Your future

I read one time that the top two per cent of top achievers that are graduates of Harvard all have in common that they reduce their goals to writing and carefully work towards achieving them utilizing a daily priority list. I did not go to Harvard but I believe in written goals and daily priority lists. Every year at this time I go through a ritual of writing my goals for the upcoming year. I begin in early November and finish up right around mid-January.

Sometimes it takes a long time to accomplish my goals. Last year I developed a goal for restructuring the sales and marketing department. I have worked on this project all year. I think about it on the plane, in my car, taking a shower, lying in bed, fishing, at work, practically all of the time. I have worked extremely hard on this project. Just this month I finally got my plan to a point where I could remove it from my brain and reduce it to writing, and have only recently revealed it to and begun training our leadership on it. I have nearly finished reorganizing all of the appropriate staff and am almost ready to launch. I believe this is the best work I have ever done and I am really proud of this plan! Time will tell. Next year if our sales begin to increase, dramatically, I will have succeeded. If notthat will not happen so there is no use even discussing it. (Now that is confidence!)

I also plan my spiritual goals and put them in writing. I have improved my spiritual life dramatically through the years with this methodology. Last year I decided that I would forgive someone who had wronged me greatly. It was very hard to do. This person had never asked for forgiveness and indeed, (I assumed), felt no need to apologize for anything.

I have heard that when you forgive someone who has greatly wronged you, that telling yourself that you are not doing it for ‘them’, but for yourself helps make it easier. I found it was easier to tell myself that I was doing it for God. Having something in my life such as this is not appropriate for a Christian. The Bible tells us to try and get along with people as best we can, in as much as we have control. I have control over whether or not I will initiate an effort to reconcile. Had he chosen to rebuff those efforts, then I would have still done my part. We had not spoken in twelve years and out of the blue I sent him an e-mail. He was thrilled to death. We eventually talked by phone and now we communicate nearly every week. Soon we will meet in person and the reconciliation is well on its way to being complete.

I did the same thing when I quit drinking alcohol. I really did not quit as much for me or my health, but because at times I felt it interfered with my spiritual walk. I quit because I felt God would be happier with me if I did. God helped me in both counts and I am far happier today and I think God is too.

I strongly recommend that you spend some SERIOUS time setting some worthwhile goals this year for every area of your life; your spiritual walk, family, health, career, friends, financial, and hobbies . As you can tell I spend nearly two full months putting mine together and then work all year to achieve them. Not all projects should be short term. Sometimes it takes time to accomplish great things for your career or for the Lord; sometimes it can be done in days or weeks. The important thing is to set the goals and start thinking! My sales and marketing project will not be completed until next year, (nearly two full years), and I cannot wait to start seeing the results of my hard labor. It will be well worth it to me (and maybe I can start thinking of something else for a change)

This year I am determined to remove any and all profanity from my being. I have cussed since I was old enough to talk and this will be a tough one, but I am determined and I have a plan. God will be there helping me and hopefully smiling as I work towards this goal. Once goals like this are in place, start the prayer requests in earnest; God instructs us to be persistent and I intend to take Him up on it because I want to achieve my goals. How about you?

Luke 11:9
So I say to you, ask and it will
be given to you; seek and you will
find; knock and it will be opened to you.