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Following Jesus in the Unknown

by | Feb 18, 2020 | Life Advice, Sadie's Sermons | 15 comments

When most people hear 2020, they think, “It’s the year of vision baby”. That’s what I first thought of when I started thinking 2020, and that’s what my husband thought, too.

Let me tell you, Christian loves him some vision. Our first phone call we ever had, were getting to know each other and asking all those random questions, like:

“How do you like your coffee?”

“When did you know Jesus?”

“What’s your enneagram number?”

THEN, Christian surprised me by asking, “Do you have 20/20 vision?” and I said, “Yeah I actually do have 20/20 vision, that’s kind of random…” and he responds with, “Oh that’s cool, I actually have 20/15 vision.”

Fast forward to the end of 2019, as a classic Christian Millennial, Christian and I were sitting in the Chick-fil-A drive through talking about our word for the year. I looked over at Christian and said, “Babe we really need a good word for the year because last year they were so challenging and powerful.” Then Christian looked over at me and said, “I am really excited about this one” and to no one’s surprise he said, “I’m going with vision, it’s 2020 baby.”

Now I have a little bit of my dad’s personality in me where I am a challenger in some situations. I am sitting there, trying to let my husband have his word and be excited about it, but I’m thinking “Ok, I just need to give a little push back.” So I say to him, “Look, vision is great, I love it, I hope for vision too, but let me just ask you this. Does that word really challenge you? You’ve been telling me all about the vision that God’s given you, we’ve been talking about vision we have together, so do you really feel like in 2020, you need more vision?” Christian responds, “You’re right, let me think about it a little bit longer.”

Another week goes by and now were at Passion Conference, and he looks at me and says, “Babe I got my word! It’s faith! What I realized is that you were right. We have a lot of vision, and now what I think we really need is faith for the vision.”

Now that’s a word! Faith for the vision.

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.

Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”

“Come,” he said.

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” Matthew 14:22-32 (NIV)

When I read this passage of Jesus walking on water, I realized that what actually started as a vision problem from the disciples, turned into a faith problem. They thought Jesus was a ghost because they couldn’t really see, and it was nighttime.

But that is not what Jesus challenged them with. He said, “You of little faith.”

You see, we can come into 2020 with vision. We could have so much vision, but if we don’t have faith, nothing happens. If we don’t have obedience, nothing comes of it. We could have so much more vision than we did in 2019, but still the same outcome if we don’t start walking.

We have to walk into the vision. We have to get out of the boat.

As for us, none of us have perfect vision. None of us have perfect eyesight.

When I think about that and as I started looking up the definition of vision, I noticed a definition that I thought was powerful. It says that vision is, “a mental image of what the future will be or could be.”

I think that “could be” is an important phrase there. Yes, it COULD BE that God is going to give you this amazing vision, but you’re going to have to have faith for it to be truly great. You’re going to have to practice obedience and discipline for it to be developed. You are going to need confidence in WHO God is and WHAT he is going to do in order for that vision to happen. It’s what COULD BE.

2 Corinthians 2:5 says, “we walk by faith and not by sight”. Now that doesn’t mean it’s not scary, but it does mean we will need dependency on God.

I think about that moment with the disciples on the boat, and what really convicted me as I read was that everyone in the boat saw the same thing. It was nighttime for everyone, it was windy for everyone, the waves were big for everyone, but one of them walked on water that night, even though all of them had the same opportunity.

You see, in 2020 we could all be really excited about vision, we could all be hearing the same words and having the same vision, yet only some of us walk on water.

Why was it different for Peter that night? I think it has to do with the conversation Peter and Jesus had right after Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid.”

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, if it is you, command me to me to come to you on the water.” I think this was such an important statement.

I think back to the things that I ask of Jesus. Had that been me on that boat, seeing something blurry out there wondering if it’s Jesus, I feel like what I would have said would have been, “Hey Jesus, come a little closer so I can see that it’s you. If I see that it’s you, then I’ll walk out to you”

Peter didn’t say that. He said, “if it is you, command me to come to you” Yes, it’s dark. Yes, it’s windy. Yes, it doesn’t make sense. But Peter knew if he heard his voice, he was going to go. God is inviting Peter into a moment and he didn’t want to miss it.

We have to pay attention to His voice, even when we can’t see it clearly.

Psalm 19:105 says, “Your word is a lamp unto my feet.”

Psalm 19 says, “Your commandment is enlightening to my eye.”

We need the faith to trust that his word is our vision in times that we cannot see clearly.

You might be thinking, “Well, Sadie, I don’t have good vision, I don’t have much inspiration, and I don’t really have a word.”

But I am not talking right now about an individual specific word. I am talking about THE Word being your vision.

The Bible is a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your path. These commandments are enlightening to the eye, and every single person, just like the people in that boat, we have the same opportunity to read those words. But the difference is going to be for the people who believe these words and take Him at his word and walk out of the boat to TRUST him on the water.

Verse 30 says, “But when he (Peter) saw the wind, he began to sink and cry out”

Now I relate to that part so much. Because it was actually the moment that he really got the vision that he began to panic.

I feel like a lot of us can relate to that. We pray for vision, get the vision, and then we start to see what’s really happening and think, “Wow that is wayyy bigger than who I am.” That happens to me all the time.

Even when we see it, we can’t fully comprehend it. Because what we really have to know when we’re walking into something with God is that even though we might be able to see a little bit, his ways are higher than our ways, his thoughts are higher than our thoughts, and he is going to do exceedingly and abundantly more than we could ever dream of.

He is so much bigger. So, we might see the moment, but we can’t fully comprehend the moment because it’s something He can only do IN the moment.

As I write this, I think about my dyslexia. When I was younger, the teacher told my mom I was struggling in school, so I thought I must have an eyesight problem. So, I went to the doctor to get my eyes tested and I was frustrated because I could see everything just fine. When I was reading, I could see everything clearly, I just couldn’t comprehend it very well.

Years later I took a dyslexia test and my family likes to joke that it’s the only test I have ever gotten a 100% on. Dyslexia isn’t an eyesight or vision problem, it’s the way that my brain forms and processes the words. So how did I go through school? How am I able to read the bible?

Well, I learn how to remember the sound of the word. I don’t trust in my dyslexia to help me speak; I trust in my knowledge of the word. Sometimes we’re going to see it clearly, but we can’t comprehend it very well. But we know the character of who He is and we know the faithfulness of the word.

There were so many people in the bible that saw the vision very clear but couldn’t comprehend it, yet they trusted him at his word.

Think about Noah. He didn’t see a thing but started building an ark.

Joshua. He saw a huge wall but walked around it 7 times.

Sarah and Abraham. Saw their age but stepped out of their tent.

Moses. Saw an inadequate man who was not good at speaking, but he heard his name being called from a burning bush and went back.

Peter. He saw the impossible but heard the invitation and he walked on water.

They didn’t see it clearly, they couldn’t always comprehend it, but they obeyed his word because they recognized his voice.

In order for us to do this, we need to be familiar with his voice. If we want to start following the direction of the word, we have to start trusting the word. In order to trust it, we need to have confidence in it, and in order to have confidence, we have to know it and be in relationship with it.

We are always waiting for that last bit of clarity. If only he would come a little closer to the boat, if only I could see it a little clearer. But we have to trust beyond the clarity and beyond the vision, we need to trust the word before we have the full picture of what it’s going to look like.

If I would have known the full picture of my life, I probably wouldn’t have started walking. But it’s when I walk with him, these miraculous things happen and come to life.

What’s your word for the year? I would love to know! Comment below or on my Instagram @legitsadierob and @liveoriginal

AND to hear me give this message from Passion City Church, click HERE for the full video!

XO

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15 Comments

  1. Jordyn Carrido

    My word for the year is SERVE. I have only been a Christian for about a year and the last few months have seen leaps and bounds in my spiritual growth. I have started serving at church and discovered I have a servants heart and I want keep that in the forefront of my mind throughout this year. Serve God by serving others

  2. Monica Batts

    Whoa! That’s good!! Thank you, Sadie Rob Huff!! And thank you God for using Sadie to speak to us! ?

  3. Jocelyn

    Wow this is so so good!!! Ah Sadie you’re truly a blessing and I love you so much! ❤️

    • Andrea Johnson

      So at the very beginning of the year I felt led to choose the word commit. Because I have many things that I wanna do and accomplish but I have a hard time committing and following through. But I wasn’t sure if this was a reasonable word to choose so I doubted myself and took some online test to help me determine my word for the year and ended up with the word stand. I thought to myself OK that could be something that I could work on as well. There are times when I feel like I need to stand up for myself, believe in myself, and stand and share Gods word. I will also be standing to marry the love of my life this year too. But after reading this passage I keep coming back to the word commit I feel like it’s very similar to the comparison of having faith in the vision. I feel like you can’t stand if you’re not going to commit. I am not going to be able to have confidence in myself, love others well , share Gods word, stand for marriage and much much more… unless I commit. Commit to the Lord over all things. So I have officially changed my word for 2020 to COMMIT. I know this word is going to challenge me and encourage me to press in even when I feel tempted to give up, doubt, or pull back.

  4. Sydney Goddard

    My word for the year is Trust, I need to learn to trust the process. I have grown up in Church and I know what the Bible says about God, but often times I have faith without action. Faith without action is useless I need to trust that what God is doing is gonna be better than anything I could ever do. Yeah I might be in a season of drought, but I need to trust and prepare myself for the rain to come. Also thank you for sharing your devotions they are really inspiring!

  5. Sydney

    My word for the year is Trust, I need to learn to trust the process. I have grown up in Church and I know what the Bible says about God, but often times I have faith without action. Faith without action is useless I need to trust that what God is doing is gonna be better than anything I could ever do. Yeah I might be in a season of drought, but I need to trust and prepare myself for the rain to come. Also thank you for sharing your devotions they are really inspiring!

  6. Kayla Tatman

    Devotion!!

  7. Rach M

    Such a good word Sadie! Water evokes a lot of symbolism for me (funny because I can’t figure out how to learn to swim). This is a message I will hold on to. Peter WALKED on water!! How neat! That is the boldness I am calling to Christ for in 2020. Thank you for sharing.

  8. Ashley Christopher

    Wow, I loved this so much. It really hits me where I am at… normally I read these blogs and think, oh, that’s good… but this REALLY struck me and gave me ideas for ACTION, not just thoughts. Thank you Sadie, I love this!

  9. Keri

    This is the first year that I’ve chosen a ‘word for the year’ , I chose the word Surrender. I’ve followed God for a long time but I feel like I’ve kept some things from him. This year I want to hand everything over to God no matter how small and to trust him with it. My prayer this year is that I don’t hold back from what God has planned for me and that I choose depend on him rather than the world. I loved this blog, its was super encouraging. Have faith to carry out the vision.

  10. Delaney

    I actually have two words of the year. I chose discipline and desire. Discipline for my studying to become a teacher. I struggle taking standardized tests but have always wanted to be a teacher. Discipline in my studying for the test. Desire for my relationship with God. I have a relationship with Him and desire Him a lot, but struggling to find desire lately. This is the first year I’ve done a word of the year, let’s see how it goes…

  11. Cara

    Wow Sadie! Thank you so much for this.

  12. Mary

    Absolutely amazing word that I needed to hear. I’m reading this in the middle of COVID-19 and needed this to know to trust even when I can’t see clearly. Thank you.

  13. Andrea Johnson

    So at the very beginning of the year I felt led to choose the word commit. Because I have many things that I wanna do and accomplish but I have a hard time committing and following through. But I wasn’t sure if this was a reasonable word to choose so I doubted myself and took some online test to help me determine my word for the year and ended up with the word stand. I thought to myself OK that could be something that I could work on as well. There are times when I feel like I need to stand up for myself, believe in myself, and stand and share Gods word. I will also be standing to marry the love of my life this year too. But after reading this passage I keep coming back to the word commit I feel like it’s very similar to the comparison of having faith in the vision. I feel like you can’t stand if you’re not going to commit. I am not going to be able to have confidence in myself, love others well , share Gods word, stand for marriage and much much more… unless I commit. Commit to the Lord over all things. So I have officially changed my word for 2020 to COMMIT. I know this word is going to challenge me and encourage me to press in even when I feel tempted to give up, doubt, or pull back.

  14. Andrea

    So at the very beginning of the year I felt led to choose the word commit. Because I have many things that I wanna do and accomplish but I have a hard time committing and following through. But I wasn’t sure if this was a reasonable word to choose so I doubted myself and took some online test to help me determine my word for the year and ended up with the word stand. I thought to myself OK that could be something that I could work on as well. There are times when I feel like I need to stand up for myself, believe in myself, and stand and share Gods word. I will also be standing to marry the love of my life this year too. But after reading this passage I keep coming back to the word commit I feel like it’s very similar to the comparison of having faith in the vision. I feel like you can’t stand if you’re not going to commit. I am not going to be able to have confidence in myself, love others well , share Gods word, stand for marriage and much much more… unless I commit. Commit to the Lord over all things. So I have officially changed my word for 2020 to COMMIT. I know this word is going to challenge me and encourage me to press in even when I feel tempted to give up, doubt, or pull back.

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