Don't Lose Focus

I pray that any of you that were contemplating throwing in the towel, or quitting are back on track. As you move forward I must remind you to stay focused. Keep your mind on what God says and not what the enemy tries to plant in your mind. Keep pressing forward.

For as we read in Philippians 3:14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

How do you plan your day, week, month, and year. What are your short and long term goals? That’s a lot to think about, so let’s back up and take it one plan at a time.

What were your plans for today? Were you able to accomplish them? If not, why not? What distracted you, or interrupted your plan? Were you able to overcome the distraction or interruption and get back on course or will you have to use time allocated for another task to get back on track.

Things don’t always go the way we plan. Sometimes it’s a good thing, and sometimes it may not be a good thing. What’s important is that you don’t allow distractions to side track you, or prevent you from moving towards your goal.

We’ve talked previously about how fear of success can be just as crippling as fear of failure. When you see the doors you’ve knocked on being opened, when you receive what you have asked for, when you find what you have been seeking, don’t become afraid of the success God is bringing your way. Not only is this what you have been diligently praying for it is also your destiny.

Many times when we are getting close to a victorious moment the enemy will cause us to start doubting. He will send those fiery darts towards your mind. The ones that say, this can’t be real, I’m not good enough, they must have made a mistake. He may even try to convince you that the thing you have tried so hard to achieve, along with your efforts to achieve them are worthless. He wants to convince you that you will not succeed.

Matthew 14: 22-32 and straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.  But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.  And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.  And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.  And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.  And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

I want us to take a look at a few things here. First, there were several disciples on the boat. Why was Peter the only one that asked the Lord to bid him, or enable him to come to him on the water? Why did Peter want to walk on the water in the first place? Why didn’t he just allow Jesus to come and join them on the ship?

My thought is that Peter had faith, He believed that it was Jesus walking on the water. He also believed that because it was Jesus he could command him, or enable him to walk on the water. When Jesus said come, Peter didn’t hesitate. He went down out of the ship and began walking toward Jesus. Peter wasn’t walking towards the shore, or walking around the boat just to see if he was in fact able to walk on water. He had a goal in mind. He was walking towards Jesus.

Are you like the rest of the disciples in the boat, or are you like Peter? Are you bold enough in your faith to say, if it is you bid me to come? Lord, if this is your plan for my life enable me to walk in it. Equip me with the faith that I need to walk towards my destiny, to reach my goal.

To listen to the message in its entirety click on the link below and select Don’t Lose Focus

http://www.gretahillman.com/#!audiovideo/cd8l

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Change

We have all heard the only thing that is constant is change. Change occurs all around us. Sometimes we are forced to change. When there are changes in our workplace whether we agree or disagree, whether we resist or embrace them they still occur. We determine our reaction.

But what about self-initiated changes. Have you ever wondered why when change is forced on us we adapt because we have to but when the change is self-initiated it may not occur?

Let’s take a look at a couple of examples. In today’s economy many companies are requiring mandatory furloughs. Employees take unpaid or partially paid time off. Furloughs are implemented as a cost saving measure for the company. Although the impacted employees do not agree they do not have a choice. They are not allowed to work and will not be paid.

Although forced upon an employee, whenever possible the employee should try and use this time off to their advantage. It can be used for personal appointments which may prevent them from having to take time off of work in the future. It can be used for volunteer work if desired. It can also be used to work on a personal business venture or project they may have been putting off.

Not let’s take a look at a self-initiated change. A change that has crossed the mind of a great majority of people is weight loss. We hear weight lost mentioned as New Year’s resolutions, in preparation for vacations, class reunions, weddings, special events or a life style change.

This is a self-initiated change and involves our will. It’s not forced upon us. We can go through with it or we can decide not to. It’s our choice.  Unfortunately for some of us we do not move forward with our change. We have one excuse or another, whatever the reason because it is not being forced upon us, and it is not required but a choice, it may not occur.

A self-initiated change starts as an idea. In the weight loss example. A person may look in the mirror or try on an article of clothing that fit’s a little snugly and think about losing weight. Sometimes the thought goes no further. If it does it becomes a desire. Once the idea or thought becomes a desire implementation will begin. A person may start exercising or change their eating plan but before reaching their goal they may quit. This is where it ends for many people. You have an idea. Your idea becomes a desire. You implement a plan, then for one reason or another the plan comes to an end before reaching your goal.

Why is it so difficult make a self-initiated change? It’s because you have a choice, so the question becomes how do you stick with your choice? How do you prevent yourself from quitting? Think back to the company mandated change. It may have been uncomfortable but it was necessary so you complied. Your job may have been at stake. Even if you resisted in the beginning you accepted the change, and it became part of your lifestyle.

A self-initiated change may be uncomfortable. You are doing something you have never done before. Is it necessary? It is if it is your desire, and you want to succeed. What do you do? You act as though it is required just as the mandated change is required. You act as though you don’t have a choice. You commit yourself to it. You do whatever it takes. Hold yourself accountable, or if you are challenged with accountability ask a friend that believes in your success to be your accountability partner if you do not have a Life Coach.

Record and report your progress. Do something every day towards your goal. Celebrate your progress as encouragement. You can make a change but you must be committed. It’s your choice. Choose to succeed.
 

 

 

Failure is not an Option; It's an Opportunity

Oftentimes when we don’t receive the results we expect we as well as others think we have failed. Usually before undertaking any project we prepare in advance with an expectation of receiving the desired results whether it’s baking a cake, preparing for an exam, writing a business plan or whatever the undertaking. In other words we have done our homework. If we were preparing to bake a cake we would not preheat the oven and prepare our baking pan without first making sure we had all of the required ingredients.

But even if we have all of the right ingredients and follow the directions we may not receive the desired result. Jackie, a friend of mine bakes one of the best pound cakes I have ever tasted. Another friend Diane asked for her recipe which she provided. Diane baked a cake following the directions but the results were not the same. Some of you may think perhaps Jackie did not divulge all of the information to prepare the cake the same way that she does but she did.

Diane could not figure out where she went wrong. Jackie wasn’t there when Diane baked her cake so she could not tell her what she may have done that was different. Diane told Jackie everything she did and Jackie confirmed everything was done correctly. Diane considered herself a failure saying she couldn’t even follow simple directions.

I don’t like to use the word failure. As a matter of fact when I don’t receive the results I expect rather than say I have failed. I say just that. These are not the results I expected. I now have an opportunity to exam my process and try a different approach. There are no failures in life only new opportunities.

Just like Diane you may think you have followed the directions perfectly but rather than be disappointed think about the following:

Ø  Did I do everything exactly the way I was supposed to i.e. did I cut any corners? Perhaps in Diane’s case the directions were to mix by hand 100 strokes. Maybe she used an electric mixer and just counted 100 strokes.

Ø  Do I have a plan? Diane had a recipe to follow which she did. What is your plan? You may have a desired result or goal but what is your plan to reach your goal? Without a plan you don’t have a map to reach your destination.

Ø  Am I following my plan? If you have set a deadline which requires working an hour a day are you working an hour a day or are you skipping a couple of days and making a decision to combine all of the hours at the end of the week? What happens if something unexpected comes up and prevents you from keeping your commitment to complete all of your hours at the end of the week? Have you failed? No you have not, but you have learned putting things off did not yield the desired results so the next week you make a decision to keep your commitment to work an hour each day.

What if you have set a goal followed your plan but did not receive your desired results? What do you do? Initially you may feel disappointed. No one likes rejection and everyone wants to feel successful. What you must realize is that you are successful because you set a goal for yourself and followed your plan to completion. You may not have yielded your desired results but you now have a new opportunity. Maybe you are a singer and performed a song that was not so well received. Perhaps you performed before the wrong audience. Everyone will not receive your thoughts, your dreams, and your goals with the same enthusiasm that you have. Does that mean they are not good ideas? No it does not. It may mean it’s the wrong audience.

Never give up on what you know God has placed in your heart to do. Isaiah 40:31 but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. If you do not receive your desired results keep in mind God has given you a desire but the path He places you on will be His and may not always coincide with yours as we read in Proverbs 16:9 a man’s heart deviseth his way: but the Lord directed his steps.

 

 

 

 

Perseverance

While on vacation last week I was able to witness two amazing performances by two different types of performers. The first included four different motorcycle groups performing synchronized drills. The precision was amazing each group unique in its own way. It was obvious the amount of time, effort and practice each group exercised to hone their skills.

At the end of each performance you could see the joy in their faces as they celebrated their flawless performance. The crowd applauded cheered and whistled at the finale when all four groups rode together blowing their horns and flashing their lights.

The second performance was by Vocal Trash. You may have heard of them or attended one of their performances yourself. I watched and listened as they sang, danced and engaged the audience with their enthusiastic musical message played on instruments made from recycled materials.

Both groups of performers were filled with passion. If you haven’t realized it I am very passionate about people who are passionate about their passion. As I listen to people talk about their passions I can see and feel their passion. I can visual the success of a passionate individual as they express to me their goals as well as their plans to attain them.

The operative words here are passion, goal and plan. In addition to a passion, drive or desire you must set S.M.A.R.T or specific, measureable, achievable, realistic, and time-limited goals. You must also have an action plan. Any of these by themselves are enough to light a fire but you need the other two to fuel the fire and keep it burning.

Even with the combination of all three there will be times you may think you are wasting your time, will never succeed and if you have made a monetary investment you may feel like you have thrown your money away. It was obvious the performers I watched had passion, a goal and an action plan but there were probably times when thoughts of failure may have crossed their minds just as they may have yours and mine.

What made these performers successful? Perseverance, it’s the same thing that makes anyone successful. I’ve written about commitment and being convinced but no matter how committed you are or how convinced you are you must still have goals and a plan of action to reach your goals. You should invest time and effort daily if possible. Create a weekly plan to reach your overall goal.  If you are unable to commit time daily set aside time on your calendar during the week to commit to your plan. Do not become discouraged if you are unable to keep your commitment one day. Instead if possible increase your effort the next day you have allotted on your calendar so you do not fall behind in your weekly goal. What is your plan this week to take you closer to reaching your goal?