This morning I had a vision while a brother and I were talking about how the Lord would have us be disciplined to die to the passions and ways of our soul or flesh. (It must happen in the mind and in the soul of a man.) This is it:
A son was learning how to shoot an arrow at some people as the targets. (These people are not terrified or anything, but rather they seem to have come willingly and are quite aware of what will be done to them.) The place is like a training grounds for the Olympics -the best of the best.
The son would aim to hit right between the target’s eyes. One by one, he shot them down- yet the people stood in line quietly, each waiting for his turn. The son was an excellent marksman. He hit right on target every time, until the very last one in the line. This one he missed by a bit and the target wasn’t fully dead. So he turned to the Father who was watching him on the side of the practice area for correction. He wanted to know what to do to make every shot perfectly on target. How was it that he missed this one? The Father was happy and proud that the son had been doing so well, but even more so that the son was eager to seek his assistance to achieve excellence in this.
He produced a bow with arrow in it, like the one the son had been using, and began to demonstrate with it Himself. The bow is quite unique. It has no string on it. It is triggered by releasing a button at the end, like a shot gun. He then began to show in detail to the son how to handle the bow correctly in order to make a perfect shot. The son was watching and listening to his Father with his full attention.
Understanding:
The son is learning how to achieve excellence in shooting. It is not a game or for sport, but in interest of the ability of the Father. He wants to be just like His Father in every way, and to be able to do what his Father is able to do. So he is ever keen and attentive to learn from the Father. The son never fills with contempt when he misses something, and this greatly pleases the Father. The Father’s desire and joy is to teach the son all of his own skills.
Just as I was writing this while together with the brother, I shared with him about the fact that killing people is a bit repulsive, even in a spiritual vision. The Lord spoke to me: “Remember, what is sin?” Happily I answer:
“Sin is missing the target.”
