how to focus and master your vision how to focus and master your vision I want to give it a a subtitle and I want you to take notes tonight because this would be really a letter to yourself how to master your gift say that with me how to master your gift now I'm going to give you a lot of information in a very short time how to master your gift one of the the greatest causes of failure that I have studied is not identifying the objective of success in other words people fail because they don't know what they wanted to succeed in to aim at nothing they say is to hit everything and most of the people on this planet 5. 7 billion of us are basically running around the earth with a loaded life aiming at nothing to aim at everything is to hit nothing and that's what is the cause of most of our frustration and our depression we know we're busy we know we're active but we're not really focusing on anything specific Let me Give an example suppose I come to you and say to you let's meet and you ask me where and I answer anywhere and you ask when do you want to meet and my answer anytime when do you think we'll meet where do you think we'll meet and most of the human race are generally living that way they have no appointment with life no time to accomplish their Destiny you see most of the human race uh general contractors they are constructing everything and building nothing most people in the world attempt to do everything and consequently accomplish nothing I guarantee you that everybody in this room on a weekend on a Friday evening are probably tired and the question is what did you do that made you tired that took you any closer to where you wanted to go some people are busy doing unimportant things you see mediocrity is a region bounded on the North by compromise on the south by indecision and on the east by past thinking and on the west by a lack of vision and most people live in that Territory called mediocrity as a matter of fact most of the human race are suffering from the problem of being General the problem with the human race is not the color of their skin but the color of their lives and I want you to make a note of this in your note most of us really don't have a problem with our pigmentations matter of fact whether you are black or white or brown or high yellow or whether you are pink or red or whatever color you are it really doesn't count as to whether you'll be a success or a failure you see your pigmentation is not the problem the problem is the color of your lives and that color is gray [Music] there's another color that people live in I call it beige they never seem to have a black or white life they never seem to have a a precise way of living they always just there many claim that their gray lives is a result of their pursuit of balance in their lives people say well I don't want to go too much on one side or the other side I don't want to really go after anything because I may miss something well what they call balance is really an excuse for not making a choice others are so indecisive that their only decision is not to decide and that's how most people live balance is not the inclusion of everything and it's not the avoidance of anything balance is usually just an excuse people use for being lukewarm I don't want to really become too serious about anything because uh uh you know I might miss what I really want to do and they have that excuse for 45 years and they end up being an average mediocre person balance however you can get this definition down balance is the maintenance of equilibrium while moving toward a destination I won't repeat that balance is the maintenance of equilibria keeping your equilibrium on your way to a destination take it as an example you ever seen the big ships on the ocean big boats uh even small boats I guess they have the same experience they are always wanting to maintain their balance but wouldn't it be depressing and frustrating and perhaps even a waste of precious time and fuel for a boat to spend his whole life just balancing on the ocean making sure it doesn't tip over just for 50 years just balancing for 90 years and you're just balancing you see the problem is balance is a means to an end we say we don't want to choose anything specific in life because we got to keep balance when I say to you that a boat key balance on its way to its specific port you gotta go somewhere while you're maintaining your balance life was never designed to be lived in the grave [Music] I am so sorry that so many people in the world have really worked hard and accomplished nothing some of you are 65 years old perhaps you're watching this television program as well and you were 70 years older all you look back on is is what have I done with my life what have I made as a contribution to the human race what if I really left for the Next Generation to know that I was here there's no footprint in the sand of history that looks like mine what a tragedy as a matter of fact the best some people do in life after working for 60 years for a company is a pen or a clock but I submit to you that the nature of God is purpose and the word purpose is the same word in the Greek for intent everybody say intent God is a god of purpose he's a god of intent he's always going somewhere and always doing something there's nothing in this wonderful book where God is entertaining there's no entertainment in God there's no page on the Bible where God Appears just to let people see how good he looks as a matter of fact every appearance of God in history was because he wanted something done and he was doing it you see God doesn't just show up God Acts [Music] most of the humans on this planet are basically showing up God hates Grace say that with me God hates Grace write that down to yourself God hates great God doesn't want anybody to be Gray why because of his integrity and why do I answer it that way gray means it's neither yes nor no it's maybe and Jesus has some things to say about maybe didn't he if you have your Bible turned with me to mark Matthew Chapter 5 Jesus talks about great living and he was very emphatic about how he felt about it and Jesus said he doesn't like people who can decide to decide and most of the people in the world are basically living in this beige area of Life they're never quite on one thing all in their heart I Mark Matthew chapter 5 verse 37 Jesus said let your nay be nay and your ye be ye any more than this is what is what evil Jesus says it's evil to be in Gray either you're going or coming you're either up or down you're either doing something doing nothing either you are heading in a direction or you are heading in another Direction you can't just suspend your life and I want to say to you tonight that there are millions of people who are still not sure who they are what they are about what they're doing and they are spending money wearing clothes and eating food food sometimes I would say to God quietly oh God take that one home I would say it I say God that one is a waste of time I mean this person has no intent of doing anything with their lives what a depressing reality and God has invested so much in you that God hates to see you suspended everybody say this get out of the air say put your foot on the ground Deuteronomy chapter 30 verse 19 is another aspect of God's hating the grave God told the people in Deuteronomy 30 verse 19 he says I have set before you life and death blessing and cursing then he says choose today in other words stop putting off and procrastinating and and hoping you get there he said decide whether you and get a curse or a blessing decide whether you're going to kill yourself or live you know some folks I can see why God gets real upset you know because people they drift in and out of holiness either be Unholy or be holy be holy holy or holy Unholy be something decide what you're going to do with your life some people flirt with God they wink with God they hang out with God sometime when they get in trouble Jesus has something to say but that in Revelations chapter 3 verse 15. you want to hear it again the spirit of the hatred for gray Jesus said in Revelation 3 15 I would that you would be called or hot why because if you are lukewarm I'm gonna spit you out of my mouth Jesus says decide what you want to do please [Music] in other words there's the nature of God coming out in these Expressions he's saying Are You Gonna Act decisively or are you going to drift and procrastinate James chapter 1 verse 17.
I want you to read this one I like this it tells you the real power of the character of God concerning Gray James chapter 1 verse 17 says every good and perfect gift comes down from above from the Father of Lights with whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning very important statement about God James chapter 1 verse 17. I'll read it again it says every good and perfect gift everybody say perfect gift everybody say good oh this is going to really be good for you right now listen to this it says God is a God who gives gifts and when he gave a gift he doesn't vary about the gift when he gave you something he don't want to see anything else whatever God invested in you he want to see that he's a good God who give good gifts to all men and he doesn't bury nor does he turn or change in his expectation God expects to see what he gave you He's A Gift Giver you know words that describe God's nature and character further attest to his commitment to objectivity or living either in the white or the black words like faithfulness everybody say faithfulness why does the word faithfulness always relate to God it means God's going somewhere Ain't No one gonna stop it that's what faithful living favor that means I'm on my way and Ain't Nothing Gonna Stop Me I'm faithful to what I decided to have I'm faithful for what I decided to accomplish I am faithful to what I decided to do and most humans have not captured this character of God how many of you change jobs five times in the last three years how many of you keep on changing your your uh decisions what you're going to study in your major I mean people have no sense of focus they keep drifting can I suggest to you that God hates variableness always bearing life always always doing something for some time and then doing something else I tell you this is going to be a good Revelation tonight because God is going to say to you be like me another word that's why God is the word perseverance write the word down perseverance everybody say perseverance perseverance implies that I'm on my way somewhere but I have some temporary resistance and I'm still moving towards my goal perseverance implies God's objectivity because it means that it's a attitude of I won't quit you know most people change because of an experience that was negative but an objective oriented person is a person who knows that any resistance to their objectivity or their goal is always temporary if that goal is from God I suggest to you then that if you keep changing because of pressure and because of problems you will never really live the kind of life God expected you to live another word that describes God's character is the word courageous everybody say courageous say it again courageous you know courage is the ability to stand up in the face of fear as a matter of fact it's impossible to be courageous without fear fear is necessary to have courage and if you've been afraid in your life many times that's good matter of fact if you don't have any fear you're not really living in faith strange statement isn't it Faith produces fear why because Faith always demands that you do something that you know you can't do and the fear is positive the fear gives birth to courage if you're afraid to do it because it's so big then God says let your courage come to life courage means I'm afraid but I'm still moving say with me I'm afraid but I'm still moving come on say it again I'm afraid but I'm still moving that's courage without fear there can be no courage that's why Jesus loves for us to do the impossible because the impossible is possible with God that's why your fear gives birth to courage God told Joshua in chapter one of Joshua said he says be of good courage why Joshua was scared I tell you another word that really makes me understand God's commitment to objectivity is the word steadfast everybody says steadfast steadfast means to stand fast or to stand steady in the face of resistance may not position come you don't turn back and go back where you've been opposition supposed to straighten your legs and to revive your stamina that's what opposition is supposed to do life was designed to be lived with purpose fueled by Vision oiled by compassion and propelled by the offensive I will repeat that life was designed to be lived with purpose that means an intentional life to be fueled by Vision that means you see something and you ain't gonna quit till you get it and it's oiled by compassion that means you are careful and sensitive on your way to your goal to not hurt anybody and then it is propelled by the offensive the offensive means you should never live life by crisis management an offensive life is a life that is initiating its own action most people do things because they have to God wants you to do things because he decided to [Music] say la [Music] so I want to challenge you to do something choose to be offensive in other words don't live on the defense stop living from a position of an excuse as to why you can't accomplish what you were born to do take your life out of neutral come on tell your neighbor that some people have been for the last 20 years is idling you do [Laughter] and people just have their lives with no no strength of Destiny just in neutral some of you being a secretary for 20 years and you are the same increment level man I tell you you should move from a secretary to an executive secretary I'm from an executive secretary to an administrative assistant and from Administrative Assistant to an administrator and then take your boss's job and I'm serious not approaches kind of well I got a job I just want to keep it you don't want to keep no job you want every job to put you in the track toward a goal that's bigger than its present pay this is what God is calling us to can I suggest to you that you should settle on a destination decide where you want to go you know there were two fishermen who were lost in the storm once and they were on a lake and the storm was blowing like crazy they couldn't see anything and one of the fishermen said to the his colleague he said uh we got two choices we can pray or roll which one should we do and the guy answered let's do both you know that's the way you need to live you should not just be hoping things work out you need to decide that's the line let's roll and even though you're scared keep on rolling get a destination while you're praying you don't just allow Life to Live you don't allow circumstances to destroy your passion for living you've got to have something bigger than the storm you see many spend a lifetime trying to change who God has made them because they don't know who they are in the first place the most miserable people in the world are those who can never make a decision you ever seen them matter of fact they're the worst kind of people to be with where you want to eat I don't know what do you want to eat don't care where you want to go don't bother me I mean isn't that just angry and some of you bad folks know what I'm talking about foreign what do you want I don't know they want to eat anything they want to go who cares woman stay home and eat I mean people you just can't handle that when people can't make a decision and I believe that it's already most of us live now many of us as I said in our last session we make shopping lists before we go to the store but make no lists for our lives [Music] you see indecision is deadly say that with me indecision is deadly say it again indecision is deadly hold your hand to You Close Your Eyes say it to yourself loud indecision is deadly there are too many people in this room right now who've been trying to decide to do something for the last five years and they still try it you see the most dangerous place to be is in the middle of the street and that's where most people are that's why life keeps running over them I decided years ago that ain't nobody gonna tell me where and what I can do I have decided what I'm going to be I have decided what I'm going to accomplish and I am set on that like Jesus was on his the Bible says he set his face toward Jerusalem Like Flint I ain't no Flint is the hardest rock that you can find it says when he set his goal to go to the cross it was too late to talk him out of it are you living that way is there something that you've decided you're gonna have to you're gonna have to to destroy yourself to try and stop me what commitment do you have to a vision that's bigger than your life you know Believers should have Wills not wishes [Music] many of you I guess just like I was wishing things get better no make a decision they must get better and here's what I'm gonna do about it I wish I could go to college no sit down tomorrow and write for applications and start filling them out I wish I could improve my my weight well do something about it don't don't have a wish have a will [Music] the Bible says whatsoever you will that's what you end up becoming and doing I believe that James 1 8 says it well I want to read this from James 1 and James says a double-minded man is unstable in how many all of his ways in other words when a person is indecisive you can't trust them with nothing you could tell a person who's in decisive he shows up in everything the way they spend their money the way they eat the way they act in their family the way they commit themselves to the to to uh projects you can't trust the person who's indecisive double-minded man is unstable most people are General characters not just contractors but characters they just kind of there some people have no distinction as a matter of fact the only thing distinct about them is that they remind you of everybody else depressing truth you were not born nor created to do everything say that with me I was not born nor created to do everything write that down that's a very important statement that set me free say it again I was not born to do everything say it again I was not born to do everything come on say it loud Come on talk to me I was not born to do everything come on tell your neighbor you were not born to do everything that sounds so simple but most of you are breaking your neck trying this down you were not born [Music] to meet all the needs on Earth [Music] write this statement down you were born and created to do something not everything but something there's something God created you to do and that's something it's supposed to be your focus and your attraction that's something supposed to be the very essence that motivates you and keep you on track you see the mistake most people make is thinking that the main goal of life is to stay busy and that is a Lie the main goal of life is not to stay busy why because when you think that way it's a trap busy does not equal progress busy does not mean you're going anywhere you know I was uh in one of our stores here in the Bahamas some years ago my son Charo he was about five years old four or five years old and we went to visit a store here that was a pretty big toy store and every Christmas everybody used to go to the store it's now I think changed names lately and that store used to be the place where people went to take their kids to buy toys well we took our son and daughter there to buy toys and and we let them kind of wander around look at all the beautiful toys and everything and my son saw a rocking horse my son got on that rocking horse and I tell you what he I tried to get him off he was angry I mean that thing was so exciting to him he held on to the ears of the horse and he began to rock back and forth back and forth back and forth and I tell you we was ready to go he was walking back and forth back and forth he said man this is something this is fun for him and my son was rocking Rocky and we went walking after our daughter and everything looking through the store and we came back he was still rocking faster and faster Rocky and after about 20 minutes he was wet soaking wet I mean he was sweating but he was still rocking and well I looked at him the Holy Ghost spoke to me Holy Ghost said that's how most people live foreign you know it's true a lot of people everybody said working hard sweating hard no progress he was at the same spot [Music] for 30 minutes and he was wet think about your life think about how hard you use that precious energy you have how many years you report yourself out making some corporate executive rich imagine how much you have poured your life out in making other people so wealthy and then you are left with nothing you are not a rocking horse rocker tell your name I'm not a rocking horse rocker tell your neighbor I'm going somewhere Say Never I'm getting off this rocking horse I'm a fine Mia stallion my stallion it's God's vision for my life clap your hand if you understand what I'm [Applause] you see many are mediocre in everything and excellent in nothing I discovered something about the devil the devil 's most successful weapon is to get you to do a good thing instead of the right thing as a matter of fact he has a more dangerous weapon to get you to do many good things instead of the right thing for your life you see some of you think that the Satan really wants you to to do evil all he wants you to do sinful things but I think he figures out now that he ain't succeeding too much you you kind of a little wise now you you you know a little bit more about life so he comes with you it's something you don't even think about it comes with you with with busy good activities rather than a single focused right and that's why most of us end up becoming experts at everything and proficient at nothing I am here to tell you in this session that most people are famous for nothing [Music] matter of fact there are even more people who are known for nothing and this was the crutch to the message in this session there are others who are good for nothing how old are you right now think about how old you are let's say you you are 18.
