Proverbs Chapter 16
Today we are walking in: How to Write Your Personal Vision Plan
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Chapter 17
How to Write Your Personal Vision Plan
Yah will direct your steps when you make a concrete plan to move toward what you desire.
Commit to the Most High whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.—Proverbs 16:3
Most of us are trying to construct our lives without any real thought or planning. We are like a contractor who is trying to construct a building without a blueprint. As a result, our lives are out of balance and unreliable. We never fulfill the reason for our existence and end up unsatisfied and frustrated. The key to having a rewarding and productive life is developing a specific plan to fulfill your personal life vision.
Discovering and implementing your personal vision is a process of learning about yourself, growing in your relationship and knowledge of the Most High, and continually fine-tuning your understanding of the vision Yah has given you. Therefore, when you write your vision, realize that it won’t be a finished product. You will keep refining it as Yah makes your purpose clearer as the months and years go by, and as you experience spiritual and personal growth. In fact, it would be a good idea to review your personal vision on a regular basis. At least every six months to a year, set aside a block of time to pray and reevaluate where you are in relation to your vision. You will add to or take away certain elements of your plan as Yah refines your understanding of His purpose. Eventually, you will begin to see,“This is the real thing!” However, if you never write out a life blueprint, then Yah will have nothing to direct you in.
My prayer is that you will stop the construction of your life right where it is and go back and draw solid blueprints that will lead you where you want to go in life through the vision Yah has put in your heart. The following are guidelines for discovering and developing your personal vision plan. The last section of the book, “Taking Action: Action Steps to Bringing Your Vision into Reality,” contains additional principles and guidelines for developing your vision plan, including a Personal Planning and Goal-Setting Program.
Step One: Eliminate Distractions Sit down somewhere by yourself, away from any distractions and responsibilities, and allow yourself some uninterrupted time to think. Do this as often as you need to as you develop your plan.
Step Two: Find Your True Self Until you know who you are, why Yah created you, and why you’re here, life will simply be a confusing experiment. Answering the following questions will help give you clarity and confidence in regard to your personal identity.
• Who am I?
• Who am I in relation to Yah?
• Where do I come from as a person?
• How have I been created like my Source? (See Genesis 1:26–28.)
• Why am I here?
Write out your personal purpose statement. Ask yourself, What is my reason for existence as a human being and as an individual? (You may be able to answer this question only after you have completed the other steps. However, you may also want to write an answer now and then compare it with what you think after you have gone through the rest of the questions.) Step Three: Find Your True Vision Answer the following questions, and you’ll be amazed at the way Yah will begin to open your mind to His purpose and vision for you. You'll begin to see things that you’ve never seen before. Put them down on paper, read them over, think about them, pray about them, and begin to formulate ideas of what you want out of life.
Ask yourself the following:
• What do I want to do with my life?
• What am I inspired to do?
• What would I want to do more than anything else, even if I was never paid for it?
• What do I love to do so much that I forget to eat or sleep?
Allow yourself to think freely. Don’t put any limitations of time or money on your vision. Because many of us are influenced by others’ opinions of us and by our own false expectations for ourselves, it may take you a little time to discover what you really want. Persevere through the process and dig down deep to find your true desires. Below are activities to help you do this.
Activities:
Write your own legacy.
• What you would like your eulogy to say about you? What would you like to be known for? What would you want others (for example, family members, colleagues, teachers, employers, neighbors) to say about you?
• Family: What kind of husband, wife, son, or daughter do you want to be remembered as?
• Society: What kind of impact would you like to leave on your community?
• World: In what way would you like the world to be different because you were here?
Write out your personal mission statement.
Your mission statement is a general statement of what you want to have accomplished when your life is over. Ask yourself where you want to be one, five, ten, twenty, thirty years from now. Jot down your ideas and continue to think and pray about them.
Summarize your vision for your life in just one sentence.
This is a specific statement of what you want to do in life. It should be what motivates you and keeps you going toward your dream.
Step Four: Discover Your True Motivation A vision from Yah is never selfish. It will always help or uplift others in some way. It is designed to make the lives of humankind better and to improve society. It inspires and builds up others.
Ask yourself the following:
• How does my vision help others?
• What is the motivation for my vision?
• Why do I want to do what I want to do?
• Can I accomplish my vision and still have integrity?
Step Five: Identify Your Principles Your principles are your philosophy of life. In other words, they are how you intend to conduct yourself during your life. You must clarify what you will and won’t do. These principles are your guides for living, doing business, relating to other people, and relating to life. You must settle them in your heart and mind so that you will have standards to live by.
The Ten Commandments are great principles and a good starting point for developing your own principles. For example, you could write,“On my way to my vision, I will not steal, lie, or bear false witness. I won’t worship any Yah but Yah the Father. I will not commit adultery. I will not covet,” and so on.
• Write out your life principles.
Step Six: Choose Your Goals and Objectives Goals are the steps necessary to fulfill your vision. What practical things do you need to do to accomplish your dream? Goals are clear markers that will take you where you need to go.
• Write out your goals.
Objectives are the detailed steps of your goals. They determine when you want things to happen. You must clearly delineate what you need to do and when you need to do it in order to get to where you want to go. For example, if you want to open a mechanics shop, and one of your goals is to go to school to learn mechanics, some of your objectives will be to choose a school, fill out an application, and start classes. Objectives should include specific timetables.
• Write out your objectives.
Step Seven: Identify Your Resources You now need to identify all the resources you will need to accomplish your vision.
Identify your human needs.
What help do you need from others to fulfill your vision? What kind of personal associations do you need to have—and not have?
Identify your resource needs.
What kinds of resources do you need to fulfill your vision? Don’t worry about how large they may seem. Write them down.
Write down your strengths.
Who are you? What are your gifts? What do you know you are good at? Write down your answers, and then make plans to refine your strengths. For example, if your vision requires that you have to speak before large groups of people, you have to start stepping out and doing it. Y ou’re probably going to be scared at first, yet Yah will give you opportunities to speak at different stages so you can develop your gift. You don’t even know what you can do until you have to. Some amazing gifts come out of people when they are under pressure.
Write down your weaknesses.
What does your vision need that you aren’t good at? Don’t be ashamed of your weaknesses, because everyone has something they are not good at. You don’t have the monopoly on that. However, you must identify them because Yah will supply other people to do what you cannot do toward your vision. You need other people in your life because your vision cannot be fulfilled by you alone.
Step Eight: Commit to Your Vision You will never fulfill your vision if you are not committed to it. You will need to make a specific decision that you are going to follow through with what you want to do, acknowledging that Yah may refine your plans as He leads you through the process. Also, commit your vision to Yah on a regular basis. Proverbs 16:3 says, “Commit to the Most High whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.”
• Commit to your vision.
• Commit your vision to Yah.Taking Action
Action Steps to Bringing Your Vision into Reality
The Principles and Process of Vision
• Sight is a function of the eyes, but vision is a function of the heart. “Eyes that look are common, but eyes that see are rare.” Without vision, sight has no hope.
• Sight is the ability to see things as they are; vision is the capacity to see things as they could be.
• “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen [with the natural eye]” (Hebrews 11:1 nkjv). Faith is seeing the future in the present. Faith is vision.
The Principles of Vision
1. Vision is the product of purpose.
2. Vision is the source of true leadership.
3. Vision is documented purpose.
4. Vision is detailed, customized, distinctive, unique, and reasonable.
5. Vision never maintains the status quo.
6. Vision always demands change.
7. Vision is future-focused.
8. Vision creates self-discipline.
9. Vision is a result of Yahly inspiration.
10. Vision is not the mission.
11. Vision is generational.
12. Vision is manifested in phases.
13. Vision is always given to individuals.
14. Vision is greater than the visionary.
15. Vision is more powerful than death.
16. Vision empowers people to action.
The Process of Vision
1. Vision must be captured.
2. Vision must be simplified.
3. Vision must be documented.
4. Vision must be communicated.
5. Vision must be shared ownership.
6. Vision must be both personal and corporate.
7. Vision must produce a plan.
8. Vision must be constantly revised.
9. Vision must be evaluated.
10. Vision must create priorities.
How to Write a Mission Statement A mission is a general statement of purpose that declares the overall idea of what you want to accomplish. It is philosophical and abstract rather than practical and concrete.
A written mission statement defines the purpose and justification for your existence (personal and corporate). To write your personal mission statement, ask yourself the following questions:
1. What represents the deepest and best within me?
2. What would fulfill my gifts and express my capacity to contribute to humanity?
3. What integrates all my physical, mental, social, and spiritual needs?
4. What creates and reflects my principle-based values?
5. What would fulfill all my roles in life—family, professional, community, and generational?
How to Write Your Personal Vision True vision is the product of a clear sense of purpose and deep inspiration. The following questions will help you to identify and refine your personal vision.
1. What is my deepest desire?
2. What do I want to leave to this generation as a contribution?
3. What is the idea that never leaves me?
4. What do I constantly imagine about my future?
5. What do I feel truly passionate about?
6. What one thing would I do if I knew I could not fail?
7. What do I see my future looking like?
8. What is the most important thing I wish I could do in my life?
9. What are my constant, reoccurring dreams?
10. What would bring me the greatest fulfillment?
Keys to Fulfilling Your Vision
• identify •
• clarify •
• refine •
• document •
• articulate •
• communicate •
• demonstrate •
• reevaluate •
• revise •
• repeat •
• Vision simplifies life •
Personal Plan Program: A Systematic Strategy To fulfill the plans for your life, it is necessary to discipline yourself and submit to wise counsel, as it is written: “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed” (Prov. 15:22).
The following questions must be answered and fulfilled for the success of your plans:
1. What do I want to accomplish?
2. Who do I need?
3. Where can I go for information?
4. What do I need to read?
5. Who should I associate with?
6. How long should it take?
7. How much will it cost?
8. What courses should I take?
9. Where can I get experience?
10. What do I have?
Seven Principles of Vision (from Habakkuk 2:1-4)
1. The principle of documentation (write the vision)
2. The principle of simplification (make it plain)
3. The principle of shared vision (give it to the heralds)
4. The principle of participation (let them run with it)
5. The principle of timing (an appointed time)
6.The principle of patience (wait for it)
7. The principle of faith (it will certainly come)
Personal Planning and Goal-Setting Program Y ear:
Name:
By Yah’s grace, I commit to accomplishing the following goals this year:
Personal Spiritual Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Family Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Health Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Academic Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Career Goals
1.2.
3.
Personal Relationship Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Financial Goals
1.
2.
3.
Personal Investment Goals
1.
2.
3.
I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which Yah has called me heavenward in Hamachiach Yahusha. —Philippians 4:13
The Divine destiny connection, the chain that links us together.
Friday, February 28, 2025
Thursday, February 27, 2025
THE GENERATIONAL NATURE OF VISION
Ecclesiastes chapter 3
Today we are walking: The Generational Nature of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Chapter 16
The Generational Nature of Vision
You were born to do something in life that leaves nutrients for the seed of the next generation to take root in and grow.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 says,“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” Like the calendar year, our lives have four seasons, and those seasons must come to pass. The first season is birth and dependency. All of us go through this season in which we must rely totally on outside help, particularly our families, for survival. We need to be taught and trained in what is right and wrong and what is important in life.
The second season is one of independence, in which we capture what we were born to do. We no longer depend on other people to give us a vision for life or to help us survive. We focus in on our own goals. We depend primarily on Yah, yet we rely on the help of other people to provide the resources that will enable us to live out our dreams.
The third season is interdependence. In this stage, we have become so free in our visions that we can give our dreams to other people. We can now pass on our visions to the next generation.
The final season is death, where our lives become the nourishment for other people’s dreams in the next generation. If people can’t receive life from the legacy you leave when you die, then you really didn’t live effectively. People should be able to flourish on the fruit of the vision you leave behind on earth.
If it wasn’t for their tombstones, we wouldn’t know that some people were ever alive. What a tragedy. You should live so effectively that there won’t be any need for a tombstone to mark your grave because your life will be in the hearts and memories of those who could never forget you or what you did. Truly great people don’t need monuments because we will always remember them. It doesn’t matter if we don’t know where the graves of David or Joshua are. They lived so well that we can’t forget them. If you live properly, history will not be able to ignore that you lived.
Vision gives us assignments that will impact the earth. We must be able to say we have changed the world in some way while we were here and that we have left a mark for those who will come after us. We were born to do something inlife that leaves nutrients for the seeds of the next generation to take root in and grow. The fact is, we will soon be gone from this earth. Let’s make the few years we have count! Let’s discover and pursue the visions Yah has placed in our hearts.
Today we are walking: The Generational Nature of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Chapter 16
The Generational Nature of Vision
You were born to do something in life that leaves nutrients for the seed of the next generation to take root in and grow.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 says,“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven.” Like the calendar year, our lives have four seasons, and those seasons must come to pass. The first season is birth and dependency. All of us go through this season in which we must rely totally on outside help, particularly our families, for survival. We need to be taught and trained in what is right and wrong and what is important in life.
The second season is one of independence, in which we capture what we were born to do. We no longer depend on other people to give us a vision for life or to help us survive. We focus in on our own goals. We depend primarily on Yah, yet we rely on the help of other people to provide the resources that will enable us to live out our dreams.
The third season is interdependence. In this stage, we have become so free in our visions that we can give our dreams to other people. We can now pass on our visions to the next generation.
The final season is death, where our lives become the nourishment for other people’s dreams in the next generation. If people can’t receive life from the legacy you leave when you die, then you really didn’t live effectively. People should be able to flourish on the fruit of the vision you leave behind on earth.
If it wasn’t for their tombstones, we wouldn’t know that some people were ever alive. What a tragedy. You should live so effectively that there won’t be any need for a tombstone to mark your grave because your life will be in the hearts and memories of those who could never forget you or what you did. Truly great people don’t need monuments because we will always remember them. It doesn’t matter if we don’t know where the graves of David or Joshua are. They lived so well that we can’t forget them. If you live properly, history will not be able to ignore that you lived.
Vision gives us assignments that will impact the earth. We must be able to say we have changed the world in some way while we were here and that we have left a mark for those who will come after us. We were born to do something inlife that leaves nutrients for the seeds of the next generation to take root in and grow. The fact is, we will soon be gone from this earth. Let’s make the few years we have count! Let’s discover and pursue the visions Yah has placed in our hearts.
Wednesday, February 26, 2025
STAY CONNECTED TO THE SOURCE OF VISION
John chapter 15
Today we are walking in: Stay Connected to the Source of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #12:
Stay Connected to the Source of Vision
I am the vine; you are the branches....Apart from me you can do nothing. —John 15:5
Principle number twelve is that, if you are going to be successful in your vision, you must have a daily, dynamic personal prayer life with Yah. Why? Because you need continual communion and fellowship with the Source of vision.
Remember that you were born to consult Yah to find out His purpose for your life so that you can discover your vision. Yet, as the “Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 1:8 nkjv), Yah is not only the Author of your vision, but also your continuing Support as you progress toward its fulfillment. You will never achieve your vision without prayer because prayer is what keeps you connected to the Vision-Giver. Yahusha said in John 15:5,“I am the vine; you are the branches....Apart from me you can do nothing.” If you stay in touch with Yah, you will always be nourished in both life and vision.
Prayer Sustains Us in the Demands of Vision
Sometimes, in the pursuit of your vision, you will grow emotionally and spiritually weary if things don’t seem to be working out for you. When you have been pressed, criticized, and opposed, you can become weak in faith. That is when you must stagger back to your prayer closet and say, “Yah, I want to give up,” so that you can hear Him say to you, “What you began will be finished.” Philippians 1:6 says, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.” Prayer is the place where you can take all your burdens to Yah and say,“Yah, I have to make it,” and He will say, “I’m with you. What are you afraid of?” “The Most High is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Most High is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1). Yah will bring you through your difficulties and give you the victory through prayer based on His Word.
There are many days (and nights) when I stumble into my prayer room and say, “Yah, if You won’t help me in this, I want You to take me home to You.” Visions can be very demanding. It can be difficult running a business. It can be tough trying to start a new company. It can be hard trying to pursue a new aspect of your vision or doing something that no one else has ever done before. It can be stressful trying to go to school to earn a degree. Sometimes, you will feel, “Am I ever going to make it?” That’s a good time to run to Yah. Prayer means getting away from the noise and confusion of life and saying, “Yah, I’m not going back out there.” Yet if you will let Him encourage and refresh you, by the time you have finished praying, you will be saying, “I’m ready to go again!”
Prayer Encourages Us to Get Back in the Fight
Through our prayers, Yah also encourages us to get back out into the fight of faith. Isaiah 40:31 says, “Those who hope in the Most High will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Yes, you will become tired, and sometimes you will want to quit. However, if you are willing to bear up in prayer and stand before Yah and say, “Yah, I’m hoping in you!” He will give you strength.
When you achieve your vision, and other people see you enjoying the victory, they will be proud of what you have accomplished. You'll have your belt on as the champion. Of course, they won’t know about the rounds you lost, how you sometimes staggered as you made your way back into your corner to recuperate for the next round. A real fighter doesn’t wear his medals on his chest. He wears them on his back. They are his scars. Only a few people will know what it took for you to achieve your vision. Yet you must be willing to take the scars if you want to wear the crown.
Believe me, every champion does not win every round, but if he perseveres, he wins the match. Since prayer is where you receive the ability to continue the fight, it is crucial for you to find times during the day when you can go to Yah and say things like,“Yah, I’m scared,” so that He can reassure you that He is with you. He says,“Surely I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20). When you hear that, it is enough. You are be able to say, “Let’s go back, Most High, and fight one more day.” You can win, you can be victorious, if you are willing to take what you are afraid of to Yah in prayer.
Prayer Is the Essential Resource of Vision
Without prayer, you cannot get where you want to go. There will be times when all you’ll have is prayer. You won’t have any money, people, or resources —just prayer. Yet that is all you need. Yah will see you through.
When all the trouble and opposition came to Nehemiah, he said to Yah,“Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my Yah, because of what they have done; remember also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who have been trying to intimidate me” (Nehemiah 6:14). Nehemiah took all his troubles and enemies to Yah in prayer. He didn’t write a letter of complaint to the editor of the newspaper. He didn’t try to justify himself. He prayed, and Yah answered his prayer to deliver him. (See verses 15–16.)
Likewise, when people attack your dream, go to Yah. Don’t try to explain and give an answer for everything because you can’t explain anything to critics. Their motives are already contaminated, and they’ll use your words against you. Instead, stay connected to your Source for the renewal of your purpose, faith, and strength, and you will be able to persevere to victory. Yah is the One who planted your life’s purpose within you in the beginning. He has invested Himself in your dream, and He will bring it to pass. “If the Most High delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Most High upholds him with his hand “ (Psalm 37:23–24).
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• Establish a daily prayer time with Yah.
• In what ways are you relying on Yah for your life and vision? In what ways aren’t you relying on Him? Commit to prayer the areas in which you aren’t currently relying on Him. Be honest with Him about how you are feeling, and allow Him to strengthen, sustain, and encourage you through His presence and His Word.
Chapter Principles
1 To be successful in your vision, you must have a daily, dynamic prayer life with Yah.
2 Yah is not only the Author of your vision, but also your continuing Support as you progress toward its fulfillment.
3 You will never achieve your vision without prayer because prayer is what keeps you connected to the Vision-Giver.
4 If you stay in touch with Yah, you will always be nourished in both life and vision.
5 Prayer sustains us in the demands of vision. Yah will bring you through your difficulties and give you the victory through prayer based on His Word.
6 Prayer encourages us to get back in the fight of faith.
7 Since prayer is where we receive the ability to continue the fight, it is crucial for us to find times during the day when we can go before Yah.
8 Prayer is the essential resource of vision. When people attack your dream, go to Yah. Remain connected to your Source for the renewal of your purpose, faith, and strength, and you will be able to persevere to victory.
9 Yah is the One who planted your life’s purpose within you in the beginning. He has invested Himself in your dream, and He will bring it to pass
Today we are walking in: Stay Connected to the Source of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #12:
Stay Connected to the Source of Vision
I am the vine; you are the branches....Apart from me you can do nothing. —John 15:5
Principle number twelve is that, if you are going to be successful in your vision, you must have a daily, dynamic personal prayer life with Yah. Why? Because you need continual communion and fellowship with the Source of vision.
Remember that you were born to consult Yah to find out His purpose for your life so that you can discover your vision. Yet, as the “Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 1:8 nkjv), Yah is not only the Author of your vision, but also your continuing Support as you progress toward its fulfillment. You will never achieve your vision without prayer because prayer is what keeps you connected to the Vision-Giver. Yahusha said in John 15:5,“I am the vine; you are the branches....Apart from me you can do nothing.” If you stay in touch with Yah, you will always be nourished in both life and vision.
Prayer Sustains Us in the Demands of Vision
Sometimes, in the pursuit of your vision, you will grow emotionally and spiritually weary if things don’t seem to be working out for you. When you have been pressed, criticized, and opposed, you can become weak in faith. That is when you must stagger back to your prayer closet and say, “Yah, I want to give up,” so that you can hear Him say to you, “What you began will be finished.” Philippians 1:6 says, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion.” Prayer is the place where you can take all your burdens to Yah and say,“Yah, I have to make it,” and He will say, “I’m with you. What are you afraid of?” “The Most High is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Most High is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1). Yah will bring you through your difficulties and give you the victory through prayer based on His Word.
There are many days (and nights) when I stumble into my prayer room and say, “Yah, if You won’t help me in this, I want You to take me home to You.” Visions can be very demanding. It can be difficult running a business. It can be tough trying to start a new company. It can be hard trying to pursue a new aspect of your vision or doing something that no one else has ever done before. It can be stressful trying to go to school to earn a degree. Sometimes, you will feel, “Am I ever going to make it?” That’s a good time to run to Yah. Prayer means getting away from the noise and confusion of life and saying, “Yah, I’m not going back out there.” Yet if you will let Him encourage and refresh you, by the time you have finished praying, you will be saying, “I’m ready to go again!”
Prayer Encourages Us to Get Back in the Fight
Through our prayers, Yah also encourages us to get back out into the fight of faith. Isaiah 40:31 says, “Those who hope in the Most High will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Yes, you will become tired, and sometimes you will want to quit. However, if you are willing to bear up in prayer and stand before Yah and say, “Yah, I’m hoping in you!” He will give you strength.
When you achieve your vision, and other people see you enjoying the victory, they will be proud of what you have accomplished. You'll have your belt on as the champion. Of course, they won’t know about the rounds you lost, how you sometimes staggered as you made your way back into your corner to recuperate for the next round. A real fighter doesn’t wear his medals on his chest. He wears them on his back. They are his scars. Only a few people will know what it took for you to achieve your vision. Yet you must be willing to take the scars if you want to wear the crown.
Believe me, every champion does not win every round, but if he perseveres, he wins the match. Since prayer is where you receive the ability to continue the fight, it is crucial for you to find times during the day when you can go to Yah and say things like,“Yah, I’m scared,” so that He can reassure you that He is with you. He says,“Surely I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20). When you hear that, it is enough. You are be able to say, “Let’s go back, Most High, and fight one more day.” You can win, you can be victorious, if you are willing to take what you are afraid of to Yah in prayer.
Prayer Is the Essential Resource of Vision
Without prayer, you cannot get where you want to go. There will be times when all you’ll have is prayer. You won’t have any money, people, or resources —just prayer. Yet that is all you need. Yah will see you through.
When all the trouble and opposition came to Nehemiah, he said to Yah,“Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my Yah, because of what they have done; remember also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who have been trying to intimidate me” (Nehemiah 6:14). Nehemiah took all his troubles and enemies to Yah in prayer. He didn’t write a letter of complaint to the editor of the newspaper. He didn’t try to justify himself. He prayed, and Yah answered his prayer to deliver him. (See verses 15–16.)
Likewise, when people attack your dream, go to Yah. Don’t try to explain and give an answer for everything because you can’t explain anything to critics. Their motives are already contaminated, and they’ll use your words against you. Instead, stay connected to your Source for the renewal of your purpose, faith, and strength, and you will be able to persevere to victory. Yah is the One who planted your life’s purpose within you in the beginning. He has invested Himself in your dream, and He will bring it to pass. “If the Most High delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Most High upholds him with his hand “ (Psalm 37:23–24).
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• Establish a daily prayer time with Yah.
• In what ways are you relying on Yah for your life and vision? In what ways aren’t you relying on Him? Commit to prayer the areas in which you aren’t currently relying on Him. Be honest with Him about how you are feeling, and allow Him to strengthen, sustain, and encourage you through His presence and His Word.
Chapter Principles
1 To be successful in your vision, you must have a daily, dynamic prayer life with Yah.
2 Yah is not only the Author of your vision, but also your continuing Support as you progress toward its fulfillment.
3 You will never achieve your vision without prayer because prayer is what keeps you connected to the Vision-Giver.
4 If you stay in touch with Yah, you will always be nourished in both life and vision.
5 Prayer sustains us in the demands of vision. Yah will bring you through your difficulties and give you the victory through prayer based on His Word.
6 Prayer encourages us to get back in the fight of faith.
7 Since prayer is where we receive the ability to continue the fight, it is crucial for us to find times during the day when we can go before Yah.
8 Prayer is the essential resource of vision. When people attack your dream, go to Yah. Remain connected to your Source for the renewal of your purpose, faith, and strength, and you will be able to persevere to victory.
9 Yah is the One who planted your life’s purpose within you in the beginning. He has invested Himself in your dream, and He will bring it to pass
Tuesday, February 25, 2025
BE PATIENT IN THE FULFILLMENT OF VISION
Hebrews chapter 6
Today we are walking: Be Patient in the Fulfillment of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #11:
Be Patient in the Fulfillment of Vision
Imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. —Hebrews 6:12
Principle number eleven is that we must be patient in seeing the fulfillment of our visions. Again, it may take a while for your vision to come to fruition, but if you are willing to wait for it (which many people are not), it will come to pass. The writer of Hebrews tells us, “Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere [“have need of patience” kjv] so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35–36). People who have long patience will always win.
Patience Ensures the Eventual Success of the Plan
When some people make plans to carry out their visions, they try to force those plans into their own timetable or their own way of bringing them to pass. However, you cannot rush a vision. It is given by Yah, and He will carry it out in His own time. You may ask, “Then what is the reason for developing a plan in the first place?” Remember that the reason why you make plans is so you can have plans to modify, as necessary and appropriate, along the way—while still keeping to the overall vision. We are not all-knowing, as Yah is. We need to patiently rely on His guidance every step of the way. Remember that He promises to take us step-by-step, not leap-by-leap. Part of that step-by-step process is making some adjustments to the plan as the working out of His purposes becomes clearer to us.
As I wrote earlier, when we first receive our visions, we are not ready for them yet. The vision process takes us to the point at which we are ready for them to be fulfilled. If Yah showed us the entire path right away, we might balk at it. As we grow and mature along the path, however, we are able to follow Yah’s leading and adjust our expectations and plans accordingly. We learn to follow the subtle leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives in which we “hear a voice behind [us], saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (Isaiah 30:21).
Again, you should always put deadlines on your goals, but you must also bewilling to rearrange those deadlines; be assured that the vision is coming at just the right time. Yah sent Yahusha to be our Savior about four thousand years after the fall of humankind. Humanly speaking, that was a long time to wait. But He came just as predicted and at just the right time. The Bible says, “But when the time had fully come, Yah sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons” (Galatians 4:4–5). Yahusha came in the fullness of time, and so will your vision. That is why you need to be patient with your dream as you wait for it with anticipation. If someone asks you about it, say, “I’m just waiting for the next move.” Some people might wonder if it will ever happen. You do not need to wonder, however, but simply to wait. It will all come to pass if you are willing to progress at the vision’s pace.
If Yah has shown you that you will own a store, but right now, you are just working in one, then you can be happy and content, knowing that what you see with your eyes is not the vision you see in your heart; you can be certain that your current situation is only temporary. Or perhaps, right now, it is your job to make coffee for the boss. Y ou’re “enduring the shame” (see Hebrews 12:2) because you know you’re going to be a general manager one day. Making coffee doesn’t bother you, so you make the best coffee you possibly can. Perhaps people think you are just a secretary, but you know you’re on your way to becoming a supervisor, so their opinion of you really doesn’t matter. Vision makes you patient.
Patience Brings Peace in the Midst of Uncertainty
When you are patient in the fulfillment of your vision, you are able to be calm in the midst of uncertainty. For example, you can be at peace when everyone else is worrying about being laid off. No one can really “lay off” a child of Yah. All they can do is set you up for your next position that will further prepare you for the fulfillment of your vision. You can endure the cross when you have seen the joy of the end of your vision. (See Hebrews 12:2.)
When you don’t have vision, you complain about the cross. You become frustrated about your position. You get angry about your salary. You worry about holding on to your job. You grumble. However, when you understand vision, you remember that vision takes time and patience and often involves change. To go to a new place, you have to think differently. As I wrote earlier, vision may constantly keep you unsettled, but it will also keep you fluid and mobile, ready to take the next step toward your vision. When you keep company with Yah, you have to keep moving, but you have the assurance that He is always with you along the path toward your vision’s fulfillment.
Patience Overcomes Adversity
Patience is also the key to power over adversity and turmoil. If you threaten a man, and he just waits, your threat is going to wear off. The Bible says that a patient man is stronger than a mighty warrior: “Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city” (Proverbs 16:32).
When I first read that verse, I found it hard to believe that patience is more powerful than might. Then I came to understand the power of patience. A patient person makes others unsettled because they want that person to react to them, to become angry—but he never does. Nothing can make you more nervous than a waiting person. You try everything, and all he does is just wait. His waiting eventually unnerves and overcomes the opposition.
Therefore, when you have vision, no one can offend you. Do your coworkers dislike you? That’s all right. It’s just temporary. Are they not speaking to you? That’s okay. It’s just temporary. Are they trying to hold you back? No problem. It’s just temporary. Your job is not your life. It’s merely a classroom to prepare you for your future.
Patience Wins the Race
As long as you can dream, there’s hope. As long as there’s hope, there’s life. It’s crucial that you and I maintain our dreams by patiently waiting for their fulfillment in the fullness of time. James 1:4 says, “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (nkjv). Others who have gone before us have had their faith tested, and it has produced patience in them (see verse 3) so that they were able to win the race. Let us do the same. Hebrews 12:1 says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (kjv). Amen.
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• Have you been trying to force the timetable of the fulfillment of your vision? If so, what have you learned about patience in this chapter thatwill enable you to trust Yah to fulfill the vision in His timing?
• Encourage your spirit as you patiently wait for your vision to come to pass by committing these verses to memory this week:
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.(James 1:4 nkjv)
We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.(Hebrews 6:12)
You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised. (Hebrews 10:36)
Chapter Principles
1 We must be patient in seeing the fulfillment of our visions.
2 “Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere [“have need of patience” kjv] so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35–36).
3 People who have long patience will always win. Patience ensures the eventual success of your vision’s plan.
4 We cannot try to force our visions into our own timetables. Vision is given by Yah, and He will carry it out in His own time.
5 Your vision will come to pass if you are willing to progress at the vision’s pace.
6 When you are patient in the fulfillment of your vision, you are able to be calm in the midst of uncertainty.
7 Vision takes time and patience and often involves change.
8 Patience is the key to power over adversity and turmoil.
9 The testing of our faith produces patience, and patience perfects our spiritual character and leads to the fulfillment of our visions. (See James 1:4.)
10 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1 kjv)
Today we are walking: Be Patient in the Fulfillment of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #11:
Be Patient in the Fulfillment of Vision
Imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised. —Hebrews 6:12
Principle number eleven is that we must be patient in seeing the fulfillment of our visions. Again, it may take a while for your vision to come to fruition, but if you are willing to wait for it (which many people are not), it will come to pass. The writer of Hebrews tells us, “Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere [“have need of patience” kjv] so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35–36). People who have long patience will always win.
Patience Ensures the Eventual Success of the Plan
When some people make plans to carry out their visions, they try to force those plans into their own timetable or their own way of bringing them to pass. However, you cannot rush a vision. It is given by Yah, and He will carry it out in His own time. You may ask, “Then what is the reason for developing a plan in the first place?” Remember that the reason why you make plans is so you can have plans to modify, as necessary and appropriate, along the way—while still keeping to the overall vision. We are not all-knowing, as Yah is. We need to patiently rely on His guidance every step of the way. Remember that He promises to take us step-by-step, not leap-by-leap. Part of that step-by-step process is making some adjustments to the plan as the working out of His purposes becomes clearer to us.
As I wrote earlier, when we first receive our visions, we are not ready for them yet. The vision process takes us to the point at which we are ready for them to be fulfilled. If Yah showed us the entire path right away, we might balk at it. As we grow and mature along the path, however, we are able to follow Yah’s leading and adjust our expectations and plans accordingly. We learn to follow the subtle leading of the Holy Spirit in our lives in which we “hear a voice behind [us], saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it’” (Isaiah 30:21).
Again, you should always put deadlines on your goals, but you must also bewilling to rearrange those deadlines; be assured that the vision is coming at just the right time. Yah sent Yahusha to be our Savior about four thousand years after the fall of humankind. Humanly speaking, that was a long time to wait. But He came just as predicted and at just the right time. The Bible says, “But when the time had fully come, Yah sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons” (Galatians 4:4–5). Yahusha came in the fullness of time, and so will your vision. That is why you need to be patient with your dream as you wait for it with anticipation. If someone asks you about it, say, “I’m just waiting for the next move.” Some people might wonder if it will ever happen. You do not need to wonder, however, but simply to wait. It will all come to pass if you are willing to progress at the vision’s pace.
If Yah has shown you that you will own a store, but right now, you are just working in one, then you can be happy and content, knowing that what you see with your eyes is not the vision you see in your heart; you can be certain that your current situation is only temporary. Or perhaps, right now, it is your job to make coffee for the boss. Y ou’re “enduring the shame” (see Hebrews 12:2) because you know you’re going to be a general manager one day. Making coffee doesn’t bother you, so you make the best coffee you possibly can. Perhaps people think you are just a secretary, but you know you’re on your way to becoming a supervisor, so their opinion of you really doesn’t matter. Vision makes you patient.
Patience Brings Peace in the Midst of Uncertainty
When you are patient in the fulfillment of your vision, you are able to be calm in the midst of uncertainty. For example, you can be at peace when everyone else is worrying about being laid off. No one can really “lay off” a child of Yah. All they can do is set you up for your next position that will further prepare you for the fulfillment of your vision. You can endure the cross when you have seen the joy of the end of your vision. (See Hebrews 12:2.)
When you don’t have vision, you complain about the cross. You become frustrated about your position. You get angry about your salary. You worry about holding on to your job. You grumble. However, when you understand vision, you remember that vision takes time and patience and often involves change. To go to a new place, you have to think differently. As I wrote earlier, vision may constantly keep you unsettled, but it will also keep you fluid and mobile, ready to take the next step toward your vision. When you keep company with Yah, you have to keep moving, but you have the assurance that He is always with you along the path toward your vision’s fulfillment.
Patience Overcomes Adversity
Patience is also the key to power over adversity and turmoil. If you threaten a man, and he just waits, your threat is going to wear off. The Bible says that a patient man is stronger than a mighty warrior: “Better a patient man than a warrior, a man who controls his temper than one who takes a city” (Proverbs 16:32).
When I first read that verse, I found it hard to believe that patience is more powerful than might. Then I came to understand the power of patience. A patient person makes others unsettled because they want that person to react to them, to become angry—but he never does. Nothing can make you more nervous than a waiting person. You try everything, and all he does is just wait. His waiting eventually unnerves and overcomes the opposition.
Therefore, when you have vision, no one can offend you. Do your coworkers dislike you? That’s all right. It’s just temporary. Are they not speaking to you? That’s okay. It’s just temporary. Are they trying to hold you back? No problem. It’s just temporary. Your job is not your life. It’s merely a classroom to prepare you for your future.
Patience Wins the Race
As long as you can dream, there’s hope. As long as there’s hope, there’s life. It’s crucial that you and I maintain our dreams by patiently waiting for their fulfillment in the fullness of time. James 1:4 says, “But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (nkjv). Others who have gone before us have had their faith tested, and it has produced patience in them (see verse 3) so that they were able to win the race. Let us do the same. Hebrews 12:1 says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (kjv). Amen.
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• Have you been trying to force the timetable of the fulfillment of your vision? If so, what have you learned about patience in this chapter thatwill enable you to trust Yah to fulfill the vision in His timing?
• Encourage your spirit as you patiently wait for your vision to come to pass by committing these verses to memory this week:
But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.(James 1:4 nkjv)
We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.(Hebrews 6:12)
You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised. (Hebrews 10:36)
Chapter Principles
1 We must be patient in seeing the fulfillment of our visions.
2 “Do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere [“have need of patience” kjv] so that when you have done the will of Yah, you will receive what he has promised” (Hebrews 10:35–36).
3 People who have long patience will always win. Patience ensures the eventual success of your vision’s plan.
4 We cannot try to force our visions into our own timetables. Vision is given by Yah, and He will carry it out in His own time.
5 Your vision will come to pass if you are willing to progress at the vision’s pace.
6 When you are patient in the fulfillment of your vision, you are able to be calm in the midst of uncertainty.
7 Vision takes time and patience and often involves change.
8 Patience is the key to power over adversity and turmoil.
9 The testing of our faith produces patience, and patience perfects our spiritual character and leads to the fulfillment of our visions. (See James 1:4.)
10 “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1 kjv)
Monday, February 24, 2025
USE PERSISTENCE IN ACHIEVING THE VISION
Matthew chapter 19
Today we are walking in: Use Persistence in Achieving the Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #10:
Use Persistence in Achieving the Vision
Every true vision will be tested for authenticity.
The tenth principle is that we must be persistent if we are going to achieve the visions Yah has given us. As I wrote earlier, you must realize that obstacles are going to come against you and your vision. Even though Yah gave the vision, that doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy to obtain. Please don’t think that you are exempt from this reality. Trouble isn’t going to say about you, “I guess I’ll just leave him alone.” When you decide to be somebody, everything is going to try to get in the way of your vision. You must be prepared for the challenges, for they are coming.
Think about it: There’s no resistance if you’re not moving. People who aren’t doing anything have nothing to worry about. If you don’t want problems, just don’t do anything important in life. However, if you are following your vision and you encounter problems, you can say, “Thank you, Lord; at least I’m moving forward!”
Yah says that, even though there will be times of stress, disappointment, and pressure, the vision will come to pass. It is not a matter of whether it’s going to be fulfilled; it’s a matter of whether we’re going to be true to it in the midst of trials so that Yah can bring it to pass. One of the words that describes the essence of Yah’s nature is faithfulness. This is because He is true to what He has decided to accomplish, and nothing can stop Him. We need to manifest this characteristic in our own lives.
Another word that helps us understand Yah’s nature in relation to persistence in purpose is the word steadfast. To be steadfast means to stand fast or stand steady in the face of resistance. If you are steadfast, then, when opposition comes, you don’t turn and go back where you were. You push forward. Opposition should strengthen your resolve and revive your stamina.
Courage is another key word in regard to persistence. It is the ability to stand up in the face of fear. It is impossible, in fact, to have courage without fear. In a sense, if we don’t have any fear, we’re not living in faith. That may sound like a strange statement, yet faith always demands that we do something we know we can’t do on our own, and this challenge often causes us to fear at first. Yah told Joshua, “Be strong and courageous” (Joshua 1:6, 9). Why did He say that? Clearly, Joshua must have been scared! Fear, however, is a positive thing when it gives birth to courage. If you’re afraid to step out in your vision because it’s so big, then let your courage come to life as you trust Yah. Courage means, “I’m afraid, but I’m still moving.” Yahusha loves for us to do the impossible because the impossible is always possible with Yah. (See Matthew 19:26.)
When a person finds his purpose, then, if trouble comes, he can smile and say, “This won’t last. With Yah, I’m tougher than this.” When you draw on Yah’s strength, you are tougher than your trials because you see them in a different light. You realize that every resistance to your vision gives you the opportunity to become wiser, not weaker. Let every opposition strengthen you rather than stop you. Paul said that trials refine our faith and make us better. That is why we can say, “Bring on the challenges!”
Overcoming Challenges
There are many types of challenges and pressures in life. During His time on earth, Yahusha showed us how to bring a vision to pass in the midst of such challenges. He faced similar problems and obstacles to what you and I face today, yet His vision came to pass. He is our greatest Teacher when it comes to learning how to overcome challenges.
Difficult Family Background
Life is tough even at the start for some of us. Perhaps your parents were divorced when you were just a child. Maybe your father is an alcoholic and your mother is a drug addict. Perhaps you aren’t even sure who your father is. Or if you know who he is, you wish you didn’t. Yahusha knows what it feels like to have a difficult family background, because He was called “illegitimate.” He was born under what the world considered “questionable circumstances.” (See Matthew 1:18–25.) Y et that did not stop Him from knowing His relationship to His heavenly Father and fulfilling His purpose as Yah’s Son. No matter what your background is, your relationship with your Father in heaven will help you overcome your difficult circumstances and fulfill your purpose as Yah’s child.
Family Expectations
Do you feel pressured by family expectations to pursue a certain career or lifestyle when you know that isn’t Yah’s plan for you? You don’t always have to wait until you’re older or “have it all together” before you know Yah’s will for your life. Perhaps your parents have told you, “You are going to do this,” but you feel called to do something else. Yahusha faced a similar challenge. When He was twelve, He knew what He was born to do. Yet Yahusha’ earthly parents didn’t understand His vision or why He was pursuing it, even when He said, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49; see verse 50). Then, when Yahusha grew older, His mother tried to push Him into fulfilling His vision prematurely, and He had to tell her, “My time has not yet come” (John 2:4). Even though Yahusha respected and honored His parents (see Luke 2:51–52), He had to follow Yah’s purpose for His life. As difficult as it might be to experience the disapproval of family members, you must follow the vision Yah has given you. At the same time, you should always show them love and respect.
The Jealousy and Scheming of Others
Yahusha went through everything you can imagine. There were people who were against Him, who continually schemed to make Him fail. There were those who liked to set Him up for a fall by asking Him trick questions. A crowd once tried to push Him off a cliff. The religious leaders plotted to kill Him. Do you think people call you names? They called Yahusha names, too. They called Him demon-possessed and illegitimate. They said He was a glutton and a drunkard. They hit Him with everything. The harshest taunt and the highest evil, however, was when they said He was full of the devil.
How did Yahusha overcome? How did He succeed in His vision? How did He finish the work the Father had sent Him to do when He faced all that opposition? Yahusha was able to remain composed through all those trials because what He had in His heart was bigger than all their threats, accusations, and insults. He knew how to persevere with a dream. Likewise, the vision in your heart needs to be larger than any opposition that comes against you so you can persist in your life’s purpose.
Destiny Demands Diligence
Destiny demands diligence. I recommend that you write that statement down on a piece of paper and put it where you can see it every day. If you are going to quit after a couple of fights, you will never win. Persistence is the desire to withstand every opposition. Whenever obstacles come along, persistence responds with attitudes such as these:
“You might as well give up, because I’m not going to stop.”
“Get out of my way, because I’m coming through.”
“No matter what I lose, I still have me, so I’ll be back!”
Persistence says to life what Jacob said to the Lord: “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (Genesis 32:26).
Nehemiah could have stopped his work on the wall of Jerusalem because of all the problems, slander, and jeers, but he was persistent. He was determined to complete his vision. You will never be successful unless you have the spirit of persistence. Persistence means that
• you insist on having what you are going after.
• you stand up against resistance until you wear it down.
• you make people who are against you so tired of fighting
• that they either become your friends or leave you alone.
• you stop only after you’ve finished.
How badly do you want your vision? Yahusha told a story in Luke 18 about a persistent woman. She tirelessly appealed to the judge with her request for justice until he said, in essence, “Give it to her!” (See Luke 18:2–8.) Yah wants you to do the same. He wants you to say, “Life, this belongs to me.” If Life refuses on Monday, then go back on Tuesday and say, “This belongs to me.” If Life says no on Tuesday, then go back on Wednesday and say, “This belongs to me!” If Life says no on Thursday, go back on Friday morning and say the same thing, and so on. Life will eventually say, “Here, take it!” Then you can calmly say, “Thank you very much.” Many people lose because they quit when Life says no the first time, but persistent people win. They never take no for an answer when it comes to their visions.
Stay in the Fight
Once, when I was staying at a hotel in Israel, I couldn’t sleep because I wasn’t yet used to the time difference. At about two in the morning, I was up watching a boxing match on television. It was a twelve-round title match, and the boxer from Mexico was pummeling the boxer from the United States. Every time the American boxer moved forward to fight, the other boxer pounded him.
By the sixth round, the U.S. boxer was getting beaten badly, and at the end of the round, he stumbled back into his corner, sat down on the stool, and sagged as if he were a sack of potatoes. Then I saw something happen. In seconds, several men went to work on him. One grabbed a bucket of water and doused him with it. The next grabbed a soaking-wet sponge and squeezed water all over his face. Another applied ointment to soothe his wounds. These men were all talking to him at once, and they were rubbing him down as they talked. Even though he was getting trounced, they were telling him,“You can do this. You can get back out there. You're strong! You're better than he is!” One of the men said,“Keep your left hook, okay? Keep your left hook. He’s a slow left. You can get him with that left.” After about two minutes, the boxer jumped up, saying,“Yeah! Oh, yeah!” He ran back out there, and everything changed in the seventh round.
Guess who won the fight? The one who had been about to quit in the sixth round won the fight and received the prize. There was blood everywhere, but under that blood was the champion. When he won the decision, all his strength came back. He ran around the room screaming. When you win, you forget all the pounding you received during the fight.
Sometimes, you will get beaten up pretty badly in life, but stay in the fight. Fight until you feel the joy of victory. When you think you’re going to lose, and you stumble back into the corner of life, the Lord will come and pour the cool water of His Word on your head. He will take the ointment of the Holy Spirit and bring healing to your wounds. He will rub life back into your spirit so you can jump back out and say, “Hey! Come on, Life!” Just like the boxer’s coaching team, the Holy Spirit speaks good things into your spirit, such as “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4 kjv). Life will be tough, but get back out there and start throwing blows. Keep your left up. That’s persistence.
We know that Yah wants us to be fighters because the Bible calls us soldiers. (See 2 Timothy 2:3–4.) We are warriors. We are people of battle. The Bible also refers to us as those who “wrestle” (Ephesians 6:12 nkjv). This is because we don’t just receive medals from Yah. We earn them. If Yah didn’t want you to fight, He would have given you the medal without the conflict.
The Bible says,“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11). Some people don’t have a testimony of overcoming. Their testimony is, “I went through the fire, and I got burned. I went under the water and almost drowned. I have scars in my life! Let me testify about how I’ve been beaten up.” Other people are so spiritually“clean-cut” that you know they have never yet had a scrimmage with the devil. Yet those who have a true testimony usually don’t even have to talk about it because it is evident in their lives.
You may have many bumps and bruises, but keep on walking toward your goal, trusting in Yah. It’s going to get tough, but you have what it takes to win because Yah has promised that He will stay with you and work out the steps of your plan. I like what Paul said in Romans 8:
Who shall separate us from the love of Hamachiach? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us [and called us and gave us our visions].(vv. 35, 37)
Yah has put so much in you that if you are willing to capture it, nothing can stop you. There is not enough darkness in the world to extinguish the light Yah has put within you. The light of Yah’s vision in your heart is so strong and bright that all the darkness of the planet, all the darkness of people’s opinions, and all the darkness of past failures can never put it out.
Bear Up under Pressure
Perseverance actually means “to bear up under pressure.” I like this quote from Eleanor Roosevelt, which actually applies to all people: “A woman is like a tea bag. You never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.” Here’s a similar analogy: People who are successful are like tea bags. When they get in hot water, they make tea. When life squeezes them, they don’t become angry; they do something constructive with the pressure. They persevere under it and use it for their own benefit. People who have vision are stronger than the pressure life brings.
I have discovered that sometimes you don’t get the scent from the rose until you crush it. In order to draw the fragrance of His glory from your life, Yah will allow you to be put under stress. We forget too easily that character is formed by pressure. The purpose of pressure is to get rid of what is not of Yah and to leave what is pure gold.
Perhaps you’re in the fire right now. It’s a good place to be. Go ahead and make tea. Surprise your enemies with the scent of Yah. Let them pressure you to release His glory. No matter what people may say about you, don’t retaliate. Let them talk about you on your job. It doesn’t matter what they think. You can smile, knowing that you will come through the situation. The Scriptures say it is not those who are swift, but those who endure to the end, who succeed. (See Matthew 24:13; Mark 13:13; James 5:11.)
Therefore, don’t run—stay in the fight! There is no stopping a person who understands that pressure is good for him because pressure is one of the keys to perseverance.
Accept the Cost
Let me confess something to you: I wish I didn’t have to be doing what I’m doing. I didn’t say that I don’t want to. I said I wish I didn’t have to. That is not a negative statement, just a realistic one, because I know what the cost of my vision is going to be. In the next twenty or thirty years of my life, I know the cost is going to be high. That’s why I thank Yah that, earlier in my life, I had the privilege of observing firsthand the cost to another visionary, who told me, “Myles, my son, get ready for the price.” Because of that experience, I have been prepared to accept the cost.
At times, you will find it difficult to remain in your vision. I understand. It’s tough for me to stay in mine. The demands that Yah is making on my ministry are high because the call requires it. There’s a price. Vision always demands a cost. Someone has to pay the price. Are you willing to do it? We need to be like Paul, who was obedient to the vision Yah had given him to do, even at great sacrifice.
Tested for Authenticity
Every true vision will be tested for authenticity. If your vision is authentic, life is going to try it, just to make sure. Don’t be afraid when you make a declaration of what you’re going to do in life and difficulty follows; it comes to test your resolve. All of us will encounter crises in life, but these crises don’t have to be setbacks. We should realize that a crisis can be a turning point at which our understanding of and commitment to the vision is tested and matured. A crisis can lead us to greater challenge and victory.
If a vision is stopped or terminated by trials or tests, then perhaps it was not really a vision from Yah. Knowing this truth can help you when you are considering whether or not to become part of a corporate vision. Be careful not to become involved in superficial enterprises. Check things out beforehand. Put the vision to the test.
Ready to Face the Opposition
When Yah showed Abraham the land that his descendants would inherit, He told him that everything as far as he could see would be his. However, the land was full of Moabites, Hittites, Caananites, and Amorites—the Israelites’ future enemies! Likewise, whenever Yah shows us a vision, it is full of “enemies” or opposition that we can’t see at first. Instead, the vision looks great. But the enemies are still there. For example, perhaps Yah has shown you a business He wants you to build. You are excited about it, so you start to make plans. Yet, in the land that Yah has shown you, there are a number of people who are saying, “Just try to come and get it! You have to get past us first!” Even though the promise is already yours, there are certain enemies you’ll have to work through before you can see its fulfillment. Yah doesn’t show you the “ites” right away because He doesn’t want to frighten you. He’s building up your faith to prepare you for the time when you are ready to face the opposition and overcome it.
Therefore, if you are just now encountering some of the “enemies of the land,” be encouraged that your faith is being strengthened and that Yah is not only enabling you to stand strong in the face of opposition to your vision, but also to overcome it—to His glory and praise.
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• In what areas of your life/vision are you in need of perseverance?
• What have you given up on that you need to pick up again and continue on with?
• Ask Yah to develop faithfulness, steadfastness, and courage in you.
• Write down the saying, “Destiny demands diligence,” on a piece of paper and put it where you can be reminded of it every day.
Chapter Principles
1 Obstacles will come against you and your vision. You must be persistent if you are going to achieve the vision Yah has given you.
2 Faithfulness means being true to what you have decided to accomplish and letting nothing stop you.
3 Steadfastness means to stand fast or stand steady in the face of resistance.
4 Courage is the ability to stand up in the face of fear.
5 Fear is a positive thing when it gives birth to courage.
6 Even though there will be times of stress, disappointment, and pressure, your vision will come to pass.
7 Every resistance to your vision comes to make you wiser, not weaker. Every opposition comes to strengthen you, not to stop you.
8 Destiny demands diligence.
9 Many people lose because they quit when life says no the first time, but persistent people win. They never take no for an answer when it comes to their visions.
10 There is not enough darkness in the world to extinguish the light Yah has put within you.
11 Perseverance means “to bear up under pressure.”
12 Character is formed by pressure. The purpose of pressure is to get rid of what is not of Yah and to leave what is pure gold.
13 There is no stopping a person who understands that pres-sure is good for him because pressure is one of the keys to perseverance.
14 It is not those who are swift, but those who endure to the end, who succeed. (See Matthew 24:13; Mark 13:13; James 5:11.)
15 Vision always demands a cost.
16 Every true vision will be tested for authenticity
Today we are walking in: Use Persistence in Achieving the Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #10:
Use Persistence in Achieving the Vision
Every true vision will be tested for authenticity.
The tenth principle is that we must be persistent if we are going to achieve the visions Yah has given us. As I wrote earlier, you must realize that obstacles are going to come against you and your vision. Even though Yah gave the vision, that doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy to obtain. Please don’t think that you are exempt from this reality. Trouble isn’t going to say about you, “I guess I’ll just leave him alone.” When you decide to be somebody, everything is going to try to get in the way of your vision. You must be prepared for the challenges, for they are coming.
Think about it: There’s no resistance if you’re not moving. People who aren’t doing anything have nothing to worry about. If you don’t want problems, just don’t do anything important in life. However, if you are following your vision and you encounter problems, you can say, “Thank you, Lord; at least I’m moving forward!”
Yah says that, even though there will be times of stress, disappointment, and pressure, the vision will come to pass. It is not a matter of whether it’s going to be fulfilled; it’s a matter of whether we’re going to be true to it in the midst of trials so that Yah can bring it to pass. One of the words that describes the essence of Yah’s nature is faithfulness. This is because He is true to what He has decided to accomplish, and nothing can stop Him. We need to manifest this characteristic in our own lives.
Another word that helps us understand Yah’s nature in relation to persistence in purpose is the word steadfast. To be steadfast means to stand fast or stand steady in the face of resistance. If you are steadfast, then, when opposition comes, you don’t turn and go back where you were. You push forward. Opposition should strengthen your resolve and revive your stamina.
Courage is another key word in regard to persistence. It is the ability to stand up in the face of fear. It is impossible, in fact, to have courage without fear. In a sense, if we don’t have any fear, we’re not living in faith. That may sound like a strange statement, yet faith always demands that we do something we know we can’t do on our own, and this challenge often causes us to fear at first. Yah told Joshua, “Be strong and courageous” (Joshua 1:6, 9). Why did He say that? Clearly, Joshua must have been scared! Fear, however, is a positive thing when it gives birth to courage. If you’re afraid to step out in your vision because it’s so big, then let your courage come to life as you trust Yah. Courage means, “I’m afraid, but I’m still moving.” Yahusha loves for us to do the impossible because the impossible is always possible with Yah. (See Matthew 19:26.)
When a person finds his purpose, then, if trouble comes, he can smile and say, “This won’t last. With Yah, I’m tougher than this.” When you draw on Yah’s strength, you are tougher than your trials because you see them in a different light. You realize that every resistance to your vision gives you the opportunity to become wiser, not weaker. Let every opposition strengthen you rather than stop you. Paul said that trials refine our faith and make us better. That is why we can say, “Bring on the challenges!”
Overcoming Challenges
There are many types of challenges and pressures in life. During His time on earth, Yahusha showed us how to bring a vision to pass in the midst of such challenges. He faced similar problems and obstacles to what you and I face today, yet His vision came to pass. He is our greatest Teacher when it comes to learning how to overcome challenges.
Difficult Family Background
Life is tough even at the start for some of us. Perhaps your parents were divorced when you were just a child. Maybe your father is an alcoholic and your mother is a drug addict. Perhaps you aren’t even sure who your father is. Or if you know who he is, you wish you didn’t. Yahusha knows what it feels like to have a difficult family background, because He was called “illegitimate.” He was born under what the world considered “questionable circumstances.” (See Matthew 1:18–25.) Y et that did not stop Him from knowing His relationship to His heavenly Father and fulfilling His purpose as Yah’s Son. No matter what your background is, your relationship with your Father in heaven will help you overcome your difficult circumstances and fulfill your purpose as Yah’s child.
Family Expectations
Do you feel pressured by family expectations to pursue a certain career or lifestyle when you know that isn’t Yah’s plan for you? You don’t always have to wait until you’re older or “have it all together” before you know Yah’s will for your life. Perhaps your parents have told you, “You are going to do this,” but you feel called to do something else. Yahusha faced a similar challenge. When He was twelve, He knew what He was born to do. Yet Yahusha’ earthly parents didn’t understand His vision or why He was pursuing it, even when He said, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49; see verse 50). Then, when Yahusha grew older, His mother tried to push Him into fulfilling His vision prematurely, and He had to tell her, “My time has not yet come” (John 2:4). Even though Yahusha respected and honored His parents (see Luke 2:51–52), He had to follow Yah’s purpose for His life. As difficult as it might be to experience the disapproval of family members, you must follow the vision Yah has given you. At the same time, you should always show them love and respect.
The Jealousy and Scheming of Others
Yahusha went through everything you can imagine. There were people who were against Him, who continually schemed to make Him fail. There were those who liked to set Him up for a fall by asking Him trick questions. A crowd once tried to push Him off a cliff. The religious leaders plotted to kill Him. Do you think people call you names? They called Yahusha names, too. They called Him demon-possessed and illegitimate. They said He was a glutton and a drunkard. They hit Him with everything. The harshest taunt and the highest evil, however, was when they said He was full of the devil.
How did Yahusha overcome? How did He succeed in His vision? How did He finish the work the Father had sent Him to do when He faced all that opposition? Yahusha was able to remain composed through all those trials because what He had in His heart was bigger than all their threats, accusations, and insults. He knew how to persevere with a dream. Likewise, the vision in your heart needs to be larger than any opposition that comes against you so you can persist in your life’s purpose.
Destiny Demands Diligence
Destiny demands diligence. I recommend that you write that statement down on a piece of paper and put it where you can see it every day. If you are going to quit after a couple of fights, you will never win. Persistence is the desire to withstand every opposition. Whenever obstacles come along, persistence responds with attitudes such as these:
“You might as well give up, because I’m not going to stop.”
“Get out of my way, because I’m coming through.”
“No matter what I lose, I still have me, so I’ll be back!”
Persistence says to life what Jacob said to the Lord: “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (Genesis 32:26).
Nehemiah could have stopped his work on the wall of Jerusalem because of all the problems, slander, and jeers, but he was persistent. He was determined to complete his vision. You will never be successful unless you have the spirit of persistence. Persistence means that
• you insist on having what you are going after.
• you stand up against resistance until you wear it down.
• you make people who are against you so tired of fighting
• that they either become your friends or leave you alone.
• you stop only after you’ve finished.
How badly do you want your vision? Yahusha told a story in Luke 18 about a persistent woman. She tirelessly appealed to the judge with her request for justice until he said, in essence, “Give it to her!” (See Luke 18:2–8.) Yah wants you to do the same. He wants you to say, “Life, this belongs to me.” If Life refuses on Monday, then go back on Tuesday and say, “This belongs to me.” If Life says no on Tuesday, then go back on Wednesday and say, “This belongs to me!” If Life says no on Thursday, go back on Friday morning and say the same thing, and so on. Life will eventually say, “Here, take it!” Then you can calmly say, “Thank you very much.” Many people lose because they quit when Life says no the first time, but persistent people win. They never take no for an answer when it comes to their visions.
Stay in the Fight
Once, when I was staying at a hotel in Israel, I couldn’t sleep because I wasn’t yet used to the time difference. At about two in the morning, I was up watching a boxing match on television. It was a twelve-round title match, and the boxer from Mexico was pummeling the boxer from the United States. Every time the American boxer moved forward to fight, the other boxer pounded him.
By the sixth round, the U.S. boxer was getting beaten badly, and at the end of the round, he stumbled back into his corner, sat down on the stool, and sagged as if he were a sack of potatoes. Then I saw something happen. In seconds, several men went to work on him. One grabbed a bucket of water and doused him with it. The next grabbed a soaking-wet sponge and squeezed water all over his face. Another applied ointment to soothe his wounds. These men were all talking to him at once, and they were rubbing him down as they talked. Even though he was getting trounced, they were telling him,“You can do this. You can get back out there. You're strong! You're better than he is!” One of the men said,“Keep your left hook, okay? Keep your left hook. He’s a slow left. You can get him with that left.” After about two minutes, the boxer jumped up, saying,“Yeah! Oh, yeah!” He ran back out there, and everything changed in the seventh round.
Guess who won the fight? The one who had been about to quit in the sixth round won the fight and received the prize. There was blood everywhere, but under that blood was the champion. When he won the decision, all his strength came back. He ran around the room screaming. When you win, you forget all the pounding you received during the fight.
Sometimes, you will get beaten up pretty badly in life, but stay in the fight. Fight until you feel the joy of victory. When you think you’re going to lose, and you stumble back into the corner of life, the Lord will come and pour the cool water of His Word on your head. He will take the ointment of the Holy Spirit and bring healing to your wounds. He will rub life back into your spirit so you can jump back out and say, “Hey! Come on, Life!” Just like the boxer’s coaching team, the Holy Spirit speaks good things into your spirit, such as “Greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4 kjv). Life will be tough, but get back out there and start throwing blows. Keep your left up. That’s persistence.
We know that Yah wants us to be fighters because the Bible calls us soldiers. (See 2 Timothy 2:3–4.) We are warriors. We are people of battle. The Bible also refers to us as those who “wrestle” (Ephesians 6:12 nkjv). This is because we don’t just receive medals from Yah. We earn them. If Yah didn’t want you to fight, He would have given you the medal without the conflict.
The Bible says,“They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11). Some people don’t have a testimony of overcoming. Their testimony is, “I went through the fire, and I got burned. I went under the water and almost drowned. I have scars in my life! Let me testify about how I’ve been beaten up.” Other people are so spiritually“clean-cut” that you know they have never yet had a scrimmage with the devil. Yet those who have a true testimony usually don’t even have to talk about it because it is evident in their lives.
You may have many bumps and bruises, but keep on walking toward your goal, trusting in Yah. It’s going to get tough, but you have what it takes to win because Yah has promised that He will stay with you and work out the steps of your plan. I like what Paul said in Romans 8:
Who shall separate us from the love of Hamachiach? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?...No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us [and called us and gave us our visions].(vv. 35, 37)
Yah has put so much in you that if you are willing to capture it, nothing can stop you. There is not enough darkness in the world to extinguish the light Yah has put within you. The light of Yah’s vision in your heart is so strong and bright that all the darkness of the planet, all the darkness of people’s opinions, and all the darkness of past failures can never put it out.
Bear Up under Pressure
Perseverance actually means “to bear up under pressure.” I like this quote from Eleanor Roosevelt, which actually applies to all people: “A woman is like a tea bag. You never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.” Here’s a similar analogy: People who are successful are like tea bags. When they get in hot water, they make tea. When life squeezes them, they don’t become angry; they do something constructive with the pressure. They persevere under it and use it for their own benefit. People who have vision are stronger than the pressure life brings.
I have discovered that sometimes you don’t get the scent from the rose until you crush it. In order to draw the fragrance of His glory from your life, Yah will allow you to be put under stress. We forget too easily that character is formed by pressure. The purpose of pressure is to get rid of what is not of Yah and to leave what is pure gold.
Perhaps you’re in the fire right now. It’s a good place to be. Go ahead and make tea. Surprise your enemies with the scent of Yah. Let them pressure you to release His glory. No matter what people may say about you, don’t retaliate. Let them talk about you on your job. It doesn’t matter what they think. You can smile, knowing that you will come through the situation. The Scriptures say it is not those who are swift, but those who endure to the end, who succeed. (See Matthew 24:13; Mark 13:13; James 5:11.)
Therefore, don’t run—stay in the fight! There is no stopping a person who understands that pressure is good for him because pressure is one of the keys to perseverance.
Accept the Cost
Let me confess something to you: I wish I didn’t have to be doing what I’m doing. I didn’t say that I don’t want to. I said I wish I didn’t have to. That is not a negative statement, just a realistic one, because I know what the cost of my vision is going to be. In the next twenty or thirty years of my life, I know the cost is going to be high. That’s why I thank Yah that, earlier in my life, I had the privilege of observing firsthand the cost to another visionary, who told me, “Myles, my son, get ready for the price.” Because of that experience, I have been prepared to accept the cost.
At times, you will find it difficult to remain in your vision. I understand. It’s tough for me to stay in mine. The demands that Yah is making on my ministry are high because the call requires it. There’s a price. Vision always demands a cost. Someone has to pay the price. Are you willing to do it? We need to be like Paul, who was obedient to the vision Yah had given him to do, even at great sacrifice.
Tested for Authenticity
Every true vision will be tested for authenticity. If your vision is authentic, life is going to try it, just to make sure. Don’t be afraid when you make a declaration of what you’re going to do in life and difficulty follows; it comes to test your resolve. All of us will encounter crises in life, but these crises don’t have to be setbacks. We should realize that a crisis can be a turning point at which our understanding of and commitment to the vision is tested and matured. A crisis can lead us to greater challenge and victory.
If a vision is stopped or terminated by trials or tests, then perhaps it was not really a vision from Yah. Knowing this truth can help you when you are considering whether or not to become part of a corporate vision. Be careful not to become involved in superficial enterprises. Check things out beforehand. Put the vision to the test.
Ready to Face the Opposition
When Yah showed Abraham the land that his descendants would inherit, He told him that everything as far as he could see would be his. However, the land was full of Moabites, Hittites, Caananites, and Amorites—the Israelites’ future enemies! Likewise, whenever Yah shows us a vision, it is full of “enemies” or opposition that we can’t see at first. Instead, the vision looks great. But the enemies are still there. For example, perhaps Yah has shown you a business He wants you to build. You are excited about it, so you start to make plans. Yet, in the land that Yah has shown you, there are a number of people who are saying, “Just try to come and get it! You have to get past us first!” Even though the promise is already yours, there are certain enemies you’ll have to work through before you can see its fulfillment. Yah doesn’t show you the “ites” right away because He doesn’t want to frighten you. He’s building up your faith to prepare you for the time when you are ready to face the opposition and overcome it.
Therefore, if you are just now encountering some of the “enemies of the land,” be encouraged that your faith is being strengthened and that Yah is not only enabling you to stand strong in the face of opposition to your vision, but also to overcome it—to His glory and praise.
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
• In what areas of your life/vision are you in need of perseverance?
• What have you given up on that you need to pick up again and continue on with?
• Ask Yah to develop faithfulness, steadfastness, and courage in you.
• Write down the saying, “Destiny demands diligence,” on a piece of paper and put it where you can be reminded of it every day.
Chapter Principles
1 Obstacles will come against you and your vision. You must be persistent if you are going to achieve the vision Yah has given you.
2 Faithfulness means being true to what you have decided to accomplish and letting nothing stop you.
3 Steadfastness means to stand fast or stand steady in the face of resistance.
4 Courage is the ability to stand up in the face of fear.
5 Fear is a positive thing when it gives birth to courage.
6 Even though there will be times of stress, disappointment, and pressure, your vision will come to pass.
7 Every resistance to your vision comes to make you wiser, not weaker. Every opposition comes to strengthen you, not to stop you.
8 Destiny demands diligence.
9 Many people lose because they quit when life says no the first time, but persistent people win. They never take no for an answer when it comes to their visions.
10 There is not enough darkness in the world to extinguish the light Yah has put within you.
11 Perseverance means “to bear up under pressure.”
12 Character is formed by pressure. The purpose of pressure is to get rid of what is not of Yah and to leave what is pure gold.
13 There is no stopping a person who understands that pres-sure is good for him because pressure is one of the keys to perseverance.
14 It is not those who are swift, but those who endure to the end, who succeed. (See Matthew 24:13; Mark 13:13; James 5:11.)
15 Vision always demands a cost.
16 Every true vision will be tested for authenticity
Friday, February 21, 2025
EMPLOY THE PROVISION OF VISION
Luke chapter 12
Today we are walking: Employ the Provision of Vision
Habakkuk 2:2
And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
VISION
Today we look to the word VISION- H2377 chazown- vision(in ecstatic state), visions (in night), oracle, prophecy (divine communication), vision (as title of book of prophecy) from H2372; a sight (mentally), i.e. a dream, revelation, or oracle:—vision. to see, perceive, look, behold, prophesy, provide, to see, behold, to see as a seer in the ecstatic state, to see, perceive with the intelligence, to see (by experience), to provide
The Torah testifies........
Numbers 24:4
He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
Numbers 24:16
He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the Most High, which saw the vision H2377 of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open:
The prophets proclaim.........
1 Samuel 3:1
And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days;there was no open vision H2377.
Jeremiah 14:14
Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision H2377 and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
The writings bear witness.........
1 Chronicles 17:15
According to all these words, and according to all this vision H2377, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Psalm 89:19
Then thou spakest in vision H2377 to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty; I have exalted one chosen out of the people.
Principle #9:
Employ the Provision of Vision
Yah designed every purpose with its own prosperity.
Principle number nine is that we must understand the power of provision. People often stop dreaming about what they really want to do in life because they know they have few resources with which to do it. They believe they have to pay for their visions with their present incomes when they can barely make ends meet as it is. Similarly, when young people tell their parents what they dream of becoming, the parents often become nervous because they feel their children’s dreams are too big for them to finance.
Whatever Yah Purposes, He Provides For
If we believe that we have to use our own resources to accomplish Yah-given visions, then we are small dreamers. I want to encourage you that the Bible is very clear concerning the dreams and plans that are in our hearts and how they are meant to be provided for. Proverbs 16:1 says, “To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the Lord comes the reply of the tongue.” This statement has to do with provision. Whenever a person receives a dream from Yah, it usually seems impossible. Yet Yah knows that our provisions are never equal to our visions at the moment we receive them. He realizes that we cannot explain to others—or even ourselves—how we are going to accomplish our visions without the necessary money, people, facilities, or equipment. He knows that often our dreams are big and our bank accounts are small. What is His solution for us? He says that He will give the answer or “reply of the tongue.”
Yah’s will for our lives comes from His own will. That’s why He says it is our job to understand, believe, and write down our visions while it is His responsibility to explain how He’s going to accomplish them in His own time. That frees us to be creative and productive in pursuing our visions. Therefore, if people ask you how you are going to accomplish your dream, you don’t have to try to give them a full answer. Tell them you are trusting Yah for provision each step of the way. Then let Yah explain to them how it is going to be done. Purpose is your responsibility. Provision is Yah’s responsibility.
Vision and Provision Go Together
Perhaps your dreams are so big they almost frighten you. You don’t see how they could ever come to pass. Let me assure you that your initial apprehension is normal. Yah often gives us dreams that confound us at first because He wants to make sure we don’t attempt to fulfill them apart from Him. If we try to do so, we won’t succeed, because the resources won’t be available.
Many people who are doing something significant for Yah in the world are doing it without their own resources because Yah doesn’t want us to depend on our own abilities. Instead, He wants us to be obedient by putting the vision on paper and then looking to Him to generate the funds and other resources that are needed to support His own work.
Rest assured that Yah will never give you a vision without provision. The ability and resources are available for whatever you were born to do. Your provision, however, is usually hidden until you act on your vision. Whatever you were born to do attracts what you need to do it. Therefore, you first have to establish what you want to do, and begin to do it, before the need can be met. Most of us work in reverse. We like to see the provisions before we start, but faith doesn’t work that way. When we take action, then Yah manifests the provision.
I want to show you proof that everything you need has been provided for you already. Ephesians 1:3 says, “Praise be to the Yah and Father of our Lord Yahusha Hamachiach, who has [already] blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Hamachiach” (emphasis added). Yah has already blessed you with everything you need. Where is it? It is in the heavenly realms, the spiritual world. Verse four starts out with the word “For....” When we see that word, we understand that, because of the truth of verse four, verse three is a reality: “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world.”
Yah already prepared everything you would need before He created you so that you could do what you were born to do. He knew what you needed because He chose you for your vision a long time ago. Yah tells us we don’t have to worry about our provision because He has already blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Worry is the greatest sign of doubt in Yah. If He can put Pharaoh’s money into the pockets of the Israelites and take His people into the wilderness loaded down with the gold of the enemy, do you think He can’t provide for your needs?
Misconceptions of Prosperity
Prosperity as Excess
One of the reasons we have trouble understanding how Yah will provide for our visions is that we have a false view of prosperity. We think prosperity means excess, and that is why we worry when we don’t already have money in the bank to fund our visions.
Further, our concept of prosperity is more like hoarding. In the Bible, hoarding is referred to as gluttony. A person can be gluttonous even when he has no money or food. Gluttony is a state of mind in which a person never feels he has enough to satisfy him.
Whatever you hoard will begin to destroy you. When we eat more than we need, it becomes a problem called excess weight. That weight causes pressure on the heart. Our arteries begin to clog up, putting us in danger of stroke, all because we loaded up on excess food.
The Bible says that people who have excess money have many burdens, worry, and headaches trying to figure out what to do with their riches and how to protect them. (See, for example, Luke 12:16–21; James 5:1–5.) Too much wealth can cause oppression and even depression. Some people have so many gems and diamonds that they put bars on their windows to protect themselves against theft. They worry every night that someone might break in and take their twenty-thousand-dollar watch, which they rarely wear anyway.
To me, that approach to wealth is foolishness because the riches are a burden rather than a blessing. You don’t have to own extravagant things just because you are wealthy. You'd be better off buying a twenty-dollar watch and enjoying your life. That way, if someone takes it, you can just buy another one. All you need to know is the time. You don’t have to worry about who is keeping it for
you.
Prosperity as Future Needs Met Today
Other people have the idea that prosperity means all our needs should be provided for well ahead of time.
Yahusha addressed this misconception when He told His disciples,
Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?...So do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?” For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.(Matthew 6:25, 31–33)
Do people worry about something they already have? No. Worry isn’t related to our present supply. It is related to a perceived or potential lack in the future. Yahusha was asking His disciples, in effect,“Why do you want something that you don’t need right now? You are focusing on the wrong thing. Seek first Yah’s kingdom and His righteousness, and these things will come with the job. Don’t pursue them; they will follow you.”
Yahusha concluded His statements on provision by saying,
“Tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (v. 34). I interpret this to mean,“If you have something right now, then enjoy it.” In other words, if
the rent on the house is paid, then enjoy the house for the month. Stop worrying about the next month that isn’t even here yet! Live in your house, sleep in your bed, cook in your kitchen, relax in your living room. Have joy in the house that is paid for today. We get ulcers over how we are going to pay for next month’s provision because we don’t allow ourselves to live in the present.
Prosperity doesn’t mean that tomorrow’s need is met today; it means that today’s need is met today. We find the same concept in the Lord’s Prayer: “Give us today our daily bread” (v. 11). Yahusha tells us not to worry about tomorrow because it has its own supply (v. 34), and tomorrow we may need even more than we do today. When we get to tomorrow, the supply will be there. We must understand what prosperity really is in order to grasp the foundational principle of how Yah provides for our visions.
The Nature of Real Prosperity
One of the Hebrew words that is translated “prosperity” in the Bible is shalev (see, for example, Psalm 30:6; Psalm 73:3), which means “tranquil,” “being at ease,” “peaceable,” and “quietness.” Another Hebrew word for prosperity is shalom (see Psalm 35:27; Jeremiah 33:9), which means “peace,” “safe,” “well,” “happy,” and “health.” The Bible is saying that prosperity is peace. Prosperity is also harmony. When things are in balance, we say they are peaceful. True prosperity means to be free of worry and fear and reflects a state of contentedness that everything necessary is being taken care of.
Yahusha used an analogy from nature to help explain prosperity: “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” (Matthew 6:26–27).
Some people interpret this passage to mean that, since Yah is supposed to take care of them, they don’t need to do anything themselves. They’re going to just sit back and let the Lord bless them. If they need anything, they will pray, and someone will bring groceries to their front doors or pay for the gasoline in their cars or give them several hundred dollars. Therefore, they just wait for Yah
to act.
However, let’s look at the implication of the passage. How does Yah feed birds? He provides for them, but He doesn’t personally hand-deliver food to their nests! The birds don’t just sit around and wait for Yah to stop by with their meals. When Yahusha said the heavenly Father feeds the birds, He meant that everything they need has been made available for them, but they have to go and get it.
Yah does not build a bird’s nest. He provides the twigs. The bird has to find them, pick them up, and bring them back to the tree it has chosen for a home. Yah does not leave worms on the top of the ground every morning. The bird has to go digging for them. It has to keep working, working, working until it finishes building its nest. It has to keep working, working, working until it gets the worm.
Whatever Yah Calls For, He Provides For
A principle we talked about earlier applies here: Whatever Yah calls for, He provides for. Yah provides us with what we need, though usually not directly. If you are a college student, your parents may provide your tuition to go to school, but they cannot make you learn. The provision is made, but the work is up to you. Your parents cook food and put it on the table for you, but you have to eat it; you have to get the energy from it yourself. It’s the same way with Yah. He provides, but He doesn’t do the work for us. We have to go after what Yah has provided as our supply.
Every Purpose Has Its Own Prosperity
Another fundamental aspect of provision is that Yah has designed every purpose with its own prosperity. Your purpose has built-in provision for it. Yah never requires from you what He does not already have in reserve for you.
Here is the key: Your prosperity is directly related to your purpose in life. The nature and degree of your prosperity is determined by what your assignment is. You were not born to have too much or too little. You were born to fulfill Yah’s purpose. When you capture your vision—the part you’re supposed to contribute to your generation and succeeding generations, the role you’re supposed to play
in history—when you capture that and are doing it, you will see that all your provisions are automatically built into it.
In this way, you don’t ultimately work for money or food, because you’re too busy living. You were not created by Yah just to pay a mortgage. You were not given life simply to keep food in the refrigerator. In your heart, you know that’s true. If this is what you’re doing, you are probably frustrated with your situation. By the time you turn sixty, you will look back at your life and say, “Did I enjoy any of this?” Perhaps you have a nice home, but you are there only between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. The rest of the time, you’re helping someone else get rich, and that person is at home playing golf behind his house and enjoying the company of his family and friends while you are busy at work.
You and I have prosperity based on our assignments, not on keeping up with the Joneses. We should get rid of whatever is excess in our lives. We are as rich as our purposes, and our visions aren’t yet completed. We still have provision coming to us that no one can hold back.
Sometimes, Yah doesn’t give us all the resources we need to fulfill our visions because He has called other people to provide them for us. Yah may have provisions all over the world waiting for you. He may move you a thousand miles to get you where you were meant to be, to do things you were born to do, to fulfill the purpose in your own heart while, at the same time, fulfilling the purpose in His heart.
Therefore, if you want to go to college, don’t abandon your dream just because your mother doesn’t have the money for it. Your mother doesn’t need to pay your bills. Your heavenly Father has promised to do that. Mary and Joseph’s money came from wise men on camels. When they said yes to Yah’s vision, the wise men traveled a great distance to get to them. Yah will supply your provision, even if He has to have someone cross the desert to get it to you. Yah has provision for you that no one but He knows about.
Therefore, you have all the provisions you need for your vision, including your finances, staff, buildings, and anything else that is required. There are people who were born to help you fulfill your vision. There are people who went to school to learn a skill just to work for you. Right now, they’re in a preoccupation job because you haven’t started your business yet. All the resources you need are already in place; they will become visible in Yah’s timing once you start pursuing your vision.
Provision Is Right for the Vision
Yah is a Yah of provision. He is Jehovah-Jireh,“The Lord Will Provide.” He provides everything, but He provides it after you begin the work of the vision. Your obedience to your vision affects not only your life but also the lives of
those who will work with you. This means that obedience to vision is not a private issue. It affects everyone who is supposed to work with you and be impacted by your life.
Prosperity means having everything that is needed. It doesn’t necessarily mean having a large bank account, several cars, and a large house, although you might need those things to fulfill your vision. For example, because of our purpose, my wife and I need a long dining room table that can seat a large number of people since we often have guests of the ministry to dinner. That’s part of our assignment. It might also be yours, depending on what you are called to do. However, perhaps you need a four-chair table rather than a twelve-chair table because you usually just have your family at dinner. Instead of using the money on a large table, you use it for other things related to your personal or community vision. Similarly, I may not need something that you must have to fulfill
your purpose. If I had it, it would be excess. The point is that Yah provides for all the needs of our visions, no matter what they are, large or small.
Use Your Provision
Several years ago, when I was visiting a friend in Detroit, I said, “You know, I’ve always wanted to tour the Ford Motor Company. I’ve heard a lot about Mr. Ford and the way they make cars there, and I’d like to see it for myself.” We ended up spending a whole afternoon there. The man conducting the tour showed us some massive buildings, including the corporate office and the place where they design the cars.
Then he took us to look at another big building and said,
“This is where we do all the production work on the parts.” We went through what looked like one massive building, but there were smaller storehouses within it. Every section had a different name, and there were millions of parts stored in each section. I pointed to one section and asked the guide,“What is this?” and he said, “These are the cars we’re preparing for 2005.” I said,
“Wait a minute; it’s only 1998.”He said,“Yeah, but we are at least five years ahead. This one is for 2002, this is for 2003, this is for 2004, and this one is for 2005.” When I asked if I could see the cars, he said,“No, the cars themselves are not yet made. We make the parts first. However, these are not the parts we will use on the new cars. These are the replacement parts in case any repairs would be needed.”
The company makes the spare parts before they build the new cars. Then they make the cars. That’s why, when anything needs to be replaced on your car, the part is already prepared. They prepare what you’re going to need before you even buy your car.
As I listened to our guide explain this, I felt as if the Holy Spirit was speaking to me right in that warehouse. He said, “That’s exactly the meaning of Ephesians 1:3: ‘Praise be to the Yah and Father of our Lord Yahusha Hamachiach, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Hamachiach.’ Everything you’re going to need for your vision is already provided for. I have it all reserved in big storehouses in heaven. Even before you came on the scene, I had it all prepared.”
My good friend Jesse Duplantis once told me about an unusual experience he had. He had a spiritual vision in which Yahusha took him on a tour of heaven. He has written about this experience in a book. At one point, Yahusha and he came to a large area of heaven where there were big, massive warehouses. There were names on the warehouses, and he saw one with his name on it, so he asked Yahusha, “What’s in that warehouse?” Yahusha said,
“Do you want to see?” He said, “Sure. My name is there.” They went up to the warehouse and opened its large door. Inside, piled up to the ceiling, was what looked like billions of dollars’ worth of things. In the corner was a small, empty space. He asked, “Lord, the whole place
is filled with all these magnificent things, but what’s that empty spot right there by the door?” Yahusha said,“That’s all you’ve asked for so far.”
After he told me that story, I said to myself,“I’m going to die empty. I’m going to clean out my warehouse before I leave planet earth.” When we go to heaven, most of us are going to be shocked at what was ours for use on earth that we never asked for. We must use what is in our warehouses. Daily, we should ask Yah,“Deliver to me what I need today.” Second Peter 1:3 says that Yah’s
“divine power has given us everything we need for life and Yahliness.” Where is it? It’s waiting for you to ask for it with confidence. Yah is not short of anything you need.
What I’m concerned about is that you may be asking for some things that aren’t yours. Let me explain. If you pursue the wrong assignment, you’re going to need things you can’t get, because the provision isn’t there unless the vision is yours. It’s someone else’s assignment, and he has his own warehouse. Sometimes, people make demands on Yah that He can’t supply because He can’t give us what doesn’t belong to us. Again, knowing Yah’s will for your life is the key to your prosperity.
Five Specific Ways Yah Provides for Vision
I now want to discuss five specific ways that the Scriptures teach us Yah provides the resources—financial and otherwise—that we need to fulfill the visions He gives us.
Land and Its Inherent Wealth
The first way Yah provides for our visions is through our ability to obtain and use land and the resources inherent in it. Until you own land, you are still considered somewhat poor, and you are not really secure. As long as you are renting, someone else owns you. Although real estate prices fluctuate, there is a special prosperity in owning land.
Land is Yah’s concept of wealth. Note that the first thing Yah placed man in was the Garden of Eden, or real estate. Genesis 2:7–12 says,
The Lord Yah formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Now the Lord Yah had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the Lord Yah made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. A river watering the garden flowed from Eden; from there it was separated into four headwaters. The name of the first is the Pishon; it winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold. (The gold of that land is good; aromatic resin and onyx are also there.)
This passage describes the wealth of the land surrounding Eden. Yah said there’s gold, resin, and onyx in the land. Resin is a fragrant gum, similar to the precious substance myrrh. Onyx is a type of gem. All these things are in the land. Note that this passage describes what the world was like before the Fall, when everything was perfect, yet Yah was talking about gold, aromatic resin, and gems. He was saying, “Adam, there’s richness in the land.” Not only do you have use of what is on the surface of the land, such as trees and fruit, but you
also have use of what is under the ground.
Sometimes, a person has to work hard to get the riches that are within the land. For example, a fruit gatherer doesn’t work quite as hard as an oilman does in order to get results. To harvest fruit, he stays on the surface of the earth and picks fruit off trees and plants. However, to drill for oil, a person has to get really dirty. He has to dig deep in the ground. It takes time and pressure. Here’s the lesson I think we can draw from this: Those who are willing to work hard, to go the extra mile, are the ones who get deep into wealth.
From time to time, the United States has had to go begging the oil-rich countries, “Please, drop your prices.” With all the farms in Kansas and Nebraska and elsewhere, America still needs oil. Why? Oil is needed to run the combines that reap the harvests on the farms. Those whose wealth comes from under the ground seem to rule those who gain their wealth from working on the surface of the earth.
Let’s look at another example from Genesis that shows us that wealth is inherent in land. What was Yah’s first promise to Abraham?
The Lord had said to Abram,...”Go to the land I will show you.”...Abram traveled through the land as far as the site of the great tree of Moreh at Shechem. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. The Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.”(Genesis 12:1, 6–7)
Yah made the same promise of inheritance of land to Abraham’s son Isaac (see Genesis 26:2–4) and grandson Jacob (see Genesis 28:10–15). The Lord continually reminded them of the land they were to inherit. Yah also reaffirmed this promise of land to the Israelites through Moses. (See Exodus 3:7–10, 15–17.)
In Genesis 13:15, Yah said the land would forever belong to Abraham’s descendants. Even today, in the state of Israel, land is leased, rather than sold, to the citizens. No private citizen owns property. A person can build and own a house, but he doesn’t own the property upon which it stands. The government owns the land. It is considered Yah’s property and therefore is secured for Him.
The previous government of the Bahamas, under colonialism, was the United Bahamian Party. Overall, they didn’t impress me, but they did one thing that impressed me: They were conscious of the value of land. They would lease land to people for up to ninety-nine years, but they still owned it. They said, in effect, “You can make money off the land, but you don’t own it.” Have you ever wondered why foreign investors want to buy land in your country? Those who own the land are the decision-makers. They are the ones who influence policy
and legislation, not those who work for them.
According to the biblical record, therefore, land seems to be Yah’s first order of prosperity. I think it’s desirable for most people to own land. Young people, if your parents left you land, don’t exchange your perpetual inheritance for a pot of soup. (See Genesis 25:29–34.) Live very simply, if you have to, but keep the land because there’s wealth in it.
My prayer is that you will truly understand the value of land. My beloved friends, some of us have been so heavenly oriented that we have practically forsaken the earth, which has been given to us by Yah. Matthew 5:3–12 is called the Beatitudes. I like to call them the “attitudes to be.” In other words, these are the attitudes Yah wants you to have in life. Notice the attitude in verse five: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit....” What? Heaven? No, according to Yahusha, if you’re meek, you inherit “the earth” (v. 5). Christians always think in terms of heaven because that is where their focus is. Yet Yah didn’t create humanity for heaven—He created us to fulfill His purposes on earth.
Meekness means discipline or self-control. If you control your spending and don’t use your money on things that are automatically going to depreciate, and if you cut back on your expenses and start putting your money in the bank, then you can save up a nice down payment for a piece of property. You can own land if you exercise discipline and self-control in your life.
How do you do this in practical terms? Stop buying lunch every day when you can take your lunch to work, and then put that excess money into your savings. Keep your Toyota until you buy your property; then you can buy a Lexus. Put your true priorities ahead of any luxuries and you may be amazed at how much you can save toward your vision’s goals.
The Ability to Work
The second thing through which Yah provides for our visions is our work. When you decide to move forward with your dream, it will often take a great amount of work. I define work as the passion that is generated by a purpose.
Many people misunderstand the nature of work. I’ve heard people say, “I’m so mad at Adam. Because Adam sinned, now I have to toil at a job.” They don’t realize that work was given to humankind before the Fall: “The Lord Yah took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of [“cultivate” nas] it” (Genesis 2:15). Cultivation involves both creativity and effort. Work is not a curse, but a great blessing. Genesis 1:28 says that Yah blessed the male and female and gave them dominion over the earth. He blessed them in all their dominion assignments—including work.
The primary reason Yah gave us work is found in Genesis 2:2–3:
By the seventh day Yah had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. And Yah blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
Yah Himself worked when He created the world, and He still works to carry out His purposes. For example, Paul said in Philippians 2:13,“It is Yah who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” Because you are made in Yah’s image and likeness, you are designed to work. Remember that work is meant to include creativity and cultivation, not drudgery.
Another significant aspect of work is that it reveals your potential. You cannot show what you have inside unless demands are made on it, and demands are placed on it by work.
Moreover, work needs to be kept in its proper place. The Bible says that Yah worked hard and completed His work, but that He also stopped His work and rested. He didn’t work seven days a week just for the sake of working. He stopped when it was appropriate, and He has instructed us to do the same. (See Exodus 20:9–10.)
It is through worship and communion with Yah that humankind receives vision, vocation, and work. Yahusha, the Second Adam, seemed to have two favorite words that reflected Yah’s purposes for humankind. One of those words was Father. He was always talking about His Father in heaven and seeking His presence in prayer. The other was work. For example, consider these statements of Yahusha: “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work” (John 4:34 nkjv). “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I,
too, am working” (John 5:17). “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4). “I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do” (John 17:4).
Yahusha was intent on doing His Father’s work to completion. We are to aspire to fulfill Yah’s purposes while developing and using the gifts and talents He has given us. We aren’t to be lazy; instead, we are to have visions for our lives and to be willing to work so that they can be fulfilled. Our motivation for work is to complete the purposes for which we were created.
Yahusha said,
I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that
spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give
you.(John 6:26–27)
In other words, there’s a higher reason to work than simply providing for physical needs. Again, don’t work just to pay bills. Don’t work only to buy food. Understand the true nature of work. In the Garden, there was no supervisor, no one to hand out paychecks. Work was given to Adam because it was a natural part of his being. Through work, he fulfilled part of his purpose as a human
being created in Yah’s image.
We have been designed to work in such a way that we can fashion things into something more than they were in their original state. We are to multiply or enhance what we have been given. In the parable of the talents, the man traveling out of the country entrusted the first servant with five talents, the second with two, and the third with one. It is implied that the man said to his servants before he left, “Now, when I come back, I don’t want to see just the money I gave you. I want to see an increase in my investment.” When the man returned, and the servant with the one talent had done nothing to increase his master’s money, he was called “wicked” and “lazy” (Matthew 25:26). If we’re still working at the same level we were working at ten years ago and haven’t improved at all, there’s something wrong.
Isn’t it interesting that the harder you work, the “luckier” you get? Sometimes, you hear people say, “You're lucky that you’re rich and successful.” Unless the person inherited the money, that isn’t luck. That’s hard work. So if you want to get lucky, start working hard.
Matthew 25:16, which comes from the parable of the talents, is a powerful verse: “The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more.” How did the man gain more money? He put his original money to work, and the money multiplied. Yah wants us to go to work to multiply His kingdom on earth through our visions.
The Ability to Cultivate
Third, Yah has given us the ability to cultivate things.“The Lord Yah took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of [cultivate] it” (Genesis 2:15). It is interesting to note that Yah wanted humankind to manage and nurture the vegetation. Yah prefers cultivation to barrenness and wilderness, and He has given us the ability to cultivate as one way of reflecting His image. Recall that in Genesis 1:2, Yah created or cultivated the earth out of a “formless and empty” state.
The situation with most pieces of property that are currently being developed is that the property had been there a long time, but no one had ever done anything about it. For example, you may have passed by a piece of property every day and never thought much about it until you saw bulldozers and other construction machinery on the premises. A large part of the gift of cultivation is the ability to see potential in what others view as wasteland.
Let me tell you the story of Hog Island in the Bahamas. Years ago, people used to dump garbage on the island, and the wild hogs there used to scavenge through all the mess. It definitely lived up to its name. There were also wild dogs roaming around. No self-respecting person wanted to be seen there.
Then, one day, someone came to the Bahamas, flew over Hog Island, and saw something there that no one else could see. He took Hog Island, cultivated it, and made it productive. Today, Hog Island is a destination for vacationers. It has a new name. It’s called Paradise. What a change! Can anything good come out of Hog Island? All it takes is someone to manage it.
Suppose someone came to you and said, “Look, there’s some land available in our claims in a rural area. Would you be interested in buying it?” You might think that would be a waste of time and money because you would prefer a piece of property downtown. Y et that would show you don’t have a vision for the future because downtown is already cultivated. When the man bought Hog Island, he bought it for practically nothing because the seller figured,
“Oh, it’s just hogs. You can have it.” The man who bought it, however, didn’t see only hogs. He saw a resort.
You can cultivate what is around you and make it a resource for your vision. That’s what we are doing at Bahamas Faith Ministries. We bought a piece of barren land in the center of the island at a very good price, and we are turning it into an international leadership center. Yah wants people who can dream and then act. Maybe your neighborhood used to be residential, but now it’s mainly a business strip. You don’t realize the power you have in your house in terms of a business. Dream. Think. Look. Open your eyes. You could move into an apartment for a year, turn your house into a business or restaurant, and then build another nice house out of the proceeds of the business. Cultivate what you own to further your vision.
The Ability to Preserve and Reserve for the Future
Another way Yah provides for your vision is by giving you wisdom to preserve and reserve for the future. For example, Joseph was sent to Egypt ahead of his brothers and his father Jacob because Yah knew a famine was coming, and they would need to be preserved. When poverty struck the land, Joseph’s family would need a place to go to survive and then prosper when times got
better. There are people whom Yah calls to be planters, and Yah will send them ahead of you to prepare the way for you.
Yah will also put things on reservation for you so that, when you need them in the future, they’ll be there for you. Don’t plan only for today, but also for tomorrow. Don’t worry, but plan. In fact, planning destroys worry. It’s when you don’t plan that you start worrying. We live on the daily bread Yah gives us, but He also wants us to plan for things. Yah will bless you, and He will provide for the vision, if you know how to put things on reservation for the future. For example, Yah gave Joseph a reservation plan during the famine. He was able to harvest the grain during the seven years of abundance and store it for the years of famine so that Egypt and the surrounding lands would have food when the drought hit.
Yah knows the future, and He will give you insight to put things on reserve for times when you will need them. For instance, when you put your money into savings and investments, you put it on reserve while increasing your capital because you know that the needs in your life will change, and you want to be prepared financially for when that time comes. I like what the master in Yahusha’ parable said about the servant who took the one talent he had been given and buried it in the ground. He said, essentially, “You could at least have taken it out of the ground and put it in the bank and gotten some interest on it.” (See Matthew 25:14–27.) Yah will bless you when you put things on reserve.
The Ability to Pass Along Wealth
Another way Yah provides for vision is by enabling you to help future generations with their dreams. Yah doesn’t want only you to enjoy the wealth; He wants your children and grandchildren to enjoy it, too. “A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children” (Proverbs 13:22). What about your great-grandchildren? The great-grandchildren of the man who developed Hog Island will inherit “Paradise.” What is your vision of inheritance for your descendants?
Yah wants us to think generationally. He is always thinking and speaking in generational terms. Therefore, when He speaks to you, He is also talking of your descendants or the generations that will follow you. Yah gives wealth in generations, and that is why your planning and reservation for the future must include this consideration, as well.
Action Steps to Fulfilling Vision
Has your definition of prosperity changed as a result of reading this chapter? Why or why not?
What resources do you need to fulfill your vision? List them, and then trust Yah to provide for all the needs of your vision as He has promised to do.
How will you use the information in this chapter to pursue provision for your vision?
Chapter Principles
1. It is our job to understand, believe, and write down our visions, while it is Yah’s responsibility to accomplish them.
2. Yah often gives us dreams that initially confound us because He wants to make sure we don’t attempt to fulfill them apart from Him.
3. Yah will never give you a vision without the provision for it.
4. The ability and resources are available for what you were born to do, yet your provision is usually hidden until you act on your vision.
5. Yah has already blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.
6. Prosperity doesn’t mean that tomorrow’s need is met today; it means that today’s need is met today.
7. True prosperity means to be free of worry and fear. It reflects a state of contentedness that everything necessary is being taken care of.
8. Yah has designed every purpose with its own prosperity.
9. Sometimes, Yah doesn’t give us all the resources we need to fulfill our visions because He has called other people to provide them for us.
10. Your obedience to your vision affects not only your life, but also the lives of those who will work with you.
11. When we go to heaven, most of us are going to be shocked at what was ours for use on earth that we never asked for.
12. Five specific ways that Yah provides the resources to fulfill our visions are (1) land and its inherent wealth, (2) the ability to work, (3) the ability to cultivate, (4) the ability to preserve and reserve for the future, and (5) the ability to pass along wealth (generational wealth)
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