CityView Magazine

12 | Januar y 2020 H F A I T H H appy New Year! It's 2020, the start of a new decade. It's an election year and a year for the Olympics. It's the year for new beginnings. For years, we've heard speakers and business leaders discuss the concept of personal development or organizational clarity using the illustration of 20/20 vision. And now, we are in the year 2020. Did it work? Are you satisfied with where you are versus the vision you had for yourself? Many of us will kick off the year with some modest goals of adjustment or change for our lives. Some will even set some BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals). Usually by the end of February, the vast majority abandon their goals and dri back to their normal routines that leave them back where they were and discontent. True 20/20 vision comes from an understanding of who you are, who you were made to be and the clear path to move from A to B. We each have a unique, God-given design and a specific purpose to fulfill. Clarity for life begins with understanding that life begins and ends with God. We were created by God and for God. And the Bible says we (mankind) are his masterpiece. We were created for a relationship with the creator God. Some have interpreted that "relationship" to be "religious talk" or an intellectual belief in Jesus as God. Both the practice of religion and intellectual assent to mere facts will leave you disappointed and disillusioned. We were created for a relationship, not religion and rules. We were created to live with clarity of purpose, not confusion. And everything you are looking for or searching for can be found in a relationship with Jesus. And yet so many choose to ignore that truth and search for relationship and purpose in other places. What's your 20/20 vision for life? More money? More assets? Better perks? Nicer abs? How much is enough? Nothing ever fully satisfies. Not even a Snickers bar! As a pastor, I'm oen acquainted with the end of life and death. About three times a month, on average, I'm in conversations with people who are walking through loss. In my 18 years as a lead pastor, I've never known one person facing the end of life who was wishing for more money or assets. Many were attempting to fix broken relationships or asking questions about what happens next in eternity; almost all are seeking to know they fulfilled a purpose. Have you ever been awake in the quiet of the night and wondered if this was all there is to life? e Bible in Ecclesiastes says, God has set eternity in our hearts. at's why we wrestle with the meaning and purpose of life; we were created with discontent for this world and the urge to seek him. So much of life involves the journey more than the destination. Athletic coaches teach that commitment to the process reaps the results. Do you have a 20/20 vision for your life? Do you know your design and purpose? If you want the creation to be all it was meant to be, you must start with the architect's design. It starts with a relationship with Jesus as the forgiver and leader of your life. Jesus changes everything. He's not just the sweet little baby Jesus as Ricky Bobby in "Talladega Nights" would ascribe. He is God. He is the one who willingly humbled himself and came into this world as a baby and gave his life on the cross for our sin and rose again from the dead, ultimately defeating death This year is your opportunity to walk alongside someone and love them and point them to the way by your walk, your talk, your investment. New beginnings, clear vision for a new year PASTOR RICHARD MARK LEE, THE VILLAGE BAPTIST CHURCH

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