Vision 2022

Vision is vital. When I was a small boy my father worked for Worcester College for the blind. We would regularly have students over for lunch and I marvelled at how these young men with no sight negotiated our home and the unwitting traps set for them by a 4 year old boy. They were amazing, but their lack of vision made life harder. The Bible is clear, a lack of vision, or having the wrong vision, in our lives is even more dangerous. We are created for purpose – Kingdom purpose. From Genesis 1 when God creates humanity in the image of the divine to bring the authority and rule of God over creation, to Matthew 28 when the risen Christ commissions the disciples to take the gospel to all nations, scripture is clear. We are created for Kingdom purpose. What is equally clear is that this calling operates within the context of relationship. The God who creates and calls is not a distant taskmaster, but rather an intimate father. God walks with Adam and Eve in the cool of the evening “Genesis 3), Jesus promises to always be with us, (Matt 28), Paul reminds us to constantly keep in step with the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5). Jesus call to his first disciples defined this symbiotic calling – “come and be with me (relationship) and I will make you fishers of men “(calling).

Jesus did not just teach, Jesus modelled the life he was calling the disciples too. A life built around his relationship with the father and worked out in the activities of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God can seem like a concept too big to work out in the nitty gritty of daily life. It is easy to hear Jesus say seek first the Kingdom (Matthew 6), but how do we work that out?

I find it helpful to think about what Jesus did under 4 Kingdom headings:

• Salvation – Jesus called people to repent and return to God.
• Sanctification – Jesus modelled holiness with its foundation in the holiness of the Father.
• Signs and Wonders – Jesus challenged every outworking of the fall, physical and spiritual.
• Social Action – Jesus constantly meets with the outcast and challenges injustice.

This then is God’s vision for us his people. To bring the Kingdom of God into every situation we encounter, not as a special activity, but rather as we walk through our daily life. It is here that we face our challenge. Daily life is already so busy – how do we also seek the Kingdom?

“Without vision the people perish, but without strategy the vision perishes”

It has been said that every individual’s life is perfectly structured to produce exactly the results it is currently producing. In other words, if I live my life in 2022 exactly as I did in 2021 I will see exactly the same results. I long to see more Kingdom impact in my life, and therefore I must look at what changes I might make. This is the essence of strategy. Not some grand 5 year plan, but a decision to be more intentional when it comes to the Kingdom. What small, but intentional actions might I make this year that create more space for God and his Kingdom? What changes might I make in how I use my time, my gifting, and my finances? What small changes to my perspective – how I look at my day – that will open my eyes and ears to the Kingdom opportunities that God is placing in my path?

This Everyday Devotions was written by Simon Elliott, who leads our team of Elders.

Simon unpacks these themes in more detail in his sermon message this week on our website, YouTube Channel and at our Online Church Services.

This Everyday Devotions has also inspired a devotional video that you can watch on our YouTube Channel.