Wednesday night, right before our student Bible study, Mark ran up to me with a look of panic on his face. “Andy, you won’t believe it.” Mark started every sentence that way. “You won’t believe it, I have been asked to speak to the whole student body during our Arrive Alive assembly.” Every year, on the Friday afternoon just before spring break, DHS conducted a campus-wide assembly program dedicated to warning students about the dangers of drinking and driving. Typically, they would invite someone who had a gory tale to tell. The stories usually involved a head-on collision, multiple broken bones, and a long hospital stay. Occasionally, the speaker would show a scar or two. The idea was to motivate students to be careful while they were away on spring break. Often, they would put a car that had been totaled by a drunk driver on the campus lawn as a visual aid. Well, Mrs. Dolworth, the principle of DHS, knew Mark had been heavily involved with alcohol and drugs before coming to her school. Furthermore, she was aware that a remarkable change had taken place in his life. She thought it would be a good idea if Mark, being a student, would follow the featured speaker at the assembly So she called Mark and asked him to share his story “Do you think I should tell them my whole story?” he asked. I smiled. “Mark, when I speak at a public school, they won’t even announce where I work. They introduce me as an adolescent counselor. God has given you a unique opportunity. You are a student. You can say anything you want. Yes, I think you ought to tell them your whole story.” I will never forget walking into the DHS gym that Friday afternoon. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it. I rarely get nervous when I speak. But I was so nervous for Mark I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to stay. The gym was packed. It was literally standing room only. Students, faculty, teachers-they were all there. Mrs. Dolworth introduced their keynote speaker. He had graduated from DHS several years prior. He did a good job telling his story. Lots of blood and guts. The students loved it. But his conclusion was flat. After thirty minutes of car wrecks and life threatening injuries he said, “So students, hang together. You have each other. Thank you.” And he sat down. Everyone clapped politely. Then Mrs. Dolworth walked to the center of the gymnasium and announced, “This afternoon we have one of our own DHS students who is going to share for just a few minutes about some changes that have taken place in his life. Please welcome Mark Hannah.” I thought I was going to die. Mark walked slowly out to center court, took the microphone off the stand and began. “When I first came to Dunwoody High School, I hated everything and everybody.” He talked about his life in Miami. He shared about his intense anger. He delved into his experience with alcohol and drugs. You could have heard a pin drop-except for the fact that my heart was beating so hard I’m sure it must have distracted the people around me. Then Mark turned the corner. “One day a guy named Chris Folley introduced himself to me and invited me to his house. That night I told him all about my life. I told him how much I hated everybody. He listened. And then he told me Jesus loved me. He explained how he died on the cross for my sins. He said I could be forgiven. That night I prayed with Chris and my life changed. “Everything hasn’t been easy since then. I still have my struggles. But now I don’t have to face them alone. If you have any questions about anything I’ve said, I would be happy to talk with you afterwards. Thank you.” With that, he placed the microphone back in the stand and sauntered back to his assigned place on the bleachers. Meanwhile, the entire student body stood to their feet in applause. They clapped and cheered for what must have been several minutes. It was too much for me. I left the gym and headed for my car. Strangely enough, it wasn’t until I walked outside that the significance of what had just happened hit me. “Lord, this was about Chris, wasn’t it?” Even as I type these words, tears fill my eyes as I think back to one senior in high school who was faithful to do what he could while trusting God to do what he couldn’t. Chris’s concerns were in alignment with the Fathers. So He went to work behind the scenes to ensure that the vision became a reality.

The “how” is God’s specialty – not something we have to figure out on our own.

Moses didn’t have to figure out how to part the Red Sea

David didn’t have to figure out how to get rid of Saul so he could become king.

Do you have an idea of “what” but don’t know “how”? Pray.

(Neh 2:1-8 KJV) And it came to pass in the month Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes the king, that wine was before him: and I took up the wine, and gave it unto the king. Now I had not been beforetime sad in his presence.

A turn in events is about to happen. Nehemiah has been praying for four months.

Lesson #2

Cultivate Faithfulness

Nehemiah was a dependable employee. He was a guy that the king could usually count on. He did his job and he normally did it cheerfully and faithfully.

As we’ll see, the quality of faithfulness will play a big role in Nehemiah fulfilling his vision. He will not be a quitter or one who backs down easily.

Nehemiah didn’t start being faithful in Jerusalem, he started in Susa.

If you want to be a person who gets a vision from God and who is faithful to fulfill it, you need to be a man or woman who is faithful in the things you do now.

(1 Cor 4:2 KJV) Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

(1 Cor 4:2 ICB) A person who is trusted with something must show that he is worthy of that trust.

Do you want God to entrust His plans to you? Then make faithfulness a priority.

Sometimes we give ourselves our own best excuse as to why we don’t think about plans or vision for the future – we are convinced that God could never use someone as small and insignificant as we are.

In the latest Lord of the Rings (LOTR) movie, “The Return of the King”, there’s a scene at the end where everybody is congratulating each other over the incredible things they’ve done, and everyone bows to the newly crowned king, Aragorn. As the four little hobbits also begin to bow, Aragorn rebukes them and tells them to stand up and says that they shouldn’t be bowing to him. He in turn bows to them and the entire multitude bow before the little hobbits. It was the hobbits who had saved middle earth.

One of the themes in the LOTR movies that I love is how someone small, like a hobbit, can do big things when they are given a vision from God, and they keep going and don’t quit.

God isn’t looking for BIG people. He’s looking for faithful people.

Looking for direction from God in your life? Be faithful to the things that are already before you. Be faithful in the little things.

(Luke 16:10-11 NLT) "Unless you are faithful in small matters, you won't be faithful in large ones. If you cheat even a little, you won't be honest with greater responsibilities. {11} And if you are untrustworthy about worldly wealth, who will trust you with the true riches of heaven?

{2} Wherefore the king said unto me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing thou art not sick? this is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid, {3} And said unto the king, Let the king live for ever: why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers' sepulchres, lieth waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire? {4} Then the king said unto me, For what dost thou make request? So I prayed to the God of heaven. {5} And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers' sepulchres, that I may build it.

Nehemiah hasn’t been sitting around wishing that someone else would go rebuild Jerusalem. He was ready to go himself.

{6} And the king said unto me, (the queen also sitting by him,) For how long shall thy journey be? and when wilt thou return? So it pleased the king to send me; and I set him a time. {7} Moreover I said unto the king, If it please the king, let letters be given me to the governors beyond the river, that they may convey me over till I come into Judah; {8} And a letter unto Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the palace which appertained to the house, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall enter into. And the king granted me, according to the good hand of my God upon me.

Lesson #3

Begin to make your plans

Judging by the detail of Nehemiah’s response to the king, this is something he’s been thinking about.

When the king asks “how long”, Nehemiah has an answer to give him.

Sometimes we fall into thinking that a truly “spiritual” person doesn’t make plans. Instead, we are just “led by the Lord”. But this isn’t Biblical. Making plans is quite Biblical, as long as we are always careful to give God the ability to form or even change our plans.

(Prov 16:9 NASB) The mind of man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps.

(Prov 16:3 NASB) Commit your works to the LORD, And your plans will be established.

I don’t want to talk about making “good” plans, I want to talk about finding “God’s” plans.

(James 4:13-17 NLT) Look here, you people who say, "Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit." {14} How do you know what will happen tomorrow? For your life is like the morning fog--it's here a little while, then it's gone. {15} What you ought to say is, "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that." {16} Otherwise you will be boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.

All the plans we make are subject to what God wants for our lives.

{17} Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

A vision is when you have an idea of what God wants you to do. If you don’t do it, you’ve sinned.

You may not have a clue as to how all the “hows” are going to be answered, but begin making your plans. And give God permission to change those plans.

There may be some things right off that you can do to take some practical steps toward your vision.

For example – some of you may have a vision of some of your loved ones coming to know Jesus.

How do you expect that will happen? Could it be that God would use YOU in their lives?

Maybe you aren’t sure you’ll have all the answers to the questions they might ask – maybe you need to plan on taking the apologetics class starting next week.

Homework: What kinds of things does God want to do in your life? If you have a hunger to see God’s direction in your life – then start praying and asking God for vision. Maybe go spend time up in a tower somewhere. Next week we’ll look at ways of developing that vision. Has God been speaking to you?