The proverb is true, “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” (Proverbs 29:18) Vision is central living a Spirit-led life. Vision is a powerful motivator, and it helps clarify direction and decisions as we move forward. There truly is power in vision.

It is also true that vision needs to come from the right source. Too often we equate our personal hopes and dreams with divinely inspired vision. When that happens, we can easily find ourselves striving toward something destructive, or typically, something unrealistic. While most of our self-made dreams are not evil, they can be misguided, and pursuing the wrong vision can lead to frustration and disappointment.

While I was in seminary, I spoke to my advisor about some of my disillusionment with church life. She was a wonderful person and an excellent advisor. I knew she would have good insight and put my fears and frustrations to rest. I never expected her response. I told her I was disillusioned and she said, “Good.”

It was one of the few times I was truly speechless. How was this a good thing? I thought she misunderstood me and when I clarified my comment, she gave me the same response. When I asked her how she could say that, she said, “Think about the words you just used. You said you were dis-illusioned. That means you are no longer embracing an illusion, and that is good.”

It took some time for that truth to take hold. I confess, I really wanted her to give me some new insight that would help my dream become reality. Instead, she wanted me to adjust my vision to fit reality. It wasn’t that she didn’t want me to dream big, or to work for something better. Instead, she wanted me to face what is so that I could accurately, and faithfully, embrace a healthy vision for the future.

Real vision is birthed out of reality. Too often, we want to believe that one small change will make everything better. If we just complete our education, get vocational validation, or move to new location, our life will be better, or so we want to believe. We desperately want to embrace a reality that is just an illusion. Things are what they are, but that doesn’t mean things can’t change. Real change, however, can only happen when we accept reality.

One of my favorite quotes from Jesus is, “In this life you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33) I love this because Jesus is real. He doesn’t sugarcoat reality, or offer some abstract utopia. He says it like it is. Life will have trouble, but you need to have hope.

True vision never denies reality. It embraces it, and then looks to a future where real change can take place. This is something much more than the common comment, “It is what it is.” That is birthed from a defeatist position. It suggests that there is no hope for change. God-led vision says, “it is what it is, but it doesn’t have to stay that way.”

We need vision, but that vision needs to come from God. Our own dreams may seem plausible, but they are not what they appear. When vision comes from us, it is not grounded in the full picture. However, when it comes from God, is embraces the full reality of what is, and the large picture of what God can do. When we prayerfully let God plant the vision in our hearts and minds, we can see things as they really are, no illusion, and we also see what they can, and should be.

So, today, let’s set aside our wishes and embrace God’s vision. Not only we will find peace in our hearts, but we will begin working for what really can be.