Judy Mills

  • home
  • about
  • blog
  • Contact
  • The Bible Study
  • 52 Ways to Glorify God

April 25, 2015

Way #9 – Without A Vision, The People Perish

“Where there is no vision, the people perish.”  (Proverbs 29:18 KJV)

Is there any limit to the application of this verse? Nations have formed, wars have been fought, and great sacrifices of all manner made because people had a vision. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s dream of the end of racism in the United States was a God-given, Scripture-based vision. This vision drove him through seemingly impossible obstacles and hardships. It was a vision for which he sacrificed greatly. It was a vision that cost him his earthly life.

Of all the visions we could discuss, I’m narrowing in on one:

Do you have a God-given, Scripture-based vision of who God says you are?

 Get a vision, a literal mental picture of who God says you are. Bible study lessons from the books of Proverbs, 2 Corinthians, Galatians. 52 Ways to Glorify God by Judy Mills.You need one! It will carry and sustain you through seemingly impossible circumstances — ones bombarding you from within as well as afflicting you from without. It will be a vision to direct your daily life.

Where there is no revelation (an accurate knowledge of Scripture backed by a firm belief in its truth) of who we are in Christ, “we cast off restraint” (Proverbs 29:18 NIV). In the Hebrew language, “restraint” is translated “go back to.” And that’s what we do.  Though saved, we go back to thinking and acting in ways not ordained by God, ways based on lies and focused on our flesh. We struggle and suffer unnecessarily, especially in the areas of worth and significance. Furthermore, we exhaust ourselves striving to become someone we already are:

“If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come”

(2 Corinthians 5:17).

Whether or not we feel “new,” we are. We are new creations – fully accepted and fully loved. The old sinful ways of thinking, feeling and acting are gone, their power lost. A new person with a new way of thinking, feeling and acting has come. The change that occurred immediately in our standing before God becomes evident in our lives as God changes our old way of thinking and acting to match our new, true identity. Without a vision, this doesn’t happen.

I want my God-given identity to determine how I act, instead of letting unrestrained actions determine who I become. In this quest, two passages have become paramount. The first one, from Colossians 3:12, contains three words that describe WHO God says we are:

Chosen      Holy     Beloved

What these words say about us is amazing!

Chosen: selected, picked out, decided upon, marked with favor

Holy: consecrated, set apart, made pure, made whole

Beloved: dearly, greatly loved

How radically different would our lives be, how great the peace, what confident assurance, what clear direction would we have if we truly believed those three facts?

The next passage, Galatians 2:20, tells us HOW. I’ve put the Scripture first, following it with what has become my daily mantra:

“I have been crucified with Christ.”  Done!

“I no longer live.” Done!

“Christ now lives in me.” Done! Praise God!

The verse continues: “The life I live in the body, I live by faith.” This is our ongoing choice! Will you believe the truth of who God says you are? I implore you: embrace way #9 of 52 ways to glorify God:

Get a vision — a literal, mental picture of who God says you are.

When you do, consider the glory that is given to God:

We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God, and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7).

Judy Mills

Filed Under: 52 Ways to Glorify God, the glory of God Tagged With: beloved, chosen, holy, identity in Christ, vision

Older
Newer

Comments

  1. Daisy says

    July 25, 2016 at 10:39 am

    Wow mind blowing thank you for sharing

    Reply
    • Judy Mills says

      July 26, 2016 at 7:52 pm

      Thanks for reading! The truths in this post struck me too!!!

      Reply
  2. Pamela Johnson says

    September 17, 2017 at 6:07 pm

    This is SO amazing! What a wake-up call for me! I’ve never once looked at myself in this way. Thanks so much for this.

    Reply
    • Judy Mills says

      September 17, 2017 at 6:19 pm

      Pamela,
      Your response is such a gift to me! Thank you! To God be the glory as He reveals and displays Himself in your life!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I accept the Privacy Policy

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Search the Blog:

Join the community & receive a printable list of 52 Ways to Glorify God!

The Ultimate Joy Study:

 

Find out more!

Recent Posts:

  • A Probing Question for This Time
  • A powerful new vision for the New Year
  • When the unthinkable, seemingly unbearable happens
  • God’s beautiful perspective of your life
  • What should be the most important thing in your life?
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2023 · Judy Mills · Tiemeyer Design

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT