SUCCESS begins with a PLAN

So many people live for the moment. Whatever happens, happens. What will be, will be. Success in any endeavor requires planning and planning is a choice. If you never succeed at anything, it is simply because you didn't plan to succeed. Success doesn't come easy. If it did, everybody on the planet would be successful. I've discovered that most people do a better job at planning a trip that will only last for a week than they do planning their life which is a lifetime. A lot of people do not succeed simply because they do not plan. God didn't just wake up one morning and say, "You know, I think I will make a universe." That is not the way God operates. Nothing God does is by coincidence. God is the Master Planner. He has a plan that He made for your life even before you were formed in your mother's womb (Psalm 139:13-16). And God Thoroughly planned the universe.

 

 "... and comprehended the dust of earth in a measure..." Isaiah 40:12

 

The word comprehend means to grasp mentally, to fully understand, to possess the ability to carry out to fruition. In other words, before God ever created the universe He thought it out. He comprehended it. He planned for it. If you just read Genesis chapter 1 - ...in the beginning God said let there be..., then you might think God just got up one morning and said, "Let there be this and let there be that and, hey, let's have this, too." That is not the way God did it.

 

"The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens." Proverbs 3:19

Notice wisdom, understanding, and comprehension were all a part of God creating the universe. In other words, He planned before He went into action. You know as well as I do that if you want to be a doctor, then you have to make plans to be a doctor. If you want to own your own business, the you have to make plans to own your own business, and if you want a better life, then you have to make plans for a better life. All of that is a choice.

 

Recently, as I was flying back from Raleigh, North Carolina, I was watching my pilot. He had a plan. As a matter of fact, I won't get in an airplane with a pilot who does not plan. The first thing I want to see a pilot do is go over that checklist.

 

Pilots file a flight plan. Think about that. In other words, they know before they ever leave the ground what it is going to take to reach their destination. In fact, he can tell the people at destination an approximate arrival time. He has already worked all that out. Even if we have to stop and refuel somewhere, he knows how long it is going to take.

 

Well, you know as well as I do that there are some stormy conditions that show up in life from time to time and you need a "flight plan." Life can be full of stormy conditions and that is why you need a plan. With a plan, you can maneuver through life's storms much easier, and that is what the Word of God is all about. It is God's plan for your life. It is your flight plan for this journey through life. Knowing about God says about your life puts you in a position of advantage. Not only that, but it puts you in a position to take control of your destiny.

 

Without the knowledge of God's plan for your life, then you will remain locked into your present circumstances and your present surroundings. You will not be able to go any further because you have no knowledge of God's plan. That is why Paul prayed in Colossians 1:9 ...that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

God wants you to be filled with the knowledge of His will. Why? Because to know His will is to know His plan and when you know the plan of God, then once again you can maneuver through life's storms much easier and get to your destination.

 

If you believe that success belongs to you, then start planning to succeed. I want to challenge you to spend as much time as possible in the Word of God so that you will be filled with the knowledge of God's plan.

 

It is a proven fact that without a setting goals it is not very likely that you will enjoy any high level of success. You might have a few successes here and there but it will not be a continual thing in your life if you never set goals. Until you learn how to set goals and until you learn how to persevere while you are waiting for them to become reality, then it is not likely that you will be successful. It will only be wishful thinking. A person who never sets goals is like a ship without a rudder is like a person who just wanders aimlessly through life. There are a lot of people like that today.

 

Your first goal should be to discover what God wants you to do with your life. Once you become a Christian, then you have an inside track to God and you can discover what God truly wants you to do with your life. That should be your first goal or your first pursuit. This is what the apostle Paul said when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus.

 

"...Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Acts 9:6

He hadn't even been born again fifteen seconds and the first thing that came out of his mouth was, "What do you want me to do with my life?"

 

Prior to that time, Paul had been pursuing his own goals. He was one of the most educated man of his day. He was an intellectual. He thought he was doing God a service by persecuting and having Christians put in prison and even stoned to death. Yet when he met Jesus, he realized that everything he had done up to that time was not what God really wanted him to do. His number one goal was to find out what God wanted.

 

Obviously, for you to find that out, it is going to take fellowship with God. It is going to take spending time with God on a daily basis. God has His ways. He is not going to lay it all out at one time. He is going to give you one step at a time and then He will expect you to walk by faith. Most people want step number ten before they even do step one. "Lord, if You will just lay out my whole life for me so I will know how it is going to turn out then I will walk by faith."

 

Well, it would not take faith if you already knew how everything was going to turn out.

 

It is one step at a time so don't get discouraged. The Bible says that the steps of a good man, (not the strides, not the leaps, not the jumps,but the steps) are ordered by the Lord (Psalm 37:33). I realize that steps are the slow way. We don't like steps. We like leaps. We want to run and jump and leap but steps are the way that God deals with our lives - one step at a time.

 

So if you are going to discover what God wants you to do, then step one is going to demand that you spend time with Him. Once you discover what He wants you to do, then you have to ask yourself this question - am I willing to pay the price? Trust me... there is a price.

 

If you are determined to pay the price, if you are willing to stick with what God wants you to do, then He will help you to achieve it. He will help you get the job done. God will not only reveal to you what He wants you to do, but He will also equip you with the ability to do it.

 

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Philippians 4:13

One of the most common weaknesses in most people is that if their goals don't come to pass quickly, they tend to stop believing that they can achieve them... and they quit.

 

Most of the time your goals, your plans, your vision will look impossible. You realize, "Hey, I don't know if I can do this or not." That is the reason Paul said, "I can do all things through Christ." In other words, you are not in this alone. You have the Greater One on the inside of you. He will not only reveal what He wants you to do but He will give you the ability to accomplish it.

 

"...that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper..." Hebrews 13:6

You can count on God to help you. You must never stop believing in your God-given ability to accomplish what most people consider the impossible. God sees you as winner and you need to continue to see yourself as a winner. No matter how impossible your goals may seem, never give up on them. When you are single-minded, then there will always come a supernatural ability to accomplish those goals. Get serious about planning this year and succeed on purpose.

 

By : Jerry Savelle