When we catch the Vision of what God is doing; whether it's in the world as a whole, in our states, or in our neighborhoods; we have to realize that we don't hold every piece of that Vision.
Just as it takes all of us to express the fullness of God, it takes all of us together to bring the Vision to clarity and understanding.
We all have a role to play in the Vision. Some cast it, some protect & defend it, some offer details and possibilities of how it's to flow, and others carry it out; we are all participants.
It is a humbling movement, to realize that I don't hold all the pieces to accomplish something, and it requires the fluidity of faith to keep moving anyways.
To give something, to offer something, to pour yourself into something: an idea, an effort, a community; to empty yourself and yet see that what you give isn't enough.
But then faith shows you it's not supposed to be enough. That it takes a whole community emptying itself, sharing ideas, building upon them and contributing, in order to clarify the Vision given.
The Vision we're given isn't a task to be accomplished, it's a process of transformation.
It's a change in mindset. It's getting over ourselves, so we can participate in the restoration of dignity, and the reconciliation of humanity.
It isn't the end goal, or the target we shoot for; rather, it's what happens along the way.
That's why "mission accomplished" should never be in the church's vocabulary.
Coming to the understanding of this gives us the freedom to not jump straight into it with intentions of "doing".
That means slowing down long enough to gather the troops, to train and equip the saints; a process which, incidentally, never ends.
The slowing down gives time to share stories; time to crush the shame that cripples people into inactivity, or running away, or judgment; time to share and understand the perspectives that define how we each see the Vision; and the time it takes to pray and piece together how we each have an important piece of the puzzle - how each perspective is necessary to what the Vision entails.
The Vision requires participation from people who don't even know they're part of it, let alone, going to be playing key roles.
If, as an established group of people, we jump right into the accomplishment of the Vision as a goal, we'll strive to accomplish everything on our own. We'll completely miss the lessons, the connections, and the relationships intended along the way.
We'll bypass the baby steps necessary along the way, baby steps that will allow us to actually see the Vision played out before our very eyes: lives changed, perceptions shifted, focuses changed, leading to communities restored and transformed - from the visual appearance of an area/ neighborhood/ community to the mentality of the people who make that community home.
It has been said that taking on a giant project requires an extraordinary leap of faith. And that can be true, when speaking individually. (But that leap of "faith" could also be taken as a leap of foolishness of epic proportions, especially if pursued without a sense of accountability from the community.)
But the Vision demands exponential faith. Not from just one person, but from the entire community. Just as it takes all of us together to express the fullness of God, it takes the faith of the community, driven by the heart of God, to see the Vision come to life.
