The other day scrolling for graphics for a group I’m a part of, I found one with this statement on it: “Hold the vision. Trust the process.” Initially, I found myself thinking about it in the context of military frontlines. About how they hold the line to defend the territory, and how we need to hold (defend) the vision God gave us and trust the process. As the last couple of days have gone on, I’ve had many different thoughts about this idea leading me down many paths. The path I settled on was: holding the vision like we would hold onto something in our hand, tight-fisted if you will. We’ll do anything to not let it go. And trust the process however it pans out. That if we’re holding the vision, the process will facilitate itself. Naturally, God will take care of all the details.
Recently, I’ve been ruminating quite a bit about the vision God gave my family years ago. A vision that we started putting into place a little over two years ago. It’s been on my mind so often lately that I’ve been more intentional in asking the Lord when was His vision going to come to pass in our lives. All of this time, I thought I was holding the vision, I thought I was trusting the process. Confession: it turns out, I had jumbled the ideas. I was trusting the vision and holding (tight-fisted) the process. I was trusting what God had placed in our hearts, but I was doing all I could to guide the vision like the banks guide a river. I was bending plans here, and forcing things there. I have been giving it my best effort to will things into place. And, when they don’t happen, pep-talk myself into “this wasn’t God’s vision for us.” I was rebelliously saying internally this vision is going to happen one way or the other, and I’ll do all I can to help it out… But then God mercifully stepped in.
The last couple of weeks have been revelatory in my family’s life, and I couldn’t be more thankful for it.
You see, the last couple of weeks have been full of conversations that we never thought we’d have about God’s vision for us. The conversations are full of peace – the real, unmanufactured, straight-from-God kind of peace. Conversations full of tomorrow, full of God’s vision for our lives, full of process. Today, while my husband and I were talking about this process for God’s vision we didn’t see coming, the Holy Spirit reminded me of Proverbs 19:21. It says, “You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.”
Tears slowly and gently started rolling down my cheeks as I was humbled by the way this process is unfolding, and the beauty of it. I am encouraged in the promise wrapped in this verse that no matter how often we try, I try, to guide His purpose and plans, God will make it right. I am in awe of where this vision is taking us, and to be honest, I couldn’t be more excited about it.
This is what happens when we are presented with an idea and look at it, pray over it, and discuss it with open hearts, eyes, and minds. This is process. This is what trusting the process looks like. This is what happens when we say to God, “nevertheless, not my will, but Yours be done.” This is what it looks like to actually hold the vision – the thing God has called you to, or the idea He’s birthed in your heart – and trust the process. God does process perfectly. Hold the vision and trust the process.
Pastor Kristi Hahn, Crossroads Community Church