Do You Need a New Vision?

[featured_image]A few years ago when I was pastor of Lake Hills Church, my wife said to me, “You need a new vision for our church.”

I was surprised by her statement. I became defensive.

“What’s wrong with the vision we’ve got?” I wondered.

We had started the church with a vision to reach people who didn’t go to church. We’d labored and strived for almost a decade and a half to make a difference in our community. We focused on going after unchurched people and we’d seen dozens of people baptized and lives changed.

As far as I was concerned, we should just keep doing what we were doing. I didn’t think we needed a new vision. I felt we had a good vision for our church.

But I was struck by her observation that we needed a new one. She didn’t press me on this. And as a result this thought continued to ruminate.

What if she was right?
How would I know if we needed a new vision?
How would we find a new vision?

As I processed through my thoughts, I began to realize that our church didn’t necessarily need a new vision. The reality that came clear to me was this: I needed a new vision.

What she was saying wasn’t really about our church, it was about me!

I had come to a point in my ministry where I was struggling to keep going through the motions. Week after week we kept on doing the same thing.

And yet as I began to evaluate what God had called and gifted me to do, I realized that I had drifted off-course. I wasn’t fulfilling God’s calling on my life. I needed a new vision.

I needed a vision that went beyond getting a church started and making a difference in our small community. I needed to hear from God.

Over the next several months I spent much time pondering what God was saying to me. I prayed. I took walks. I read my Bible and a few books.

I recalled how I had come to realize a few years earlier with the help of a good coach that I was afraid of really pursuing the vision that I believe God had for my life. At that time, I could hardly even speak of it.

And yet as I wrestled with my sense of God’s vision for my future, I knew that God had something more for me. I knew that I was going to have to take some risks and trust God more than ever before. I knew that I’d have to eventually leave the church we started to pursue this vision more fully.

By that summer, I had decided that I’d be ready to move on in about five years. Then I’d pursue the vision that God had for me.

Yet just five months later I was struck with the reality that “delayed obedience is disobedience.” I realized that I could not wait to follow God’s calling. I couldn’t delay pursuing the vision He had given me.

And yet as I came to this realization, I wasn’t struck with fear. Instead I felt an amazing peace. It was a peace that comes only from God.

Do You Need a New Vision?

So I want to ask you this important question: Do you need a new vision?

Are you being obedient to the calling God has on your life?
What needs to change?
What steps do you need to take to pursue the vision God’s given you?

I wish I could sit down with you and have an honest conversation about these things. Yet until we do, I want to encourage you to spend time alone with God. Listen to His voice. Ask Him what He wants you to do. Then do it! Pursue His vision for you with all you’ve got! Join God in what He’s doing.