I’m not saying I’m old, but I’m getting older…

When I was young I had vision. I thought they were dreams but most of the time it was vision…

As a young man I lived in the ache, compelled by the longing; I chased vision down with reckless abandon… and time and again I fell short only to cast greater vision, to struggle, to taste love, intimacy, and then again, failure…

Acts 2:17 “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.”

It’s only been in the last few years that I have begun to quote that verse correctly. In the past, I always got it backward. You see, when I was younger, it made more sense that young men would dream dreams and old men see visions. However, I’ve come to understand that there is a difference between dreams and visions.

I’m not saying I am old by the way, but I am getting older…

Vision is defined as “the act or power of anticipating that which will or may come to be.” At eighteen and over the following 15 or so years, I tested every projection, prodding and discovering both His and my heart. I was anticipating all the possible futures and in so doing, I was learning both who my Father was and my identity as His son. When I was a young man, every exciting possibility that popped into my head would have been categorized as a dream. But looking back, I now understand that most of those “dreams” would be better defined as vision.

I think the difference between vision and dreams is this, dreams are hidden in our Fathers heart and vision is how we discover them. Dreams are way bigger and more powerful than any words could express. In fact, they are above and beyond imagination, and yet we’ve been invited to imagine, to envision, to search them out.

And it’s a scary and all-consuming journey; a journey that develops faith; a journey for the faithful, a journey of discovering and believing He loves.

It’s a journey of vision and failure, vision and failure, vision and failure…

It’s a journey where young men become old…

…Because dreaming is an old man’s game.

You see, “old men” have the most scars; “old men” have the hardest memories, of war and death. “Old men” carry the pain of loss and brokenness. “Old men” have given their life to the King and His cause time and again, they have waited, and when they couldn’t wait anymore, they’ve waited.

“Old men” have done all to stand and when they couldn’t stand any longer, they stood. “Old men” have died, been reborn, and died again. “Old men” have failed and when they didn’t think they could fail worse, they did. “Old men” have lost, everything… more than once. “Old men” have chased vision into the valley of the shadow of death.

And “old men” have chased vision into the heart of the Fathers perfect love until His every heartbeat can be trusted, until their heartbeat can be trusted as well.

And then, with the full understanding of what it cost, “old men,” well, they dream dreams!

And the authority and power of their dreams pulls heaven to earth in ways never before seen. Their dreams empower generations to live heaven on earth.

I’m not saying I’m old, but by the goodness of God, I’m getting older…

And isn’t that the promise He’s given us all, that we could dream life-transforming, world-changing, saints empowering “old men” dreams?

Jason Clark is a writer, speaker and lead communicator at A Family Story Ministries. His mission is to encourage sons and daughters to grow sure in the love of an always-good heavenly Father. He and his wife, Karen, live in North Carolina with their three children.

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