Waiting for your vision to materialize…

Taken from Os Hillman’s Daily Workplace Inspiration
God’s Double-Talk
TGIF Today God Is First Volume 1 by Os Hillman
Thursday, October 22 2009

Have you ever had a boss tell you to do something only to have him sabotage your ability to complete the task? Nothing is more frustrating than to begin to carry out a task and have your superior thwart your effort to do what he asked you to do. Moses must have felt this way after God told him to go to Pharaoh and tell him to release the people of Israel. He said, “I am going to give you the power to release the children of Israel by the miracles I will do through you.” Yet at the same time, He told Moses they would not be released because He was going to put a hard heart in Pharaoh. How do we reconcile this?

In my own life, I knew God called me to certain endeavors. Yet every time I turned around, a roadblock stood in my way. It took years of plodding along before the light came on as to why there was such a distance between what God called me to do and the manifestation of that calling. When David was anointed king of Israel, it was years before he realized the manifestation of that calling. There were a number of reasons for these delays.

The Mission: Love. Fruit. Community.

I love when you just feel an overflow of gratitude and encouragement… to move on from the past and take the next step forward. It is liberating and renewing. Those words are often used in various spiritual contexts (“Moving on from the past”) – and I think it is a good theme for life – yes to make time to reflect, but then always remember to be made new.

Continuing on from my previous post, a 3-word mission keeps re-appearing to me. The 3-words are:

Love : Fruitfulness : Community

In a workshop I led a few years ago about “Re-Defining Work Satisfaction”, I clarified the difference between a Vision, Mission & Values – so let me paste that here:

Vision – the “What” – what do you want to be/become in your future
Mission – the “Why” – why do you want to achieve your vision
Values – the “How” – how do you want to achieve your vision; values represent your highest priorities & driving forces

“Operation Lov:e” in my life has become a creative, fun, gentle way to remind me of my purpose.

So, back to my previous post… my Vision (the What), is to live out a life focused on eternity. My Values (the How), are those 6 C’s. And now, the Mission (the Why) is because I want to experience and live out (and I want others to experience and live out): Love, Fruitfulness and Community. Keep in mind these 3 words have radically unique definitions, not defined by the world, but by God.

It’s being Secured in Love, Bearing MUCH Fruit (fruit that will last), and self-sacrificing (self-denying/ other-centered) Community.

(Psalm 1. John 15. Galatians 5.)

Vision

Creating a vision statement keeps us focused, satisfied, and intentional about living.

From a high-level perspective, my hope and vision is: RESTORATION.

Restoring our hearts and minds to who God created us to be. To know our true identity and rest in it as our firm foundation. When we know our true selves, we are also led to restore our relationships to others.

Restoration transforms our lives, leading us into new ways of behaving and relating. We will gain:
-new beliefs & new attitudes about ourselves and the world around us
-renewed relationships
-greater peace, stability, & joy