A successful plan

Proverbs 16 v 3

Before you do anything, put your trust totally in God and not in yourself.  Then every plan you make will succeed. 

To succeed means to achieve the desired aim or result.  It's the ability to reach our goals in life whatever those goals may be.  Success means progress, attainment or accomplishment.  It's not always an end goal, but a journey toward something that will ultimately develop skills and character to attain the desired goal and success.

What are we doing in our journey of life to attain success?  What spiritual skills and character can we build to help us in our journey of success? 

In the old testament, King David was a man who repeatedly inquired of God for guidance before making any important decisions.  As he did this throughout his leadership, it was clear that God gave David divine protection and favour.  This concept highlights to all of us that seeking God before making a decision is key to our success. 

1 Samuel 30 v 8

And David inquired of the Lord, "shall I pursue this raiding party"?  "Will I overtake them"?  "Pursue them," he answered. "You will certainly overtake them and succeed in the rescue". 

1 Samuel 18 v 14

In everything David did, he had great success, because the Lord was with him. 

God wants our journey of life to be a successful one in all we do.  As we commit our way to him, allow God to gently show you the best way you should go and how to get there.  Trust in him and lean into him.  As you pray, God will gently guide you by giving you peace and by opening up new opportunities, relationships and blessings along the way.  We may not always recognise what God might be doing and we might not know all the answers to our burning  questions, or the direction we are going.  However, God does, if we have asked him to direct us, and why we need to trust in him daily in all we do. 

Any difficulties we encounter a long the way, if we have committed it to God first, then despite the storm, we are able to endure knowing God is with us and will not leave us. Knowing we have committed our success to God can also give us immense peace and confidence.  

Romans 5 v 3-4 

Because we know that suffering produces endurance, endurance, character, and character, hope. 

Psalm 16 v 8

I keep my eyes always on the Lord.  With him at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. 

What important decisions do we need to make today and have we first asked God about what we should do?  May we learn to pray and seek God about the direction of our lives; that we will make the right decisions at the right time, and trust him in all we do. 

What is God trusting you with today?

Luke 16 v 10

Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. 

As Christians, God does want to give us good things and give us purpose but can he trust us with it? 

To live in our purpose God will need to give us things, it may be gifts, talents, resources and relationships.  However, can God trust us with the things he may want to give us? 

For instance, if God called you to be a Pastor - could he trust you with that responsibility?  God needs to trust you to care for the people under you, that you will use your leadership gift to help and love people and not to use it to manipulate or deceive people, or use the position for your own gratifications and pride. It's a big responsibility to carry and godly character will be tried and tested constantly. Many pastors may speak of the many times they have faced difficulties and trials of many kinds and why we can learn so much from them. 

Proverbs 17 v 3

The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests the heart. 

Obviously, we are not all called to be a Pastor, but even in the small things in our lives, can we be trusted?  As it says above, those who can be trusted with little can be trusted with much.  Do we carry integrity in all we do and think?  This isn't very easy is it as we are all human, but as we learn to live this way, then be sure to watch your life soar to new heights with God.  Be sure to know, God will give you much more responsibility and influence in his kingdom. 

The verse in Proverbs is a metaphor for testing and refining. It points us to the process of melting silver and gold to remove impurities, which symbolizes God's refining of his people through the trials and challenges that they may face in life. These trials, like the heat of the crucible, are to purity and strengthen faith and character in each of us.

May be we need to ask ourselves the question, if we are thinking of pursuing something for God, am I trustworthy enough for God to use me in this way? Will my character stand up when things get tough?  Will my thoughts and actions reflect God or will they reflect my many temptations such as pride, immoral thoughts and actions, and dishonestly.  What parts of my character do I need to strengthen and refine? 

Small lies and deceit is still wrong in God's eyes and why the bible says, whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. So what can God trust you with today and what can we change in our own lives to ensure we can carry the call of God with integrity? 

As we go through the many trials and temptations that life may throw at us, may God help us to come out of the refiners fire as pure gold and where the saying comes from 'having a heart of gold' - pure and invaluable! 

Our words hold power

Proverbs 15 v 1-2

A gentle answer turns away wrath but a harsh word sits up anger.  The tongue of the wise adorns knowledge but the mouth of the fool gushes folly. 

We can use our words for good or for bad.  We can speak life into people or we can speak negatively.  The way we speak can really impact us and those around us. 

Think about the type of people you want to be around and spend time with; it's often those people that are positive and speak positively.  Their words somehow lift us up and make us feel more comfortable.  We naturally gravitate towards people who make us feel included, who use their words for kindness and make us feel good about ourselves.

Harsh words can cause divisions in relationships and the damage it causes, may not be able to be repaired easily, so we need to take heed in how we say things before the words roll out of our mouths!  Divisions can also cause anger which can then lead to unforgiveness and hurts. Sometimes it might not be easy if someone has upset us, our first instinct is to retaliate and fight back.  However, the bible says we must respond with a gentle answer.  Wow, what a challenge to us!  I'm sure many us can say we have responded to situations with anger. 

Gentleness is not something we talk about much in today's world, as I believe people seem to see that as a weakness, but what does God say about it? We do know that it is one of the fruits of the spirit:

Col 3 v 12

Therefore as God's chosen people holy and dearly loved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. 

Phil 4 v 5

Let your gentleness be evident to all

Jesus was gentle and kind but his resilience in carrying out God's will was evident.  He wasn't weak because he was kind, far from it, he was much stronger in character than we could ever fathom!  People hated him, even putting him to death on a cross, but he still had kind words for people and forgave them. He didn't speak harshly but responded with wise words and often words filled with compassion.  For even as he hung on the cross he said, 'Father forgive them, for they do not know what they do'.  

What an example to follow; Jesus who was wise, kind, compassionate and forgiving!  How can we build more character today, to be more like Jesus?  What changes can we make in our own lives to live as Jesus did?