What Do You See for the Rest of Your 2020?
Gary Keesee • July 16, 2020
Partial paralysis.
An accident during his birth had severed a nerve and left the lower left side of his face (including parts of his lip, tongue, and chin) paralyzed. He was left with a permanent snarling look and slurred speech.
He was bullied as a child, and at 15, he was told his brain was “dormant.”
After being told his mind was no good, he decided to focus on his body and started pursuing bodybuilding. Then he decided to pursue an acting career, with little success.
“When I would try to get jobs in commercials, the director would go, ‘What are you saying; what language is that?’” he said. But he wasn’t speaking a foreign language.
Years later, after taking as many steps backward as he had forward, things finally changed.
After watching a highly anticipated boxing match in 1975, he went home and wrote a script for a movie.
He attempted to sell the script to multiple studios, with the intention of playing the lead role himself. In fact, he refused to sell unless he played the lead character; and eventually, after a substantial budget cut to compromise, it was agreed he could be the star.
That film is now considered to be one of the greatest sports films ever made.
That “guy” I’m talking about is Sylvester Stallone, and that film is Rocky.
Rocky gained Sylvester Stallone worldwide fame, and the Rocky film series has grossed more than $1.7 billion dollars at the worldwide box office.
What does his story have to do with YOU, especially right now?
His story illustrates something very important you really need to get right, friend:
Your VISION determines your outcome.
It’s mid-July. It’s been a completely crazy year.
If you’re like most people, you probably set some goals at the beginning of this year, wrote out some New Year’s resolutions, or made a list of things you wanted to get accomplished in 2020.
That’s all great. Goals and desires are good.
But goals and desires aren’t the same as vision.
We get it mixed up sometimes. We think vision is the same as goal setting. But it’s not.
Vision is what you actually SEE.
So you may have a goal or a desire to lose weight, but do you actually SEE yourself at your goal weight? Have you been envisioning yourself fitting into that smaller size, getting exercise, eating healthier, or doing what it will take for that goal to actually happen?
Or maybe you have a goal or a desire to be self-employed. Do you actually SEE yourself owning your own business, cashing the checks, making your own schedule, and celebrating your wins?
Sylvester Stallone SAW himself as the lead in Rocky.
His vision determined his outcome.
What about you? What do you see for the rest of this year? Are you having trouble envisioning much of anything for the rest of 2020?
If so, it’s time to change that.
Reactivate the vision you had for this year. It’s not too late.
What do you want the rest of your year to look like?
Do you want to be financially free? To get organized? To learn a new skill or hobby? To quit a bad habit? To travel more? To become a morning person?
Friend, whatever it is, YOU MUST SEE IT.
Your vision determines your outcome.
You have to know how to activate your vision in order to get things done and see real change come to pass in your life.
I should know. I had to learn this myself (again) not too long ago.
Earlier this year, I shared how, for 18 YEARS, I didn’t believe the financial services company Drenda and I had started before we began pastoring could be in the top 10 for production.
Sure, before we pastored, our business had been ranked number one out of the 5,000+ offices that offered the same types of services worldwide. But then we started the church, and the business went on the back burner. It’s how I thought it had to be.
It wasn’t until God asked me why I wasn’t onstage at a convention getting recognized and making His name known that my vision for our company shifted.
Suddenly, I could SEE our company being in the top 10 with God’s help. I could SEE myself on that stage making His name known.
Just like Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right,” when I couldn’t envision our company in the top 10, I was right.
And when I started envisioning our company in the top 10, I was right.
In both cases, my vision determined my outcome.
Friend, your vision will ALWAYS determine your outcome.
For years, the only vision I had for my life was ruin, and that was the outcome I was getting.
You’ve probably heard at least parts of our backstory, but many years ago, Drenda and I lived in downright poverty. Yes, we were believers, and we had a great family life. We enjoyed our marriage and our family, but we were struggling. Really struggling.
We went to a church that taught us God loves us and that He has great things planned for our lives, but we weren’t living it. We couldn’t SEE it. We were barely surviving.
Back then, the only vision I seemed to have was for finding used stuff that could still be used and for selling stuff at pawnshops to try to get money for a tank of gas or to pay a bill collector.
I couldn’t SEE getting a new house even though the little, 1800s farmhouse our family of seven lived in had seen better days. Not only did we have weeds growing through the broken windows, but also it seemed we were living in a house that already belonged to families of spiders and bees. In fact, there were so many wasps and yellow jackets coming into that house that we would have to pull our sheets down on our beds at night and check for them!
Many times, when we were getting dressed for church, we would hear a scream because somebody would put their arm in a sleeve or a jacket, and there’d be bees in there! Our kids got stung all of the time!
I couldn’t SEE getting new cars either, even though the two we had had also definitely seen better days. They each had more than 200,000 miles on them, the floorboards in both of them were rusting out, and they were beat up and bent.
To say we lived under intense financial pressure would be an understatement. Not only did we owe on our broken-down farmhouse and two rusted-out, bent up, high mileage cars, but we also had ten maxed out credit cards, three finance company loans at interest rates of 28%, more than $13,000 owed in back taxes, more than $26,000 owed to relatives, and judgments and liens filed against us.
I remember one specific time I had to mail an envelope. We had borrowed money from anybody and everybody we could. We had exhausted all of our options. In fact, we owed money to nearly anyone you could imagine—hospitals, dry cleaners—everyone. So I had a letter I needed to mail, but I couldn’t even afford the stamp.
I called my dad to ask if he had pocket change he could give me to buy a stamp.
A stamp, friend. A stamp.
And as if calling him for that small amount wasn’t humiliating enough, what he asked me in response made for one of the lowest moments of my life.
He said, “Do I have to breathe for you too?”
For nine years we lived like that. Fixing our situation looked impossible.
I couldn’t SEE us getting ahead financially, let alone living FREE financially.
Until I finally reached the end of my rope, and God said, Take the time to learn how My Kingdom operates.
With those words, we suddenly had hope for our future. We had vision.
Suddenly, we could SEE ourselves living free financially.
Of course, there’s much more to our story, but our lives drastically changed. We went from financial ruin to being completely debt free over the next two and a half years.
Our NEW vision determined our NEW outcome.
Friend, that’s what we want for you.
It’s not too late.
What do you see for the rest of YOUR 2020?
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IT’S NOT TOO LATE for your 2020! Activate your vision and see change in your life this year!
Let us help! Click here to get your Your Vision Determines Your Outcome 5-CD mentorship set and Better Than You Think book now!
Reading Time 5 mins 08 secs – Faith does not usually disappear all at once. It happens slowly. A little distraction here. A little neglect there. A few days without feeding on the Word of God. A few moments of fear left unchecked. Before long, you may still remember what faith felt like, but you are no longer living from that place. That is what spiritual atrophy looks like. In the natural, muscles weaken when they are not used. You may remember being strong. You may remember what you used to carry or accomplish. But when the moment comes to use that strength again, you realize something has changed. The same thing can happen spiritually. You can remember the Scriptures. You can remember past victories. You can know the right things to say. But faith is more than repeating words. Faith is agreement with heaven. More Than Saying the Right Words Jesus said in Mark 11:23 that whoever speaks to the mountain and does not doubt in his heart will have what he says. The issue is not only what comes out of your mouth. The issue is also what your heart truly believes. Many people say, “My faith is weak.” But often, the real issue is unbelief. Jesus said faith as small as a mustard seed can move a mountain (Matthew 17:20). That means the problem is not the size of your faith. If faith is present, heaven has jurisdiction. Faith is not pretending everything is fine while fear still dominates your thinking. True faith is becoming so persuaded by God’s Word that His truth feels more real than the circumstance standing in front of you. The question is this: Are you in agreement with God’s Word? Or has fear, disappointment, or a past failure painted a different picture inside of you? The Enemy Works Through Pictures Fear always tries to create an image. A bad report. A painful memory. A failed attempt. A worst-case scenario. The enemy wants you to meditate on what could go wrong until fear feels more real than God’s promise. But every promise from God carries a picture too. Healing carries a picture. Provision carries a picture. Peace carries a picture. Victory carries a picture. If the picture inside you does not match what heaven says, your thinking has to be renewed. That only happens through the Word of God. Build Your Foundation Before the Storm Jesus said the wise man built his house on the rock. When the storm came, the house stood firm because it had a foundation. The storm is not the time to begin building. Do not wait until sickness comes to search for healing Scriptures. Do not wait until pressure hits your finances to learn how God’s Kingdom works. Build now. Meditate on the Word now. Mark 4 teaches us that the Word is seed. When it is planted in your heart, it grows over time. First the stalk, then the head, then the full grain. Faith grows the same way. As you continue feeding on truth, what God says becomes more real than what circumstances say. What Comes Out First Reveals Your Foundation When pressure suddenly hits, the first words out of your mouth often reveal what you truly believe. Fear speaks quickly. But faith speaks with authority. If fear has been leading your thoughts lately, do not live condemned. Recognize where you are and go back to the Word. Strengthen what has grown weak. Let truth become alive inside you again. Because when you are fully persuaded, you stop wrestling with whether God will do what He promised. You simply stand. You Can Start Fresh Today God’s mercies are new every morning. That means yesterday does not have the final word over your life. You are not trapped by past failures, past disappointments, or seasons where you felt spiritually dry. God is not asking you to live off old victories or old encounters with Him. He invites you to walk with Him daily, to be renewed daily, and to grow stronger daily. You are not stuck in spiritual weakness. Faith can be rebuilt. Strength can return. Your confidence in God can grow again. The same way muscles strengthen through consistent exercise and nourishment, your spirit becomes strong when it is continually fed with truth. Every moment spent in God’s Word is building something inside of you. Even when you cannot immediately see it, the seed is growing. You can renew your mind. You can rebuild your foundation. You can feed your spirit until faith rises again and God’s promises become more real to you than fear, pressure, or uncertainty. The enemy may look for an opportune time, but you do not have to live vulnerable or unprepared. When your life is built on the Word, you are not easily shaken by bad reports, changing circumstances, or unexpected pressure. You know where your confidence comes from. Build your life on truth. Stay spiritually nourished. Guard what you allow into your heart and mind. Listen to the Holy Spirit, and follow His direction day by day. And when pressure comes, you will not collapse under it. You will stand firm, anchored in the promises of God and confident that He is faithful to finish what He started in you. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for Your Word and for teaching me how Your Kingdom operates. Show me where fear, unbelief, or wrong thinking has taken root in my heart. Help me renew my mind and become fully persuaded of Your promises. Strengthen my faith, guide me by Your Spirit, and teach me to stand firmly on Your truth. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 4 mins 25 secs – Fear feels real. It talks loudly. It paints pictures. It rehearses worst-case scenarios. And if you do not know how to stop it, it will try to script your future before you ever get there. But fear is not truth. Fear is not fact. And through God’s Word, you can live free from it. Scripture says plainly, “ Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me” (Psalm 23:4a, NIV). Notice that carefully. It does not say fear is unavoidable. It does not say anxiety is your permanent condition. It does not say torment is part of your identity. It says, I will fear no evil. That means freedom from fear is possible. Fear Works Through Images Fear often begins with a thought, but it does not stop there. It immediately tries to form a picture. The doctor says something concerning, and fear paints the ending. The bank account drops, and fear paints the ending. A symptom shows up, and fear paints the ending. A problem hits your family, and fear paints the ending. That is how the enemy works. He presents an image and tries to convince you it is reality. But just because something enters your mind does not mean it is true. Fear is an imagination. It is an illusion. It may feel convincing, but that does not make it a fact. The enemy wants you to meditate on what could go wrong. God calls you to stand on what He said. The Real Battle Is at the Root Fear is often treated like the main problem. But fear is really a symptom. Like a fever in the body, it points to something deeper that needs attention. The deeper issue is what you believe. If fear keeps dominating your thoughts, then somewhere a lie has been accepted as truth. That is why the answer is not just trying harder to calm down. The answer is renewing your mind. You must identify the lie. Then you must replace it with truth. Second Corinthians 10:5 reminds us that we are to cast down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. That means you do not let fearful thoughts sit in your mind and build a home there. You reject them. You replace them. You do not fight fear by admiring it, analyzing it, or entertaining it. You fight fear by confronting it with truth. What You Are Anchored to Matters Life will always present moments that seem dangerous, uncertain, or impossible. The question is not whether you will face pressure. The question is what you are anchored to when pressure comes. If your confidence is anchored to circumstances, you will always feel unstable. Circumstances change. Reports change. Emotions change. But God’s Word does not change. Truth can hold you. Just as a climber trusts the anchor that keeps him from falling, you must learn to trust the promises of God more than the pictures fear is trying to show you. When your life is anchored to truth, fear loses its power to dominate your thinking. Renewing Your Mind Changes What Feels Possible There was a time when many things people now accept with confidence would have seemed impossible. Flight looked impossible. Certain athletic feats looked impossible. What changed? Knowledge. Training. Repetition. Confidence in a higher law. In the same way, many believers still live under the assumption that fear is normal, fear is wise, fear is protective, or fear is just part of life. But God’s Kingdom operates differently. In Romans 12:2a (NIV), it says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Transformation does not happen by accident. It happens when you retrain your thinking with truth. The world trains people to expect loss, danger, failure, sickness, and defeat. God trains His people to expect His faithfulness, His promises, His strength, and His victory. If you keep feeding on fear, fear will feel natural. If you feed on truth, freedom will become normal. You Must Replace the Picture You cannot simply tell yourself not to think about something. You must replace the wrong picture with the right one. If fear says, “This will destroy you,” answer with what God says. If fear says, “You are going under,” answer with what God says. If fear says, “You will never recover,” answer with what God says. Truth is the antidote. When God promises healing, provision, peace, protection, and victory, those promises carry pictures. They are meant to shape your imagination. Too many people meditate on everything that can go wrong. But faith grows when you meditate on what God has already said in His Word. The enemy wants your imagination captured by fear. God wants your imagination renewed by truth. Your Future Does Not Belong to Fear Many people have lived so long under fear that they assume it will always define them. It will not. You can be free. Your life does not have to be governed by fear of sickness. Fear of failure. Fear of rejection. Fear of lack. Fear of loss. Fear of the future. God did not create you to live tormented. He created you to live in His Kingdom, under His rule, with His peace, and in the confidence of His promises. The future belongs to those who believe what God says more than what fear suggests. So, start again. Open your Bible. Find out who you really are. Train your mind in truth. Reject the lie. Hold onto His promises. And refuse to let fear write a story God never wrote for you. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for not giving me a spirit of fear. Thank You for giving me power, love, and a sound mind. Help me recognize every lie the enemy tries to plant in my thoughts. Teach me to renew my mind with Your Word and to reject every imagination that rises against the truth of who You are and who I am in Christ. Strengthen me to stand on Your promises, speak with authority, and live in the freedom You have given me. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.
Reading Time 4 mins 40 secs – If you want to see your future, take a look at your friends. Scripture says plainly, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33, NIV). That’s not a suggestion. That’s a warning. And the deception is thinking your good character will automatically change the people around you. Sometimes it can. But often, it’s the other way around. Who speaks into your life matters. Who challenges you matters. Who flatters you matters. Who you follow matters. All of it shapes where you end up. The Deception About Influence Many people fall into what’s called false responsibility. They want someone else’s success more than that person wants it for themselves. They believe they can fix, carry, or rescue someone who isn’t willing to change. You must understand something clearly: God sends people, and the enemy sends people. Not every opportunity is from God. Not every relationship is divinely aligned. One of the clearest warning signs is constant flattery. When someone continually builds you up without ever challenging you, pay attention. Flattery often hides motive. That’s why you must judge your friendships carefully. Fear Is Contagious, and So Is Courage Before Israel went into battle, Moses gave a striking instruction: if someone was afraid or faint-hearted, send them home. Why? Because fear spreads. Fear talks. Doubt talks. Unbelief talks. But courage talks too. Faith talks too. Vision talks too. The people around you will either magnify the obstacle or magnify the promise. They will either rehearse what could go wrong or remind you what God said. Choose wisely. Proof That Who You Follow Changes You After David defeated Goliath, King Saul pursued him. David escaped to a cave. Not a palace, not a resort—a cave. And 400 men followed him. The Bible describes them as distressed, in debt, and discontented. That doesn’t sound like leadership material. But something changed. Those same men became David’s mighty men of valor. They performed exploits. They accumulated wealth. They became strong, disciplined warriors. What happened? They followed someone who carried covenant confidence. They followed faith instead of fear. And they were transformed. Who you follow will change you, either for good or for worse. The Cost of the Wrong Circle You don’t have to make the wrong decision yourself to feel the consequences of being in the wrong environment. Association carries weight. When you attach yourself to people who are reckless, careless, or spiritually drifting, their choices begin to affect your direction. Influence is subtle at first. It doesn’t feel dangerous. It feels normal. Comfortable. Accepted. But over time, conversations shape thinking. Thinking shapes decisions. Decisions shape outcomes. That’s why Scripture says not to be deceived. The drift rarely feels dramatic in the beginning. It feels gradual. You may never intend to compromise your standards. You may never plan to move away from your convictions. But proximity has power. What you tolerate eventually influences what you participate in. This is not about isolation. It’s about discernment. You can love everyone. You can minister to anyone. But you must be wise about who has consistent access to your life. Because you don’t have to commit the act to feel the consequence of the association. Choose your circle carefully. Not Everyone Qualifies for Close Access There are people you minister to. There are people you love. There are people you encourage. But not everyone qualifies to be your close companion. Ezra warned Israel not to make treaties of friendship with those whose practices would corrupt them. The principle still applies: don’t make agreements with influences that pull you away from God. There are relationships you need to: Increase Maintain Or discontinue And you must discern which is which. The righteous choose their friends carefully. What Healthy Friendship Looks Like The right people in your life will: Encourage your walk with God Strengthen your faith Uphold your marriage and family Believe in you Challenge you past your comfort zone Correct you when you’re wrong A true friend will tell you the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable. An enemy flatters. A friend sharpens. If no one in your life can correct you, you’re vulnerable. Hold Unswervingly Hebrews instructs us to hold unswervingly to the hope we profess and to encourage one another toward love and good deeds. “Unswervingly” means steady. Unwavering. Not drifting. The right friendships help you stay steady. The wrong ones slowly pull you off course, usually so gradually you don’t notice until you’re far from where you intended to be. Make a decision: as for you and your house, you will serve the Lord. And build your circle around that decision. A Simple Prayer Father, Thank You for guiding my steps and ordering my relationships. Give me wisdom to choose my circle carefully. Help me discern the voices that strengthen my faith and the ones that pull me away. Surround me with people who challenge me, correct me, and encourage me to follow You fully. Give me courage to walk away from anything that hinders my walk with You. In Jesus’s name, I pray. Amen.