Single-visioned

Single-Visioned

When you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. James 1:6

JAMES HAS HARSH WORDS for double-mindedness. Most biblical writers do. In some cases, they are referring to split loyalties between God and the world, mixed priorities that pull us in two directions at once. Here James is referring to the prayer of faith—in this case a prayer for wisdom. Double-mindedness calls God’s promise into question and undermines any expectation of receiving it. The literal translation is “two-souled,” a person wavering between two expectations. Will God give this or won’t he? Is this promise valid or not? Can I expect him to come through or not? It’s a back-and-forth questioning of God’s willingness to answer a prayer and provide what he’s promised, and we find ourselves caught between the two extremes in many situations in life.

It’s okay to question whether your vision for a specific situation is on target or not. That’s part of our relationship with the God who has called us into his purposes. He wants us to sort out these situations. But that’s not the same as having a clear vision and questioning it every time the situation changes, letting what’s visible assert its authority over our faith, rising and falling with the waves of circumstance. No, we are to be anchored in eternal truths, our hopes fixed on what is unseen with eyes of flesh but seen with eyes of the spirit. When God promises something, all contrary evidence and objections are irrelevant. What matters is what he has said.

When God has given you vision for a certain area of your life, feel free to have plenty of conversations with him to confirm it, refine it, clarify it, and adjust it. But don’t doubt it or blend it with competing visions. We are called to be single-minded people who move forward on the revelation he has given, not on the pros and cons of worldly circumstances. The words of God are truth. Fix your vision on them and pursue them without wavering.

Believe your beliefs and doubt your doubts; do not make the mistake of doubting your beliefs and believing your doubts.