There is a big difference between a vision and an idea that might be characterized as “flighty,” “wild” or “grandiose.” So if I say I have been dreaming of a customized tour bus, complete with our smiley face logo, website address, and telephone number on either side of the bus, would that be a grandiose idea, or a vision? It all depends.

 What if I add that I envision this bus touring the country and going to all the NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) walk-a-thon campaigns? Hundreds of thousands of people come to these “mental health” gatherings, who don’t know a thing about the Good Mood Foundation. What if our tour bus driver set up a booth at this and similar events around the country? What if we gave out our materials and free copies of My Pursuit of a Good Mood? What if we gave away recordings and other materials? Envision the driver pulling out a large screen TV from one of the cargo holds and projecting a short video about our ministry. What if the Good Mood Foundation underwrote these events as a “sponsoring” provider? Then our ministry name would be printed on t-shirts and materials that NAMI and other event organizers would give away for free to all attendees. What if Good Mood Foundation became an “on-going” sponsor? As the founder, I might be asked to open some of these events with a short speech or introduction.

 So is this a flighty idea or is this a vision? Again, it all depends. If I mortgaged my house, sold all of my possessions, took out a loan to buy this bus; if I had no additional funds, and was going to attempt to do all this on my own, I should be locked up, shouldn’t I? But if I said, “I will wait patiently until someone with means calls or writes and says, ‘Mike, what a wonderful idea. I have the money to underwrite this whole project. I’ll get the people lined up to do this thing first class, with your permission and blessing of course.’” Now that’s a vision!

 In summary, vision casting and vision achievement must work together. Where most vision casters fail is in between the time the vision is cast and the “future.” Right now I am focusing on three core impacting activities: writing, speaking and the Internet. With funding there is so much more we could accomplish. For example, we would like to further develop our website and feature a new umbrella resource called Good Mood Magazine. It will showcase the writings, stories, recordings, and resources of other similarly-minded people. Finally, God has indeed given me a writing gift and unique platform to creatively inspire others who have mood struggles. My main job in this ministry is to focus on explaining how the use of the spiritual disciplines has helped to promote a good mood in me. However, it will take the efforts and financial resources of others to achieve this greater vision, too. ONLY through the power of walking in step with the Holy Spirit will any God-given vision come to pass—one step at a time.