Vision

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

Proverbs 29: 18

The basic meaning of the Hebrew word for proverb is “comparison.” In the Book of Proverbs, the word is used to refer to an aphorism, or a concise statement of a principal, or to a discourse. The Book of Proverbs pronounces wisdom, justice, judgement, equity and understanding throughout its 31 chapters. It’s an Old Testament book that has current application when coupled with the New Testament wisdom of Jesus Christ.

The word vision is defined as:

1. the faculty or state of being able to see
2. the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination or wisdom

The first definition is obvious. To be able to see is at the core of what we usually think of when the term vision comes to mind. The second part of the definition can best be explained when thinking about a corporation or business. A business will develop a vision statement as an inspirational, oftentimes aspirational, statement of an idealistic emotional future. A successful vision statement needs to be clear, concise, challenging, inspiring with a look towards the future. A good vision statement gives the direction needed to build a company’s mission and core values upon. Without a clear vision the company or business has no clear direction or purpose for its existence. Here are a few famous companies’ vision statements:

If you study any of these companies, it is clear that they follow their vision. Everything else about the company is based upon a clear vision or vision statement. To carry out that vision, a company must have a clear and concise mission or mission statement that is an outgrowth of their vision. Take Amazon for example, their mission statement is, as follows:

We strive to offer our customers the lowest possible prices, the best available selection, and the utmost convenience.

The vision and mission together clearly outlines what the customer should expect from Amazon – services that go beyond just meeting their needs.

Our scripture states that, “Where there is no vision, the people perish …” In its most basic form, you could interpret it as if people do not see, they will perish. However, the question is what should people be seeing. If you look at the “visions” of the companies above, their visions are about seeing the world through their eyes. It’s about drawing people to see their own needs being met through the products and services that each of those companies provide. They are very self-serving visions. Amazon may talk about being customer-centric. However, the reality is that Amazon is selling a service to make a profit. They want you to “find and discover anything” not for your profit, per se but for their actual profit.

In Proverbs 29: 18, the word vision is translated to mean “a divine revelation.” The word perish is translated “to cast off restraint.” If you use the translations together that scripture reads:

Where there is no divine revelation, the people cast off restraint: but he that keeps the perfect law of liberty, happy is he.

Proverbs 29: 18 (translated)

A biblical example of this scripture’s translation is the account when the children of Israel were lead, by Moses, to Mount Sinai. When Moses went into the Mount to receive the commandments of God in his absence the people caused Aaron to create a golden calf to worship instead of God. Not only did they create the idol, they performed great lewdness in Moses’ absence (Exodus 32). The problem was that the people had their eyes on Moses instead of God. There was no divine revelation. Without that divine revelation, these same people, who had been miraculously delivered from the hand of Pharaoh and the bondage of Egypt, cast off all restraint – they lost their clear concise vision. Their acts were worst than those of the Egyptians with whom they fled from because of their place with God. As Moses was obtaining the Law from God, they were, in essence, casting it off … and they paid a terrible price. They lost their vision and many of them lost their very lives.

We question why the world is in the condition that it is in. It is because people have their eyes on everything else but God. We can create vision statements. However, they are oftentimes very self-serving and, mostly, not given by divine revelation. We can look to people or movements to help lead us and guide us. However, everything falls short if God through Jesus Christ is not the center of our vision. If God is not the center of our vision, then we will cast off any and all “restraints” that may be “placed” on us through God’s word. This is exactly what we are seeing in the world today. Instead of a clear and concise vision, it seems that selfish imaginations have been allowed to “run wild.”

Social media has also become a place where many people seek direction (or at least attention) or a vision. Below are a list of Social Media statistics for 2021 from the website OBERLO:

Here’s a summary of the Social Media Statistics for 2021:

1. There are currently 3.78 billion social media users worldwide.
2. Facebook is the most popular social media platform.
3. Among US adults, 84 percent of those aged 18–29, 81 percent of those aged 30–49, 73 percent of those aged 60–64, and 45 percent of those aged 65 and above are active social media users.
4. Users spend an average of two hours and 25 minutes per day on social media.
5. 73% of marketers believe that social media marketing has been “somewhat effective” or “very effective” for their business.
6. 54% of social browsers use social media to research products.
7. 71% of consumers who have had a positive experience with a brand on social media are likely to recommend the brand to their friends and family.
8. 49% of consumers depend on influencer recommendations on social media.
9. 500 million daily active Instagram stories are uploaded worldwide.
10. 91% of all social media users access social channels via mobile devices.

From the website Etactics, the following is a graph that shows the effects of social media on mental health:

If you pull these statistics and graphs together, it tells a revealing story of the power of social media and its influence on society especially teens and young adults. The highest users of social media are teens and young adults. They mostly (like the other age groups) access social media through their mobile devices. Marketers know that they can “capture” this young demographic more effectively through social media than through any other platform. Facebook actually far exceeds other social media platforms as the most popular (remember Instagram is owned by Facebook). Almost half of all consumers rely on an “influencer” to give direction to them about their purchases. We average about 20-percent of our waking hours searching social media sites.

The most revealing statistics center around the ambivalent (45%) to negative effect that social media has on our teens and young adults. Being well documented, about 25% of our youth and young adults experiencing mostly negative effects of social media. This statistics coupled with the addictive effect of social media should raise serious concerns.

People talk about themselves around 30-40% of the time in person. On social media, people talk about themselves 80% of the time. So when they receive a notification of positive feedback, they feel a positive sensation from dopamine. Receiving positive feedback stimulates the brain to release dopamine. This rewards the behavior associated with social media, thus perpetuating the habit of using it. Dopamine’s motivational properties play a role in addiction.

– excepted from the Etactics website: 40+ Frightening Social Media and Mental Health Statistics by Maria Clark, November 12, 2020

That dopamine rush is the same as a drug addict when using drugs or the person hooked on porn when accessing those websites. Furthermore all of this can and does lead to serious mental health issues, including depression and even suicide, among what should be the best and the brightest of our society. The bottom line is that if we are getting our vision from social media then the outcomes can become seriously negative. At best we are ambivalent and therefore we will accept just about anything that comes our way or at least entertain it. At worst, the negativity that can come from social media can lead to serious mental health issues whose ultimate outcome can be very distructive.

The answer might be found in the second part of this proverb … “but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.”

But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

James 1: 25

This scripture seems to have a contradiction in the words “law of liberty.” Most people when they think of a law think of something that retrains not something that liberates. However, not only in the context of the scripture but also in the context of this post, it is this very law of liberty that keeps us from casting off the good restraint that God though Christ has for us. There are many in the world that have cast off and continue to cast off all restraint in order to try to find peace and freedom. In actuality, the more they cast of God’s restraint, the more bound they become … and their way ultimately leads to complete and utter failure (I know because I have been there). However, when we look into the perfect law of liberty or God’s Word, we actually find deliverance and freedom from those things that try to bind us. Especially when we obtain a divine vision or revelation through God’s Word. The reason being is that God’s Word is Jesus Christ. When we obtain a divine revelation of Him, we will not cast off the “restraints” that He has for us to keep us out of darkness. We obtain a very clear and concise vision of Him that we can build the rest of our lives on through his divine help. When we have a vision of Him and keep a relationship with Him, happy and blessed are we!