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The Value of Vision

28 January 2026 Hits:309

Vision is one of life’s great gifts, offering us the ability to see, appreciate beauty, stay safe, discover new things, and achieve goals. More importantly, vision shapes the direction we take in life and influences our outcomes.

An organisation, whether a church or a business, needs vision to remain dynamic and succeed. That’s why every year our church hosts Vision Weekend, introducing achievable initiatives for our faith community. This Sunday—1 February 2026—we’ll reveal Bayside Church’s 2026 Initiatives. We write the vision clearly so people can read and act on it.

Look Where You’re Going!

After Christie and I married, she gave me a day at an Advanced Driving School. I hope she didn’t think I was a poor driver! It was a practical, enjoyable gift with invaluable lessons.

One challenge was an obstacle course: drive fast, brake hard, and avoid obstacles while skidding. The first time, we all hit the barriers.

Afterwards, the instructor asked what we were looking at while skidding. We all said the obstacles. That was the problem, he said—you must look for the gap. Your car follows your focus. We tried again, and no one hit anything. It was amazing. The lesson: where you look is where you go.

Target Fixation

Psychology calls this target fixation: focusing so much on an object (a target or hazard) that you increase your chances of hitting it. Ask any surfer or motorbike rider.

One of my favourite scenes from a movie is Harry the fly from the film A Bug’s Life. Harry is flying towards the fly zapper, and his mate yells, “No, Harry, no. Don’t look at the lights.” Harry replies, “I can’t help it, they’re so beautiful.” Harry then gets zapped. Where you look is where you go.

This is an important truth for us Christians to embrace. In life, where is your focus? Are you looking at your sins, or concentrating on the righteousness that is yours because of Jesus?

Sin or Righteousness?

In my early years as a Christian, I was part of a wonderful church—many remain friends. But much of the church’s teaching focused on our sinful nature. I felt I never measured up to God’s perfection. “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” was a favourite scripture.

At Bible College, I learned I was already holy and righteous because of Jesus. I began focusing on being blameless—Jesus had taken away the world’s sin, including mine and yours. If that’s true, why focus on it?

I’m not suggesting we take sin lightly. When we sin, we need to deal with it, confess it, and move on with forgiveness and grace. But remember, focusing on sin keeps you stuck, while focusing on what’s true about you in Christ sets you free—where you look, is where you go. To help with this, I’ve included some scripture verses at the end of this blog.

Focused on Righteousness

Righteousness refers to relationships and approval—being fully accepted by God and having divine approval.

The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians: God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. The Greek language here suggests a process of dismantling and rebuilding. The old, sinful self has been demolished, and a new, better version has been assembled—all made possible by Jesus’ work.

Another image: two bank accounts. Mine had sin; Jesus was full of righteousness. On the cross, he transferred my sin to his account and credited his righteousness to mine. This is the language Paul uses about Abraham, who believed God and was credited with righteousness.

The Same Relationship

I encourage you to let this wonderful truth sink in and choose to think of yourself this way. You could start to confess these truths about your life:

• I have become the righteousness of God in Christ.
• I am the recipient of God’s approval.
• I have the same relationship with the Father that Jesus has.
• I am completely acceptable to God.

This is The Value of Vision: where you look is where you go. Because we are made righteous, we are empowered and motivated to live righteously—with integrity, goodness, purity of life, and uprightness in our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Choosing to focus on our new identity leads us to live it out.

Where you look is where you go.

Scriptures on Overcoming Sin

1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

Psalm 32:5, “Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity.  I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord.”  And you forgave the guilt of my sin.”

Psalm 51:2, “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin” (and all of Psalm 51)

Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”

Isaiah 55:6-7, “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near.  Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts.  Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon.”

Ezekiel 18:30-32, “Repent! Turn away from all your offences; then sin will not be your downfall.   Rid yourselves of all the offences you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel?  For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord.  Repent and live!

Psalm 103:2-3, 12, “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits – who forgives all your sins…as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.”

Micah 7:18-19, “Where is another God like you, who pardons guilt, overlooking the sins of his special people?  You will not stay angry with your people forever, because you delight in showing unfailing love.  Once again, you will have compassion on us.  You will trample our sins under your feet and throw them into the depths of the ocean!”

Romans 4:7-8, “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.  Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”

James 5:16, “Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

If trapped in habitual sin, seek one or two trusted friends for support and confession as you regain victory.

 

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