Vision Changes Everything: How to See It, Believe It, and Build It with Benjamin Lundquist - RAL 104

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Faith still requires imagination.
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Ephesians says God can do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine.
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So I want you to imagine not ego, not fantasy, not fame, a faithful future.
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If fear disappeared, what would you attempt?
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Welcome to Rise and Lead.
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I'm Benjamin Ludquist, and this podcast is all about personal growth and leadership.
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Thank you for listening and for being a part of our Rise and Lead community.
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We are a community of leaders who are passionate about growth, leadership, and expanding our impact on the world.
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Too many people are busy, responsible, and productive, but still have no real vision for where their life is going.
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In this episode, I want to challenge you to stop drifting and start building your life with clarity, intention, and faith.
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I'm sharing the same kind of questions and frameworks I use in my intensive coaching sessions with professional athletes, executives, and ministry leaders to help people clarify their story, gifts, priorities, calling, and future.
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I'm going to walk you through how to move from confusion to direction, build a God-sized vision for your life, identify what matters most, eliminate distractions, and turn that vision into a practical strategy for the next ninety days.
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This episode is for you if you feel stuck, unclear, restless, or ready for a new season.
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You don't need to know every detail of your future, but you do need enough vision to stop wasting your present.
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Grab a notebook, slow down, think deeply, and ask yourself the question that could change everything.
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If I fully surrendered my life to God and stopped letting fear make my decisions, what could my life actually become?
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The Rise and Lead Podcast is designed specifically to motivate and equip you to live your greatest life with maximum impact.
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We are going to find out what makes great leaders great and how you can start growing yourself, rise, expanding your impact, lead, and living the life you have been created to live.
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We are stronger together.
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That's something I'm always coming back to.
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And I want to personally invite you to be a rise and lead partner in spreading the word about this podcast and all the episodes that will follow, so together we can reach more people.
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Thank you for being here.
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The fact that you give your time and attention to this podcast means more than you know.
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If these conversations and teachings are helping you grow, find clarity, and feel less alone in the process, one simple way that you can help multiply the message is by following the podcast and leaving a rating and review.
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I'm always shooting for a five-star review.
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And if you think this podcast deserves five stars, I would greatly appreciate that.
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It makes a difference and it helps the show to find the people who need it most.
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And if you know someone in your world who's been feeling like their life is missing purpose and impact, share this episode with them.
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And when you share on your socials, make sure you tag me and I'll always try and give you a repost.
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All the ratings, reviews, and shares help our team to continue creating a better podcast experience to serve great leaders like you.
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I believe you matter, and this teaching matters.
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So we're going to pause and invite God into this moment.
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God, thank you for the life you have given us and for the purpose you have placed inside of each of us.
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For anyone who feels stuck, unclear, or uncertain about the future, bring clarity, quiet the fear, remove distractions, and help us recognize what matters most.
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Give us the courage to dream again, the wisdom to build a vision that honors you, and the faith to take the next step even when we can't see the whole path in front of us.
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Help us to steward our gifts, love our people well, and live every day with intention.
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May we not drift through life.
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May we listen, trust, and faithfully build the vision you put inside of us.
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In Jesus' name we pray.
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Amen.
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How do you build a God sized vision for your life?
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I want to start this episode with a question that may make you uncomfortable.
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Where is your life actually going?
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Not where do you hope it goes?
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Not what do you tell people you want?
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Not what sounds good when someone asks about your future.
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Where is your life actually headed based on the decisions you are making right now?
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Because here's the truth: you can be busy and still drifting, you can be productive and still be directionless.
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You can be successful and still be building a life you don't even want.
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You can love God and still have absolutely no vision for your life.
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And I think that is where a lot of people are living.
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They wake up, they go to work, they handle responsibilities, they take care of everybody.
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They scroll, they react, they survive.
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Then they go to bed and they do it over again the next day.
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Weeks become months, months become years, and eventually they wake up one day and realize I have been managing my life, but I have not been designing my life.
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That is what I want to challenge you with today.
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You get one life, one.
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You don't get a practice round.
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You don't get another decade back.
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You don't get to relive the years you wasted, distracted, afraid, passive, or trying to please everybody.
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And I don't say that to create unneeded pressure.
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I say it because your life is too valuable to live randomly.
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A life without vision will eventually be hijacked by distraction.
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Let me say that again.
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A life without vision will eventually be hijacked by distraction.
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If you don't decide what matters most, the loudest thing in your life will decide for you.
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If you don't decide where you're going, somebody else's expectations will become your destination.
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If you don't build a vision for your life, you will spend your best energy helping other people build theirs.
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That has to change.
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Today, I want to help you move from drift to direction, from confusion to clarity, from surviving your life to intentionally building it with God.
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And I want to give you a framework you can actually use.
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This is the work I do with people all the time.
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One of the things I love most is sitting down with people and helping them get clarity around their life.
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We look at their story, their calling, their gifts, their relationships, their faith, their career, their finances, their health, their dreams, their regrets, their pain, their opportunities.
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We ask what is working, what is not working, what needs to change, what needs to end, and what God may be calling them to build next.
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And then we create a vision and a strategy for their life.
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I have watched people come into these intensive coaching sessions overwhelmed and leave with a level of clarity they have never had in their life.
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So I asked myself, what could I give somebody in 20 minutes that could start the same process?
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This episode will not replace deep coaching, but it may become the moment you stop drifting.
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It may become the episode you come back to a year from now and say, That was when I finally got serious about my life.
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So grab that notebook and don't just listen.
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Work because inspiration without reflection fades fast.
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You need a vision.
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Proverbs twenty nine says it this way Where there is no vision, the people perish.
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That's powerful.
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Because when you don't have a vision, discipline feels unnecessary.
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Why wake up early if you're not building anything?
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Why say no if there is no greater yes?
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Why save money if there is no future goal?
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Why develop your gifts if you don't know how you want to use them?
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Why endure discomfort if there is nothing meaningful on the other side?
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Vision gives sacrifice a reason.
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Vision gives discipline a target.
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Vision gives pain a context.
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Vision gives your present life direction.
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Here is how I like to define it vision is a faith-filled picture of a preferred future that is strong enough to change how you live today.
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If your vision does not change how you spend your time, it's not really vision, it's fantasy.
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If your vision does not affect your calendar, your habits, your relationships, your money, your priorities, your yeses, it is not shaping your life.
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A real vision changes today.
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I'm going to walk you through a five movement framework that will help you clarify and build a compelling vision for your life.
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Remember, discover, imagine, define, and build.
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Number one, remember your story.
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The first thing I ask people to do is look backward.
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Most people want to know where they're going, but they have never stopped to understand where they have been.
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Your story is full of clues.
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What has shaped you?
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What have you survived?
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What have you learned the hard way?
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What pain have you walked through?
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What doors have opened?
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And what doors have slammed shut?
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Who has influenced you?
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Where have you felt most alive?
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Where have you felt most broken?
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What patterns keep repeating?
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You have to study your life.
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Let me say that again.
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You have to study your life because sometimes your future is hidden inside your history.
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David learned to fight lions and bears before Goliath ever showed up.
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Joseph learned endurance before leadership.
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Moses spent years in the wilderness before he led people through one.
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The season you thought was wasting your time may have been developing your capacity.
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Stop calling wasted what God may be calling preparation.
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Here are some deep questions I want you to think about.
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What are the five most defining moments of your life?
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Which season has changed you the most?
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What pain has given you an unusual compassion for other people?
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What do you understand now that you could not have understood ten years ago?
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What have you fought through that you can now help somebody else fight through?
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What thread has been running through your life for years?
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And here is one I want you to sit with.
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What if the hardest chapters of your life have been preparing you for the most important chapters of your life?
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Hear my heart on this.
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Don't waste your pain.
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Don't waste your story.
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Don't waste what God and life have taught you.
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Number two, discover who you actually are.
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Now we have to talk about identity because one of the biggest reasons people have no vision is they have no clarity about who they are.
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They know what everyone else is doing, they know what's trending, they know what their parents wanted for them, they know what their boss expects, they know what culture says success looks like, but they don't know themselves.
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This is dangerous because if you don't know who you are, you will spend your life becoming whoever the room rewards.
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Let that sink in.
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If you don't know who you are, applause becomes your compass.
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Let me say that again.
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If you don't know who you are, applause becomes your compass.
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You will chase what gets attention.
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You will say yes because you want approval.
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You will stay in places you about growing because you are afraid to disappoint people.
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You will build a life that looks impressive but feels empty.
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Jesus did not begin his public ministry with a platform.
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He began with identity.
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This is my beloved son.
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Before miracles, before crowds, before accomplishment, identity first, assignment second.
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That matters because you don't build a life to prove you're valuable.
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You build a life because you already know whose you are.
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So remember where your identity is anchored.
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Remember that you are a child of God always, completely accepted, extremely valuable, eternally loved, and totally forgiven.
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Get your identity in God anchored, and then ask yourself, What are my strongest gifts?
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What do people consistently come to me for?
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What do I do that feels natural to me but difficult to other people?
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What kind of problem do I love solving?
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What kind of people do I naturally want to help?
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What makes me angry in a righteous way?
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What makes me come alive?
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What can I talk about for hours without notes?
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What do people thank me for?
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What burdens keep coming up no matter how hard I try to ignore it?
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Stop asking God to make you somebody else.
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Your assignment is not hidden inside someone else's life.
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You don't need their platform, you don't need their personality, you don't need their path.
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God already knows how to use you.
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God already knows who you are.
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The question is whether you have the courage to become the best version of you, a version that is anchored, secure, and positioned to serve other people.
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Number three, imagine a future bigger than your fear.
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Now we get to imagination, and this is where I think many people have actually shut down.
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You used to dream, you used to think bigger, you used to believe more was possible, then life hit you, a marriage got hard, a business failed, an organization let you down and left you out to dry.
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A door closed, a prayer did not get answered in the way you wanted.
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A leader disappointed you.
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You made a mistake, you got tired, and without even realizing it, you stopped dreaming.
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You called it maturity.
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Sometimes it was actually fear.
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You lowered your expectations so disappointment could not hurt you again.
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But faith still requires imagination.
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Ephesians says God can do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine.
00:20:33.839 --> 00:20:44.480
So I want you to imagine, not ego, not fantasy, not fame, a faithful future.
00:20:44.960 --> 00:20:48.960
If fear disappeared, what would you attempt?
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What would you go after?
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If the money was handled, what would you invest in with your life?
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If nobody's opinion mattered, what would you stop doing?
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What dream keeps coming back again and again?
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What would you build if you knew God would give you enough courage for the next step?
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What would your marriage look like if you became incredibly intentional?
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What would your relationship with your kids look like?
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What would your health look like?
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What work would you be doing?
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What would you want to be known for?
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Who would you serve?
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What problem would you solve?
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What kind of impact would you make?
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And I want you to picture yourself 10 years down the line from right now.
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You have grown.
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You have taken risks.
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You have said no to distractions.
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You have become disciplined.
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You have protected.
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What matters.
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You have walked with God.
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Who have you become?
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What have you built?
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Who is sitting around your table?
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Who is stronger because of your life?
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What do your children say about you?
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What does your spouse say about you?
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What does your body feel like?
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What does your spiritual life feel like?
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What have you created?
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What have you given away to other people?
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What have you stopped tolerating?
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What did you finally have the courage to do?
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And here is a question that may bother you.
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If nothing changes in your life for the next five years, are you okay with where you will end up?
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Do not answer too fast.
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Think about that.
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Because sometimes clarity begins with admitting I can't keep living like this.
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Number four, define what matters most.
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Here is where the vision process gets painful.
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Because vision is not just about what you want, it's also about what you are willing to release.
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Let me say that again.
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Vision is not just about what you want.
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It is also about what you are willing to release.
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You can't have everything.
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You can't do everything.
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You can't be everywhere.
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You can't keep every relationship, every obligation, every hobby, every opportunity, every habit, and still build your best life.
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That is not how this works.
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Every great yes requires a thousand no's.
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And a lot of people are not confused.
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They are overcommitted.
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They do not need more options.
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They need fewer options.
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They are exhausted because they have given everyone access to their time and called it faithfulness.
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That is not faithfulness.
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Sometimes it's fear.
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Fear of disappointing people, fear of missing out, fear of saying no, fear of being misunderstood.
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But vision demands focus.
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So I want you to think through these areas, your faith, your family, your friendships, your health, your work, your finances, your calling, your contribution.
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And I want you to ask, what would thriving look like in each of these areas?
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And then ask, what matters most right now?
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Not what mattered five years ago, not what everyone else says should matter.
00:25:27.279 --> 00:25:31.039
What matters most in this season?
00:25:31.279 --> 00:25:34.960
And then ask a more difficult question.
00:25:35.279 --> 00:25:41.839
What am I currently giving my best energy to that does not deserve it?
00:25:42.319 --> 00:25:48.559
Maybe your schedule is full of things that no longer fit your calling.
00:25:48.799 --> 00:25:52.799
Maybe your phone gets more attention than your family.
00:25:53.200 --> 00:25:58.880
Maybe your career is growing while your soul is shrinking.
00:25:59.119 --> 00:26:06.400
Maybe you're more concerned about growing your platform than growing your character.
00:26:06.880 --> 00:26:13.119
Maybe everybody else gets your best except the people you claim matter most.
00:26:13.839 --> 00:26:19.920
Maybe you are building success in public and losing yourself in private.
00:26:20.400 --> 00:26:21.920
That's not vision.
00:26:22.160 --> 00:26:24.160
That's misalignment.
00:26:24.559 --> 00:26:30.799
Do not build a future that costs you the people you prayed for.
00:26:31.359 --> 00:26:34.799
Do not win at work and lose at home.
00:26:35.119 --> 00:26:39.839
Do not grow your platform and destroy your peace.
00:26:40.240 --> 00:26:48.000
A God sized vision has to include you as a healthy and whole person.
00:26:49.119 --> 00:26:55.279
Who you are becoming matters more than what you are achieving.
00:27:00.079 --> 00:27:06.960
Now we move from vision to strategy because vague dreams produce vague lives.
00:27:07.440 --> 00:27:11.759
So take the future you just imagined and work backward.
00:27:12.400 --> 00:27:15.680
What do you want your life to look like in ten years?
00:27:16.000 --> 00:27:19.279
What would need to be true in five?
00:27:19.599 --> 00:27:22.480
What would need to be true in three?
00:27:22.880 --> 00:27:26.880
Where do you need to be one year from right now?
00:27:27.599 --> 00:27:35.039
And then the most important question: what do you need to change in the next 90 days?
00:27:35.680 --> 00:27:42.720
This is where your future stops being inspirational and starts becoming operational.
00:27:43.440 --> 00:27:44.799
You want to write a book?
00:27:45.119 --> 00:27:45.680
Great.
00:27:46.000 --> 00:27:48.160
What gets written this week?
00:27:48.480 --> 00:27:50.480
You want a stronger marriage?
00:27:50.799 --> 00:27:51.440
Great.
00:27:51.839 --> 00:27:53.920
What changes tonight?
00:27:54.400 --> 00:27:56.319
You want financial freedom?
00:27:56.559 --> 00:27:59.039
What are you cutting this month?
00:27:59.279 --> 00:28:01.200
You want to become healthier?
00:28:01.440 --> 00:28:04.319
What is going on your calendar tomorrow?
00:28:04.559 --> 00:28:06.160
You want to build a business?
00:28:06.400 --> 00:28:07.759
Who are you calling?
00:28:07.920 --> 00:28:09.200
What are you selling?
00:28:09.440 --> 00:28:11.680
What problem are you solving?
00:28:11.920 --> 00:28:14.319
You want a deeper walk with God?
00:28:14.880 --> 00:28:17.839
What time are you waking up?
00:28:18.319 --> 00:28:20.319
Where are you meeting with him?
00:28:20.799 --> 00:28:21.839
How often?
00:28:22.079 --> 00:28:23.119
With what plan?
00:28:24.160 --> 00:28:28.000
Vision eventually becomes behavior.
00:28:28.319 --> 00:28:33.839
Your future is hiding inside your routines.
00:28:34.400 --> 00:28:36.960
You don't rise to your intentions.
00:28:37.599 --> 00:28:41.839
You fall to your level of habits and consistency.
00:28:42.240 --> 00:28:50.640
You can say you want a great future all day long, but your calendar tells the truth about what you're building.
00:28:50.799 --> 00:28:53.279
Your bank account tells the truth.
00:28:53.519 --> 00:28:56.079
Your screen time tells the truth.
00:28:56.400 --> 00:28:58.480
Your habits tell the truth.
00:28:58.799 --> 00:29:01.680
Your relationships tell the truth.
00:29:01.920 --> 00:29:03.599
So look at your life.
00:29:03.920 --> 00:29:08.640
Does your current rhythm match your stated vision?
00:29:09.200 --> 00:29:12.400
If not, something has to change.
00:29:12.720 --> 00:29:22.960
At this point in the episode, we've talked through the five movements of building a compelling vision for your life.
00:29:23.359 --> 00:29:30.559
Remember, discover, imagine, define, and build.
00:29:31.359 --> 00:29:35.119
Here's what I want you to do after this episode.
00:29:35.519 --> 00:29:40.559
I want you to build a one-page life vision.
00:29:40.880 --> 00:29:47.200
Take out a piece of paper, you're not gonna lose, or open a new working document.
00:29:47.759 --> 00:29:55.920
At the top, I want you to write the life I believe God is calling me to build.
00:29:56.319 --> 00:30:00.000
Then answer these six questions.
00:30:00.799 --> 00:30:04.640
Number one, who am I becoming?
00:30:05.279 --> 00:30:07.440
Not what am I achieving?
00:30:07.759 --> 00:30:09.519
Who are you becoming?
00:30:09.839 --> 00:30:11.599
What kind of character?
00:30:11.920 --> 00:30:13.680
What kind of faith?
00:30:14.000 --> 00:30:16.319
What kind of discipline?
00:30:16.640 --> 00:30:21.279
Number two, who matters most right now?
00:30:21.839 --> 00:30:24.559
Write their actual names.
00:30:25.279 --> 00:30:37.359
Not a heading that says family, I want you to put names to paper because anything you do not define is easy to neglect.
00:30:38.079 --> 00:30:43.039
Number three, what am I uniquely called to contribute?
00:30:43.359 --> 00:30:50.480
What do you believe God has entrusted you with that can impact other people?
00:30:51.119 --> 00:31:00.559
Number four, what could my life look like in ten years if I led my life well?
00:31:01.119 --> 00:31:04.160
I want you to dream honestly.
00:31:04.720 --> 00:31:16.799
Number five, what must be true three years from now if I'm gonna see my ten year vision become a reality?
00:31:17.359 --> 00:31:18.960
Get specific.
00:31:19.680 --> 00:31:29.119
And finally, number six, what are three things I must do in the next ninety days?
00:31:29.839 --> 00:31:38.960
Three, not fifteen, three, and then add one more line at the bottom.
00:31:39.359 --> 00:31:41.200
Here is the line.
00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:44.960
What must I stop doing?
00:31:45.759 --> 00:31:49.519
That one may change your life.
00:31:49.839 --> 00:31:55.839
Because sometimes your next level is not about doing more.
00:31:56.240 --> 00:32:04.799
It's about eliminating what is no longer in alignment with who you are becoming.
00:32:05.200 --> 00:32:12.480
Make this one page life vision your assignment for this next week.
00:32:13.039 --> 00:32:19.680
When you think about having a vision for your life, stop waiting for perfect clarity.
00:32:20.240 --> 00:32:24.880
Some of you are waiting for God to make everything obvious.
00:32:25.119 --> 00:32:33.279
You want certainty, you want a sign, you want a guarantee, you want all the doors to open before you move.
00:32:33.519 --> 00:32:35.119
That's not faith.
00:32:35.519 --> 00:32:38.880
Faith moves with partial clarity.
00:32:39.200 --> 00:32:43.759
Abraham left without knowing the final destination.
00:32:44.240 --> 00:32:48.480
Peter stepped before the water made sense.
00:32:48.799 --> 00:32:53.519
The Israelites walked toward the river before it opened.
00:32:53.839 --> 00:33:01.279
Sometimes God does not give you the whole plan because the next step is enough.
00:33:01.839 --> 00:33:09.920
Stop asking God to show you step ten when you have not obeyed step one.
00:33:10.880 --> 00:33:15.759
I'm willing to bet that you already know what you need to do.
00:33:16.000 --> 00:33:18.720
You know the relationship that needs attention.
00:33:18.960 --> 00:33:21.440
You know the habit that needs to go.
00:33:21.680 --> 00:33:27.119
You know the idea you keep avoiding that you just can't shake.
00:33:27.359 --> 00:33:30.400
You know the phone call that you need to make.
00:33:30.720 --> 00:33:37.680
You know what you have been tolerating that is no longer in alignment with who you are becoming.
00:33:38.000 --> 00:33:40.799
You know what keeps draining you.
00:33:41.279 --> 00:33:43.359
You know where you need to grow.
00:33:43.680 --> 00:33:46.160
You know what you need to start.
00:33:46.480 --> 00:33:50.400
Maybe you are not waiting for clarity.
00:33:50.960 --> 00:33:54.880
Maybe you are actually waiting for courage.
00:33:55.440 --> 00:33:59.119
And there's a big difference between the two.
00:33:59.839 --> 00:34:02.240
I want to close with this.
00:34:02.960 --> 00:34:07.200
Your life is not waiting to begin.
00:34:07.599 --> 00:34:08.559
This is it.
00:34:09.039 --> 00:34:24.159
These are the days, these are the years, these are the people, this is the season, and one day, sooner than you think, you will look back on this version of your life.
00:34:24.480 --> 00:34:28.559
And the question is what will you wish you had done?
00:34:28.800 --> 00:34:31.199
What will you wish you had stopped?
00:34:31.440 --> 00:34:34.400
What will you wish you had said yes to?
00:34:34.719 --> 00:34:37.519
What will you wish you had fought for?
00:34:37.920 --> 00:34:41.440
What will you wish you had trusted God with?
00:34:42.079 --> 00:34:47.519
Do not wait until regret becomes your teacher.
00:34:47.920 --> 00:34:54.639
Let vision teach you right now from one leader to another.
00:34:54.960 --> 00:34:57.519
You have gifts, use them.
00:34:57.920 --> 00:35:01.119
You have people, love them well.
00:35:01.920 --> 00:35:04.800
You have a body, take care of it.
00:35:05.039 --> 00:35:07.920
You have a calling, steward it.
00:35:08.239 --> 00:35:13.599
You have a story, redeem it and help other people with it.
00:35:14.000 --> 00:35:17.360
You have a future, build toward it.
00:35:17.599 --> 00:35:22.159
You have a God, walk with him every day.
00:35:22.480 --> 00:35:25.920
Do not drift into the rest of your life.
00:35:26.239 --> 00:35:30.559
Do not hand your future over to distractions.
00:35:30.800 --> 00:35:33.920
Don't let fear make your decisions.
00:35:34.159 --> 00:35:42.800
Don't keep shrinking the dream just because it hasn't happened yet according to your timeline.
00:35:43.119 --> 00:35:57.840
Get along with God, get clear, write the vision, do the assignment, build the strategy, take the next step, then take another step.
00:35:58.159 --> 00:36:09.039
And remember this, you don't need to know everything about your future to maximize the life you have in the present.
00:36:09.360 --> 00:36:17.039
Start with what you know, start with what matters, start with what God has already put in your hands.
00:36:17.440 --> 00:36:20.239
Your life can change.
00:36:20.639 --> 00:36:23.039
Your direction can change.
00:36:23.280 --> 00:36:26.159
Your family tree can change.
00:36:26.639 --> 00:36:29.519
Future generations can change.
00:36:29.840 --> 00:36:32.159
Your impact can change.
00:36:32.639 --> 00:36:35.920
But drift will not get you there.
00:36:36.800 --> 00:36:43.679
Decisions will, vision will, faith will, obedience will.
00:36:44.559 --> 00:36:53.199
So here's the question I want to leave you with, which takes us all the way back to where we started.
00:36:54.000 --> 00:37:08.320
If you fully surrendered your life to God and stopped letting fear make your decisions, what could your life actually become?
00:37:09.039 --> 00:37:11.440
Don't just think about it.
00:37:12.000 --> 00:37:16.880
Write it down and then go build it.
00:37:17.679 --> 00:37:20.880
I hope this episode impacted and inspired you.
00:37:21.199 --> 00:37:22.880
Send me a DM and let me know.
00:37:22.960 --> 00:37:26.079
I read every message that comes in.
00:37:26.400 --> 00:37:33.920
Make sure you screenshot this episode, share it with someone, and post it to your social media accounts.
00:37:34.159 --> 00:37:38.079
Don't forget to tag me so I can give you a repost.
00:37:38.719 --> 00:37:45.119
I know there is someone you know who needs to hear this episode.
00:37:45.440 --> 00:37:50.239
Thank you for sharing, subscribing, and rating the podcast.
00:37:50.480 --> 00:37:53.440
Seriously, that means the world to me.
00:37:53.679 --> 00:37:58.480
Look for new episodes to release every month and you won't want to miss those.
00:37:58.800 --> 00:38:04.079
Thank you for taking the time to invest in yourself.
00:38:04.559 --> 00:38:06.639
You are worth it.
00:38:06.880 --> 00:38:13.199
Remember, the best time to rise and lead is now.