May He give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.
Psalms 20:4 (NIV)
I can remember vividly the excitement of me first joining the family of God, a Christian! My energies were of 40 horsepower, happy to carry my Bible everywhere, always giving an answer of the hope that was in me, whether I was right or wrong and most of the time wrong, debating the Word of God, defending Jesus like no other, willing to do anything for the body of Christ, and getting home late from prayer meeting to be up early for work, what a headache!
Looking back now at this stage in my life I can only smile at those days. I realize that I was without direction (a map) and a plan (goals). I loved the Lord like a little girl who received candy from her daddy, it was new for me. I found a pearl of great price and I was willing to sell all I had to buy this special pearl (Jesus). I really wasn’t accomplishing much but was sometimes going in circles during my early years. From church to church, street meeting to street meeting, and prayer band to prayer band; that was the new norm of my Christian life.
It wasn’t until the Lord lead me to my home church that I settled down and came under the leadership of some very mature and knowledgeable Christians. Watching their daily lives of service and their rich love and desire to study God’s Word and obey it spoke volumes to my “giddy head”.
As I attended Sunday school and Wednesday Bible Study/Prayer I started to hear the voice of the Lord speak to me through His Word. I realize that it was not my excitement nor my joy that Jesus was trying to extinguish but my plans, my will and my way. I started to befriend other Christians and enjoyed a new way of thinking, a new way of faith and new kind of debating and sharing of God’s Word.
Now, what a new life! The real excitement, joy and peace in the Holy Spirit! That’s the kingdom of God.
There were a few things that brought me out of the, “going around the mountain” again and again kind of life. It wasn’t, at that time, called “goal setting” for me, but it was, take notes and write down your communication with the Holy Spirit as you pray from your prayer list and keep a record of answered prayer. Then it moved to a more serious direction of ”what is God’s will for my life”, and as I started to matured and became more knowledgeable in God’s Word I started to set goals for my life.
You may ask, “Do setting goals as a Christian tend to lead you away from God’s plan for your life?” No, I believe that if you desire to live God’s will out in your life then you should be one to set goals. I also believe that the right motives for setting godly goals play an important part in your planning. However, our plans are apt to change because God doesn’t reveal to us the full picture of His plan for our life in one session; it’s a process of His Sovereignty.
I encourage you to keep a record of your daily devotions and your prayer request and you will notice how God changes you first and your goals second. Some goals bring surprises from the Lord, some are quite a challenge to accomplish and yet some we don’t really finish because our lives will make sharp turns in a different direction for the glory of God. But the principle will stay the same, trusting Him.
Let’s put our goals filled with faith in action. Whether we work in children’s church ministry or missions. Make a donation to a reliable ministry or visit an old folks home on a Saturday to read the Scripture. Take a child for the weekend from the children’s home. Share a lunch date with someone different from your style and as you list your goals you will notice how much you have grown to a God-centered life with God-centered goals.