Vision

Vision

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.

INTRODUCTION

Good Evening Southpointe! I want to talk to you nothing on vision.

Have you noticed that so many people go through life without a plan? There's no

Have you noticed that so many people go through life without a plan? There's no vision for where they're going.

vision for where they're going. For example, years ago I was in seminary and I

In your notes make sure that you get this one done:

had to commute about an hour and a half one way to get to cla

ss. I wrote a paper

the day before for class and left it at my church building, First Methodist

Church downtown. I went home and got up the next morning at 5:30 a.m. and

realized I left my paper at the church.

Some of you who are younger say, "Why didn

't you just print out a new one? Why

didn't you just email it?"

This was 17 years ago or so, this was one step past click, click, click; white

-

Okay, so I had to go back there and print out a new one and so I rushed to the

church as early as I co

uld to get there. I took out my little key card to get in

and I put it up against the little beeper thing and it wouldn't let me in!

Panicked, couldn't get my paper, early in the morning, had to get to class! What

I realized is that there was probably a ti

mer set that you could only get in

during certain hours. So I panicked, I prayed, I panicked! I remembered, thank

God, that I always left my window up on the second story, out on the edge,

unlocked because no one in their right mind would ever climb up the

second story

building and go get in my office that way.

I climbed up the outside of the carport, stood on top of this thing, looked all

the way over there and realized it wa

s a really long ledge. I started going

along the side of the building like this as carefully as I could, scared to

death to look down! I came to my window which was on the other side of a ledge,

and so I took this giant step around, held on underneath the

window like this. I

to look down and when I did my heart sank. I froze, I was paralyzed, didn't know

what to do. I couldn't figure out, I was afraid to go back and I was standi

ng

there clinging for my life! It was 6:00 a.m., no cellphone, no way to get help

and I just started begging God to send somebody, please!

Thirty minutes later, somebody finally came walking down the street. I said,

"Hey!" They were looking up there an

d I'm like, "Would you mind calling for

help?" They were like, "I'll dial the police right now since you are trying to

break in!

Well anyway, the fire department came and lifted the ladder up there and took

Pastor Craig off of the second story building

at First United Methodist Church

at 7:00 a.m. in the morning!

If you are taking notes, write this down:

EVERYONE ENDS UP SOMEWHERE, BUT FEW PEOPLE END UP SOMEWHERE ON PURPOSE.

Let me ask you all a question. How many of you would like to end up one day financially free; you don't owe anybody anything, you are totally debt free, So you could give generously whenever God calls you?

one ends

up somewhere, but few people end up somewhere on purpose.

Let me ask you all a question. How many of you would like to end up one day

financially free; you don't owe anybody anything, you are totally debt free, you

How many of you would love to end up one day in great physical shape? If you get invited to go swimming you can actually show up?

can give generously whenever

God calls you? How many of you would love to end up

there? Yeah! How many of you would love to end up one day in great physical

shape? If you get invited to go swimming you can actually show up? How many of

you would say, "I would love to be there?"

How many of you that are married, you would love to have a very intimate, thriving, strong Christian marriage?

ow many of you if you're not married, you would love to end up one day married

with a very intimate, thriving, strong Christian marriage? How many say, "I

would love to end up there, with generations of Christ followers to come after

you?"

How many of you would love to end up so close to God that you know you are delighting Him in all you do, that you please Him with this life and one day He says to you, "Well done, my good and faithful servant?"

you would love to end up so close to God that you know you are

delighting Him in all you do, that you please Him with this life and one day He

says to you, "Well done, my good and faithful servant?" How many say, "I would

love to end up there?"

Let me promise you that you can end up at those places, but you will not end up there by accident. I promise you. You will not stumble upon success.

promise you that you can end up at those places, but you will not end up

Everyone ends up somewhere, but few people end up somewhere on purpose.

there by accident. I promise you. You will not stumble upon success. Everyone

ends up somewhere, but few people end up somewhere on purpose.

Our text lay it out:

Where there is no vision, the people perish...

can, all of our churches can you guys help me out and say this aloud? Scripture

teaches:

Where there is no vision, the people perish...

Vision in Hebrew means: a dream, a revelation, or a vision.

ed as vision is the

word chazown (khaw

-

zone'). Everybody say, chazown. Very good! When you say it

you kind of have to act like you are going to hack a loogie! Like that! So, if

you hack a loogie on a person's neck in front of you just say, "Chazown, I am

s

orry about that okay?"

This is not to be confused with calzone or calzones, which is Spanish for

underwear. This is not what we are talking about! This is the Hebrew word

a dream, a revelation, or a

vision.

Where there is no vision for a godly family. Half of the marriages end up in divorce. Where there is no vision for financial freedom, you will live paycheck to paycheck, always worried about money.

the marriages end up in divorce. Where there is no vision for financial freedom,

you can live in a very healthy part of the world and still live paycheck to

You can stumble through life always hoping for something better, knowing that God has something out there for you, but always living dissatisfied and under God's potential for your life.

paycheck, alwa

ys worried about money. Where there is no vision for a godly body,

a body that's healthy and would honor God, you can live in a very good part of

the world and still be fat and out of shape and unhealthy. Where there is no

vision for a great ministry or to

Where there is no vision; the people perish.

make a lasting difference, you can stumble

through life always hoping for something better, knowing that God has something

out there for you, but always living dissatisfied and under God's potential for

your life. Where there is no vision; no chazown, the

people perish.

I want to asked you a question, "If money were no object to you, what would you do with the rest of your life?"

favorite book?" The right answer always is, "My next one!" It's the right

answer! But truthfully, when people ask me, "What's your favorite book?" My

favor

ite book, beyond a shadow of doubt is my first one with the title Chazown.

What we've done is something I'm very, very excited about, we've put together a

six session teaching called, The Chazown Experience. At churches all over the

world, you have the

opportunity to gather together with other people, to seek

God to hear from Him as to what His vision, His plan would be for your life. The

good news is, you can wake up everyday knowing this is what I was created to do.

In The Chazown Experience, we want t

o help you to do that.

your church, you can go to chazown.com and all of the sessions are there free,

you can download a study guide. I sincerely pray that you would gather wi

th

whoever you can, seek God passionately. Hear from Him about His chazown. He did

not put you here by accident. You were created by God, placed at this moment in

history because this is the time you can best bring glory to Him. Everyone ends

up somewhere

but you won't. You will end up somewhere on purpose because you are

seeking God for His chazown, His vision for your life.

You may wonder, "Where did this idea come from?"

It was about 10 years ago that I had one of the most frustrating moments in

my

I asked this question, and I wonder how you would answer this? I

leaders from our church and I asked a question that I thought was really

important. I asked this question, and I wonder how you would answer this? I

said, "If money were no obj

ect to you, what would you do with the rest of your

life?"

Most people answer like this: "If money was no object, I'd buy a bigger house"; "I'd get a boat"; "I'd travel all over the world and take exotic vacations".

the rest of your life? And what I fully expected people to say were things like,

'You know, I would help intercity

kids', 'I would devote my life to building

orphanages', or 'I would help dig water wells.'

But instead here's what almost everyone said, the best leaders in our church,

they said, "If money was no object, I'd buy a bigger house"; "I'd get a boat";

"I'd travel all over the world and take exotic vacations".

travel all over the world and take exotic vacations".

Let me pause for a moment and ask you this:

DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD THAT HE SENT HIS ONE AND ONLY SON JESUS, WHO SHED HIS BLOOD, DIED AND ROSE AGAIN, SO OUR GREATEST DREAM IN LIFE COULD BE TO GO ON VACATION?

SON JESUS, WHO SHED HIS BLOOD, DIED AND ROSE AGAIN, SO OUR GREATEST DREA

M IN

LIFE COULD BE TO GO ON VACATION?

Do you really think that's what God has for us, would be to life that self-centered, consumeristic dream for our lives?

centered, consumeristic dream for our lives?

Where there is no vision; people stumble through life making it up as they go along.

as they go alon

g. This will not be you.

So here's what I want to do. I want to give you some pointers that could totally transform your life, In fact, if you look at all of the greats from the Bible; if you look at Moses, if you look at David, if you look at Esther, if you look at Paul, if you look at Nehemiah; over and over and over again you will see people who had a vision from God.

I believe will totally transform your life, I want to just show you the four

phases of chazown.

In fact, if you look at all of the greats from th

e Bible; if you look at Moses,

if you look at David, if you look at Esther, if you look at Paul, if you look at

Nehemiah; over and over and over again you will see people who had a vision from

God that every single one of them experienced these four differ

ent and very distinct phases on the way to God's chazown. His vision, His reason for their

existence.

Let’s look at:

"And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don't know what awaits me,

except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead.

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

Let me give you the context for . Paul was ministering in Ephesus. This was a place where one of the churches that he had started. He was crazy about this place.

let me just

give you the context for . Paul was ministering in Ephesus. This

was a

He totally loved the people, he loved the ministry, but God started to stir within him, much like God has been stirring or will stir in many of you.

place where one of the churches that he had started. He was crazy about this

place. He totally loved the people, he loved the ministry, but God started to

He realized God was calling him to something bigger, something new and something different. So with sorrow, he gathered the elders together, these were people that he'd bled with spiritually.

stir within him, much like God has been stirring or will stir in many of you. He

realized God

was calling him to something bigger, something new and something

He came in and he said, 'It breaks my heart, but God is calling me to something else'. With tremendous sorrow he just opened up about this and said; 'I'm supposed to go and move on.'

different. So with tremendous sorrow, he gathered the elders together, these

were people that he'd bled with spiritually. He came in and he said, 'It breaks

my heart, but God is calling me to

something else'. With tremendous sorrow he

just opened up about this and said; 'I'm supposed to go and move on.'

Some of you, God's going to do that, God is going to show you something that will cost you. It could be your own plans and selfish motive, God will show you only the things that His Word has approved.

And what you are going to have to do is you are going to have to say goodbye to where you are, leave your comfort zone, take a step of faith into a place that's not totally known in order to do what God wants you to do.

you are going to have

to do is you are going to have to say goodbye to where you are, leave your

You are going to have to leave the comfort of the known and take the step of faith.

comfort zone, take a step of faith into a place that's not totally known in

order to go where God wants you to go. You are going to have to leave the

comfort

of the known and take the step of faith. So, here is what he says; he's

God might be telling you to teach, or to go and witnesses, etc.

And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will

happen to me there. I

only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that

prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to

me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given

me

-

the task of testifying to the go

spel of God's grace.

-

24

The first step is always:

haven't experienced this, I pray that you do in The Chazown Experience as you

are seeking God, the first phase is always:

1) THE SPIRIT'S PROMPTING. (Write that down.)

MPTING. (Write that down.)

"And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don't know what awaits me,

The word bound is translated to compelled and be compelled by the Spirit in Greek the phrase is deo pneuma.

Deo— compelled or it means bound, or it means wrapped with cords.

Pneuma is the word that's translated as Spirit, or current of air, or breeze of the Spirit.

Verse 22, the beginning of the verse he says:

And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem...

In other words; this wasn't my idea, this was the Holy Spirit's idea. Compelled

by the spirit.

The

phrase that's translated compelled by the Spirit is a phrase, deo pneuma.

Deo is the Greek word, if you're taking notes it's translated compelled, or it

means bound, or it means wrapped with cords.

Pneuma is the word that's translated as Spirit, or

current of air, or breeze of

the Spirit.

Deo pneuma; many of you have had or you will have a deo pneuma moment, where you are wrapped up, you are bound by the Spirit. Where the Spirit of God just moves you, pulls you, tugs on you.

are wrapped up, you are bound by the Spirit. Where the Spirit of God just moves

Where you see something and you think, that can't be, that shouldn't be, I could do something about that. I wish it wasn't, there's something moving me out of my comfort zone, into the step of faith to do something more.

you, pulls you, tugs on you. Where you see somethi

ng and you think, that can't

be, that shouldn't be, I could do something about that. I wish it wasn't,

The Spirit's prompting.

there's something moving me out of my comfort zone, into the step of faith to do

something more. I can feel it, I'm being pulled towards something. Like,

if you go into a mall and around the corner is a place that's making fresh cinnamon

rolls and you can smell it! You are bound by the cinnamon roll spirit! There's

something drawing you in that direction, you just feel it! It's pulling you

toward there! Yo

u know I'm being moved in this direction, it's not something you

can quantify, it's just a deo pneuma. It's a move of the spirit.

I was in my early 20's when I visited one of my mentors, Bill Hybels, his church

in Chicago. They were doing church in a to

tally different way. I remember just

the whole time my mouth opened just floored, could it be possible to present the

Gospel and see so many people come to Christ? I remember after three days at

this conference, getting into this little minivan with our st

aff of seven people

from our church and driving away. I looked off at this church and it was like a

bad scene from a movie. Tears were going down my eyes, as I looked down I was

like, could I? Would it ever? Is it possible that one day I could do church in

The second step is:

a

The Spirit's prompting.

in a fresh way? There is something in me that said, 'It's got to be, it's got to

happen! For this you were born!' Deo pneuma!

Some of you, in the past you have felt that

stirring, there was something in you

that said, 'I was created for this, this bothers me in such a way, I can't stay

where I am, I've got to move to where God's calling me, I'm willing to leave

what I love and which is comfortable because I'm wrapped up, b

ound by the cord

of the Spirit. I've experienced the tugging of the Spirit of God!' Deo pneuma.

In The Chazown Experience, we want to help you to seek God through His Word,

look at the gifts that He has given you, the experiences that he's given you,

th

e values, the thing that you value as they all point to your divine Chazown.

The deo pneuma experience. The Spirit's prompting.

The first phase of Chazown is always the Spirit's prompting. The second phase is

2) CERTAIN UNCERTAINTY.

2) CERTAIN UNCERTAINTY.

The Spirit speaks and then you go, 'Now what? I think I heard from God, but I don't know what to do next!'

he Spirit speaks and then you go, 'Now what? I think I heard from God, but I

don't know what to do next!'

Verse 22, the next part of the verse he says:

"And now I am bound by the Spirit to go to Jerusalem. I don't know what awaits me,

I am compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.

happen to me there.

In other words, I know that I am supposed to do this, but that's all I know. I am not really sure what's going to happen next.

In other words, I know that I am supposed to do this, but that's all I know. I

am not really sure what's going to happen next.

Some of you will experience this at different points in your life.

You may think : I believe God's calling me to do this or that. Many people want to take the easy life instead doing what is right. God is not interested in your comfort, God is concerned about you doing the right thing.

I believe God's calling me to m

You have to take the step out into the certain uncertainty and walk by faith. Without faith it's impossible to please God.

psycho chick? I've seen it! You know so, I need assurances, I need details.

God's calling me to leave my very secure job and go start a business. Well, I

need a guarantee, I need details. God is calling me t

o take a step of faith and

start this ministry, it's a deo pneuma, I need details. God, I believe, will often say; 'I'm not going to give you details because you

can't handle details. If you knew all of the details you may say no to my

assignment.'

We want guarantees. God says, 'No, the only guarantee is if you'll trust me and follow the voice of my Spirit.

I'm telling you right now, if I knew all that this ministry was going to cost in

the early years emotionally, I probably would have said, "Oh no! Get somebody

else!"

God says, 'I'm calling you to this, but you can't handle the details right now.'

I'm te

God will not lead you to do something that is contradicting His Word.

lling you, you have to take the step out into the certain uncertainty and

walk by faith. Without faith it's impossible to please God. We want guarantees.

You can trust Him to carry you thru if you do what is right.

God says, 'No, the only guarantee is if you'll trust me and follow the voice of

my Spirit.

Do what is right will lead to fulfilling your big vision.

This is what we must do: I want you to say this with me tonight.

wheeler, it's like a motorcycle with four wheels. It is a gift from God for

young boys! He was scared to death! I knew this was going to be fun. I said,

"Bookie, let's get on this thi

ng." Bookie is not his real name by the way, his

real name is Steven, but his older brother called him Boobie, which was

unacceptable, so we changed it to Bookie! It stuck!

I WILL DO TODAY WHAT I CAN DO TO ENABLE ME TO DO TOMORROW WHAT I CAN'T DO TODAY.

Bookie got on this four wheeler and he was screaming the whole time, "No Daddy,

I'm scared!" And then he would go and he'd say, "Whee!" And then he would say,

"No Daddy, I'm scared!" And then, "Whee!"

Then there was a bump about this high and about five miles out. He said, "Don't

go over the bump!" We went over the bump and he's l

ike, "Whee! Let's do it

again!"

Well, it's really a couple of things. It's that I really seek God to hear from

and oh no and whee! Where you experience the thrill of living by faith. All I

know is God's calling me to do this but I don't know what's go

ing to happen

next. It's the deo pneuma, followed by the moment of uncertainty.

In The Chazown Experience, we are going to teach you about what I call the power

of the next step. God has given us this big vision, but how do we get there?

Well, what we a

re going to do is we are going to learn how to take the next

step. If you ask me, "Craig, what's behind the blessings of what God has done

through your ministry?"

Well, it's really a couple of things. It's that I really seek God to hear from

Him for vis

ion. He gives me the ability to see what's supposed to happen off in

the future. And then what I do is simply take the very next step. Here's the way

I like to say it if you're taking notes, I like to say this:

I WILL DO TODAY WHAT I CAN DO TO ENABLE ME

TO DO TOMORROW WHAT I CAN'T DO TODAY.

God has given me this deo pneuma, this vision, this compelling towards something. But, I don't know how to do it. So, what I'm going to do is I am just going to take one step at a time.

I WILL DO TODAY....again....I WILL DO TODAY WHAT I CAN DO TO ENABLE ME TO DO

TOMORROW WHAT I CAN'T DO TODAY.

I WILL DO TODAY WHAT I CAN DO TODAY TO ENABLE ME TO DO TOMORROW WHAT I

CAN'T DO

TODAY.

God has given me this deo pneuma, this vision, this compelling towards

something. But, I don't know how to do it. So, what I'm going to do is I am just

We have Spirit's prompting and certain uncertainty.

of ou

rs, the Yates, came up with this idea called, The Vision Wall. We will do a

version of this in The Chazown Experience.

We ask our kids to put sticky notes on the wall of their vision. One daughter

wants to write a book. One wants to own a Christian danc

e studio. One wants to

invent something. One of my sons wants to preach, another one wants to work at a

Game Stop, where they sell used games. I've convinced Bookie though, that we are

going to start a business and then we are going to buy Game Stop! Booki

e's all

up into that my friend! JoJo, my youngest daughter, she wants to make donuts and

sell them door to door. We are working on her vision, she's only six. So, we've

got the vision written on the wall. Here's what we are supposed to do, but to a

nine ye

ar old, 'I want to preach a sermon' is very overwhelming, isn't it? I

mean, how do you do that when you're nine?

So, on top of those post it notes, we put the next step. We put another little

one there, this is the next step. So, Sam's next step to prea

ch a sermon was to

interview Dad, who has preached a lot of sermons. So, we interviewed Dad. And

so, we determined that the next step is to determine what do we want to talk

about? That's doable. What verse have you read that you really love? What topic

is

important to you? That's doable. Once we determine that next step, then we

are going to look for some other verses, that's doable. We are going to find

some stories, that's doable, and here's what's going to happen; step by step, we

are going to move towa

rds the vision.

Many of you, you have the vision but you haven't taken the first step. You won't

be able to see step five because God says, 'You can't comprehend step five until

you take step one, two, three and four.' We are going to help you what you

can

do today to enable you to do tomorrow what you can't do today. Because God will

give you Chazown, vision, a passion, a deo pneuma, the Spirit's prompting, the

certain uncertainty, I know I'm supposed to, but I don't quiet know how. Do

today what you c

an do to enable you to do tomorrow what you can't do today.

Everybody say Spirit's prompting. Everybody say certain uncertainty.

Third step is always:

3) Predictable resistance.

As you step out you can put it on your calendar that your spiritual enemy is going to come and try to talk you out of it or do something to throw you off course.

ar that your spiritual enemy is

except that the Holy Spirit tells me in city after city that jail and suffering lie ahead.

going to come and try to talk you out of it or do something to throw you off

...only that prison and hardships are facing me.

course. Verse 23, Paul says:

I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that blessings and

pleasures are to come....

No, no, no!

I messed that up didn't I?

...only that prison and hardships are facing me.

In other words, there's going to be an enemy that's going to try to stop me from doing what God uniquely called and created me to do.

You can see it in every great story in the Bible. Moses, we've got to get these people free. Pharaoh, predictable resistance.

doing what God uniquely called and created me to do. You can see it in every

grea

t story in the Bible. Moses, we've got to get these people free. Pharaoh, predictable resistance.

Joseph, 'I've got this vision to be a great leader today'. The brothers say, 'No, we like your coat, we don't like you. We are throwing you into a pit

'No, we like your coat, we don't like you. We are throwing you into a pit

Vision....resistance.

are selling you into slavery'.

Vision....resistance.

let me just promise you, when you hear from God and you take a step of faith, all hell is going to break loose.

Sanballat and Tobiah, 'No we are not going to let you do it!'

It's the predictable resistance. And let me ju

st promise you, when you hear from

God and you take a step of faith, all hell is going to break loose.

The enemy does not want you to do what is right.

to pray together." You start praying and your wife doesn't like the w

ay you pray

and the next thing you know there is a shoe flying across the room at you. Why?

Because you took a step in the direction and there's predictable resistance.

You want to get financially free and so you take a step toward it. Something is

goi

ng to break by Friday, something expensive, because that's just kind of how

it happens.

You get a vision to get in great shape. You go to the grocery store to buy

fruit, Twinkies will be on sale for 75% off! You can just know it because there

will be t

he predictable resistance and you have to press through that.

Many of you, God is going to stir in you today and you are going to want to step

into the certain uncertainty and something is going to cause you to pause. Press

through it.

What is your

next step? I'm guessing for many of you it is The Chazown

The last step is:

time', the 'Oh, it's not going to really...' and you press through whatever the

resistance is and when you do, you will m

ove to phase four.

There is:

1) THE SPIRIT'S PROMPTING.

4. Finish the task

2) THERE IS THE CERTAIN UNCERTAINTY.

3) THERE IS PREDICTABLE RESISTANCE.

4) THERE IS WHAT I CALL UNCOMMON CLARITY.

This is where God wants you to live.

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.

People ask me sometimes, "C

raig, what's your favorite verse in the Bible?"

I am doing what I was created by God to do. You see, I am doing a great work. You can't tempt me with any kind of offer.

the Bible and it's this one; uncommon clarity, verse 24, here's what Paul says.

You have to feel the power of this statement,

he says: However, I consider my life worth nothing to me....

In other words you can kill me, if I can do this, there is nothing else that

matters.

...if only I may finish the race and complete the task....

In other words, I can see it. I've had

the deo pneuma. This is why I exist. This

is my somewhere on purpose. I'm not going to end up somewhere, this is it. This

is my chazown. This is my dream, this is my revelation, this is my vision.

...if only I can do this, the task the Lord Jesus Chri

st has given me

-

the task

of testifying to the Gospel of God's grace.

This is why I pray to God that if you haven't experienced the power of chazown,

that you will. Because when you have the clarity, this is what I was created to

do, you can e

ndure the pain. You can overcome the temptation. You wake up daily

with this focus and this passion and this divine drive because you know why you

are here. You are not an accident, you have been put here by God to do

something.

I will tell you right no

w, I am created by God through the local church to lead

people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. I am doing precisely what

God put me on earth to do. If I died tomorrow, besides missing watching my kids

grow up and making out with my wife as man

y times as she'll say yes! But besides

that, I'm telling you, no regrets! Not a single one! Not one ounce of a regret,

because I am doing what God called me to do!

I consider my life worth nothing, if only.....

And when you get to that point, you'll

be like Nehemiah was in the Old

Testament. He had the vision, the walls were down over Jerusalem and he's like,

somebody's got to do something about this! No idea, he cried, he got down on his

face, he spent days fasting and praying and God said, 'Your bu

rden, your

assignment'. Deo pneuma Spirit's prompting. What do I do next? I don't know what

to do. Oh, I'll go set an appointment and take the next step. Predictable

resistance.

Sanballat and Tobiah show up. He starts building the wall and in just a fe

w

days, everyone else says that it's totally impossible, you can never ever do it.

The resistance comes, Sanballat sends a messenger to him saying, 'Hey, let's

come down and have this little meeting'. And here's what he says, look at the

uncommon clarity,

, he's up on a wall, he's working away, he's

living his chazown. So he says:

So I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work, so that I cannot

come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and go down to you?"

Nehemi

ah 6:3

I am doing what I was created by God to do. You see, I am doing a great work.

You can't tempt me with any kind of offer. You've got a job for me making more

money? I can't be bought. You've got something that's going to provide me more

comforts?

I am not living for comforts. Deo pneuma, let God speak to you.

make me more popular? My audience is not you, I'm living for an audience of one.

You see, I know why I was created. I was created by God in heaven, placed at

this moment in history, I c

onsider my life worth nothing to me. If only I can

build this wall. If only I can tell people about Christ. If only I can heal my

marriage and have a godly marriage and raise generations of Christ followers. If

only I can have this business take off so I c

an fund my local church or build

orphanages around the world. Or if only I can get to the place where I can

disciple young girls so that they don't get pregnant before they are married and

end up ruining their life. If only I can get into the inner city, I

tell you I

Deo pneuma, let God speak to you.

Christ the way I do. If only I could mentor young teenage boys who feel called

to ministry.

If money were no object to you, what would you do with the rest of your l

ife?

Deo pneuma, let God speak to you.

Spirit's prompting, certain uncertainty, predictable resistance; take the next step.

step. And when you step, step by step, faithfully led by the Spirit, one day you are going to say, "I'm doing a great work!

And when you take step by step, faithfully led by the Spirit, one day you are going to say, "I'm doing a great work!

are going to say, "I'm doing a great work!

at I was created to do! You

Finish what you have started!! We are not quitter!

I want to read this prayer to you in closing:

my chazown, because everyone ends up somewhere, but few people end up somewhere

on purpose. You will end up somewhere on purpose.

This was prayed centuries ago by a guy named Sir Francis Drake, and he said this:

is prayer for you. This was prayed centuries ago by a guy named

Sir Francis Drake, and he said this:

"Disturb us, Lord, when We are too well pleased with ourselves, When our dreams have come true Because we have dreamed too little, When we arrived safely Because we sailed too close to the shore."

We are too well pleased with ourselves,

When our dreams have come true

Because we have dreamed too little,

When we arrived

safely

Because we sailed too close to the shore."

Sir Francis Drake

but not somewhere on purpose.

God, give your people chazown; vision, purpose, focus and clarity.

At all of our churches today as you are praying, many of you know that you were

created for more. You are not just a paycheck, you are not just paying a

mortgage, you are not just trying to get your kids from here to there, you are

not just trying to grad

uate college; you know there is a divine purpose, but you

are not quite sure what it is. Maybe you have sensed it, but you haven't had the

courage to take the next step. If you really believe deep down there is a divine

reason for you being here and you wa

nt to be able to say like Paul, "I consider

my life worth nothing to me, if only I may...what?

Would you lift up your hands right now if you have that desire; "I really want

to know what it is, I want to live it, I want to see it, I want to experience

i

t, I want chazown."

As hands are up all over the place, I pray God, in the name of your risen Son,

Jesus, that our greatest vision would not be a nicer house or a more comfortable

life, but a life that would please and honor you in every way. God I pray

for those who would take your call seriously, who would take the next step and

experience that the power of your Word through fellowship in The Chazown

Experience. God I pray that you would speak to hearts that lives would never,

ever be the same. God I p

ray that people would experience the deo pneuma, that

you would speak to them. God, that they would have the faith to take the next

step through the certain uncertainty and then when resistance comes they would

stay true and never quit persevering through

the hard times. And God I pray that

they would live with uncommon clarity, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt, for

this they were created and they would live in such a way that they would end up

somewhere on purpose doing what you have created them to do.

May it be so.

As you keep praying today at all of our locations, let's just talk even more

into the distant future, you are going to die one day. I promise you, medically

proven, one

-

out

-

of

-

one people are going to die. Everyone ends up somewhere, few

pe

ople end up somewhere on purpose. You will spend eternity somewhere. Where is

it going to be? You may take a chance. You may hope, "I hope my good works are

good enough, I hope I haven't been too bad".

Let me tell you what Scripture says. The Bible says

all of us have been too bad

for God. God's standard is perfection and all of us fall short. We are born

cursed with sin. We were born into a sinful world and our sin separates us from

a Holy God. But let me tell you what God did. God had the end in mind b

efore the

beginning ever started and He sent His Son, Jesus, who was sinless, who became

the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of our sins. Jesus bled, died and rose

again; not so we could buy a boat, but so that our sins could be forgiven so

that we c

ould be filled with the Spirit of God, so that we could know His

purpose, live a life that could glorify Him on earth and spend eternity with Him

in heaven.

That's why many of you are here. You say, "I'm not really sure where I stand

with God". If you

are not sure, it's time to be sure today and say, "God, I beg

you to forgive me of my sins". And when you do, He will. Scripture says that if

you confess your sins He is faithful and just to forgive you of your sins and to

cleanse you from all unrighteousn

ess. He will make you new. You will be filled

with the Spirit of God. He will speak to you and you will never have to live

life again without purpose. And more importantly, when you are said and done

with this life, you will stand before Him in heaven and

He will say, 'Welcome

into the eternity I have prepared for you, not because you were good enough, but

because you believed in the One who was, My Son Jesus'.

All of our churches today, those of you who would say, "You know what, I don't

know where I st

and with God, but today by faith, I want to give my life to

Jesus. Jesus, take my life, be the Savior of my life. I want to know you, I want

to serve you, I want to follow you.

If that's your prayer today, all of our churches, would you just raise your

hands high right now and just say, "Yes, that's me!"