Sermon Outline April 28, 2013 The Power of Vision Reading for Worship Guide Habakkuk 2: 1-3 Sunday 4/ 28 Proverbs Ch. 28; Habakkuk 2: 1-3 Monday 4/ 29 Tuesday 4/ 30 Wednesday 5/ 1 Thursday 5/ 2 Friday 5/ 3 Saturday 5/ 4 Proverbs Ch. 29; Ephesians 6: 10-20 Proverbs Ch. 30; Romans 8: 1-17 Proverbs Ch. 1; Romans 8: 18-39 Proverbs Ch. 2; II Corinthians 10: 1-5 Proverbs Ch. 3; Matthew 6: 19-34 Proverbs Ch. 4; Joshua 1: 1-18 God provides revelation or vision to serve as the rudder for our lives, steering us into the fulfillment of God s plan for our lives individually and collectively. We therefore receive God s vision and we must not alter or deviate from or abandon the vision God has given us. Without vision we are like a ship with no means of steering the course before us. 1. The Temptation to Alter, Deviate from, or Abandon God s Vision a. Discouragement is the biggest obstacle to fulfilling God s vision for your life. i. Pilgrim s Progress Giant Despair Satan s best tool is discouragement. 1
1. The voices of those who have turned back and abandoned God s vision and are now telling others to TURN BACK. 2. The darkness that envelopes you to the point that you don t really know where you re placing your foot in the next step. Will it support me? Will I step out and there s nothing there? b. Our Tool Box to Fulfill God s Vision Ephesians 6: 10 & 17-18 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord s people. i. Be Strong in the Lord! i Feed on His Word! Pray in Tongues! 1. Romans 8: 26-27 The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God s people in accordance with the will of God. 2. II Corinthians 10: 4-5 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against 2
the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. 2. Habakkuk 2: 2-3 The Power of Vision a. Vision Picks Your Friends and Associates i. Without knowing it you re here because there is a vision being carried out that has drawn us together. Your children will choose their friends based on the vision communicated into their lives through their family situation. b. Vision Predicts Your Future i. You have what you speak! Write the vision for your family, your future, your business, your achievement. Then run with it and see it come to pass! c. Vision Predetermines Your Decisions i. Vision supplies guidance for the choices you must make. i If the logical outcome of a decision is not in alignment with achieving the vision the answer is NO. If the logical outcome of a decision is in alignment with achieving the vision the answer is YES. d. Vision Protects Your Priorities i. The uses of your resources time, focus, money, influence, etc. are under the protection of the vision you re fulfilling. 3
Matthew 6: 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. You will prioritize your life based on the vision you really treasure in your heart. 3. Joshua 1: 5 No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. a. When God gives vision He also makes provision. i. You have everything you need to fulfill God s plan. i iv. It is already provided for you even if you can t see it with your physical eye. God is with you! God will not leave you! v. God will not forsake you! 4. Write simple visions for yourself, your family, your employment or business. Make them three (3) simple bullets each. (Example My family will proper according to the word of God for our lives.) Review them DAILY! SELF FAMILY 4
EMPLOYMENT/BUSINESS 5