That Vision Thing
J. Mark Jordan

That Vision Thing:
•	The burden of the valley of vision. . . . For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord God of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains (Isaiah 22:1, 5; emphasis mine).
•	Where there is no vision, the people perish (Proverbs 29:18).
•	And Joseph remembered the dreams which he dreamed of them, and said unto them, Ye are spies; to see the nakedness of the land ye are come (Genesis 42:9).
•	Then thou scarest me with dreams, and terrifiest me through visions (Job 7:14).

Dreams vs. Visions 
•	Visions and dreams are used interchangeably in the Bible. 
•	Both can be either from God or from the flesh. 
•	Jacob and Joseph were dreamers. 
•	But even though Peter and Paul had dreams, we do not call them dreamers. 
•	We call them visionaries.
•	Dreams seem to be premonitions of the future. 
•	Visions seem to be understandings of the future. 
•	Dreams wait to be fulfilled. 
•	Visions call for action and active faith. 
•	But our use of the words dream and vision today differ from the language of the Bible.
•	Today, vision relates more to tomorrow; dreams relates to yesterday.
•	And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams (Acts 2:17).
•	Visions are for the future.
•	Dreams are for the past.
•	A dream needs no basis in reality in order to have value. 
•	A vision has value precisely because it is based in reality. 
•	A dream needs no connection to the present.
•	A vision thrives on its connection to the present. 	
•	Everybody can dream.
•	Vision requires something more.
•	Dreams are cheap.
•	Visions are expensive.
•	Unfulfilled dreams can fade without a second thought. 
•	Unfulfilled visions lead to discontent and frustration.
•	When you say, "I will do this or that," you are expressing your vision; when you say, "I will not do this or that," you are also expressing your vision.
•	A dream or a vision: which do you want?
•	The future will happen whether or not you have a vision. 
•	Without a vision, you will perish. 
•	With a vision, you will flourish. 

The Vision of Joshua and Caleb
•	Your vision defines your attitude and action. 
•	In Numbers 13:1-33, God told Moses to send spies to explore the land of Canaan that He had bequeathed to the Israelites. 
•	He told them to bring back some produce so he could judge for himself.
•	The land, they said, "floweth with milk and honey," but powerful giants who inhabited large, fortified cities lived there. 
•	Despite Caleb's strong assertion that the Israelites could prevail, ten of the twelve spies were dead-set against it. 
•	Fear of failure overwhelmed them. 
•	"We were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight," they cried.
•	Their faith rose no higher than their vision.
•	Your vision informs your feelings how to feel. 
•	When you envision weakness, you make yourself weak. 
•	When you envision God's strength, you will be strong.
•	Negative visions are as contagious as positive ones. 
•	When the evil spies' pessimistic report was published throughout Israel, the entire nation began grumbling en masse against Moses. 
•	An unthinkable scenario developed: they were ready to pick a new leader who would take them back to slavery.
•	In dramatic fashion, Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before the people to counteract the negative report. 
•	Joshua and Caleb then stood up and pled with Israel to change their minds and move forward. 
•	Although Israel rejected their plea, dooming the people to wander thirty-eight more years in the wilderness, the vision of Joshua and Caleb never died. 
•	It took the passing of a generation, but they saw the walls of Jericho fall.

Six Musts of the Vision of Joshua and Caleb: 
•	1. They desired to possess the land.
•	2. They believed they had a right to the land.
•	3. They believed that failure to act was to rebel against the Lord.
•	4. They believed they could defeat the enemy.
•	5. They refused to be ruled by fear.
•	6. They were ready to make their move.
•	The Bible brims with visionaries. 
•	Abraham saw a new land with a new city; Joseph envisioned power and influence; Moses saw deliverance for the Hebrew nation; King David envisioned building a beautiful temple to honor God; his son Solomon envisioned a kingdom that spread over the earth; Peter saw a society free from racial prejudice; Paul envisioned preaching the gospel to every nation. 

Your Vision Is Waiting: 
•	A vision for yourself. 
•	Start by acting upon your personal vision.
•	A vision for your family. 
•	You don't work on your vision by telling others what to do. 
•	You work on your vision by investing yourself into your vision. 
•	Put a plan into action that brings reality to your family vision.
•	A vision for your ministry. 
•	What has God called you to do?
•	 Notice, I didn't say, "called to be." 
•	Too many of us think that to do something we have to be something. 
•	You can win souls without thinking of yourself as a soul winner. 
•	You can witness without being a preacher.
•	Take care of what you do.
•	Who you are will take care of itself.
•	A vision for your church.
•	Envision a loving church; a forgiving church; a caring church; a helping church; a participating church; a giving church; a growing church.
•	A vision is not "I want this"; a vision is "I see this." 
•	A vision does not say, "If only I had this"; a vision says, "I will get this done."
•	Going after your vision will not be easy. 
•	"For it is a day of trouble, and of treading down, and of perplexity by the Lord GOD of hosts in the valley of vision, breaking down the walls, and of crying to the mountains" (Isaiah 22:5, emphasis mine).
•	These are your musts:
•	You must desire to take possession of your vision. 
•	You must believe you have a right to your vision. 
•	Failure to act on your vision will be rebellion against the Lord.
•	You must believe you can defeat the enemy of your vision. 
•	You must refuse to be ruled by fear of your vision.
•	You must be ready to move toward your vision.
•	Revisit your dreams. 
•	Have they faded and died? 
•	Are they forgotten? 
•	Turn those dreams into visions. 
•	Inject life into your vision. 
•	Your vision is worth everything. 
•	Your vision is worth dying for. 
•	Your vision will forevermore define your life.

Earmarks of the True Visionary: 
•	A true visionary:
•	Starts something he cannot finish. . . . 
•	Builds something he cannot control. .
•	Goes places not on the map. . .
•	Embraces things not fully understood. . .
•	Becomes someone he has never been.
•	You are a true visionary when you are willing to start something you cannot finish:
•	Either your vision is too big for you to finish by yourself, or it will take too long to complete in your lifetime. 
•	You are content to sow the seed that puts it all into motion. 
•	This is not condoning procrastination or laziness but is a testament to the grand dream.
•	You are a true visionary when you are willing to go places that are not on the map. 
•	You do not seek the charted course. 
•	You don't look for a dream previously accomplished. 
•	You do not need the security of the known way. 
•	You are a true visionary when you are willing to build something you cannot control: 
•	To see your success skyrocket far beyond that which you anticipated excites you. 
•	You realize that the thing you create may render you obsolete, but you would rather be eclipsed by your own success than marinate in mediocrity. 
•	It was said of Jesus, "Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up" (Psalm 69:9, NKJV).
•	You are a true visionary when you are willing to embrace something you do not fully understand: 
•	The visionary suspects that there are endless possibilities in his idea or dream. 
•	He boldly lets that truth go wherever it wants to go. 
•	You are a true visionary when you are willing to become who you have never been before: 
•	Securely locked within our insular definitions, most of us shut down when life tries to transition us into a new calling. 
•	When innovative ideas threaten to inflict too great a change on our status quo, our crusty old wineskins start to burst. 

This article “That Vision Thing” was excerpted from the book The View from the Back of the Pulpit  written by J. Mark Jordan. It may be used for study & research purposes only.