Consistency and Never Settling!
October 2, 2010
Have you ever read Genesis 11 and 12? Did you know that Terah, Abram's father, stopped short of the promised land and ignored the Lord's desire for him to continue on? He settled in Heran - and stayed there until his death and lived an unremarkable life. Many can not relate to my exit from a great income and career, into a world of unknowns and no paycheck. But, this story of Terah in God's word, shows that His plan for ou lives is far more than what most of us settle for. In every case, pursuing any call on your life takes risk. Pushing for that promotion, Living Christ in your workplace, taking your family somewhere else, etc. Every single person is designed to live a far more fulfilling purpose than where we are today. Whether that be a job, a volunteer opportunity, a different relationship, in parenthood, serving our family, etc. There is so much more to life than what is on the surface. God has opportunities just waiting for us - but many of us will not break away from what is familiar or comfortable to ever discover it. Most of us are just like Terah - when the going got a bit rough, he talked himself right out of going towards the opportunities for "enough"..."contentment"...and look what he missed!! The promised land - Canaan - the greatest place to ever live!
Where is your Canaan? Are you on your way there? Or did you stop and settle somewhere? What would you do with your life if you KNEW you could not fail? Pastor Perry Noble at NewSpring Church (I LOVE MY CHURCH!!) tells the story of how his ministry efforts began. One of Perry's accountability partners and dear friends asked him this very same question. And Perry - who was on his way to 'evanglism' and some sort of journey that did not seem to fit - answered his friend and said, "Well, I would start a church". His friend's response, "Then you are a coward if you do not do it. That is God's call on your life - and you are a coward if you don't do it!!! Folks, I have personally experienced NewSpring's growth over the last 10+ years. It started as a bible study led by Perry - and now there are more than 10,000 attendees - three campuses, and a volunteership of people that love Jesus!! What if Perry "settled"? Thousands of lives would have never seen the impact of NewSpring church - OR - even crazier - maybe Perry would have been forced to live his life and witness NewSpring happen to some other leader. He had no income. He had no seminary degree. But what he did have was an understanding that Jesus is LOVE and Loving Jesus first and putting His plan first NEVER fails. Too many of us want the "tangible" body of followers, the funds, the plan first. Otherwise, we stay where we are all of our lives - just like Terah. Well, Terah, I do not want the life you settled for. I want the NewSpring experience - the vision to the plan - and the opportunity from a calling that I am answering!!!
All of that writing just came out - was not part of my prayer today during my quiet time but it came from the heart so I believe the Lord wanted me to share that. So, today I was very excited to wake up today and begin the work for Unsworth Marketing Group and Grace Abounds Ministries. I had so many amazing ideas running through my mind of what would be a good use of my time and investment of myself today. As always, the best part of every morning is getting my son James up and having time to enjoy his sillyness. Today he reinvented "Old MacDonald". He sings "E-I-E-I-O" backwards - it is actually "O-E-O-E-Yo" and today he added "Churyo Churyo Churyo" to it as he was eating his Cheerios. Coffee time with my husband also set him out on the right foot today -and that is crucial. He is such an inspiration to me - everyday he goes to his nutritionist job at Clemson with the BEST attitude and passion. He manages safety for Aramark as well - and he exceeds peoples expectations of him and it really speaks to me. His leadership and faith during this journey have been unimaginable - and had I not listened to God - I may have never witnessed this growth in his leadership and faith. Sorry for the tangent....
During my quiet time in prayer this morning, I am on the chapter in Joyce Meyer's "Never Give Up" that focuses on consistency and "Don't You Dare Settle". The timing of this seems so appropriate as I wake up today starting to understand how much work and energy go into building a ministry and a successful business. I knew that God provided me with a focus on these two areas because starting this 5th week reminds me of the time when my dad was preparing me for a race in 8th grade. I ran track - and LOVED it. I always set out to WIN. We had the 1600 meter relay coming up in seconds. I had been designated at the last minute as the final leg. WHAT? It was up to me to win it or lose it. My daddy told me to remember not to start off too strong and to really save my energy for digging into the third curve before the final curve and straightway. He said, "Honey, you will literally feel like a bear jumps out and steals all of your breath - but THAT is when you have to push even harder and faster until you go past the finish line!" I was competing against the girl that was the state leader. He said "Forget about that! This race is yours if you run it like you already won it okay?"
And he was right! Around the third curve, I wanted to crawl and puke. I started out too fast - but I made a choice - to push through and keep sprinting all the way past the finish line. The state leader came up to me and said, "I just knew I could catch you on the curve because you started out sprinting. I thought there was no way you could run the whole leg that fast, but I was wrong.! I was consistent, and dared not to settle for second. I chose to focus on the finish rather than who I was up against.
The circumstances I am in today require no less than this. What is on the line, however, is so much greater. My Canaan - the Canaan that God designed for me. The promise of God's word shows us in Genesis 12 that sacrifice is to be expected - its required - but it is because the reward is great. I have no idea how many opportunities I may have missed out on to date, but I am sure of what I hope for, and certain of what I do not see. Just like I trusted my daddy, I trust my Heavenly Father that John 14:6 is TRUTH and His path for my life to build these dreams brings victory as long as I stay the course. That means never settiling for a little bit of progress. It means pressing through every day until I know what He has called us to do is done.
Lord, please provide to me and all those donating their time, energy, and money into these dreams. Please move us with courage, resourcefulness and commitment to life. No matter how impossible the situations may seem, let us not every doubt that when we desire something different that You call us to do, we are guaranteed Canaan - and the Canaan experience - if we will just pass through the price for progress and change.
Joyce's words - "No matter what you want to see change, you will either press past your pain now and do what is right, or you will be exactly where you are today - 30 years from now-or perhaps somewhere even worse. God is a good God and he has awesome plans for your life".
What is He leading you to do different? When was the last time you spent time in His word and in worship to even hear what He may be calling you to change? Where is your life settling? What areas do you desire change in?
Have you ever read Genesis 11 and 12? Did you know that Terah, Abram's father, stopped short of the promised land and ignored the Lord's desire for him to continue on? He settled in Heran - and stayed there until his death and lived an unremarkable life. Many can not relate to my exit from a great income and career, into a world of unknowns and no paycheck. But, this story of Terah in God's word, shows that His plan for ou lives is far more than what most of us settle for. In every case, pursuing any call on your life takes risk. Pushing for that promotion, Living Christ in your workplace, taking your family somewhere else, etc. Every single person is designed to live a far more fulfilling purpose than where we are today. Whether that be a job, a volunteer opportunity, a different relationship, in parenthood, serving our family, etc. There is so much more to life than what is on the surface. God has opportunities just waiting for us - but many of us will not break away from what is familiar or comfortable to ever discover it. Most of us are just like Terah - when the going got a bit rough, he talked himself right out of going towards the opportunities for "enough"..."contentment"...and look what he missed!! The promised land - Canaan - the greatest place to ever live!
Where is your Canaan? Are you on your way there? Or did you stop and settle somewhere? What would you do with your life if you KNEW you could not fail? Pastor Perry Noble at NewSpring Church (I LOVE MY CHURCH!!) tells the story of how his ministry efforts began. One of Perry's accountability partners and dear friends asked him this very same question. And Perry - who was on his way to 'evanglism' and some sort of journey that did not seem to fit - answered his friend and said, "Well, I would start a church". His friend's response, "Then you are a coward if you do not do it. That is God's call on your life - and you are a coward if you don't do it!!! Folks, I have personally experienced NewSpring's growth over the last 10+ years. It started as a bible study led by Perry - and now there are more than 10,000 attendees - three campuses, and a volunteership of people that love Jesus!! What if Perry "settled"? Thousands of lives would have never seen the impact of NewSpring church - OR - even crazier - maybe Perry would have been forced to live his life and witness NewSpring happen to some other leader. He had no income. He had no seminary degree. But what he did have was an understanding that Jesus is LOVE and Loving Jesus first and putting His plan first NEVER fails. Too many of us want the "tangible" body of followers, the funds, the plan first. Otherwise, we stay where we are all of our lives - just like Terah. Well, Terah, I do not want the life you settled for. I want the NewSpring experience - the vision to the plan - and the opportunity from a calling that I am answering!!!
All of that writing just came out - was not part of my prayer today during my quiet time but it came from the heart so I believe the Lord wanted me to share that. So, today I was very excited to wake up today and begin the work for Unsworth Marketing Group and Grace Abounds Ministries. I had so many amazing ideas running through my mind of what would be a good use of my time and investment of myself today. As always, the best part of every morning is getting my son James up and having time to enjoy his sillyness. Today he reinvented "Old MacDonald". He sings "E-I-E-I-O" backwards - it is actually "O-E-O-E-Yo" and today he added "Churyo Churyo Churyo" to it as he was eating his Cheerios. Coffee time with my husband also set him out on the right foot today -and that is crucial. He is such an inspiration to me - everyday he goes to his nutritionist job at Clemson with the BEST attitude and passion. He manages safety for Aramark as well - and he exceeds peoples expectations of him and it really speaks to me. His leadership and faith during this journey have been unimaginable - and had I not listened to God - I may have never witnessed this growth in his leadership and faith. Sorry for the tangent....
During my quiet time in prayer this morning, I am on the chapter in Joyce Meyer's "Never Give Up" that focuses on consistency and "Don't You Dare Settle". The timing of this seems so appropriate as I wake up today starting to understand how much work and energy go into building a ministry and a successful business. I knew that God provided me with a focus on these two areas because starting this 5th week reminds me of the time when my dad was preparing me for a race in 8th grade. I ran track - and LOVED it. I always set out to WIN. We had the 1600 meter relay coming up in seconds. I had been designated at the last minute as the final leg. WHAT? It was up to me to win it or lose it. My daddy told me to remember not to start off too strong and to really save my energy for digging into the third curve before the final curve and straightway. He said, "Honey, you will literally feel like a bear jumps out and steals all of your breath - but THAT is when you have to push even harder and faster until you go past the finish line!" I was competing against the girl that was the state leader. He said "Forget about that! This race is yours if you run it like you already won it okay?"
And he was right! Around the third curve, I wanted to crawl and puke. I started out too fast - but I made a choice - to push through and keep sprinting all the way past the finish line. The state leader came up to me and said, "I just knew I could catch you on the curve because you started out sprinting. I thought there was no way you could run the whole leg that fast, but I was wrong.! I was consistent, and dared not to settle for second. I chose to focus on the finish rather than who I was up against.
The circumstances I am in today require no less than this. What is on the line, however, is so much greater. My Canaan - the Canaan that God designed for me. The promise of God's word shows us in Genesis 12 that sacrifice is to be expected - its required - but it is because the reward is great. I have no idea how many opportunities I may have missed out on to date, but I am sure of what I hope for, and certain of what I do not see. Just like I trusted my daddy, I trust my Heavenly Father that John 14:6 is TRUTH and His path for my life to build these dreams brings victory as long as I stay the course. That means never settiling for a little bit of progress. It means pressing through every day until I know what He has called us to do is done.
Lord, please provide to me and all those donating their time, energy, and money into these dreams. Please move us with courage, resourcefulness and commitment to life. No matter how impossible the situations may seem, let us not every doubt that when we desire something different that You call us to do, we are guaranteed Canaan - and the Canaan experience - if we will just pass through the price for progress and change.
Joyce's words - "No matter what you want to see change, you will either press past your pain now and do what is right, or you will be exactly where you are today - 30 years from now-or perhaps somewhere even worse. God is a good God and he has awesome plans for your life".
What is He leading you to do different? When was the last time you spent time in His word and in worship to even hear what He may be calling you to change? Where is your life settling? What areas do you desire change in?
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