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The teaching in this article was originally
presented as a workshop at an international conference in June 2002. It is
designed for you to actually do some homework which may take a few hours--not
all at one sitting, however. So…if you‘re willing to do your assigned
homework, this article may very well prove to be one of the most useful articles
you have ever read!
I have good news for you: your past does not necessarily equal your
future! You can create a bright new future for yourself. Your past is past. Look
to your future!
All Christians should be futurists. I am a futurist. It is
good to have a healthy, positive focus on the future, knowing God has already
been there ahead of us. We are not trapped in our past or present. We can move
forward into our future. Why have a positive focus on the future? Because we
will spend the rest of our lives in our futures!
We’re all on a journey toward our futures. Our journeys
began when we were conceived and will end—but not really end—when we make
the transition from this life to the new stage of our journey in eternity. Most
of us who are followers of Jesus Christ once thought of our mortal journey as
ending in an event called the Rapture or at the soon-coming end of time when the
earth and the universe will dissolve in a fiery conflagration.
Thousands of Bible-believing Christians have jettisoned the
Rapture theory or ceased believing in a cataclysmic dissolution at the end of
time. Through much struggle and painful travail we discovered those were false
futures. When we ceased to believe in those false futures, we found ourselves
facing unknown and uncertain futures for the remainder of our mortal lives. We
found ourselves in limbo. We found ourselves surrounded by dark clouds of
unknowing. Perhaps we found ourselves disillusioned or disappointed. Or, even
embarrassed at having believed such false theological theories for so long a
time. We found ourselves not knowing what our individual futures hold for
us—although we have always known Him who holds the future! He has never
abandoned us, although the false futures we once thought we knew—and trusted
in—have dissolved as the morning mist dissolves in the rising sun.
Must we simply “go with the flow,” hoping that our
futures might magically stretch out ahead of us, magically turning out okay in
the end? Or…can we work with the Holy Spirit and create bright new futures for
ourselves?
My answer is, “Yes, working with God we can build and
shape our own futures based upon principles God teaches us in his Word.” Here
at the very beginning of this article, there are four general principles I want
you to understand clearly:
1. If I keep doing what I’ve always done in my past, in my future I’ll
keep getting what I’ve always gotten.
2. My future does not necessarily equal my past.
3. God wants me to live by design, not by default or by chance.
4. I will spend the rest of my mortal life—and my eternal life—living in
my future.
So…let’s take a look to see what we can do—working with
God’s Spirit within us—to begin creating, building, and configuring our own
bright new futures. If we and the Holy Spirit cooperate in constructing and
shaping our own futures, then we need not fear the future, because we will be
familiar with it—we will know it—and it will quite naturally draw us toward
it as we walk hand in hand with God toward the futures we have built together
with him.
First, think about Jeremiah 29: 11:
“’I have tremendous plans for you, both in this life and the next,’
says God. ‘They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a bright
future and a solid hope.’”
God has a vision for our bright futures. His future for you
is good, not bad--and full of hope. He wants you to have a successful and
prosperous future full of hope, full of good, and full of purpose, but let’s
define “success” and “prosperity” according to the Bible.
Here is the Bible’s amplified definition of success
as found principally in the first chapter of Joshua:
“Success is for me to steadily and consistently move
toward accomplishing God’s plans and purposes for my life, according to my
potential *; it is a journey, not a destination.”
[*Potential consists of three components: 1. My God-given
gifts, skills, abilities and talents; 2. My education and training; and 3. My
desires. [As to my desires, remember it is God who gives me the desires of my
heart; not that he simply fulfills my desires (he does!), but he puts them in my
heart in the first place. Psalm 37:4]
Here’s the Bible’s definition of prosperity as
found in several places throughout both the Old and New Testaments:
“Prosperity is for God to furnish me enough for my journey.”
Those are the Bible’s definitions of those two concepts.
Contrast and compare them with the generally accepted definitions of those two
words by this world’s systems. Keep both definitions clearly in mind as you
continue reading this article and doing your homework.
Time For Your First Homework Assignment
As previously mentioned, this article grew out of a workshop
I presented at a conference in June 2002. The nature of a workshop is that
the participants do some work. Before reading any further in this article, I
have some work I want you to do. Please do not continue reading until you do
your “homework.” Frankly, this homework may take you a number of hours to
complete (Not all at one time), but if you don’t complete your assigned
homework, then the remainder of this article will be absolutely worthless to
you. So…it’s your choice now: either do your homework or don’t waste your
time reading the remainder of this article.
Yes, it may take you a few hours to complete your homework,
but you don’t have to do it all at one sitting. In fact, it would be better
for you if you worked on it a few moments a day over the next week or so. That
will give ample time for the concepts you’ll be working on to lodge deeply in
your mind and spirit--and ample time for the Holy Spirit to begin helping them
become an integral part of your future.
In order for you to have a successful and prosperous future,
you must first begin with forming and writing down your BELIEFS. You are also
going to work on your VALUES, your MISSION or VISION for life, and some GOALS to
help you fulfill God’s and your visions for your lives and to create, shape,
and mold your bright futures.
When you’re finished with these homework exercises, you
will have a new grasp, understanding, and appreciation of your own BELIEFS,
VALUES, VISION, and GOALS. Yours, not mine. Not someone else’s. Not your
spouse’s, not your parents, not what you feel someone else expects of you, but
your very own that you can work with for the remainder of your journey through
this life—whether that journey is another 100 years, 50 years, 25 years, 5
years, or one year. These will help you reach the bright future God has in store
for you, regardless of the length of that future.
Keep in mind that God has already “traveled” to your
future and knows all it’s highlights and joys as well as its sorrows,
pitfalls, and detours. Grasp his hand firmly as you journey toward your future;
with God, all will be well because God is all…in all.
Wherever you’re presently at on your journey through this
life, you know God has been very present with you—and in you—up to this
point in your journey. He has been there in the past. He is with you now. The
fact that he has been with you on every stage of your journey so far should
encourage you that he will be with you in the future stages of your journey,
too. Not only will he be with you in your future, but he has already gone on
ahead and paved the way for you to walk with him into your bright new future.
Your True Beliefs
Your beliefs are what you honestly hold to be true about
God, about his universe, about life on this planet, about humanity, about
yourself, etc. They are what you hold to be true and real in an absolute sense.
You must not list your beliefs simply because you feel they are what others
think you should believe, or what you think you ought to believe. They should be
what you honestly believe when you’re alone with just God and yourself.
Beliefs should be written, personalized, and referred to often. Your true and
genuine beliefs underlie everything you do and say.
Just to get you started formulating and writing your own,
here are some sample beliefs written by some of my workshop participants:
God is, and he loves all people, including me. God is
eternally good, not bad in any sense.
God is good. All his thoughts toward me are good. All his
plans for my future are good.
Jesus of Nazareth is God incarnate, born of a virgin. He
lived. He died. He came back to life.
Jesus appeared (“returned”) in power and glory in 70 AD
at the time of the complete destruction and dissolution of the Jewish Temple and
religion.
God saves everyone. Those who know, tell those who don’t.
God lives in me permanently in the unbodied form of the Holy
Spirit.
God has specific plans and purposes for my life, and He
wishes me to be successful and prosperous during my life’s journey.
I can only be a true, growing, maturing Christian if I am
actively involved in the life of a local expression of Jesus’ Church.
The nuclear family with heterosexual, married parents is
God’s plan for all humankind.
God has placed me exactly where He wants me in a local
expression of the Church.
I am a unique creation of God, equipped with all the skills,
abilities and talents necessary for me to be all God wants me to be and to
fulfill all his plans and purposes for my life.
Okay, here’s your first homework. Before you read any
further, I want you to take a separate sheet of paper and write down your own
beliefs under the heading, Here Is What I Truly And Honestly Believe. Go
ahead, write that heading on a separate sheet of paper and get started writing
your own beliefs under that heading. To get you started, feel free to
“borrow” some of the beliefs of others I wrote just above this paragraph--as
long as you truly believe them. As you write your beliefs, share them with your
spouse, significant other, or loved ones so you will have shared beliefs. Write
your own beliefs. Write your shared beliefs. On the other hand, never discuss
your beliefs, values, mission statement, or goals with people who will be
negative and unbelieving about them; there are enough of those people around
you. Instead, share them only with like-minded, positive people who will work
with you and help you create your bright new future.
Your Second Homework Assignment
Have you completed your homework about your true and genuine
beliefs? If so, please continue. If not, don’t go any further until you’ve
written at least 8-10 of your own beliefs. Once you complete that assignment,
now you can take another piece of paper and begin to write your values as
defined below. Remember, these should be your values, not someone else’s. Take
your time, think about them, pray about them, write them down. Your values are
based upon your beliefs and, in a sense, should “agree“ with your beliefs.
If they don‘t agree, then your beliefs and values will always be “warring“
against each other.
Here are some ideas about values you can think about as you
write your own values on a separate sheet of paper under this heading: These
Are My True and Real Values.
Your values are what are most valuable to you. What
you treasure the most. What you would save if your home were burning down and
you could rescue only a few items. They are what are most important to you. Your
core views about the worth or importance of people, concepts, or things. They
are “windows” through which you make all your decisions—the way you look
at and evaluate life.
Your values must be consistent with your true and real
beliefs. If they are inconsistent, your values are not what you really hold to
be most valuable to you. Take whatever time you need to write down your genuine
values. You can always come back to this article at any time. Pray about your
values. Ask God to help you with them. Make certain they are your values, not
someone else’s.
Here are some sample values from workshop participants:
It is important to me that I am a growing, maturing
Christian, consistently developing and maintaining an open relationship with
God.
I value having a comfortable home and environs.
It’s important to me to maintain a sacrificial level of
giving to God of my time, talent, and treasures. It’s important to me to be a
“good steward” of God’s money.
It’s important to me to be a loving spouse (mother, father,
grandparent, etc.), consistently developing and maintaining and open
relationship with my _________________.
Prayer is very important to me.
It’s important to me that I provide adequately for the
needs of my family.
Travel and vacationing are very important to me.
Your Third Homework Assignment
I’m assuming at this point you have completed your
homework about your beliefs and values on two separate sheets of paper and
you’re now ready to move on to your third homework assignment: writing your
Vision (or “Mission Statement”) for your life.
Please understand that God has a vision or mission for your
life. God’s vision for you… God’s dream for you… God’s plans and
purposes for you… are to restore you to his image. God created you in his
image. You marred his image in you. God is restoring his image in you.
The fullest—the perfect—image of God is Jesus Christ.
(Hebrews 1:3; 1 Corinthians 3:18; 4:4; Colossians 1:15) You are a marred,
blemished, fuzzy, unfocused image of God. What does it mean that God created you
in his image? It means that you are a visible representation of the
invisible God. Jesus is God’s perfect visible representation; you are
God’s imperfect visible representation.
How is God restoring his perfect image in you? As you
cooperate with the Holy Spirit, he empowers you (from within where he lives in
your spirit) to change your mind.
Changing your mind (putting on the mind of Christ) day after
day, year after year—and on into the eternal state—changes you more and more
into the fully restored image of God…into a clearer image of God…into a more
clearly focused image of God. (Romans 12: 1 and 2; Ephesians 4: 23; etc.)
So…what is God’s vision and mission for your life?
God’s vision for your life is to fully restore you into his
image!
In order to do that, God is taking whatever steps are
necessary (many known only to him) to accomplish that.
Tying into God’s vision for your life, your own mission
statement should describe your unique purpose in life. It should capture the
qualities you want to develop in life, what you want to accomplish, what
contributions you want to make in life. Your personal mission statement becomes
a guide for your life, inspiring you to make decisions that will best help you
reach your goals and fulfill your vision. It’s how you would like other people
to see you and describe you. It should state why you feel you exist. It should
state a “calling” for your life. It should state how you hope to fulfill
your vision or mission.
Here are some sample mission statements:
“Steadily and consistently, and as fully and completely
as possible, I participate in the Lord Jesus Christ’s work of restoring
me—and others, including my family and friends—to God’s unmarred image.
Part of my mission is to be an integral part of—and help build—the Church of
Jesus Christ. I accomplish this by means of ordinary day-to-day events and
relationships with my loved ones, friends, and those whom I meet. To this end, I
place at God’s disposal all my time, talents, and treasures.”
“My basic mission in life is to introduce other people to
Jesus Christ and then help them grow and mature as Christians.”
“I believe God wants me to be a successful and prosperous
businessperson so I can adequately meet the needs of my family and give money to
God for his work here on earth. But, it’s God first, then my family, then my
business.”
“My vision is to successfully complete my career in ten
more years, retire with an adequate income, and then participate in short-term
mission trips to China, taking other people with me on such trips.”
Reminder: Your vision for your life draws you toward your
future; it helps you “create” your own future. It helps you stay focused on
your future. Your life’s vision continually helps you shape your future. What
your past has been does not necessarily mean what your future is to be. For the
remainder of your mortal life, continually remember this day after day, year
after year: Your past does not necessarily equal your future. In many
respects, your future is up to you!
Tying into God’s vision for your life, now take a third
sheet of paper and write this heading on it: My Mission or Vision For My
Life. Under that heading, now take whatever time you need to think through
and write down your vision for your my life; it must be consistent with your
beliefs and values; otherwise, it will not be effective.
Your Fourth Homework Assignment: Your Exciting Lifetime Goals
Goals are realistic, reachable dreams with deadlines. They
are written, planned ends to which your performance and prayers are directed.
When you set goals and write them down, you begin to perceive things related to
your goals—things you have not previously thought of or seen. Without written
goals, your life tends to be fragmented, scattered, unfulfilling, chaotic, and
boring.
Goals are important because we humans are teleological. All
that means is that we humans were created by God to function best when we are
working toward goals. We are most effective when we work toward goals. We are
happier and feel more fulfilled when we have goals we are pursuing. That’s
just the way God created us as teleological beings.
It’s critical you write your goals and then refer to them
and work toward them daily. Goals are not resolutions you dream up at the first
of the year and then hermetically seal in an old peanut butter jar and hide
away, hoping they will magically come true by next year. You must write them
down, refer to them daily, imagine them coming true, look for things to make
them happen, work toward them, dream of them, and talk them over with people who
can help you reach them (but not with negative people who will put a damper on
them).
Your goals must be consistent with your beliefs and values,
with your mission statement, and with the Bible’s definitions of “success”
and “prosperity.” If they’re not consistent, then no matter what you do to
attempt to reach your goals, you will constantly sabotage yourself as you work
toward accomplishing them. You must write short-range goals (one to two years
out), mid-range goals (three to seven years out), and long-range goals (eight to
ten years and more).
Generally, most people write their goals under six
categories: Service Work, Business, Education, Family, Sports and Hobbies, and
General.
Here are some sample goals:
Have a regular, enjoyable exercise program and maintain
lifelong good health.
Give God a minimum of 10% of my income each pay period,
beginning with 3%, then 5%, then 7%, and, finally, 10%.
Within one year, develop and maintain a meaningful, lifelong
hobby.
Within five years, consistently drive late-model vehicles,
completely paid for.
Travel to Europe and the British Isles within five years.
Within eight to ten years, become consistently free of debt
except for recurring expenses.
Finish my undergraduate degree within 5 years from this date.
Build a comfortable retirement income in addition to other
late-in-life working income.
Write at least one book in this life. Begin writing it this
year; finish it in three years.
Have 3 – 5 couples as close friends, with regular, planned
fellowship.
Within one year develop a genuine attitude of patience and
tolerance of others who do not hold the same views I do.
Within two years, be hosting and teaching a meaningful weekly
Bible study in my home with at least twelve people in regular attendance.
The best way to write your goals is to take six separate
sheets of paper. At the top of each sheet, write one of those six categories
mentioned above as a heading. Give yourself a few hours to work on them—to
dream about them. Find a place where you will not be distracted. Put on some of
your favorite music in the background. Get comfortable. Begin writing. Just let
yourself dream. Write down anything that comes to mind. If you think of
something to write down that seems far-fetched or impossible, don’t tell
yourself that; write it down anyhow, no matter how unreachable it might seem
while you’re writing. After all, God is a God of miracles and nothing is
impossible with him! Don’t limit yourself or tell yourself there’s no way
you could accomplish something. Just write it down. That’s the main thing:
just let yourself dream and write it down.
After you’ve written your goals and have begun to work
toward fulfilling them, check off the ones you’ve fulfilled and write down
some more. This is a “living” document, where you are constantly reaching
some goals, checking them off, and writing more.
Now take six separate sheets of paper, put the following
headings on each of the sheets, and then begin writing your goals. REMINDER:
your goals must be consistent with your true beliefs, your genuine values, and
your mission statement for your life.
My Church, Spiritual, Political, Community Goals
Samples: Rotary, Kiwanis, Church, Junior League, Chamber
of Commerce, Boys Club, Young Republicans, serve at the mission, teach Church
school, short-term missions trips, join Christian Service club, etc.
My Business Goals
Samples: make wise, effective decisions; make a vital
contribution; delegate better; be better at follow-through; organize time
better; hire more effective employees; develop teamwork; earn $___________
annually within five years; start my own home-based business; earn an MBA; etc.
My Educational Goals
Samples: license, degree, etc; conduct classes and seminars;
teach at conferences; speed read; plan for personal growth and development;
specific skills training; attend one seminar annually; attend one Christian
conference annually; etc.
My Family Goals
Samples: develop closeness and respect; plan family time
better; plan and take one vacation annually; participate in children’s
activities; shared interests with spouse; express feelings more effectively;
demonstrate more love; show more interest in ________________; set a better
example; show more patience; etc.
My Sports, Hobbies, Recreational, and Leisure Goals
Samples: learn to dance; learn to ski, play tennis, golf,
etc; start a collection of __________; fish; hike; climb; refinish furniture;
learn to oil paint; learn to play a musical instrument; gardening; sing in a
quartet; etc.
My General and Miscellaneous Goals
Samples: earn more respect from peers; develop my
self-esteem; do public speaking; improve my appearance and grooming; learn to
relax and enjoy leisure time; attain my ideal weight; stop smoking; improve my
physical condition; be a person of more integrity; plan more time alone for
myself; read the Bible completely through; introduce _______________ to Jesus
Christ, etc.
You should now have nine separate sheets of paper on which
you have written your beliefs, your values, your mission statement, and your
goals--all consistent with the Bible‘s definitions of “success“ and
“prosperity.”
Another homework assignment is to take another separate sheet
of paper and use it for notes that come to your mind from time to time as you
re-read and reflect upon this article and continue updating and changing your
other sheets as situations and events change in your life. Remember, this entire
process is an ongoing process; your documents are “living” documents,
subject to change, updating, and revision through the years. Here are some
sample notes some of my regular workshop participants have written:
Everything I write in this workbook (beliefs, values,
mission statement, goals, etc.) is always subject to change as situations and
events change in my life such as a death, divorce, a move, a new job, illness,
etc. When things change, simply update them and move on toward the new future
necessary to incorporate the changes.
A fun exercise might be to sit down with my spouse and
children and work on these together from time to time so I not only have
individual beliefs, values, etc., but so we have shared interests. Even children
can work out some of these principles at their own state of awareness and level
of understanding. For example, don’t you wish you had learned some of these
principles when you were in elementary, middle, and high school? What we’re
generally taught in school helps us make a living; these principles help us make
a life!
Make it a habit to read books about these principles. At your
local library, often you can find great videos that teach many of these
principles. Keep a file of newspaper and magazine articles you read about these
principles.
Winners dwell on past wins. Losers dwell on past losses.
Start a “Win Book” in which you write down good things that happen to you,
praise you receive from others, good things you do, awards you receive,
commendations you are given, etc. Past wins help you have future wins.
Have a family night once a month in which you discuss these
principles, pray about them, look over your shared goals, plan future
strategies, read your Win Book, make new entries in your Win Book, share good
things about one another, praise one another, etc.
A competent teacher always has objectives for their teaching.
God has wonderful plans and purposes for your future. My objective for
you in writing this article is to help you learn how to begin—in practical,
workable ways—to tap into those plans and purposes as you and God stride hand
in hand toward your limitless future!
If you wish to contact me for
assistance or advice with this article, please hit the “Contact Us” button
on our Home Page and let me know what I can do to help you. I will be pleased to
be in touch with you by E-Mail, FAX, by regular mail, or by telephone to help
you in any way I can with the important principles and concepts taught in this
article.
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