REFLECTIONS
September 30, 2007
 
 
that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
1 Timothy 2:2
 
 
Power of Vision
 
“Tell me about you,” I asked the old gentleman. He looked at me for a moment seeming to gather his thoughts, and then responded, “The brief answer is: lost.”
It was hard not to notice him. He was a large man. His beard was long and grey matching his hair both in length and color. His likeness to Santa Claus was completed by a round belly that, in my mind, would shake like jelly should a hardy laugh ever come. Yet I don’t think it was his appearance that caused me to approach him. I think I was drawn to him because he looked the part of his story—lost.
We learned that the old man’s name is Philip, that he feels out of place in the world, and that some of life’s disappointments have left him with a sense of failure. Now he fears that he has let life pass him by and the potential for his life to make a difference is gone. Phil once had a vision for his life, but now it has been replaced by homelessness.
Most of us have gone through times when we had the sense of being lost—when a failure or disappointment redirected us from the vision we had for our life toward something that was not yet clear. It is a time of life when each day awakens with no clear purpose, and the mind drifts back to what might have been instead of looking forward at what still could be.
Apostle Paul’s vision of his future was certainly changed by his encounter with Jesus on the Damascus road; and certainly he went through a time to recast the vision God called him to pursue. But the vision became clear and provided the power to become a teacher and a herald to the Gentiles. It was a vision of the world living peaceful, quiet lives in godliness and holiness. And it was the power of vision that served to guide Paul for the remainder of his life.
Vision is not a mystical phenomenon. It is the image we have of the future we pursue. Our vision may be a conscious one as it was with Paul, or it may be subliminal as it likely was with Philip. But make no mistake, we all have one. The vision we have for our lives forms the foundation for the decisions we make. And the clearer the vision is the more sound our decisions will be as we walk through this life.
God created us in his image. He granted us the ability to envision how our lives can make a better tomorrow. That is our vision. And the power of vision overcomes life’s disappointments and drives us toward what still could be.
 
“You are the light of the world,”
Richard Ì
 

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