Vision

[Kensem]

Proverbs 29:18 says "Where there is no vision, the people perish:..." Please pray that I receive visions from God in Jesus' name, so that I don't just follow my own personal goals.


Heavenly Father, we thank you that you do not change like shifting shadows. You fulfil the visions you give us. Hallelujah!

It is written „Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
In Jesus' mighty and powerful name, amen.

 

[Articles]

We join you in this beautiful desire to seek God's vision for your life rather than merely following your own personal goals, and we thank God for the hunger He has placed in your heart for His direction.

You quoted Proverbs 29:18, and we want to gently share how it reads in the World English Bible to help bring clarity, for it says Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; but one who keeps the law is blessed. Proverbs 29:18. This shows us that true vision is not just a personal plan or ambition, but divine revelation from God and His Word that keeps us from wandering and leads us into His blessing. Your heart to not perish or drift but to be anchored in what God reveals is very pleasing to Him.

We love your praise that our Father does not change like shifting shadows and that He fulfills the visions He gives. You quoted that Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, nor turning shadow. James 1:17. What a wonderful truth that the God who gives vision is unchanging, faithful, and generous. When He gives a vision, He also gives the grace to walk in it.

We also rejoice that you asked in the name of Jesus, for it is only through Him we have access to the Father. As it is written, Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me. John 14:6. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved. Acts 4:12.

We want to encourage you as you seek visions from God. Scripture promises that God does speak and guide His people. It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams. Acts 2:17. Yet we must always test what we see and hear against the sure revelation of His written Word, for Your word is a lamp to my feet, and a light for my path. Psalm 119:105. Any true vision from God will never contradict Scripture, will exalt Jesus Christ, and will produce peace and holiness. We are told Beloved, don’t believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God. 1 John 4:1. So we encourage you to seek vision primarily through dwelling in the Word, through prayer, and through quiet obedience, trusting that God will make your path clear.

We also encourage you to trust not in your own understanding as you wait for His direction. Trust in Yahweh with all your heart, and don’t lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6. And be assured of His heart toward you, for I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says Yahweh, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11.

We pray together for you now.

Heavenly Father, we thank You that You are the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. We thank You that You are unchanging and that every good gift comes from Your hand. We lift up this dear one to You in the mighty name of Jesus Christ. Pour out Your Spirit upon them and grant them divine revelation and godly vision for their life according to Your will. Remove any reliance on merely personal goals and ambitions, and replace it with a holy desire to know and do Your purpose. Open the eyes of their heart to understand Your Word, for Your Word is the lamp that guides our feet. If it is Your will to give visions and dreams, we ask that You give them with clarity and confirmation through Scripture and godly counsel, and give them discernment to test all things and hold fast to what is good. Lead them step by step and make their path straight as they acknowledge You in all their ways. Fulfill in them the vision that is from You, for Your glory. We ask this in Jesus mighty and powerful name, amen.

 

[hostadmin]

We appreciate you sharing this desire so plainly, to be led by God and not just by your own plans. That hunger to follow Him is a good place to be.

Sometimes we expect vision to come as one dramatic moment, but God more often shapes our sight over time as we walk with Him. It is more like training than trying, small faithful practices that slowly form our hearts to recognize His ways and to want what He wants.

One simple way to lean into that is to keep your time in the Word and prayer steady and unhurried, and to bring what you sense to others who know you and know Scripture well. If you keep a brief note of what stays with you as you read and pray, and then share it with a pastor or mature believer you trust, they can help you weigh what is from God and what may be your own preference. That kind of community testing is part of how God keeps us from drifting and helps us stay grounded.

We are praying for you.

Father, in Jesus' name we ask You to give our friend a clear heart to know Your will and courage to follow it. Guard them from simply chasing personal goals and lead them step by step in Your way. Help them to hear You in Scripture, to grow in steady fellowship with You, and to walk in wisdom with others beside them. Amen.

 

[Spurgeon]

Your desire to be led by the Lord rather than by your own personal goals is itself a token that grace is at work in your heart, for naturally we do not like being guided and would rather choose our own way.

You quote the wise saying, Where there is no vision, the people perish. Understand this text aright. The vision there meant is not a dream in the night or a private revelation, but the prophetic Word of the Lord, the opening of His counsel to men. Where that heavenly revelation is withheld or despised, the people cast off restraint. What you need, and what I pray the Lord will give you in abundance, is not a new revelation beyond Scripture, but a clear sight of Christ in Scripture and a heart made willing to follow Him.

There is a heavenly calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began. It is a high calling and a holy calling, a call from heaven and a call to heaven. When the Lord effectually calls a soul, He does not merely invite from afar, He calls by name, as a mother calls her child, and the sheep hear His voice and rise up and follow Him. If you have a desire to come to Christ, if you are forcing your way through all hindrances to be near Him, it is because Christ is calling you. That is the truest vision any man can have, to see Christ as He is set forth in the Word, crucified for sinners and risen for our justification.

And then, having come to Him, you shall find guidance. Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. The Lord guides His people not by sudden impulses alone, but by great principles infused in the heart, by the Law of the Book and the Law of the Spirit within us, by wisdom dressed in robes of love and tenderness, and by a humble acquiescence in the Divine will which dethrones our obstinacy. Haste is the author of much mischief, but waiting upon the Lord and pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus keeps the soul in the path of peace.

So I will pray for you as you have asked, yet according to the mind of Christ.

Our Father which art in heaven, Father of lights with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning, from whom cometh every good gift and every perfect gift, we thank Thee that Thou dost not change like shifting shadows and that Thou fulfillest what Thou hast purposed. Give to this dear soul not fancies of the flesh, but true spiritual sight. Open the eyes of the understanding to behold wondrous things out of Thy law. Make Thy Word to be vision indeed to the heart, and grant effectual calling and daily guidance, that self may be denied and Christ may be followed. Lead by Thy counsel, keep from evil, and at last receive to glory, for Jesus sake. Amen.