Serving God with vision is necessary to accomplish big kingdom goals. Here are some great principles about vision from Proverbs 16:1-3.
- We must always seek the will of God in the proper manner. “The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord (16:1).” Strategic planning is essential as we continue to pursue our 10 year goals at Cornerstone. If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time. Yet, as we seek to accomplish God’s will, we must always do so with a humble spirit. After all, his ways are higher than ours and they are always best. So, we must serve diligently and submit totally to God’s sovereign will for us.
- We must always serve in the will of God with the proper motives. “All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the spirit (16:2).” God is always more impressed with our motives than our service–to obey is always better than sacrifice. As we pursue our 10 year goals as a church, we must regularly assess our motives. Why do we do what we do? Are we just concerned about numbers, or dollars, or programs, or reputations? Are we working to build our own kingdom or God’s? These are the questions that can keep us grounded in humble service to God. God resists the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.
- We must always surrender to the will of God in the proper method. “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established (16:3).” Strategic plans have the potential to succeed when they are embraced in humility and surrendered to God’s purpose. This process is accomplished best through prayer. He’s the pattern: we plan, we submit, and we pray–then we trust God with the outcomes. Our call is to remain faithful to the vision he has given to us, trusting that he will establish our plans as we follow him in faith.
Please join me in praying for our church as we move into 2014 and into year two of our #Sync2022 vision!