Daydreamer or Visionary?

It’s not enough to merely daydream about “stuff you’d really like to do.”  You need to have a determined goal — a Vision. A vision won’t take shape until you have a plan, and without a plan, there can be no course of action. Without action there is no change. Without change no growth…

Begin where you are – With what you have

God will multiply when you begin where you are, with what you have. In the sixth chapter of the Book of Mark, we find Jesus, feeding thousands of people who were hungry; both in body and in spirit. The miracle of the loaves and fishes reminds us:

• God always has a plan.
• God knows what we need.
• God is compassionate.
• God provides resources.
• God gives us opportunities for excellence.

The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark.  -Michelangelo

Make a sandwich!

The key to beginning is faith. Step out of your comfort zone! The key to increase is diligence and persistence. Diligence is a focussed pursuit and persistence is a resolute determination towards purpose, regardless of difficulty.  Purpose is our why.  

Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed. – Mark 6:41-44

Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand. – Proverbs 19:21

and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills – Exodus 1:3

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. -Matthew 5:14-16

 

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. – Ephesians 2:10

The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told him all they had done and taught. Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn’t even have time to eat. So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone. But many people recognized them and saw them leaving, and people from many towns ran ahead along the shore and got there ahead of them. Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things. Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.” But Jesus said, “You feed them.”

“With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money to buy food for all these people!”

“How much bread do you have?” he asked. “Go and find out.”  They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish.”

Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed.     – Mark 6:30-44