My dear friends, I pray that you’ve had a good start to this new year!

Now, my church members and believers who follow my ministry know that at the end of each year, I will diligently seek the Lord for His word for us for the new year. We call this the “theme of the year.” This year is no different and I can’t wait to share with you what the Lord has shown me.

2021 marks a new decade and I believe with all of my heart that God has special things in store for us. New things. Things that have never been accomplished before. You may see lots of changes and transitions but He is moving behind the scenes to make them all work out for you.

As we start this new year, He wants us to look forward to a new season, a season He has appointed to show us His favor.

2021 IS THE YEAR OF HAZON VISION

What is hazon vision, you ask?

Hazon is Hebrew for prophetic visions from God. This year, the Lord wants to flood the eyes of your heart with His positive and faith-filled visions for your future—and to begin the process of making them a reality in your life.

My friend, if the previous year has been difficult for you, will you lean in to what the Lord has for you this year? You may have had serious challenges and disappointments in the areas of your health, your job, or your relationships, and simply cannot see any good ahead. Can I encourage you to press in to His perfect love for you? I believe He is reaching out to you today to give you fresh hope and a fresh vision of good and beautiful days ahead.

Now, why is giving us hazon vision on the Lord’s heart for us? And why is it so important that we understand this theme or emphasis on His heart for us this year?

Scripture tells us God works with times and seasons. There are times and seasons when the Lord is doing something special, sometime favorable for us, and we want to be cognizant of it and not miss it. He is a good God and He wants to help us redeem the time because the days are evil (Eph. 5:16), and to restore the years the swarming locust has eaten (Joel 2:25).

VISION COMES FIRST

Why does God want us to focus on receiving His visions this year? When I asked Him, He said this to me: Before He does anything, He gives His people His word or a vision first. In fact, you’ll find throughout the Bible that God spoke to His prophets or to individuals in images or visions before bringing them to pass.

Jesus Himself said as He went about healing and ministering to the sick, the hungry, and the lost during His earthly ministry:

Isn’t that beautiful? Jesus worked as He saw His Father work (John 5:17). As the Father moved, He moved, and people were healed and blessed. But how did our Lord know what the Father was doing? Jesus explained it like this: the Father showed Him on the inside whom He was touching and what He was doing, and our Lord simply acted in accordance to what He saw the Father doing.

I really believe that this year, this is how God wants to move in your life too. This is the season you’ll step into this precious anointing to see what He is doing in your family life, your career, your ministry, your finances, and your health. He wants to show you what’s to come and how you can walk in His blessings. Are you ready to find out more?

VISION IS THE MISSING ELEMENT

In the time of the prophet Samuel, when he was still a boy, the Bible tells us, “And the word of the Lᴏʀᴅ was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision [hazon]” (1 Sam. 3:1 ᴇsᴠ). Notice how without frequent visions from the Lord, the people were also not getting His word.

That is sad because the Bible also tells us, “Where there is no prophetic vision [hazon] the people cast off restraint” (Prov. 29:18 ᴇsᴠ). Without hazon visions, our lives just spiral into defeat and depression. Without hazon visions, we see no direction or purpose and have no hope or positive expectations for our future.

Recently when I was out for a run in my neighborhood, I heard the Lord say to me:

“A lot of people are complaining. They think they are not succeeding, not prospering in life because they lack certain things. They think they’re not succeeding in their careers, ministries, relationships, or parenting because they lack the finances, or the right people to help them, or the opportunities, or the right connections. But what they really lack is vision. The missing element is vision.”

Friend, have you lost your vision for the year, for your family, for your health, for your career, or for your ministry? Perhaps you’ve made mistakes in your business ventures or parenting journey, and this has hurt you deeply. Now, when you think about these areas, only images of failure come to mind. Or maybe a bad doctor’s report or illness that shows no sign of letting up has eroded any vision you have of yourself healed, whole, and happy.

Please don’t give up. It’s no coincidence you are reading this. I’m here to tell you that the Lord is restoring your lost visions. He is replacing the dark images you’ve been seeing inwardly with His pictures of light and life. He is restoring hope, a confident expectation of good to you. Once you see His positive, faith-filled images on the inside of you, they will deliver you or keep you from a dark and defeated mindset. They will stir up your faith and propel you to receive your breakthrough.

Vision is the missing element.

And our adversary, the devil, knows this. That is why he has robbed God's people of visions that are positive, visions of beautiful days ahead. The devil robs your vision before he robs you. But our Lord is a restorer and the God of hope (Rom. 15:13). He is restoring hazon visions to you, and you, my friend, will once more be able to have hope and to behold and experience beautiful days ahead!

DON’T BE AFRAID—THE LORD IS YOUR SHIELD

Would you like to see from the Scriptures how the Lord comes to His people and encourages them with His word and hazon vision? Right in the book of Genesis, we see Him doing just this. Genesis 15:1 says, “The word of the Lᴏʀᴅ came to Abram in a vision, saying, ‘Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.’”

Abraham must have seen a magen, a shield, as he heard the Lord speak those powerful words to him. Perhaps Abraham was fearful about counter attacks after his recent victory over Kedorlaomer and his allies (Gen. 14:17 ɴʟᴛ). But see how the Lord reassured Abraham, saying, “I am your shield.” With that vision dominating Abraham’s thoughts and heart, how could he not face his enemies, face his adversities, face life with courage and positivity?

Have you been battling some fear in your life? Has the loss of your job or a loved one caused anxiety, panic attacks, and sleepless nights? Or do you just feel all alone and uncared for in these tumultuous times? I pray that even as you read this, you will see the Lord as your mighty magen and hear Him speak these words right into your heart: “I AM your shield. Do not be afraid, I am your protector and provider!”

That is really what our theme—The Year of Hazon Vision—is about. The Lord wants to remove those dark images and fears lodged in your heart, those negative, defeatist thoughts swirling in your mind, and flood your soul with the light of His word and hazon visions. When this happens, fear takes flight, anxiety, worry, and hopelessness flee, to be replaced by positive expectations of good for your future.

YOUR PROVISION IS IN THE VISION

Friend, the Lord’s heart is to always encourage you. Have you noticed that when God shows you in His Word that you are blessed or how blessed you are, he often paints a picture? For example, in Psalm 1:3, it says this of the blessed man:

What a beautiful picture of health, of life, and of flourishing! I remember how I wanted this vision or picture to be so rooted in my heart that when I was in Israel, I took a photograph of myself by the rivers at Tel Dan. What I was doing was seeing myself as that blessed man and building faith images in my heart.

Why is this important?

Our Lord Jesus said, “A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). In practicing faith, many believers are focused on their confession—saying the right thing. But what precedes speaking is what the heart is seeing. It’s what you’re seeing in your heart that gives power to what you say.

Say you are believing the Lord for a good job. You’re making all the right confessions. But something in your heart tells you it’s not working. Why? Because in your heart you still see yourself jobless. You still see rejected applications or unsuccessful interviews or a lack of opportunity. The right vision is the missing element in your faith process!

My friend, it’s not just what you say but also what you see. With the Lord, He always prioritizes seeing. In Genesis 13:14–15, the Lord said to Abraham, “Lift your eyes now and look from the place where you are—northward, southward, eastward, and westward; for all the land which you see I give to you and your descendants forever.” As long as Abraham could see it, it belonged to him and his descendants.

That is why the Bible tells you to “guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life” (Prov. 4:23 ɴʟᴛ). Your heart is affected by what it is seeing. So the enemy wants to trouble and pollute your heart with negative images, but the Lord wants to flood it with light and restore to you the right visions to prosper every area of your life.

I want to encourage you to take time this year to hear from the Holy Spirit what to allow into your heart through your ear and eye gates on a daily basis. Don’t simply allow your heart and mind to feed on carnal and dark pictures that come through what you read, watch, or hear. Remember, what your heart is impacted by is what will be reproduced in your life.

WHAT ARE YOU SEEING?

So what are you seeing right now, my friend? Are you seeing light or darkness? If you’re seeing only defeatist pictures in your heart, I pray what you’re about to read will deeply encourage you.

When the Lord told Abraham that He would be his shield as well as “exceedingly great reward,” Abraham didn’t respond with praise or worship. He responded by saying, “Lord Gᴏᴅ, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” (Gen. 15:1–2). Abraham was discouraged—he was seeing himself childless, seeing how only his servant, Eliezer, would be his sole heir. The Lord had told Abraham he would bless him and his descendants, but up to now, he and Sarah, his wife, still weren’t able to have even one child.

What was the Lord’s answer?

He did something to change Abraham’s vision. The Lord brought Abraham outside of his tent and showed him the innumerable stars in the night sky and told him to number them if he could, and said, “So shall your descendants be” (Gen. 15:5).

I believe that as Abraham looked at the stars, they became like countless faces of children crying out, “Father Abraham! Father Abraham! Father Abraham!” until his heart was so filled with that vision. The Lord changed what Abraham was seeing and in a matter of time from his own loins, Isaac came into existence.

My friend, if you’ve been discouraged by things that happened (or didn’t happen) in 2020, can I encourage you to come freely to the Lord and just talk to Him? You can say, like Abraham, “Lord, what will You give me, seeing the pandemic is still going on . . . seeing I have been retrenched . . . seeing I’ve been diagnosed with this condition . . . seeing my marriage is not going well . . . seeing my relationship with this child is so bad? What will You give me?”

Just come to the Lord and ask of Him (John 14:14, Heb. 4:16). He will not condemn you for asking. Instead, He is able to “do exceedingly abundantly above all” that you ask (Eph. 3:20). If you think about it, the Lord is still giving Abraham descendants through Isaac (Rom. 9:7) and through Christ (Gal. 3:29). Our Lord is the God who oversupplies what you ask for! But first, He wants to change the negative images you are seeing and give you a fresh vision straight from heaven that will cause you to walk in His divine provision and practical supply for you.

GOD WANTS YOU TO HAVE MANY BEAUTIFUL DAYS

Beloved, the Lord’s will is for you and your family to enjoy many beautiful days.

When I was studying Acts 9 a few months ago, the Lord showed me something in the last verse, which records Simon Peter staying “in Joppa for many days with one Simon, a tanner” (Acts 9:43 ᴇsᴠ).

There are two Simons here—Simon Peter and Simon the tanner. The name Simon in Hebrew means “hearing”¹ and Joppa in Hebrew means “beautiful.”² What the Lord showed me was that to have many beautiful days, keep hearing and hearing the Word of God. That’s why I’m sharing with you the word the Lord has for us in 2021. Keep hearing, keep reading! I want you and your family to enjoy many beautiful days this year.

Some believers think that enjoying beautiful days isn’t scriptural at all and that as Christians, we should suffer most of the time. And yet, the Bible says things like:

It’s clear from Scripture that the Lord wants you and me to have many good and beautiful days. I’m so glad that when Scripture talks about good days, it’s plural, and when it talks about “the evil day” (Eph. 6:13), it’s singular! If you’ve been going through an evil day, my friend, take heart. I pray in Jesus’ name that it shall come to an end shortly and that you and your loved ones will step into the good dayssss God has for you!

A NOW WORD FOR OUR TIMES

Can we really have good and beautiful days in the midst of a pandemic that still continues to ravage the world? Hang on tight because our Lord Jesus, the Lord of time and space, has the final say and He has a powerful word for us for this specific season!

As I went on to study Acts 10—the story of Cornelius and how he and his household were saved through Peter’s preaching of the gospel, and where both Cornelius and Peter had prophetic visions from the Lord—the Lord began to show me truths in this story that pertain to the very times we are living in.

In this story, Cornelius saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in at the ninth hour and saying to him, “Cornelius!” When the Lord told me to look up this name, I found out it means pertaining to, or “of a horn.”³ Instantly, I sat up. You see, in the Bible, horns symbolize kingly authority and crowns. For example, 1 Samuel 2:10 says, “He will give strength to His king, and exalt the horn of His anointed.” And in Revelation 13:1, it describes the beast of the sea as having “ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns.”

Pertaining to the horn or crown. Or corona, in Latin.

The Lord was showing me how, in the very first word from the heavenly messenger’s mouth, He had a prophetic word for believers going through this very pandemic, a pandemic caused by a virus that has horn-like projections crowning it.

Now just to be clear, Cornelius is not symbolic of the coronavirus, but he represents the generation that is going through the coronavirus pandemic. This is an exciting word, because despite the bleakness caused by the pandemic, God is showing us amazing things He has planned for us all along.

EXPERIENCING AN OPEN HEAVEN

The account continues with how the very next day in Joppa, where Peter was staying, as he was praying at noon on the rooftop, he also had a vision from the Lord:

Now Peter is a picture of the new covenant believer, and this “next day” and what happens to him here is a picture of where we are right now. Notice that Cornelius had his vision at the ninth hour (3 P.M.) the day before. What does that mean for us? Well, we know that it carried a good message, telling him the Lord had heard his prayers and to send men to seek Peter, who would have the answer to Cornelius’s prayers.

The Lord began to show me that something good, something that God has established, had already started for us some time (about September, which corresponds to the ninth hour) last year, even as we were going through the pandemic. May it encourage you to know that even if things did not look good for you, you can keep trusting the Lord and leaning on His goodness to see Him bring to fruition in His appointed time what He has already started.

But that’s not all. Notice that Peter had his vision the next day (2021, prophetically speaking) at the sixth hour or noon, when it was brightest. I’m pretty excited as I write this because I believe we are entering this brightest time soon!

The Lord is going to open heaven to His people. The world will get darker, but the Lord will rise upon His people and shine His light upon them (Isa. 60:2). You’ll see heaven open over you and your family this year. No more will you feel like your prayers aren’t reaching heaven. When you pray for yourself and your family members, see His blessings, His goodness, and His glory coming on all of you!

SALVATION FOR MANY IS ON THE WAY

Another exciting thing the Lord showed me from Acts 10 is that there will be many salvations this year. When the Lord gave Peter his vision, He wasn’t showing Peter about his eating habits or literal food. The different animals Peter saw were symbolic of the different peoples of the earth.

The Lord was showing him that God loves all people, not just the Jews. His salvation through Christ who died for all is for all. The gospel is for everyone. And He was preparing Peter, a Jew, to preach to Cornelius and his household, who were all Gentiles. Peter was no longer to call anyone common or unclean.

In the same way, I believe the Lord wants us to have a change of heart this year: Let’s not call anyone common or unclean. Instead of putting negative labels on people who aren’t believers yet and seeing them in a negative light, let’s carry the Lord’s heart for them. After all, they are as we were in the past—people without a Savior and without hope, and the Lord wants us to see them with the same compassion He has for them.

In fact, Jesus loved the outcast and the ostracized. He was so comfortable hanging out with those despised by the religious folks during His time on earth that it earned Him the title, Friend of sinners. When He ministered to the hurting and the lost, His heart was always moved with compassion for them because He saw them as sheep without a shepherd (Matt. 9:36).

Friend, God loves all sinners so much He sent His Son to die for them. We are to preach to all peoples regardless of their backgrounds, personalities, characters, temperaments, or social standings. God loves them all, and He knows many are reaching out to Him as Cornelius did, more so now because of the uncertain times we live in. And He is reaching out to them as He reached out to Cornelius.

When my eight-year-old son, Justin, wanted me to tell him what the theme of this year was, I said to him, “Why don’t you pray about it and ask the Lord?” So he knelt down and prayed. After a while, he turned to me and said, “God says that this coming year, many, many, many people will come to know Jesus.”

I looked at him, amazed. Isn’t this how Cornelius’s story ends, with many salvations? Cornelius, his relatives, and his close friends—all who heard the gospel preached—were saved (Acts 10:24, 44–45).

My friend, I believe that this year, we are going to see more and more people saved. The Lord is going to transcend time and space to reach the loved ones you’ve been praying for. He loves them more than you can ever imagine, and He is going to do unprecedented things to get them saved. Even if He has to appear to them in a vision and speak words by which they will be saved, He will do it!

LET GOD’S SPIRIT SPEAK TO YOU

Let me show you one last thing the Lord showed me from this story: Acts 10:19­–20 tells us, “While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, ‘Behold, three men are seeking you. Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.’”

This year, as we ask the Lord for hazon visions for ourselves and our families, know that the Holy Spirit will not just impart visions, but He will also speak to you about them so that you can run with what He is showing you. God is just and fair. If His Spirit spoke to Peter, His Spirit will also speak to you, so be alert for it this year!

The language of the Spirit is not just words or tongues, but also dreams and visions. Some believers are uncomfortable when we talk about visions and dreams from the Lord because there have been abuses and counterfeits from the enemy.

But let’s not discredit the visions God wants to give us because of this. The Bible shows us plainly that the Spirit of God still speaks to us in dreams and visions—even in the new covenant. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter reminded his hearers of the words spoken by the prophet Joel:

Aren’t we living in the last days? Isn’t God still pouring out His Spirit on us? Then prophetic visions and dreams are still the language of the Holy Spirit. In the Old Testament, the Lord set apart prophets unto Himself by appearing to them in visions and speaking to them in dreams (Num. 12:6).

Today, that which was isolated to the prophet’s ministry is now part of our glorious inheritance as saints (Eph. 1:18). And the Spirit of the Lord is just waiting to impart to you His dreams and visions this year, so get ready to receive them. Look out for His still, small voice speaking to you about your ministry, or your work assignment, or any area you’ve been praying about.

PRAYER FOR HEARTS FLOODED WITH LIGHT

I pray you’re excited by how days of heaven opened to us are very near and that this is the year the Lord wants to impart His visions straight into our hearts to get us ready for the many blessings He has for us!

Let me finish by showing you how you can prepare your heart to be more sensitive and open to what the Holy Spirit wants to impart to us. There is a prayer found in Ephesians 1 that I encourage you to pray over yourself and your children every day:

Do you want to walk in the Spirit of wisdom and revelation by which God’s hazon visions come? Then ask the Father for the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, especially in the knowledge of Jesus—the Living Bible says, “To see clearly and really understand who Christ is and all that he has done for you.”

Why? Because in Christ, you have every good thing (Rom. 8:32). May you and your children know Him more and more this year so that grace and peace are multiplied in your lives (2 Pet. 1:2).

Pray also for the eyes of your hearts to be enlightened. The word enlightened comes from the Greek word photizo, meaning “to give light.” The Amplified Bible says “flooded with light.”

Friend, this is how the Spirit manifests as wisdom and revelation to you when you pray—by flooding the eyes of your heart with light—with positive faith images of divine health and life, of good success, of blessed family relationships, and of bright outcomes to your negative situations.

There are people who say believers are called to walk by faith and not by sight. This verse shows us that walking by spiritual sight is also involved in living the Spirit-active, overcoming life.

Beloved, when the eyes of your heart are open and flooded with light, you will know

1. The hope of His calling. The Lord will show you what your purpose in life is, and what He wants you to focus on in this season. This is how you will find fulfillment in your career, your ministry, your marriage, and your parenting.
2. The riches of His glorious inheritance in the saints. As you pray for your heart to be enlightened, may you see how treasured you are by God and all that He has freely given to you (1 Cor. 2:12).
3. The immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe. When the eyes of your heart are opened, you will come to see and experience the greatness of God’s exceeding power toward you this year—to heal you, deliver you, protect you, and provide for you and your family.

PRAY AND SEE

Will you keep praying this prayer over yourself and your children this year? Cornelius and Peter had their visions when they were praying. And as you ask in faith, expect the Lord’s hazon visions to come.

The prophet Habakkuk said it like this: “I will stand my watch and set myself on the rampart, and watch to see what He will say to me” (Hab. 2:1). He lived in a time not unlike ours. He complained to the Lord about the violence and injustice he was witnessing—the plundering, strife, and contentions—and then he actively waited for the Lord’s vision and word.

In answer, the Lord said this to him: “Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it” (Hab. 2:2).

Beloved, this year, as you talk to the Lord about your situations and ask him to show you His hazon vision, know that He has hazon visions He is waiting to impart to you. You can ask Him for and receive uplifting prophetic insights from Him about your health, your career, your ministry, your marriage . . . for every practical area of life.

He can show you the way to move forward and how to avoid or get out a bad situation. So take time today to come before Him and ask, “Lord, how do You see my marriage? How do You see my ministry? How do You see my career? Lord, how do You see me?”

Then, position yourself by setting aside time to receive and write down those visions or faith pictures. After you’ve asked in faith, you may see an image floating up on the inside. Just write down what you see. After you’ve written it down, you can check to see if it’s scriptural. If it’s a vision from the Lord, it will always be in line with and never contradict His Word.

So I encourage you to have a notebook or journal ready to record what the Lord shows you as well as what the Spirit is speaking to you so you may run with it. When you take a book before the Lord, it shows Him you are in a position of faith, you are expecting Him to speak. That’s what I do all the time. I have many notebooks of different sizes and all the revelations I have received from the Lord are there!

A VISION FROM GOD IS ALWAYS ENCOURAGING

Pastor Prince, what happens if after praying, I receive a vision or dream that frightens me?

It’s true that sometimes, the devil tries to hijack our visions by also giving us visions or dreams depicting evil and devastation. If the dream or vision you see causes you to feel dejected or fearful, bind it in the name of Jesus and don’t give further thought to it. And don’t let it discourage you from still seeking the Lord for His hazon vision.

Know this my friend: if a vision is from the Lord, you have it on the Word of God that it will only edify, exhort, and comfort you (1 Cor. 14:3). Even if the Lord gives you a vision of things to come that may not be positive, He will also speak to you and show you how you will be protected and provided for. I remember how, back in 1997, I saw in my spirit the Asian crisis of 1997 before it occurred, but the Lord also showed me His provision for His people and how we would not need to worry or be in fear.

Let me say this once more: God’s hazon vision will always bring hope, comfort and encouragement. If, after praying and seeking Him, you’re still not sure about a dream or vision or what the Spirit is saying to you, then take it to your leaders in church.

Scripture tells us that “in the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov. 11:14), so get their godly counsel. God is able to speak to them too and if the vision is really of God, there will be confirmation and agreement. This is how we walk in God’s provision of safety wisdom found in the local church.

WAIT FOR IT

Now once you have received His hazon vision, the Lord says, “Wait for it; it will surely come.” Even if its manifestation seems slow, it will surely come. It will happen in its appointed time (Hab. 2:3 ᴇsᴠ).

A vision from God transcends time and space. Some will be quick; some will tarry. But you have the word of the Lord that it will surely come. And while you are waiting for it to manifest, you can live at rest because you know it will surely play out in the end.

My friend, I can’t wait for the Lord to begin to show you His hazon visions for you and your family this year! He can show you the way to move forward and how to avoid or get out a bad situation. When your heart is enlightened, when His Spirit of wisdom and revelation fills you, it’s like a light is turned on on the inside.

If you’re facing a challenge, whether in your new start-up or in your relationship with your child, you’ll go, “I see it! I see it! I know what to do now.” Others may still be in the dark, experts may still be confused, but you will see it. May that be your reality this year many times over as the Lord fills your heart with light and hazon visions!

Footnotes:

1. NT: 4613 from Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, PC Study Bible formatted Electronic Database. Copyright © 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
2. NT: 2445 from Thayer’s Greek Lexicon, PC Study Bible formatted Electronic Database. Copyright © 2006 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.
3. Roswell D Hitchcock, “Entry for ‘Cornelius’,” An Interpreting Dictionary of Scripture Proper Names (New York, NY, 1869), https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/cornelius/.