What Must I do to be Saved? 4

Word (Mt. 22:29). There are those who refuse to do God’s revealed Will (Jn. 7:17). Some mistakenly try to understand what is not written and revealed in God’s Word (Deut. 29:29). Some do not understand God’s Word because they allow the conflicting doctrines of men to confuse them (2 Pet. 3:16).
   The Answer Requires Obedience
Some teach salvation requires neither God’s Law or obedience. Many teach we do not have to obey to be saved and we certainly do not have to obey law to be saved. While we are not under the law of Moses today, we are under the law of Christ. But Christ’s answer to the lawyer refutes this error. Christ’s answer is from God’s law. Christ’s answer teaches God’s law must be obeyed for eternal life to be received. Obedience to God’s law through Christ is essential to salvation. We cannot have salvation without obedience. Christ “became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Heb. 5:9). We cannot enter into heaven without obedience, doing the will of God. Christ said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ ” (Mt. 7:21-27).
   The Answer Can Be Obeyed
There are many who believe that we must obey God’s Word but we are not able to obey God’s Word. For the denominationalist this goes back to the belief that men, due to their sinful nature, are unable to do good or obey God’s Word. But Jesus’ answer clearly teaches us we can obey God’s command to be saved (Lk. 10:28). Jesus told the one who asked to do what God commanded. If he did what commanded, he would live. If he could not obey or do God’s command there would be no eternal life. Jesus did not believe or teach that men are unable to obey God’s commands, instead he simply taught, in the words of the Nike commercial, “Just do it.” Jesus said, “More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” (Lk. 11:28).
The Answer
“What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” is the question each of us must ask recognizing that we must do something to be saved and receive eternal life. The answer is found in God’s Word; the answer
is understandable, requires obedience to God’s Law and I can obey it. I must hear the Word of God. For “the gospel of Christ…is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” and “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 1:16; 10:17). “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18). Paul and Silas spoke the Word of the Lord to the Philippian jailer so the he might believe on the Lord (Acts 16:32). I must believe Jesus is the Christ the Son of God. Jesus said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mk. 16:16). For “without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Heb. 11:6). The Philippian jailer was told to “believe on the Lord

Jesus Christ” (Acts 16:31). Some want to stop at belief, but God’s Word does not stop here and neither did Paul and Silas stop with belief only with the Philippian jailer. I must repent of my sins. This means I turn away from sin and turn to God (Acts 14:15). Peter preached, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out…” (Acts 3:19). The Philippian jailer gave evidence of his repentance by taking Paul and Silas “the same hour of the night and washed their stripes” (Acts 16:32). I must confess Jesus Christ before men. “For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Rom. 10:10). The Ethiopian eunuch confessed Jesus as the Christ (Acts 8:37). I must be baptized for the remission of my sins. Those who asked on Pentecost, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?“ were told by the apostle Peter, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…” (Acts 2:37-38). It was “the same hour of the night…(the jailer) and all his family were baptized. …and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household” (Acts 16:33-34). The Philippian jailer’s belief and salvation were not complete and his rejoicing begun until he had been baptized in obedience to the Lord for the remission of his sins. In the words of Jesus, “Do this and you shall live.” Won’t you do what God commands you to do and be saved 

today?.

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What Must I Do to be Save? 3

someone or something will save me will not save me. I might believe that Allah, Buddah or Sun Young Moon will save me. I might believe that putting my hands on the radio or TV will save me; praying at the mourners’ bench or church “altar”; or “faith only” will save me or even baptism will save me. Believing anyone of these things does not make any of them true. What sayeth the Scripture.
This is how one finds out how to be saved under Christ, by what is written. “Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. Now as they went down the road, they came to
some water. And the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?’ Then Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came
up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:35-39).
The Answer Can Be Understood
There are those who insist that men cannot understand God’s Word. Most denominationalists who take this position do so because they believe and teach that
man has a sinful nature by which he is rendered incapable, unable of understanding God’s Word. Jesus’ answer to the lawyer teaches us God’s Word can be understood. Jesus asked “What is written
in the law? What is your reading of it?” (Lk. 10:26). After the lawyer told Jesus what he understood the scriptures he commended for the right answer, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live…’ ”
(Lk. 10:28).
Jesus also teaches us there is a right answer! Since there is a “right answer” that can be understood, not just any answer or scripture will give the right answer. The answer to the question of salvation is not a matter of interpretation, for any answer but the right answer is wrong! Jesus says we can understand the Bible alike! I cannot simply answer one way and you another because we cannot understand it alike.
Understanding God’s Word is taught throughout the Scripture. Jesus taught doctrine and expected his hearers to, “Hear and understand’ ” (Mt. 15:10). Paul told us. “When you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ” (Eph. 3:4). “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:17). Why some people don’t understand is what is written? Some simply refuse to hear God’s Word (Jn. 8:43; Acts 28:26-27). Others refuse to believe God’s

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What Must I Do to Be Saved

This question was asked and answered on Pentecost. “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men and breth-
ren, what shall we do?’ Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’ ” (Acts 2:37-38).
   This question was asked by Saul and answered by Jesus. “So he, trembling and astonished, said, ‘Lord, what do You want me to do?’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Arise
and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do’ ” (Acts 9:6). Jesus sent Ananias to tell Saul what he was to do. “ ‘And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord’ ” (Acts 22:16). Many preachers today say “You don’t have to do anything to be saved.” They teach that God has done it all for you. If God saves you it will be at his good pleasure and not because you have done anything to be saved. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, denied this doctrine, when he said, “Do this and you will live!”
The Answer Is In God’s Word. The Lord’s answer to this lawyer was he must turn to what is written. “He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?’ ” (Lk. 10:26). The way of salvation, eternal life is found in what is written. What is written teaches us and gives us hope. “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Rom. 15:4). Jesus said the written Word of God gives life. “ ‘It is written, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” ’ ” (Mt. 4:4). What is does the Scripture say should be our utmost concern to be right and pleasing to God. In the words of Paul, “For what does the Scripture say?” (Rom. 4:3). The answer is not, what I think. “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isa. 8:20). “ ‘For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ says the LORD. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa. 55:8-9). The answer is not, what I believe. Men believe in a lot of different things for salvation. Simply believing that...

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What Must I Do To Be Saved?

“He who believes
and is baptized
will be saved”
Mark 16:16

What Must I Do To Be Saved?

All sorts of questioned are asked and answered 

every day. Some of this most fascinating questions and 

answers are found in the Bible, particularly the ques-

tions that men asked Jesus. “And behold, a certain 

lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, ‘Teacher, what 

shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What 

is written in the law? What is your reading of it?’ So he 

answered and said, ‘ “You shall love the LORD your God 

with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your 

strength, and with all your mind,” and “your neighbor 

as yourself.” ’ And He said to him, ‘You have answered 

rightly; do this and you will live’ “ (Lk. 10:25-28).

“What shall I do to inherit eternal life to be saved?” is a question of supreme importance and urgency. It is the most important question one can ever ask as it concerns not only our life here and now, but forever after. It is the question of our eternal salvation. And Jesus’ answer reveals some important facts concern-

ing salvation. Let us consider the eternal implications and consequences of this vital question.

I Must Do Something to be Saved

The question of salvation was asked and answered implying salvation requires us to do something! The lawyer asked the question implying and expecting there was something he had to do for salvation “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Lk. 10:25). Jesus’ answer confirmed there was something he had to do for salvation. “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live” (Lk. 10:28).

This same form of question and answer to do some-

thing is repeated throughout scripture. People asked 

John the Baptist what they had to do for salvation. “So 

the people asked him, saying, ‘What shall we do then?’” 

(Lk. 3:10). John proceeded to answer their question by 

telling them what they were to do (Lk. 3:11-14).

The Philippian jailer asked this question. “Sirs, 

what must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30). And Paul and 

Silas told him what to do, “ ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus 

Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.’ 

Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all 

who were in his house. And he took them the same hour 

of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately 

he and all his family were baptized. Now when he had 

brought them into his house, he set food before them; 

and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his 

household” (Acts 16:31-34).

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LIONEL MESSI

I prefer to win titles with the team ahead of individual awards or scoring more goals than anyone else. I'm more worried about being a good person than being the best football player in the world. When all this is over, what are you left with? When I retire, I hope I am remembered for being a decent guy.

-Lionel Messi

Success Takes Focus

You can have a strong desire and really want to achieve your goal but as I’m sure you’ve experienced, life has its way of knocking us off course. Things come up, distractions occur, the next thing you know, you look at your goals and wonder what the heck happened.

Success takes a lot of focus. I’m sure you’ve had the experience of setting a goal and being really excited about achieving it only to have a few weeks or months to go by and realize the goal has dropped down on your list of priorities.

People often get easily side tracked. Circumstances and situations can nudge you off course. This doesn’t just happen all at once. Often times, you get off track just little by little until one day, you realize you’re completely off track. Keeping your mind focused on your goal can be a constant battle because everything around you is trying to get your attention. Since most people can only focus on so many things at once, it will be your job to keep your goal up high on your priorities list.

So what can you do to keep your focus, to keep your eyes on the prize? There are several things you can try. You can write down your goal and read it each morning and night. You can visualize achieving your goals daily. You can make sure that your daily to-do list includes doing something that will take you closer to your goal. You can buy some motivational posters and stick them on your walls. You can find a friend who has a similar goal and work to keep each other on track.

One of my favorite methods of keeping focused on a goal is to constantly ask myself, “Is what I’m doing right now bringing me closer to my goal or further away?” Once you answer that question, you’ll know what to do.

The common theme in all of these ways to keep your focus is to constantly keep your goal on your mind. Making an effort to stay focused on your goal is a lot easier if it’s a major goal that you have an intense desire to achieve.

Now because staying focused on one major goal is hard enough, you may want to consider sticking to just one goal. If you look back at the goals you’ve tried to achieve and realized you haven’t achieved any of your major goals, it may be time to just focus on a single goal. This way, all of your energy and focus can be put towards obtaining that one goal which will dramatically increase your chances of getting it. It’s a lot better to just achieve 1 major goal then to work on a dozen and achieve none of them.

The final thing I want to say about this reminder of success is that you’re going to have days where you do nothing to get closer to your goals. You’re going to have periods of time where your focus and priorities are elsewhere. When this happens, many people will beat themselves up mentally and quit all together.

Remember that you’re human and because of this, you’ll make some errors in judgment. You’ll get side tracked here and there. Instead of beating yourself up, just be aware that certain things can take your focus away from your goals. Once you’re aware of these things, you can actively reduce the amount of time they take your focus off of your goals.

Distractions are like gravity, it’s constant. It’s going to cause us all to fall every now and then. The important thing is that we bounce back up every time we fall. Get your focus back on your goal when you start to realize it’s drifting somewhere else. The quicker you do it, the better.

I’d like to know what you do to keep your focus on your goal. Please share them in the comments section.

What Does The Bible Say About Evolution?

What Does The Bible Say About Evolution?

First, from a scientific point of view, evolution is a theory, not a proven or accepted fact.
Second, evolution is the theory that:
Billions of years ago some water molecules; some carbon dioxide molecules; some nitrate molecules; some phosphorus, calcium, and iron salts; and some miscellaneous other minor elements got together and spontaneously formed a molecule which was capable of reproducing itself, AND
These molecules were able to form living reproducing cells, AND
These living cells eventually evolved into higher and higher forms of life all by random chance without outside direction or purpose!
Believe that? Well then, consider this. You are doing some archeological digging in an ancient cave and as you split open a piece of promising rock you find a digital wristwatch. Would you believe that the scientific explanation for this would be that sometime in the past some silicon, carbon, hydrogen, arsenic, phosphorus, aluminum, and iron atoms got together and formed a digital watch?
Or, would you believe that someone made the watch and put it there?
The probability of the digital watch occurring randomly is billions of times bigger than the probability of even simple life occurring accidentally. How many watches have you found lately?
There are only two choices. You can believe that man came to exist by some random accident, or you can believe that man was created, the product of intelligent design.The Bible says that God created all living things purposely. It was not due to random chance, but it was deliberate and premeditated. Whether you believe that God did his creation in six, literal, twenty-four hour days, or whether you believe He did it in six ages is not the issue here. The issue is that the Bible says that things didn't come into being by chance, they came into being at the will and act of an Almighty Creator.
Now what does science itself say about evolution? Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, said that his theory would succeed or fail depending on the fossil record. Darwin believed that although there was no fossil evidence in his time to support his conjecture, there would be someday. He thought that future generations would find this very evidence upon which he speculated. Now, well over a hundred years later, with museums filled with thousands upon thousands of fossils, we still haven’t found the evidence that Darwin needed for his theory. What are we missing in the fossil record? We are missing the transition species. See, if one specie gradually evolved from another there should be fossils of the intermediate steps, in fact, lots of them. BUT, we have never found a single one, not one! We do not have a single fossil of any species evolving to another species. But what about man? Don’t we have specimens that show man evolved from an ape? No. We have fragments of skeletons from ape-man type creatures found in Africa and Australia, but current research is showing that they were more ape than man. In all probability they were never ancestors of man. Then what about all those wonderful cavemen, Neanderthal, et. al. which populate our movies? In the last few years science has conclusively shown that Neanderthal was never in the family tree of man. As time goes on, and we acquire more and more scientific data, we find that there are no ancestors of man. There is just man, who appeared on this planet a few thousand years ago and worshipped. That was one of the first signs of man, Homo Sapiens. Not only did he use tools, but more important he worshipped, worshipped something or someone.
To pass off the existence of life as a set of random occurrences, or chance, is not science, it is pseudo-science or it is superstition. Science is not the muttering of platitudes like "it was just an accident, a freak occurrence." Science is sitting down and determining what occurrences needed to happen in order for life to form, assigning a probability to each of these events, and finally determining the overall probability of life occurring by chance. That's science, and that's how you find out if it really is a possible chance occurrence. If that seems too hard you could also calculate the probability that this planet has come into existence by chance and is just perfect for supporting and maintaining life. This calculation has already been done. If you are interested in the details you should consult Prince Michael, an astrophysicist. His calculations show that there can be no planets in the entire universe such as our earth that came about by random chance. The fact that the earth is here at all shows that something other than chance is involved. There is a creator. Evolution didn't happen. Today, even scientists are against evolution. Not only is evolution contrary to the teachings of the Bible, but it is bad science.

A Godly Women Should Have Faith

A Woman of Faith will not be Moved

Many women dream about and hope for many things. A new house, less debt, a different job, the list is endless. Most women will continue to hold out, even for years, to see these kinds of things come to pass. For the Christian woman, however, there may be things that she's hoping for, involving even deeper matters of the heart. Perhaps she has been praying for a loved one to come to Christ. Or maybe she has been waiting for the right husband. She may even be praying for God to change a circumstance that she has no control over. All of these things require the important virtue of faith.

Faith is often misunderstood as being simply believing for something. But faith is much more potent than that. It is defined in the Word as “the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1, NKJV) In other words, it is the unshakable, spiritual foundation upon which Christians build their hopes. It is the well from which springs the waters of answered prayers.

Hannah, in the book of 1 Samuel, had faith that she would have a son. She so believed it that she promised that her son would be given to the service of God. Mary had faith that God was going to fulfill His promise and bring forth the Messiah through her, even though she was an unwed virgin. There are many other examples of women in the Bible who held fast in their faith, regardless of the visible circumstances and obstacles.

Faith takes patience. Things hoped for do not always come immediately. Faith also takes trust, in a God who knows her every desire before she even speaks it. But most importantly, it takes knowledge of the promises in God's Word. The faith of a Christian woman is powerful. Even in her darkest hour, she can stand, knowing that God will fulfill His promises in her life. God promises strength for the faint of heart, mercy for the weak, forgiveness for the repentant, protection for the vulnerable. Because God is faithful, every Christian woman can rest knowing that she has put her faith in Someone who will never disappoint her.

Faith is what drives the heart that won't quit, even when the circumstances look bleak. Something inside of a woman of faith says that she's not going anywhere until God comes through. She will not be moved. No matter how she feels, no matter how things look on the outside. No matter what anyone says, no matter how long she has to wait. Faith is what plants her feet firmly on the promises of God.

A Virtuous Woman Is Modest

True Beauty of a Godly Woman

Many women today have lost sight of what true beauty is. There seems to be an unspoken rule that women are not worth being seen in public unless they are dressed to the gills, with overdone make-up and flashy clothing. There are those who dress in high heels and bangle earrings to go grocery shopping, and others who squeeze themselves into jeans and form-fitting tops to join the parade at the local mall. Even older women seemed to have fallen prey to the idea that their beauty is wrapped up in how they look.

Unfortunately, many women are obsessed with themselves, and they are often their own worst critic. They fret over their clothing size, and worry over their hair color or style. The fact is that they are never happy with the way they look, as they continue to fuel their vanity and their need for attention. This kind of behavior has even crept into the church, with the outward appearance having more of an influence than the heart of an individual. This is not the way God intended His children to live. It grieves God when they seek attention for themselves rather than pointing the attention to Him.

Both the Apostle Paul and the Apostle Peter gave insightful wisdom in how women were to present themselves, which is still valid in today's church. According to the revelation given to them by God, women who professed to be followers of Christ were to act with humility and modesty, in both their conduct and their dress. Their beauty was not to be found only in fancy hair styles, expensive clothing, or excessive jewelry. Instead, their beauty was to be seen in the “hidden person,” or the person they are on the inside. (I Peter 3:4) In other words, if the beauty is only skin deep, there is no real lasting beauty to be found.

There is nothing wrong with a woman doing things to keep herself looking beautiful and well groomed. Frankly, God is not interested in the color of lipstick she wears, not does he care how many times she colors her hair in a year. But whatever she does is to be done in moderation so that her focus does not become imbalanced.

Proverbs 31:30 says that “Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.” The kind of beauty that lasts is the beauty that reflects an inward heart of submission, and a love for God and His people. As women grow older, the evidence of their age will begin to appear. This is a natural process, a result of the fall of mankind. But it is her wisdom, her gentleness, and her peaceful submission to God that will continue to make her attractive long after the physical beauty fades.

Becoming a Single Woman of Virtue

"Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands." Proverbs 14:1

1. Is there anything about my speech, actions, dress, or attitudes that could defraud the men around me?
    
2. Am I building up my “house”—home, work place, church,—(vs. tearing it down)?
    
3. Am I taking in sensual thoughts and desires through books, magazines, TV programs,music, or movies that are not morally pure?
    
4. Am I investing in the lives of those around me? Am I nurturing the heart of my siblings or others God has called me to bless?
    
5. Am I looking to any man (pastor, counselor, colleague, etc.) to fill an emotional vacuum in my life? Do I go to a man rather than going to the Lord to meet my emotional needs?
    
6. Am I cultivating a grateful, joyful spirit? Am I rejoicing in the Lord?
    
7. Is there any behavior or relationship I am involved in that I am hiding? Am I engaged in anything now that I will not want my husband to know about if I marry in the future?
    
8. Am I giving the best of my physical and emotional energy for the Lord?
    
9. Am I discontent? Am I dwelling on thoughts that make me unable to find fulfillment through serving the Lord and those around me He has called me to serve?
    
10. Am I cultivating a pleasant, gracious spirit in my words, actions, and attitudes that brings honor and glory to the Lord?
     
11. Am I critical or judgmental? Do my parents have the freedom to be honest with me?
     
12. Am I keeping my emotions, attention, and affection from every man to whom I am not engaged or married? Am I protecting the thoughts and feelings of my heart?
     
13. Is my conversation ever loose, crude, or unbecoming for a woman of God?
     
14. Am I discreet and restrained in the way I talk with men at work?
     
15. Am I expressing admiration for a man that should more appropriately come from his wife? 

16. Do I communicate a meek, quiet, and submissive spirit?

17. Does my demeanor tend to be “loud and defiant”? Do I dominate or try to control the men around me? 

18. Does my dress help men to keep their thoughts pure and Christ-centered? Is my dress feminine and modest?
19. Am I a “door” or a “wall” (Song of Songs 8:9)? Am I a “loose” woman? Do I communicate to the men around me that I am “available”? Does my demeanor invite them to “partake” of intimate parts of my body, soul, or spirit? Do I engage in flirtatious speech, looks, or behavior?
20. Have I purposed in my heart to be morally pure?
21. Am I currently in a situation that is (or could become) compromising?
22. Do I reserve intimate communication, looks, words, and touch for my future husband (if I marry)?
23. Have I become a “refuge” for a man who may be struggling in his marriage?
24. Have I surrendered my sexual desires in honor of the Lord, my future husband, and the marriages or future marriages of those around me? Am I walking in holiness and honor?
25. Do I esteem and value any man more than the Lord? Do I love any man more than I love the Lord? Who comes first in my estimation?
26. Would those who know me best say that I am a woman of moral virtue and purity?
27. Am I in a situation that could appear to others to be compromising?
28. Am I making myself accountable to another godly woman for my walk with God and others?
29. Do I treat men with respect by keeping a proper distance from them, emotionally and physically?
30. Have I erected (and am I maintaining) adequate “hedges” in my relationships with men? Have I defined what those hedges are?

“Lord, I acknowledge and renounce my sinful involvement in _______________ and pray in the name and through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ that you would break this stronghold in my life. I realize, Lord, this sin has been a detrimental influence in my life [and marriage]. Lord, I humbly ask that You would forgive me and wash me in the blood of Christ, cleansing me from this sin. I ask you, Lord Jesus to take back the ground given to the enemy through my involvement and I yield that ground to Your control. I purpose to honor You in my heart, practicing purity and discretion in all of my relationships.” 

© discovery-hope.blogspot.com, 2013

Run Your Own Race

“There are treasures in darkness

Riches hidden in secret places,

Diamonds lie buried under the

Burden of earth”

Success is the achievement of purpose. When you have achieved God given purpose you have succeeded no matter popular opinion dictates. Even the Lord Jesus Christ in flesh would have been considered a failure by some. He built no house, had no wife nor offspring and his life was cut short at thirty three. Now, posterity attest to it that success is not in the abundance of possessions nor in longevity, for no man who lived or will yet live, can be as successful as that man from Galilee. Paul the Apostle was meant to suffer for Jesus and be his witness before Kings. To the natural mind, it was a downhill slide from an illustrious legal career to a seedy jail in downtown Rome. But the creator, the one who designed Paul saw success for he had proclaimed before hand “I will show him what he must suffer for my sake:”

Find out why you are on earth. What stirs your emotions, love, anger, hatred? Do you hate racism?- so did Martin Luther King Jr. Do you see poverty everywhere? God may use you to bless thousands. Do you love making people laugh? You may lift the spirits of a hopeless multitude. Never underestimate your nascent talents. Things you excel at naturally and enjoy doing are clues to your purpose. Most of us work and make money from jobs we hate. That’s how Monday morning got to be notorious and “thank God it’s Friday (TGIF) so popular”. God intends that we should enjoy the work we do and prosper thereby. He makes provision for his vision. He will provide for us as long as we stick to our purpose. There are too many pastors who should be farmers, too many business people who should be teachers. It does not matter how common or stage your abilities are. It is amusing that some people enjoy fighting and others pay to watch them breaking each others bones! Often we say “enjoy your work” our disposition, temperament, build and design are dues to our destiny. Saul’s legal training was to prepare Apostle Paul to stand and present Jesus in a rational, logical manner to kings and leaders. His position in society lent credibility to his determination. His unassuming form ensured all the glory went to God. His celibacy ensured no family ties distracted him from his mission-He was an itinerant missionary. You are designed the way you are to fulfill your destiny. Contact the power source-God. Receive the power to be his child and enter into your destiny.

Success Takes Desire

There is a huge difference in having an interest in achieving a goal and having a burning desire to achieve a goal. How intense does the desire have to be? It has to be enough to pull you through any obstacles or challenges that can possibly come up.

I’m sure you’ve heard the analogy of how you must want your goal as badly as you want to breathe. If someone held your head under water, you’ll do whatever it takes to be able to breathe. Procrastination is no longer an issue. Motivation is no longer a problem. The desire has become so intense that you will give it all you’ve got to take that breath of air.

Obviously, you don’t need a do or die level of desire to achieve most goals but if you’ve failed to achieve goals due to laziness and lack of action, then your desire just wasn’t strong enough. Now even if you have an intense, burning desire, you may still have moments where your level of desire is weakened.

During these moments, there are many things you can do and here are 2 that could help.

The first is to choose a goal that you can actually be excited about and keep focusing on how life will like when you finally achieve that goal. Choose a goal that is big enough where if you succeeded in obtaining it, your life will never be the same again. The more you want that goal, the less time you will spend trying to motivate yourself to take action.

The second approach is to remind yourself how life would be if you failed to achieve that goal. Think about the pain it would cause you. Think about having to go through another moment of feeling like a complete failure. Basically, think about the consequences of not giving the goal everything you’ve got.

People are motivated in different ways so choose the one that will work best for you. You can also use both approaches as well. When things are going as planned, you can keep that momentum going by visualizing how it will feel at the moment of success. When things aren’t going so great and you feel like giving up, visualize the disappointment you’ll have if you just quit now.

The opposite works as well. For some people, when things go the way they want, they tend to slow down and relax a bit too much so if you do this, you can use the second approach to keep your momentum up. If you’re the type that when things go bad, thinking about failure just makes things worse, use the first approach to pick yourself back up.

The final thing I want to say about this reminder of success is that your level of desire will most likely fluctuate as you get feedback/results from the actions you take towards obtaining your goal. Keeping that desire strong isn’t always an easy thing to do.

There may be times where you will question why you’re putting yourself through all of this. You may wonder if your goal is really worth it. Having a burning desire for a goal doesn’t mean you’re pumped up and excited every time you think about your goal. When you truly have a burning desire for a goal, all it means is that even when it would be so much easier to quit, when taking another step in the direction of your goal is tough, when you just don’t feel like taking action, you keep moving forward anyway because the thought of failing to achieve that goal would be unbearable.

This is why it’s critical that you choose a goal that you have enough desire for where even when things aren’t going so well, you still want to keep pressing on.

When your desire for a goal is weak to begin with, your chances of riding through the tough times will be slim. Think back at the goals that you failed to achieve, how badly did you really want those goals? An easy way to judge your level of desire is by looking at the actions you took or lack of actions.

If someone held your head under water, I’m sure you wouldn’t procrastinate on trying to breathe. You wouldn’t hesitate to spring into action. You wouldn’t just half ass it. You’d go full force. You wouldn’t second guess your ability to grasp that breath of air, your desire is too strong; and you certainly wouldn’t give up trying until you’ve literally given it everything you’ve got.

Attack your goal with just half of this level of desire and you’ll see just how unstoppable you can really be.

“It is during our failures that we discover our true desire for success.” – Kevin Ngo

Success Takes Focus

You can have a strong desire and really want to achieve your goal but as I’m sure you’ve experienced, life has its way of knocking us off course. Things come up, distractions occur, the next thing you know, you look at your goals and wonder what the heck happened.

Success takes a lot of focus. I’m sure you’ve had the experience of setting a goal and being really excited about achieving it only to have a few weeks or months to go by and realize the goal has dropped down on your list of priorities.

People often get easily side tracked. Circumstances and situations can nudge you off course. This doesn’t just happen all at once. Often times, you get off track just little by little until one day, you realize you’re completely off track. Keeping your mind focused on your goal can be a constant battle because everything around you is trying to get your attention. Since most people can only focus on so many things at once, it will be your job to keep your goal up high on your priorities list.

So what can you do to keep your focus, to keep your eyes on the prize? There are several things you can try. You can write down your goal and read it each morning and night. You can visualize achieving your goals daily. You can make sure that your daily to-do list includes doing something that will take you closer to your goal. You can buy some motivational posters and stick them on your walls. You can find a friend who has a similar goal and work to keep each other on track.

One of my favorite methods of keeping focused on a goal is to constantly ask myself, “Is what I’m doing right now bringing me closer to my goal or further away?” Once you answer that question, you’ll know what to do.

The common theme in all of these ways to keep your focus is to constantly keep your goal on your mind. Making an effort to stay focused on your goal is a lot easier if it’s a major goal that you have an intense desire to achieve.

Now because staying focused on one major goal is hard enough, you may want to consider sticking to just one goal. If you look back at the goals you’ve tried to achieve and realized you haven’t achieved any of your major goals, it may be time to just focus on a single goal. This way, all of your energy and focus can be put towards obtaining that one goal which will dramatically increase your chances of getting it. It’s a lot better to just achieve 1 major goal then to work on a dozen and achieve none of them.

The final thing I want to say about this reminder of success is that you’re going to have days where you do nothing to get closer to your goals. You’re going to have periods of time where your focus and priorities are elsewhere. When this happens, many people will beat themselves up mentally and quit all together.

Remember that you’re human and because of this, you’ll make some errors in judgment. You’ll get side tracked here and there. Instead of beating yourself up, just be aware that certain things can take your focus away from your goals. Once you’re aware of these things, you can actively reduce the amount of time they take your focus off of your goals.

Distractions are like gravity, it’s constant. It’s going to cause us all to fall every now and then. The important thing is that we bounce back up every time we fall. Get your focus back on your goal when you start to realize it’s drifting somewhere else. The quicker you do it, the better.

I’d like to know what you do to keep your focus on your goal. Please share them in the comments section.

Dealing with Overwhelming Workload

The hardest part about dealing with an overwhelming workload is trying to stop your mind from running in circles at 100 miles per hour. When you have a ton of work to do and so little time to do it, the pressure can cause you an incredible amount of stress. Here are some tips to help you complete your task without having to go insane.

Stop

The first thing you want to do is stop. That’s right, just stop. When you get to that point of feeling overwhelmed, it just means that you are looking at the whole picture all at once and feel like everything must be done at the same time. When this happens, you need to calm your mind by just being still for a couple of minutes and taking a deep breath.

Prioritize

The next thing you want to do is to make a plan and prioritize the things you need to do in order of importance. When you know that at a certain time, you should be doing a certain task, and only that task, you will feel more at ease because you are only focused on one thing at a time. By writing down and prioritizing your tasks, you allow yourself to look at the big picture in tiny sections at a time.

Take Controlled Action

Once you know what you have to do, get to work but instead of doing it in a rushed fashion, do it at a steady pace that you can handle. When you work too hard on the first few tasks, you risk the chance of being burnt out and not have enough energy to do the later tasks at a high level of quality.

Take a Breather

Every 60-75 minutes or so, you should take a quick 5-10 minute breather. During this time, free your mind. Don’t think of the work you still have ahead of you. Now if a certain task will take 2 hours and the following task will require you to switch gears, then just finish out the 2 hours to save time from having to restart the momentum after the break. If it’ll take longer than 2 hours, then just break it up into 60-75 minute sessions.

By doing these things, you will be able to control the situation. The only reason you will feel overwhelmed with the huge stack of work in front of you is because you are focusing on way too many things at once. The stress will eventually affect your work and your speed will slow down. By planning everything out and working at a steady pace, you will get more work done without burning out.

Love Life. Do Good. Live Well.

Just Do It

Finding the motivation to do something you don’t feel like doing at the moment, even though you know you should, is a challenge that many people face. I’m sure you’ve had the experience where even though you didn’t feel like taking action, you did so anyway and after you were done, you felt energized or even proud of yourself. People who get themselves to work out despite feeling lazy often experience this.

When you’re in the middle of the debate of whether or not to take action, ask yourself if there was ever a time where you chose taking action over procrastinating and regretted it. Probably very few. Now ask yourself if you’ve ever felt guilt or regret by not taking action. You’ll probably find that there were plenty of times.

This should help you come to the conclusion that when the ‘to do or not to do’ debate arises, you’re almost always better off to just do what you got to do. Remember that although choosing inaction won’t really affect your life all that much in the short term, it will make a huge difference over the long run.

Perspectives

 Perspectives.   One day a father and his rich family took his young son on a trip to the country with the firm purpose to show him how poor people can be. They spent a day and a night in the farm of a very poor family. When they got back from their trip the father asked his son, How was the trip? Very good, Dad! Did you see how poor people can be? the father asked. Yeah! And what did you learn? The son answered, I saw that we have a dog at home, and they have four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden, they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lamps in the garden, they have the stars. Our patio reaches to the front yard, they have a whole horizon. When the little boy was finishing, his father was speechless. His son added, Thanks, Dad, for showing me how poor we are! Isn't it true that it all depends on the way you look at things? If you have love, friends, family, health, good humor and a positive attitude toward life, you've got everything! You can't buy any of these things. You can have all the material possessions you can imagine, provisions for the future, etc., but if you are poor of spirit, you have nothing!.... get to know more of me click here

Sometimes And Always

Sometimes And Always.    Sometimes occasionally goes by the rules but mostly does his own thing. He is more worried about being everyone's friend than doing his school work. He gets into trouble a lot but managed to charm his way through it. His parents have gone to school a lot to have parent teacher conferences. Always is a boy who always goes by the book, never breaks the rules and is never in trouble. He always pleased his family and friends and never let them down. He is usually stressed out and gets headaches and stomach aches from stress. Always became very ill one day and had to be rushed to the hospital. The doctors were baffled at what could be wrong with him. Many tests were run and in the end they were inconclusive. He was released and went home only to be stressed some more about missing school and possibly letting everyone down if he received a grade less than an A. Now sometimes was doing poorly in school and he knew it. He decided that he would just do what he could to get by, he thought, 'Why should I stress out look what happened to Always. Well Always was having the same thoughts, 'Why should I stress and make myself sick, sometimes gets by ok and at that time he started missing school and just barely got passing grades. Their parents decided to sit the boys down and talk to them and tell them that they just need to do their best and that is all that can be asked of them. They do not need to stress and get ill but also do not slack off and get failing grades. Their parents just wanted them to know that whatever they did they would be proud of them as long as they did their best. Finally, Sometimes spoke up and said, You mean even if we don't do well all the time that you will still love us and be proud of us? The parents answered the question, yes we will love you , ALWAYS !!!! The moral is, do your best at whatever you do that is all that can be expected of you and you will turn out just fine your parents will love you no matter what.

Stronger Than I Am

Stronger Than I Am    Things around here haven't changed much. It's still pretty much the same stuff Day after day. The only thing that keeps me going Seems to be our baby girl I'm trying to raise. She's my life, my morning angel. Always seems to find the rainbow After the rain. Lately, she's so busy growing I don't even think she knows you've gone away. She finally learned to say good-bye And she's sleeping through the night. She don't wake up crying. And she's walking on her own. She don't need no one holding to her hand. And I hate to admit, she's stronger than I am. She ain't cracking under pressure. First one step and then another She goes along. And if she falls and skins her knee, She cries a while then smiles at me And just goes on. So many things that she can teach me. Full of life and so completely innocent. She stills says she loves her daddy Goes on just like nothing happened. Forgives and forgets. She's just like her old man, She's stronger than I am...    

The Boy And A Starfish

The Boy And A Starfish. One day an old man was walking along the beach in the early morning and noticed the tide had washed thousands of starfish up on the shore. Up ahead in the distance he spotted a boy who appeared to be gathering up the starfish and one by one tossing them back into the ocean. He approached the boy and asked him why he spent so much energy doing what seemed to be a waste of time. The boy replied, "If these starfish are left out here like this they will bake in the sun, and by this afternoon they will all be dead.The old man gazed out as far as he could see and responded, But, there must be hundreds of miles of beach and thousands of starfish. You can't possibly rescue all of them. What difference is throwing a few back going to make anyway? The boy then held up the starfish he had in his hand and replied ;It's sure going to make a lot of difference to this one!

A story for Passover

A good Passover story should always involve cakes. Austrian baker Manfred Klaschka is the subject of this year’s story. He was in the news because of his most recent catalogue of cake designs; Klaschka is a pastry specialist.

Of course, Austrian pastries are famous the world over. Now, pastry baker Manfred Klaschka’s most recent catalogue of such tasty delights was in the news this week because it included cakes decorated with swastikas – as well as one with a baby raising its right arm in a Nazi salute.

Herr Klaschka insists he is not a Nazi. After the news story broke, he even met with a Holocaust awareness group, and apologized for what he had done, and he then baked a cake to say he was sorry – a cake with Jewish and Christian symbols. The point of the story – the bit I found interesting – is Herr Klaschka’s explanation for what he did.

"I see it was a mistake, anyone who knows me knows what kind of person I am. I am no Nazi", said Klaschka, who had earlier said he was just a pastry maker fulfilling his customers’ wishes. Fulfilling his customers’ wishes? There is a market in Austria in 2011 for cakes with babies raising their arms in Nazi salutes, cakes with swastikas on them? There are parties where people serve such cakes? Maybe birthday parties for babies?

Of course there are such people, and there are such parties, and because of that, there is a market – there is consumer demand – for swastika cakes. Which is why Herr Klaschka was happy to bake them. And not only in Austria.

You may remember the case of the Campbell family from New Jersey.

When Kurt Waldheim was exposed as a war criminal his popularity rose. The neo-Nazi Freedom Party headed by the late Jorg Haider, won 27% of the vote in the 2000 elections and became part of the coalition government – the first time since 1945 that Nazis had sat in a European government.

But this never happened in New Jersey – which is why I want to talk about the Campbell family. The Campbell family in New Jersey made the news back in 2008 when they tried to get a birthday cake made for their son — they have a son and two daughters — at the local Shop Rite in Holland Township.The store refused their request.

And the reason was that Mr. Campbell wanted the cake to read "Happy birthday Adolf Hitler". Because, you see, his son’s name was Adolf Hitler Campell. One of the daughters is named is named JoyceLynn Aryan Nation Campbell. Well, you get the point.

When I read about the Austrian baker Manfred Klaschka, I thought – here was a marketing opportunity for him. He would have happily baked a cake for the Campbell family. So what does all this have to do with Passover?

This week, when we are forbidden to eat Sachertore or Linzer tort or even the delightfully named Punschkrapfen, we might want to pause and think about something we say every year at the Passover seder: 'In every generation it is the duty of man to consider himself as if he had come forth from Egypt'.

Because in this generation, as in all others, there are those who order custom-made swastika cakes. There are those who name their children after Adolf Hitler. And there are others who fire anti-tank missiles at school busses with Jewish children in them. Because there are those who are building nuclear weapons, having told the world that their intention is to wipe the Jewish state off the face of the earth. Because people like that make Pharaoh look like a nice guy. Because getting out of the house of bondage, out of slavery in Egypt, was not the end of the story for the Jewish people, but was the beginning.

It is a story of a never-ending struggle for freedom, for dignity, for respect, for human rights, that has universal resonance and meaning — for all people, everywhere, always.