Let go & learn to enjoy

by Joyce Meyer

Living by Grace

When you and I learn how to live by grace, we can really begin to enjoy every single day of our lives.

Grace is the power of God that enables us to do with ease what we could never do on our own—regardless of the amount of effort or struggle we put forth.

When we attempt to use our own strength to try and be the person God wants us to be and do the things He has called us to do, we are operating in the flesh. Although God does call us to work, He does not call us to get into works of the flesh. It is important that we understand the difference, because when we move out of grace and into works, we end up frustrated and unable to enjoy our lives.

In order for you and me to live by grace, free from frustration and experiencing the fullness of joy Jesus came to give us, there are two very important things we must learn. The first one is how to abide in Christ and the second is how to receive from God.

Abiding In Christ
Abiding is not the same as visiting. The place where we abide is the place where we live—it’s our permanent address. John 15:1-11 talks about abiding in Christ. In verse 7 Jesus says, If you live in Me [abide vitally united to Me] and My words remain in you and continue to live in your hearts, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you. If we want to be vitally united with Christ, we must learn to abide in Him, which means maintaining a close relationship with God.

Over my years in ministry, I have seen that one of the things people struggle with more than anything else is establishing a time of daily prayer and Bible study. For many of us it may be easier to go to church every day than it is to spend personal time with God. The decisions not to turn off the TV or not to get out of bed earlier or not to spend so much time talking with friends are some of the things that keep us from fellowship with the Lord. There are also the many distractions the enemy sends our way to keep us from what he knows will empower us to overcome his strongholds in our lives.

I believe one of the main reasons you and I battle so much in this area is that we tend to develop a “formula” for spending time with God, and after awhile it becomes boring and we give it up. This is especially true at the start of the New Year. We get all excited about making a fresh start and doing everything right. For instance: Let’s say we decide to read six chapters of the Bible every day. Everything’s going fine, and then one day we’re unable to do it. Now we feel like we need to read twelve chapters the next day to catch up. Pretty soon we’re 100 chapters behind, feeling frustrated, hopeless and condemned. How do I know this? Because I’ve done it before.

The problem is we’ve made reading the Bible a rigid rule—a law that we’re trying to live by. When we’re living by law and not by grace, we can’t enjoy our lives or our relationship with God. To overcome this pattern, I recommend reading a book about the Bible for a few days, spending some time worshipping or just sitting quietly in God’s presence. When you follow the leading of the Holy Spirit in your devotional times, He will keep your time with God fresh and full of life.

As you and I abide in Christ and follow the leading of His spirit, joy and gladness are released in full measure. In John 15:11 Jesus says, I have told you these things, [about abiding in me] that My joy and delight may be in you, and that your joy and gladness may be of full measure and complete and overflowing. It seems clear that Jesus wants us to enjoy our lives. So, if we are struggling with frustration—a sign that we are into works of the flesh—we need to check and see if we are spending enough time with God and receiving His grace.

Receiving from God
The second thing we need to learn in order to live by grace and enjoy our lives, is how to receive from God. God’s purpose for bringing us into a relationship with Himself is not so we can try to do things to earn His blessings. He wants us to learn how to rest in our relationship with Him and receive the things that He already has for us.

In John 15:4 Jesus says, Dwell in Me, and I will dwell in you…. Just as no branch can bear fruit of itself without abiding in (being vitally united to) the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you abide in Me. Branches don’t bear fruit by themselves. They bear fruit because they’re attached to the vine. The vine contains the sap which provides all the necessary nutrients to sustain life and produce fruit. In the same way, we can’t accomplish the purposes God has for our lives by ourselves. We must dwell in Him and receive from Him everything necessary to sustain life and produce fruit.

You and I are grafted into the Vine, Christ Jesus, to receive something—life. As we receive His life, we will naturally bear fruit. The Bible does not say that we get saved, we get mercy or we get the Holy Spirit. It does say that we receive forgiveness for our sins, we receive the Holy Spirit and we receive power to become the sons of God.(1) If we want to enjoy our lives, we need to be free from a worksoriented mentality and learn to lean totally on God for everything. Receiving His grace provides all the strength, wisdom and ability we need to accomplish the work He has given us to do.

By nature I’m a very strong-willed person, and years ago I had a real problem with impatience. It is an area I’ve struggled with on and off my whole life. I could never have established this ministry, working with all of the people who are involved, if I had not learned how to receive God’s grace to be patient. That’s what our walk of faith is all about…[the leaning of [our] entire human personality on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness]… (Colossians 1:4). As I grew in my walk with the Lord, I learned that I could lean on Jesus by faith and choose to be patient. Rather than try to do it in my own strength, I could put my trust in God’s Word and receive His grace to be patient each step of the way.

If you have been struggling with abiding in Christ and receiving His grace to enjoy your life, I encourage you to ask God for help. Pray a simple prayer like, “Lord, please forgive me for trying to do things in my own strength. I choose to trust in You. I know that all the grace I need for every area of my life is available to me as I abide in the Vine. I receive Your grace to help me (name specific areas where you need God’s grace to bring change in your life). Help me to trust You each step of the way, leaning and depending on you…totally. Thank You, Lord, that as I learn to live by grace, I will experience the fullness of joy You have for me and truly enjoy my everyday life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

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"Life style" for New year - 2007

Create a Personal Strategic Plan!

Success is not an accident. It begins with a well-conceived plan. You can and will achieve more in the next year than you have in the past ten with a disciplined Personal Strategic Plan.

Personal strategic planning is a disciplined thought process, which produces fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide who you are, where you are going, what you do, and how, when and why you do it. All of this is done with a focus on the future.

The purpose of personal strategic planning is to help you:

- Provide direction, meaning, and purpose for your life.
- Make decisions that positively affect your future.
- Focus your energies on what's most important.
- Achieve the greatest results in the shortest period of time.
- Significantly increase your level of performance.
- Enjoy more time, money, balance and freedom.
- Eliminate uncertainty, anxiety, doubt and fear.
- Leverage your skills more effectively.
- Enhance your quality of life, and overall peace of mind.
- Be more, do more and ultimately to have more from life.

Personal strategic planning is based on the premise that life will not go according to plan, if you do not have a plan.

A successful plan must include the following:

Personal Philosophy: Every person has a personal philosophy, consisting of some rules adopted from one's parents, culture, religion, acquaintance and so on.

Generally speaking, these rules, as a body are not well thought out and contain a wealth of inconsistencies and contradictions.

Legacy Statement: Your legacy serves as your life's defining statement. It serves a two-fold purpose. First it provides an overarching framework for all mission statements and goals to follow.

Second it answers the question, "What do I want to be remembered for?"

Mission Statement: A mission statement is a declaration of who you are, why you exist, and what you intend to accomplish.

In business, the organizational mission answers the big question: "What is our business?" In personal planning, the question is "What is my life's business?" In both cases, the answer must define the reason for being.

Core Values: Our values act as our compass, guiding us through life's terrain.

One certain way of knowing that you are living in accordance with your values is by defining guidelines and measurements for value centered living.

Code of Ethics: Words quietly influence our attitudes and opinions.

Codes of conduct, personal creeds, and pledges all reflect an effort to make sense of things, to organize behavior, and to better understand ourselves.

Lifetime Objectives: Your objectives should be written within the framework of your Legacy & Mission Statements.

The key to any Personal Strategic Plan is to visualize your desired outcomes in advance. Be sure to write and rewrite your Lifetime Objectives as affirmations of the future you are working to realize.

Goals: The key in writing your goals is to make them measurable, specific, and time-bound.

Goals need to be written for each of the ten critical areas of life to include: Personal, Health, Recreation, Family, Friends, Community, Career, Financial, Household and Spiritual.

Personal Board of Directors: A personal board will accelerate your progress by providing both wisdom and support for the attainment of a specific purpose.

Maintenance & Performance Check-Ups: On a monthly basis, you should pause to evaluate your performance. What progress have you made? Where have your been challenged? What do you need to do differently or more of?

It is also important to step back and consider whether any of your goals are unachievable.

Personal Reason Why: You won't become successful until and unless you identify, support and empower your reasons why. Your why's provide fuel for achievement, and are the reasons behind all action and inaction.

The hallmark of all high achievers is a burning why. They know what they want, how and when they will achieve it, but most importantly they know WHY they want to become successful at achieving their goals.

In Summary

You can significantly increase the odds of success, if you know who you are, what you want, where you are going, how you will get there, and what you will do once you arrive.

The best way to predict your future is to create it. Therefore, a well-defined personal strategic plan, properly executed, is your meal ticket to success.

In order to best prepare yourself for success, I am delighted to introduce you to My Goals - Personal Strategic Planning program.

This exciting program is like having an insurance policy on success. It will focus your thinking and challenge you to reach for new heights.

Happy holidays to you and your family, and my very best wishes for a prosperous, joy-filled New Year!

Everything Counts!

Gary Ryan Blair

About the Author: Gary Ryan Blair is a visionary and gifted conceptual thinker. As President of The GoalsGuy he has created a world-class library of products and services which are designed to inspire people to realize their full potential while making the heart sing, the mind expand and the spirit soar. Visit The GoalsGuy Shop for all of your goal setting and life planning needs.

© Gary Ryan Blair 2006

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The Formula for Success

The Formula for Success

Positive Mental Attitude/Drive
+
Avoiding Negativity
+
Planning/Goal Setting
+
Persistency
+
Consistency
+
Never Giving Up = SUCCESS

Too often people are one step away from Success when they fall short because they are missing a piece of this Success Formula.

When studying and following the strategies and tips from literally hundreds successful individuals, this formula continues to be the key to their personal success and the Successful people they have studied & documented.

If one looks in their life, he or she can find dozens of examples of how they succeeded because they followed this formula. The same holds true for he or she when one ultimately failed because they didn’t have the right attitude or they were not consistent on following their schedule and procrastinated at times.

Ask oneself before you begin a new journey and as you continue to travel down the road, “Am I sticking with the formula?” If one is forgetting a piece, stop for a moment and take the time to evaluate and make the necessary changes to get back on track.

How does one develop and sustain a Positive Mental Attitude with Success University? Begin by starting your day off by reading a positive article, quote, or listening to a SU course. This will set the tone for your day. Even if it’s just a couple minutes this can make a huge difference.

How does one Avoid Negativity? Avoid thinking about the things one doesn’t have, the people one wishes they could be around, the bills that are plaguing your life, the job you hate, etc.

Instead, focus on the great things that are happening in one’s life. Think about the fact that one has a home, a car that runs, relationships that are great, etc.

Avoid those people that are energy suckers. Work toward creating new relationship with those people that are positive, uplifting and in a higher level of success that one wants to achieve. For example, avoid the negative gossip at the coffee pot at work. This is only a waste of time and usually results in someone getting hurt.

How does one Plan and Set Goals? When one plans and set goals, look at all areas of your life:

1. Financial
2. Home
3. Social
4. Spiritual
5. Health
6. Education

Step 1: Create a goal journal, write down detailed aspects of the goal and be sure to write down why one specifically wants that goal. This will allow one to stay focused and motivated towards the goal and allow for any modifications as they travel through life.

Step 2: Make sure that one has a proper balance and if something is out of balance just be aware that it is because one is working on a specific goal in one of the other areas.

Step 3: Celebrate success as one’s goals are obtained. This leads back to a renewed healthy Positive Mental Attitude.

How does one become Persistent? Persistence is an attribute that must be practiced. It is often said that a sell is made because one was persistent and would not let the word, "No," stand in their way. The key is to keep going no matter what, continue trying one’s best.

When one runs into an obstacle and gets knocked down. Get right back on one's feet and keep trying. It’s called practice and people’s learning curves are different so realize that it’s only a matter of time tell one reaches their target.

How does one become Consistent? Consistency is a matter of developing habits. Some people may get lucky and score a couple successes, but it is through creating a consistent work ethic that success will be created often.

Some experts say it takes 30 days of doing something to create a habit and make it a part of ones everyday life; however others say it can take a year to really become consistent in doing an activity. AVOID PROCRASTINATION and just begin right away with the task at hand.

How does one keep on keeping on and Never Give Up? It can be an overwhelming challenge not to give up at times. The finish line can seem like miles away. However these challenges and obstacles are all part of the fun and the process. Success is not easy, one must constantly work on it.

The bottom line is the only way you lose is by quitting. Continue to drive on with all your passion and enthusiasm. Realize that what one’s mind and soul can imagine, the body can truly create and bring forth into existence.

One must first believe in themselves. Second, they most believe in what they are planning on doing. Lastly, they must take ACTION.

Remember to follow these ingredients to this Success Formula in all areas of one’s life and the Road to Success will be fun, exciting, and filled with Happiness and Joy.

© Mike Ward 2006

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