I believe God-given visions can be simple scenes flashing through our thoughts, and often they are telegrams that we do not read or heed. Could it be that we are being called to prayer and do not see the call? The call to prayer is not always a "call aside" for a time dedicated to prayer. I believe we can live as visionaries so that God is welcome to interrupt our imaginings at any point or posture with a "God-glimpse" that calls us to action. Could it be that we do not realize we are glimpsing God’s thoughts? If we are expecting visions to always be movies of epic proportion or intricate masterpieces, we might miss the quick knowing or the momentary insight that God is dropping into our awareness.

The Webster definition of "visionary" is one whose imagination is disturbed. We think in pictures continually. How often has our visual flow been disturbed or interrupted with a scene or a face that had nothing to do with the moment? How many times have you seen strangers that remind you of a particular person? I’ve been eye-to-eye with strangers and saw someone else superimposed over the person in front of me. If it is an opportunity to minister to the stranger, the glimpse of someone familiar gives me insight into the stranger’s personality or condition or circumstances, or stirs up a particular compassion in me. There have been times when several strangers remind me of the same person before I finally realized I needed to pray for that person. How many times has a particular past incident or conversation interrupted the now? If a particular setting keeps replaying in my thoughts, it usually means I need to pray, sometimes to personally repent, sometimes to pray for those involved, sometimes to pray because it is time for resolve of the issues discussed, etc. The word "remind" means "to put in mind again, to bring the picture back, as in ‘re-view,’ to see again." I believe the Holy Spirit brings "re-view" visions to confirm a strategy, reminding us of a blessing or a truth, or to stir up intervention and "re-vision," which is the picture being corrected or added to because of repentance or intercession. And that whole "re-vision" is likely to be either for a current or future event, calling the intercessor to pray so that the situation will not recur or will end up differently.

Is it that we cannot see? The disciples could not stay awake to pray because they had not understood the glimpses that Jesus gave concerning his future. He told them plainly what awaited Him in Jerusalem, and His words should have created mental pictures that would stir them to intercessory prayer. But they evidently could not "see" what He was saying. They had no vision or frame of reference for those future events. The disciples’ revelation of Jesus did not permeate all their paradigms. "The Christ" was the Messiah, the Savior of mankind, but they still could not see their friend, Jesus, literally experiencing the wounds for our transgressions and bruises for our iniquities.

Or is it that we ignore what we do see? Peter’s revelation of "The Christ" did not fully flow into his life, into his relationships or into his agenda. Obviously Peter once glimpsed the weight of Jesus’ words for a moment when Jesus spoke openly of His death in Jerusalem because he vehemently denied it and would have ignored it had he not received a rebuke. Then Peter would have ignored another vision if the Holy Spirit had not been so persistent. After his commission from "The Christ" and his powerful Acts 2 experience, Peter again began to get God glimpses outside his paradigms. He thought the awesome commission of the gospel was to his culture, the Jews. He had to have a vision of what he considered unclean animals to change his paradigm that the commission was to more than the Jewish nation. And he had to see that vision THREE TIMES (Acts 10:16) before he really heeded it!

Isaiah 55:8, For my thoughts are not your thoughts . . . One evening I sat in the car waiting for Marty and my thoughts were flowing like this: I was thinking of locking his door in case someone walked up out of the darkness. I was considering undoing my seat belt to be more comfortable. I had a fleeting glimpse of Martha Sanders, one of our intercessors. I was wondering what could be taking Marty so long. Suddenly I went back to the transparent photograph of my friend sandwiched among my thoughts and I knew it was not my thought. I began to pray for her and her husband. Then my heart was moved to call the names of all our intercessors, lifting them into God’s grace and agreeing with supernatural intervention. The fleeting glimpse was a call and key to effectual prayer that I had almost skipped right over.

Neither are my ways your ways . . . Recently Marty and I were preparing to carry out a ministerial task that seemed to logically fit the flow of events in our lives. Each time I prayed or planned toward the task, I could not really muster any zeal. As I sat in God’s presence one night, I began to pray about the plans. Suddenly I realized that I had been seeing a blank page, a page without any writing or pictures. Finally I realized our plans were not going to happen. There was no vision for it and the empty scene was a glimpse of God’s thoughts on the matter! Though the efforts would be a natural flow of ministry, they were not God’s ways in the matter. The simple blank page indicated also that God’s ways were yet to be revealed. Again, I almost missed it.

The Lord asked me once, (rather point blank I thought), "Kathy, do you believe I answer prayer?" I answered, "Yes, Lord." "Then why don’t you pray more?" I immediately began to wonder how I could physically structure more prayer time into my schedule. After a few weeks of frustrated efforts, I realized I might have missed His point. His point was not more prayer time but more prayer, which need not be relegated to a time frame, rather a continuous, ready response to Him. So, He was asking me to pay more heed and glean His heart from glimpses He gave and pray accordingly.

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