When Jesus called his original apostles, they did the same thing we do today; they came up with excuses. Excuses such as going to the funeral of a father and saying goodbye to the family were firmly rejected by Jesus (Luke 9:59-62). Those excuses seemed reasonable, but Jesus did not accept one of them. 

This was more than Jesus just calling 12 men to hang around with him; this call was their prophetic vision; this was their destiny, purpose, and ultimate calling. It was such a powerful vision that we are still talking about it today, so powerful that it cost everyone an early death, except for the Apostle John. But don’t think for a minute that John got it easy either; he was left alive to see his friends murdered for their faith. Don’t feel sorry for these men; they all accomplished their purpose and did what they were supposed to do on this earth. But what about us? Proverbs 29:18 tells us,

Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (KJV)

Many of us have allowed the devil to steal the vision of our lives. Many of us cannot articulate our vision; we have gotten accustomed to going through the motions. We walk around unhappy and unfulfilled, in many instances miserable. We live in the past; we live to complain. We complain about our spouses, our children, what our parents did and did not do, our jobs, our boss, politics, and the list goes on and on. We are incapable of looking forward. 

Our cynicism blinds us, and we live our lives without a vision. The problem is that without a vision, we will perish. There is an urgency for us to know our vision and to walk in our purpose. But how? How do you even start? Paul gives us the answer,

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own because Christ Jesus has made me his own. ¹³ Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, ¹⁴ I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14 (ESV)

1. Please don’t wait until you have everything in place: Paul tells us clearly that he did not obtain everything.  Perhaps you don’t have the “right” upbringing, you did not grow up in a sophisticated family, or you may not have the network needed. Whatever you did not obtain in the past cannot stop you from moving forward. What is it that God is telling you to do? What is your prophetic vision? Go after that?
2. Please don’t wait until you are perfect: Paul tells us he was not perfect. Many are playing the same games we played before we became believers: “I am going to wait until I stop smoking or drinking or fornicating before I decide to go after God.” We do the same with what God tells us to do… we find excuses.
3. Press on and go after God’s vision for your life: This is the burden God has placed on you. Paul said, “…I have made it my own.” Take ownership; this is your call and nobody else’s. Don’t wait for man to help you; this is your vision; move with it, and let God bless you with what you need as you move in faith. Take ownership, take responsibility, and be accountable to God.
4. You must forget the past and focus on what is ahead… your vision: Paul tells us that he left those things of the past in the past and he moved forward. Paul said, “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Beloved, we have a mandate to move forward; that’s how God gets the glory, how we win, and how we become more than overcomers. So, take the land; it is already yours.