Reading for Today:
Proverb Chapter 29
Gold Nugget
Verse 18: “Where there is no revelation, the people
cast off restraint; but happy is he who keeps the law.”
Commentary
Whether it be in church, business or family, if people do
not have vision they will perish. Vision is directly linked to hope. Without
vision, there is no hope. Trying to make that statement any flashier would only
serve to diminish its importance. When my family is going through a difficult
time, telling them that everything will be okay is only so effective. However,
telling them what it will take to pull us through and what we will need to do
to get us there is vision. Giving them vision equates to giving them hope.
Failing to give them vision will result in them feeling hopeless. When they
begin to live without hope, the result will be apathy. Apathy is a condition
where someone just doesn't care anymore. That is one of the worse conditions
anyone can be in. Today's "gold nugget" refers to people that cast
off restraint when they lack vision. They just don't care about what is right
or wrong anymore. Whether church, business or family, people that lack vision
will soon lack discipline. Children that lack vision will soon lose respect for
their parents and break family rules. Employees that lack vision will soon
violate company policies and Christians that lack or lose their vision will
soon "cast off restraint" and abandon God's principles. Discovering
and maintaining your vision is of absolute necessity. When someone says,
"That guy doesn't have any goals!” - What they are saying is he doesn't
have a vision. Goals are milestones that are present only in a vision. A vision
that doesn't have goals to mark the progress towards satisfying the vision
doesn't possess the necessary elements to maintain itself. Have you found your
vision? Did you lose your vision? Either one is just as devastating as the
other. If you haven't found your vision, there are steps to finding it and
those steps need to be your first goals (milestones). Purposing to find your
vision should be accompanied by confidence that you will find it. That is hope.
This can be accomplished through prayer and often times just good solid
counsel. Did you have a vision, but somehow lost it? That happens. Maybe
someone stole it from you. Often times other people will rob you of your vision
by casting doubts on you. They may have told you that you couldn't accomplish
your goals or somehow robbed you of your progress. Be sure of this - they will
not return it. You must determine that you will not be derailed any longer. Ask
yourself who you are and who you are supposed to be, and then start identifying
your most immediate goals. It may be as simple as registering for college,
getting a membership at a gym or have the nerve to share a business plan with
someone you respect.
I know for myself that the areas of my life where I began
to cast off restraint towards God's principles were the times when I had no
vision. Some of those times I just got distracted and lost my vision, other
times doubters came against me and beat me down. Either way, it has always been
my choice to cast off the doubt and press towards the mark.
It is time for you to find your vision or recover what
was lost of your vision and set some goals today. Will you take the challenge,
or will you stay in apathy?
Prayer
Lord, thank you for
the challenge to be reminded of what my vision is and what I need to focus on.
Forgive me of the areas of my life that have been infected with apathy. I give
those to you, as well. Amen
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