Write the vision and make it plain. Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

When a dream comes from God and you commit yourself to it, it will 'surely' be fulfilled.  Yes, you will stumble, be stretched to new limits and maybe even stagger across the finish line, but you will make it.  You will get to the Promised Land.

Look at Moses: he had a history-changing message to deliver to Pharaoh, yet he was a poor speaker.  He had marriage problems.  He was a 'sole trader' who had to reach his breaking point before he learned to delegate responsibility to others.  He had a problem with his temper, as a result God said, 'This is the land I promised, I have let you see it, but you will not cross over into it." (Deuteronomy 34:4 NIV).  But Moses finally got there! 1,400 years later he stood with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration: right in the middle of it!

You say, 'I have failed so badly.'  David committed adultery, yet his psalms bring strength to multitudes and he's quoted in pulpits around the world.  God didn't excuse David, but he forgave him and used him.  'David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God  was buried'  (Acts 13:36 NKJV).

The Bible describes God as, 'ready to pardon, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abundant in kindness' (Nehemiah 9:17 NKJV).  Notice the words 'ready to pardon.'  God is ready when you are, all you have to do is turn to Him.  Before Habakkuk wrote about his vision, he said, 'I will watch to see what He will say to me, and what I will answer when I am corrected' (Habakkuk 2:1NKJV).  Corrected but not discarded!  Isn't that wonderful? That's how God's grace works!

He restoreth my soul [peace of mind]. Psalm 23:3

When life overwhelms us we usually look for one of two things.  We may look for somebody with all the answers. The trouble is, when you look to someone for that which only God can provide, you set that person up to fail and yourself up to be disappointed.  Alternatively, we may look for somewhere with fewer problems.  Paul Harvey wrote, 'After Hurricane Andrew devastated South Florida, Patricia Christy vowed she was going to leave on the first plane.  She was determined to get as far away from the horror of hurricane damage as she possibly could and have a restful vacation.'  Harvey said, 'I just heard from Patricia Christy.  She was standing in line for fresh water on the Hawaiian Island Kauai, having just gone through Hurricane Iniki!'

Sheep get anxious when storms come, predators roar, or they are forced to move to unfamiliar territory. How do they handle such times?  By moving closer to the shepherd!  Have you lost your peace of mind today?  Read the following Scriptures; they will help you move closer to your Shepherd:

But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them.  (Psalm 5:11 NKJV).

The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.  (Deuteronomy 33:27 NIV).

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.  (Isaiah 26:3 NKJV).

The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knows those who trust in Him.  (Nahum 1:7 NKJV).

For the Lord remembers us and will bless us.  (Psalm 115:12 NIV).

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. Psalm 23:5 NKJV

To protect his sheep the shepherd must constantly be on the lookout for a small, brown snake called the adder that can pop up out of its hole, bite the sheep and kill them.  And that is what the Lord has done for us!  He has dealt with Satan, the old serpent, and has prepared for us 'a table in the presence of our enemies'. He has done for us what He did for Peter after his infamous chapter of denial: invited us back into fellowship with Him. Three days after Jesus rose from the dead, the angel said, 'Go, tell His disciples  and Peter, that He is going before you into Galilee' (Mark 16:7 NKJV).  The biggest failure was the only one Jesus singled out by name.  When Peter reached the shore that morning beaten and weary, the fire was burning, the meal was prepared, and Jesus was saying, 'Come and dine' (John 21:12).  Have you failed badly?  Jesus invites you to come, be fed, be healed and restored to fellowship with Him.  But a word of caution: Peter didn't think he would fail, but he did.  And so can you.

St Augustine said, 'The devil is like a mad dog that's chained up.  He is powerless to harm us when we are outside his reach, but once we enter his circle we expose ourselves again to injury or harm.' You are no match for the enemy!  But God has given you a strategy for dealing with him: 'Submit yourselves, then, to God.  Resist the devil, and he will flee from you' (James 4:7 NIV).

Write the vision and make it plain. Habakkuk 2:2 NKJV

Notice two important things about vision:

(1) Your vision must come from God.  There is a difference between setting your own goals and having a God-given vision.  When your vision is of God, 'it will surely come' (Habakkuk 2:3).  You won't have to orchestrate events; God will provide the resources and open doors at the right time.  Your steps will be directed by Him.  Here's an interesting Scripture: 'time and chance happen to them all.  For man also does not know his time: like fish taken in a cruel net, like birds caught in a snare, so the sons of men are snared in an evil time' (Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 NKJV).  God will reveal to you your destiny and give you an opportunity to fulfil it.  But you can resist it, or postpone it, or give your life to other things and end up missing your 'time' and 'chance.'  Don't get caught in that net or trapped in that snare and forfeit what God has for you.

(2) Your vision will be connected to a certain field.  Joseph's dream started with a field of wheat (Genesis 37:6-7).  What's your field?  Whether God calls you to the field of medicine, education, finance, real estate, or some other field, it's to be a blessing to others.  God told Abraham, 'I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing' (Genesis 12:2 NIV).

Don't seek fame, seek to serve others.  If you do, your impact will be greater than your image and your eternal reward greater than anything you can drive, wear, live in, or hang on a wall.

Confess to one another therefore your faults (your slips, your false steps, your offenses, your sins) and pray [also] for one another, that you may be healed and restored [to a spiritual tone of mind and heart]. The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]. James 5:16 AMP

In the Old Testament Abraham journeyed south.  When he reached Gerar we read that he
'said of his wife Sarah, "She is my sister."  Then Abimelech king of Gerar sent for Sarah and took her' (Genesis 20:2 NIV).

Can you imagine how Sarah felt, trapped and alone in the palace, contemplating what lay ahead at the hands of her captor?  And what's worse, her husband, the man she trusted with her life, let it happen!  We are not privy to how Sarah prayed that night.  But she must have touched the heart of God because He 'came to Abimelech in a dream and said, "the woman you have taken is married, return the man's wife and you will live, if not, you will die'' (Genesis 20:3-7 NIV).

God's directives are always clear; there is never any ambivalence about what He says.  'The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord; he directs it wherever he pleases' (Proverbs 21:1 NIV).  That means authority figures who don't even know you exist, have to stop and listen when God speaks, because to Him 'one man is not different from another' (Romans 2:11 AMP).

So what can you do when you are helpless to change a situation you didn't create?  Or when someone you loved and trusted lets you down?  Pray!  Instead of giving in to bitterness or fear, cry out to God.  He will hear you like He heard Sarah.  How can you be sure?  Because His Word says, 'The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and produces wonderful results.'

No matter how bad things may look right now, and they looked pretty bad for Sarah that night, your prayers carry weight with God.

My cup runs over. Psalm 23:5 NKJV

Paul writes, 'Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think' (Ephesians 3:20 NKJV).  Our God is a God of abundance!  In Scripture, the overflowing cup is a powerful symbol.  As long as your cup was kept full you were welcome.  But if it sat empty, the host was hinting that it was time to go.  If he really enjoyed your company he kept filling it until it ran over the edge and down onto the table. Is your cup overflowing today?  That means you are welcome at God's table, your seat is guaranteed, nobody can take your place, and your needs will be abundantly supplied.

Whatever the blessing in your cup, it's sure to run over.  With God the calf is always the fatted calf, the robe is always the best robe, the joy is unspeakable, the peace passeth understanding.  God's way is always characterized by overflowing bounty.  So the last thing on earth we need to worry about is 'making ends meet'.  Our cup overflows.  Take grace, for example: 'The more we see our sinfulness, the more we see God's abounding grace forgiving us' (Romans 5:20 TLB).  To abound is to have a surplus!  The cup God gives overflows with mercy.  Are you afraid it will run dry?  That your warranty will expire?  That your mistakes are too great?  No way!

Before Paul became a Christian he went around persecuting, imprisoning and killing Christians. Yet he wrote, 'grace was poured out on me abundantly' (1 Timothy 1:14 NIV). Whatever you need today, God has in abundance.  So ask, and believe Him for it!

The lips of the godly speak helpful words. Proverbs 10:32 NLT

A World War II poster reads, 'Careless words cost lives'.  So when you hear something negative about someone, ask yourself four questions.

First, is it true?  'You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor' (Exodus 20:16 NKJV).  That's one of the Ten Commandments, not the ten suggestions!  Until you are certain it's true, say nothing.  Wait; time always reveals the truth.

Second, is it confidential?  Did you hear it as a result of someone else's having broken a confidence?  If you speak it, will you be contributing to the violation of a confidence? Remember, 'Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing covered' (Proverbs 11:13 ESV).  Your usefulness to God requires that you don't sacrifice your integrity by betraying trust.

Third, is it helpful?  Will it tear others down or build them up?  Satan is devoted to pulling down, discouraging and defeating; don't be his accomplice.  'Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen' (Ephesians 4:29 NIV).  Will it be beneficial and encouraging to those who hear it?

Finally, is it necessary?  Stop and ask yourself, 'What do others gain by my saying it, or lose by my not saying it?'  Always keep this in mind: you are more likely to regret the things you said than the things you didn't.  'A fool uttereth all his mind: but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards' (Proverbs 29:11 KJV).  Be wise, be careful what you say.