Vision continued...you probably saw this coming.

If we allow ourselves to trust our vision completely, we will ironically "lose sight" of what is most important. The most important part of everybody's everything is the present. The present is not simply a precursor to the future, although it may be that as well, it is the only thing we can actively affect, the only thing we have a say in is right now. The future is quintessentially dependent on the present. The present depends only on what we choose to do, not what we have chosen, and certainly not what we will choose. We must refrain from thinking about the present as only a perpetual means to a constantly elusive end and start viewing the present as the the gift that it really is.

I find myself looking toward the future in expectation while failing to act in the present. I'm aware that my expectations for the future depend on what I do right now, but often overlook what I'm doing at the moment to imagine where I'll be in the future. It seems like a lack of foresight to fail to accomplish what is necessary now to give ourselves the best chance of meeting our expectations for the future. I think this is often untrue.

We would say that someone who does not accomplish what they need to right now lacks foresight because, if they had foresight, they would see how failure to be effective now will affect their future. Someone we would call "irresponsible". We say that irresponsible people don't have the foresight to do what they need to be doing. I believe this is not the case for me, as well as for many other people. In fact, I believe it is just the opposite. For me, the problem seems to be an excess of foresight. I am looking toward the future so much that I fail to act in the present. I become farsighted, that is, I can see the future more clearly than I can see the present. This presents a new kind of problem to deal with.

If it is in fact, not the lack of foresight but the excess of foresight that is preventing me from being effective in the present, than how do I keep myself from looking too far ahead? It's not like forgive and forget, this stuff hasn't happened yet, there's no forgiveness... and I can't forget. I think the best way for me to tackle the problem is to simply live in the present. The only possibility of experiencing reality comes when we live here and now. The past is memory and the future is imagination, both are fun to revel in from time to time but we must be aware that neither is reality. The bible hits on this whole idea of "carpe diem" in Ephesians 5:15-17 when it says: "Be very careful, then, how you live- not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is".

The reality of the situation is that we must not and cannot trust our own vision of the future. We can trust that God will accomplish what he said he will accomplish. When we trust our vision we are not trusting God. Trusting God we call faith, or at least I do, some probably call it foolishness. Faith has to go hand in hand with trust...not trusting our own vision of the future, but trusting God.

Hebrews 11:1 "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see"

Don't trust what you "see". Be certain of what you do not see. We're naturally opposed to this idea because we rely on vision for safety and security. Is it really the safest and most secure option to imagine and rely on a future that will almost certainly not come true? Are we really finding a way to be comfortable by putting our life into our own hands? It seems like we would know what's best for our futures because we know ourselves and we know what we want. This verse accounts for our wants though, it says "being sure of what we hope for"...that's what we want- what we hope for. Hope is not a problem, hope is good. The problem comes when we skip over the second part of the verse that says we should be "certain of what we do not see". So what's the more logical option, to trust our vision for the future and depend on it coming true? or to only be certain of what we do not see and know what we hope for? It seems to me that if I trust my vision, I will always be let down. If I know what I'm hoping for and trust that God knows what I need, I leave no option for disappointment, only a different outcome than I may have expected and I like surprises.

Just before Jesus went to be hung on the cross he prayed : "Abba Father, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will." (Mark 13:35)

That is giving complete trust to God- that is faith. He did not ignore what he hoped for, he said, "take this cup from me" his hope was that he would not have to go through crucifixion. More importantly, Jesus trusted, he says, "Yet not what I will, but what you will"- utter submission to God. He trusts that no matter what the circumstances look like, God's will is above his own. This is JESUS!...if Jesus is willing to fully submit to God's will and admit that God knows what's best for him, than who I am to say that I should be given control of my life?

We use the word prophesy to generally mean something that we heard some crazy pseudo-religious zealot say to us on our walk to class about why we're going to hell. Prophesy is usually riddled with negative connotation, at least in my experience. Strangely enough, on the other hand, we look at talking about our plans for the future as a good thing. Is telling other people what is going to happen in the future really any different than prophesy? We imagine with our minds what is to come, we tell other people, and we wait in expectation for it...that's prophesy. In Ezekiel 13:2b-3 and then again 6-9 (you should really just read all of chapter 13 cause it really drives this home) it says:

Eze 13:2b-3: "Say to those who prophesy out of their own imagination: 'Hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit and have seen nothing!"...6-9: "Their visions are false and their divinations a lie. They say, 'The Lord declares,' when the Lord has not sent them; yet they expect their words to be fulfilled. Have you not seen false visions and utter lying divinations when you say, 'The Lord declares,' though I have not spoken? 'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because your false words and lying visions, I am against you, declares the Sovereign Lord. My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and utter lying divinations. They will not belong to the council of my people or be listed in the records of the house of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord."

Why would we prophesy? It's because we experience opposition to what we think the plan is and we are uncomfortable. We experience suffering and pain in our lives so we think we need to plan our future to avoid that happening again. This idea of preparing ourselves to avoid suffering is completely contrary to the bible. Psalm 119:50 says: "My comfort in suffering is this: Your promise preserves my life." What an incredible outlook! We experience suffering and find comfort in the Lord's promise. We don't avoid suffering and find comfort in being prepared to dodge any pain that may interfere with our lives. It's impossible to avoid pain and suffering; it's completely possible to find comfort in suffering if we're willing to believe His promise and not our own. James 1:2-5 addresses this as well.

There is so much more hope when we take the responsibility off ourselves and trust that God is looking out for our future. Numbers 23:19-20 says: "God is not a man, that he should lie, not a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfill? I have received a command to bless; he has blessed, and I cannot change it."

Psalm 119:123-128: "My eyes fail, looking for your salvation, looking for your righteous promise. Deal with your servant according to your love and teach me your decrees. I am your servant; give me discernment that I may understand your statutes. It is time for you to act O Lord; your law is being broken. Because I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold, and because I consider all your precepts right, I hate every wrong path."

It's amazing how if we can actually allow God to take control of our future and really trust Him, we have so many more options. We limit God so much by trying to predict our own future. We repress our own potential in Christ by relying on our own imagination and putting boundaries on our future.

Psalm 119:92-96: "If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life. Save me, for I am yours; I have sought out your precepts. The wicked are waiting to destroy me, but I will ponder your statutes. TO ALL PERFECTION I SEE A LIMIT; BUT YOUR COMMANDS ARE BOUNDLESS."

You should definitely try reading all of Ezekiel 13 and all of Psalms 119 cause they both have so much to offer on this subject.

Sorry this is so long, just one more verse to complete the point about how trusting God is far better than trusting ourselves.

Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."