PROVISION OR VISION?

People wake up everyday, thinking about provision.  But God has a bigger plan.  The Kingdom of God is not about food or drink, but about vision.

When God was about to bring the Israelites to the promised land, He reminded them, “But remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” (Deut. 8:18)  Imagine, the Israelites, about to enter the promised land, a land that is so fertile,  with springs gushing forth with water everywhere, rocks are iron and hills are so rich in copper (Deut 8:8-9). Unlike in the desert where they wandered for 40 years, and did not work to eat because God provided manna everday, now, they are about to work.  But it will no longer be the same as in the desert where they were fed with manna,  or in Egypt where they were slaves who eat only if they work, but in a land that is so rich and fertile.

The promised land is indeed very rich.   Here, food is no longer a problem.  There is so much resource, so that instead of producing food and basic needs only, they can produce a variety of products out of the resources and sell.  They will work but it will be a time to enjoy working and the fruit of their labor, eat gourmet food which they missed in the desert,  buy their dream cars and fine houses.  No longer slaves, they are freed to use their creativity to produce wealth.   They can build businesses, work and follow their dream.  It will be a time to have a bigger vision.  Those who have vision will live!

Notice the progression.    As slaves in Egypt, they did not have any idea of God, as God’s people in the wilderness, they were trained to know God’s faithfulness, then after they are trained to look up to God, they enter the promised land as God’s people, no longer to work just to eat but to produce wealth.  Then, God reminded them, do not forget me, because it is I who gave you the ability to create wealth.  What a journey!

Most of the time, we fall short of God’s plan which is always better than what we imagine.  God did not bring us into this world to eat and drink, be wealthy and enjoy a good life and then, die.  He desires to give all of them to us, but He does not want us to miss the big vision.  It is time to see how good God is.

In God,  it is always something else, much bigger than we could ever think or imagine.  Deut. 8:3 says,  “He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

It is not only about food and drink.  He does not want us to live on bread alone.  It is not about  wealth.  God desires that we have all of those. He promised those in the Bible.  Much more than all those, it is about a bigger vision.   That is why He gave us every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord because in it, we will find life.  In the Word of God we can find God’s vision for our lives.  We find the real bread, the bread that satisfies, THE BREAD OF LIFE, JESUS Himself who wants to live His resurrected life through us.

We are no longer to live like slaves who scrounge for food, but sons and daughters of God who live for His purposes. When there is vision, there is provision.

Why do you wake up everyday to work? For food or to fulfill God’s vision for your life?