THEME: How do you know if you or your church is successful? When what you have done reflects: Godly vision, Faith, Hardwork and determination, and when it points beyond your needs to the needs of others.
READ SCRIPTURE
"A preacher and soap maker went for a walk together. The soap maker while he enjoyed the company of the preacher did not think to highly of religion: "Jesus was a failure. Just look around you, what do you see? Trouble, misery, wars - even after all these years and years of preaching and teaching about Jesus, goodness, truth, and peace. What good is religion with all its prayers and sermons if all this evil still exists?
The preacher didn’t respond but reflected quietly as they continued their walk. Then he noticed a child playing in the gutter. The child was just filthy with dirt and mud all over. The preacher stopped and said to the soap maker: "Look at this child! Soap has been around for over 3000 years. You say that soap makes people clean, but what good is it? With all the soap in the world this child is still dirty. Soap is a failure."
The soap maker laughed and replied: "The success of soap isn’t dependent upon whether everybody is clean or not. I’m a rich man because of soap; but, soap can’t do its job if it isn’t used!" "That’s exactly right,’’ said the preacher. And so it is with religion. It will not accomplish anything unless people use it!" (Contributed by: Tim Zingale)
People want to be successful, whether it is in wining friends, making money, getting a promotion, playing a game or losing weight. We measure our worth on the basis of how successful we are perceived to be. By the world’s standard it means luxury, wealth, possessions, notoriety, fame, beauty, and achievements. Yet if we measure our lives by the world’s standards we have an inaccurate and incomplete view of whether or not we are truly a success.
God’s standard of measurement is nothing like the world’s. Look at Abraham he left wealth and comfort of Ur behind to become a nomad in the desert. Moses gives up Pharoah’s palace to become a shepherd and suffer with God’s people for 40 years in the wilderness. Nehemiah gave up a well paying job as a highly respected government official to build a wall around a ruin; Jeremiah was imprisoned at the bottom of a stinking mud hole. John the Baptist wore wiry camel hair, ate locust and looked like a mad man. The apostles were mere fishermen who gave up their day jobs to travel around the countryside on foot. And there is Jesus an out of work carpenter who died a shameful death on a cursed cross.
Success, what is it; and how do we know if we have achieved it as a church or even as an individual? In today’s text Gamaliel (guh may le al), a Pharisees, tells the Sandhedrin not to worry about the apostles. He reminds them to two others previous revolutionaries, Theudas and Judas the Galilean who had a following but upon their death their followers scattered to be heard of no more. He implies that this too will be what will happen to the apostles unless by some slim chance they happens to be from God and then of course you couldn’t stop it even if you tried. Even the Pharisees and Sadducess believed You can’t Stop God.
Gamaliel, though, never really believed the apostles and Jesus were from God. He believed that if they were Jesus never would have died on the cross that instead Jesus would have prospered. And I am talking about materially. To the Pharisees and Sadducuess success, godly success, was measured by wealth and power. There are people today who still believe that. They preach and live a prosperity gospel. If you will just follow God and do what God tells you to do he will bless you monetarily. It is sad to see how they have twisted the gospel to fit the desires of the world but there is nothing further from the truth. It that were the truth then Jesus is far as possible from doing the work of God because he died a criminal’s death. That is not to say if you are financially affluent that you can’t be from God or doing God’s work. We each have different talents, some have the talent of money and stewardship. But success, success in God’s kingdom isn’t about how much money, you have, or how much power you have accumulated. It isn’t about whether you are a manager, a ceo or a mill worker. Success for the Christian is based in God’s word not the world’s desires and selfish lust.
It is in the life of the apostles that we see and understand what real success is. Despite being in jail, being despised, threatened, poorly educated, despite the fact that they didn’t always get their spiritual life right – I mean, they deserted Jesus at the cross – this motley crew was a success. Their success was first and foremost rooted in the Godly Vision. Everything they did was based on what they believed was God’s desire. Before Jesus ascended into heaven he told them, “Go into all the world (can you finish the statement) and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” Mat 28:19-20
They understood God’s calling for their life and it wasn’t based on a certain number in church, it wasn’t based on a membership role or a fancy facility. It wasn’t based on 2.5 children, two cars, a house in the suburbs and a white collar job. It was based in God’s word. They already had a mega church – thousands had been converted. But they had godly vision that wasn’t limited by the world’s ideals. It was vision of all people believing in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. For them that and only that would be success. They worked their whole life to achieve that. It is what motivated them. It was their obsession. They were zealous, fervent in their efforts because they knew and understood it was what God wanted of them. They wanted nothing more in life then to please God. Their success was rooted in their Godly Vision of the task before them.
Does that mean everything they did was exactly what God wanted, perfectly in line with God’s will. I doubt it. They were human, just like you and me. They were ordinary people but they were people who were driven to follow God’s will. I carry in my purse a prayer by Thomas Merton. I have already shared it with some of you. But I would like to share it with you this morning. In fact I put it in your bulletin would you please take it out and read it aloud with me.
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.” Thomas Merton – Thoughts in Solitude
Godly vision is the full and complete desire, to follow God’s will in everything that you do. It is vision that is focused on results in eternity not results here on earth.
And, I believe the apostles were successful not only because they had Godly Vision but because they also had faith. Well that sounds like an easy one doesn’t it. I mean I have faith, you have faith that’s why we are hear. But the faith I am talking about doesn’t just say I believe in Jesus Christ, it says I believe he is alive and will work in my life for the good of His kingdom. Many of us lack that kind of faith. Churches lack that kind of faith. In church whenever someone suggests a God is leading them to add a new program, a new ministry or to give money to a new endeavor what is the first question that is asked, :Where’s the money going to come from? Where are we going to a leader? But those are the wrong questions, the only question we should be asking is, Is this God’s will for our church?
We may not realize it, but we are rich in terms of both financial strength and talent. We only scratch the surface in our giving of either. What we lack isn’t resources, what we lack is real faith that believes God can do anything. That we can do anything if it is God’s will. God knows the way for us to accomplish all things. What does Philippians’ 4:13 say (can you recite it with me), “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”? Not we can do whatever we have money to do, not we can do only that which we think we can do. Yes, we must be good stewards, we must be wise but our successes as Christians, as his church is dependent not upon our money but upon our Faith in God to work with us.
And it will be work. Success in God’s kingdom does not come easy. It wasn’t easy for the disciples, even though Gamaliel (guh may le al) convinced the Sanhedrin to go lightly on the disciples they were still viciously flogged. They still suffered great physical pain. The disciples still had to work hard. They had to be determined to follow God’s will no matter the cost. They were willing to go the distance. Success is not founded in laziness, it isn’t found by sitting around waiting for God to drop it our laps. It isn’t found by just believing God will give it to us.
A man was walking through the countryside when he noticed a young fellow standing at attention in a field. In the afternoon, the walker came back along the same path and noticed that the fellow was still there. Curious, he approached and asked what the young man was doing. "I’m practicing for the Nobel Prize," the man replied.
"How’s that?" asked the visitor. "Well," said the young man, "one of the criteria is to be outstanding in your chosen field and this is the field I have chosen.” If you and I are going to be outstanding in our chosen field, if we are going to be successful Christians, if we are going to be a successful church, we are going to have to do more than stand around. Being successful in God’s eyes takes effort and perseverance. How hard are you working for God? How hard are we, as a church working for God?. Success according to God takes a godly vision, faith, hard work and determination and it takes a focus on others.
Triumph in God’s kingdom isn’t based on “I.” It isn’t based on “me” or my needs, my desires. Success is when an individual or church moves beyond their own needs to the needs of others. Al Braca was a success by the world’s standards. He was a corporate bond trader for Cantor Fitzgerald. But it wasn’t until September 11 that the world came to know Al as a success in God’s kingdom. Al’s office was on the 105th floor of the World Trade Center Tower One. . On the morning of Sept 11 his wife switched on the TV to check the weather only to hear that a plane had just hit the Trade Center. Al had survived the bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993 and had even helped a woman with asthma escape from the building. Jeannie knew that Al would do the same thing this time. “I knew he would stop to help and minister to people,” she said, “but, I never thought for a minute that he wouldn’t be coming home!”
A week later, like so many others who were in that building, Al’s body was found in the rubble. Al’s wife and son were devastated! Then the reports began to trick le in from friends and acquaintances. Some people on the `105th floor had made a last call or sent a final email to loved ones saying that a man was leading people in prayer. A few referred to Al by name. Al’s family learned that Al had indeed been ministering to people during the attack!
When Al realized that they were all trapped in the building and would not be able to escape, Al shared the gospel with a group of 50 co workers and led them in prayer. This news came as no surprise to Al’s wife. For years, she and Al had been praying for the salvation of these men and women. According to Jeannie, Al hated his job and couldn’t stand the environment. It was a world so out of touch with his Christian values but he wouldn’t quit. Al was convinced that God wanted him to stay there, to be a light in the darkness. Al was not ashamed of Christ and Christ’s words. Al shared his faith with his co workers many of whom sarcastically nicknamed him , “The Rev”.
On that fateful day of Sept 11, in the midst of the chaos, Al’s co workers looked to him and Al delivered. At the same time, Al too tried to get a phone call through to his family. He asked an MCI operator to contact his family. “Tell them that I love them,” he said. It took the operator more than a month to reach the Bracas, but the message rboguht them much needed comfort. “The last thing my dad did involved the two things most important to him – God and his family. He loved to lead people to Christ,” his son Christopher told a writer for Focus on the Family.
Al was a success like the apostles in God’s eyes. He had a Godly vision, he had real faith, he was willing to work hard and to preserve for God’s kingdom and he looked beyond his own needs to the needs of others. Are you a success, a success in God’s eyes?
As I look out over this congregation, I see a church that is positioned to take this community by storm who desire to do the will of God. I look out and I see a lot of loving people. I see a lot of gifted people. I see a lot of people who care for each other. I see a church that can reach two or three or even four times it’s current size because of the untapped potential in each of you and in this community, because of the hard work and determination that you have already put into this church. I see things not as they are but as they can be. I see the past, I see the success God has already given you and I know we will continue be a success in God’s eyes.
May we have Godly Vision, real trusting faith. May we be willing to continue to work hard and persevere and may we focus beyond ourselves to see and meet the needs of others.
Amen and Amen.
What was Gamielel suggesting as a measure of success? What
in
was and is God’s Success measure?
Success is standard gauge of the world in evaluating men, movements and merchandise -Înothing succeeds like successâ etc. but earthâs yardstick does not apply to Christ and Christianity. In fact, look at Bible record and see many apparent failures e.g. Abraham leaves wealth and comfort of Ur to become a nomad in desert. Moses gives up Pharaohâs palace etc to become a shepherd then suffer with Godâs people for 40 years in wilderness. ÎNehemiah gave up a well-paid job as a highly placed government official to build a wall around a ruinâ (cf R.Clements) Jeremiah was imprisoned at the bottom of a stinking mudddy hole for proclaiming the Word of the Lord and worst of all, the ÎFounderâ of Christianity Jesus Christ, died a shameful death on a cursed cross.
iii. Nor is durability a viable criterion - there are many false religions and philosophies that are centuries old and some older than Christianity itself..
Soap-box Soper (Lord Soper had supreme gift of repartee) at Tower Hill in London speaking in open air.
Objector, a rather scruffy, unkempt sort of individual: ÎLook how long Christianity has been around - 2000 years - and what good has it done the world?â
Reply: ÎLook how long soap has been around -+3000 years - and what good has it done you?!â
Almost anytime you tell a person to keep a secret they almost burst until it can be told.
Verse 40 – “Commanded them not to speak in the name of Jesus
i. Suppose I gave you $10 million dollars. I tell you not to let anyone know that you have it. Would this pose a problem? Yes in order for you to spend it you would have to tell someone that you have it.
ii. Actual Biblical Case Matthew 9:27-31
Is this a true statement?
1. Yes! (Tower of Babel; Saul in 1 Samuel; Israel in captivity).
2. Truly, "if God is for us who can be against us?" (Rom. 8:31).
3. If an activity is of God it will succeed; if not, it will fail.
B. Our ability to recognize hand of God will largely depend on how we define success.
1. Man: John the Baptist, Paul, even Jesus were "failures."
2. God: Looks at two important measures:
a. TRUTH: is it right?
b. FAITHFULNESS: are we faithful?d. It may be good for me to say “do not say anything about the fishing tournament or even the High attendance in Sunday School”
e. God may be using people around you and you never even Know it.
f. God sees the entire picture we only see bits and pieces
Look at what the disciples were doing in Acts 5:42. Was it because they had a visitation and personal work program? Are you kidding? Just been flogged! (v. 40). Their motivation was to be faithful to Jesus! Instituting a program is often an admission that the work is not being done--otherwise you wouldn’t need a program.
c. Programs are best seen as ways to coordinate & better accomplish work our love for God has already motivated us to do!
d. When programs themselves become the motivation--it is no longer of God and it won’t last long!
What made the apostles’s successful in growing the church – it was their personal motivation, personal commitment – will our church grow if it is dependent upon your personal motivation, personal commitment to Christ.
One Saturday Ken Erickson’s wife cleaned out leftovers from the refrigerator. She gave the one remaining portion of tortellini to their 6-year-old son, Jeremy. Their 8-year-old son, Matthew, also wanted some, so bickering ensued. After several unsuccessful attempts to mediate the dispute, Ken decided on a theological approach. Hoping to convince Jeremy to share his portion with Matthew, he said, “Jeremy, what would Jesus do in this situation?”
Jeremy immediately responded, “Oh, Dad, He would just make more!”
Yes, that is exactly what Jesus would do. Jesus would just make more!
Would you agree with me that the biggest problem facing the church today is lack of faith? It’s not lack of resources. We think it is, but it’s not. The first question someone will ask when a necessary expense is brought up here at the church, “Where’s the money coming from?” But that’s the wrong question. The only question we should ask is: Is this God’s will for our church? We may not realize it, but we are rich in terms of both financial strength and talent. We only scratch the surface in our giving of either. What we lack is faith.
What would it take for you to look back over your life and say, "I feel good about what I’ve accomplished. My life has not been in vain."
In 1991, Charles J. Givens and a few members of the Charles J. Givens Organization traveled to Papua, New Guinea. There are many remote people groups deep in the heart of Papua, New Guinea, groups that have very little contact with the outside world. Some of the groups had never seen white people before the arrival of Givens’ group. They had no forms of technology, not even the wheel. Fighting among different groups made travel difficult, so many of the native people had never traveled outside their own small villages.
Givens and his associates stayed the night in a small village on Mt. Gillaway. With seven hundred different languages spoken in Papua, New Guinea, each village required the services of one person who could speak a common dialect, a pidgin language made up of German, English, and other dialects. Through this interpreter, Givens asked the people a few essential questions, such as:
"What do you want for your children?" and "What are your dreams and goals in life?" He discovered that these people, isolated in a remote village in a remote part of the world, had the same dreams, fears, and desires that people in his own neighborhood had. They all wanted a good life, and they wanted to believe in a good afterlife, too. They wanted their children to do better than they had. They wanted security, in the form of good sweet potato crops and more pigs, which were a measure of wealth in their village. They wanted to travel more and see the outside world. They desired status in their village. They wanted peace of mind. Givens could tell from listening to the people that they were essentially no different from anyone he might meet on Wall Street. Givens later wrote that this experience revealed to him the truth behind the idea of the "Brotherhood of Man." (2)
Earlier this year USA TODAY reported on a survey that was taken in which a cross-section of people were asked this question: If you could gain an audience with God and could ask God one question, what would it be? There were numerous responses. But the question that more people would ask God than any other according to this survey is this one: What is the purpose of my life?
Jesus gives us the purpose for our lives in verses 11 and 12: "But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted."
Jesus is not telling us that the rest of the hierarchy of needs are unimportant. BUT HE DOES SAY TO US THAT TRUE FULFILLMENT IS FOUND IN MOVING BEYOND OUR OWN NEEDS TO THE NEEDS OF OTHERS. The best way to boost your own self-esteem is not to walk around with your chest puffed out. The best way to bolster your self-esteem is to bolster the self-esteem of others. This is what humility is all about. It is not about how you feel about yourself as much as how you make others feel about themselves. Jesus made everyone he came into contact feel better about themselves.
PEOPLE WHO SUCCEED IN LIFE DENY THEMSELVES AND TAKE UP A CROSS. It is true. You don’t get to be the best by staying in your comfort zone. You do it by working till you sweat blood. You sit at your typewriter or your designing board or your blueprints or your lesson plan or whatever, long after everybody else has gone home. That’s what it means in a secular sense to deny yourself and take up a cross. And it works!
The University of Chicago did a five-year study of leading artists, athletes, and scholars. Conducted by Dr. Benjamin Bloom, the research was based on anonymous interviews with the top twenty performers in various fields. These people included concert pianists, Olympic swimmers, tennis players, sculptors, mathematicians, and neurologists. Bloom and his team of researchers from the University of Chicago probed for clues as to how these achievers developed. For a more complete picture, they interviewed their families and teachers.
The report stated conclusively that drive and determination, not great natural talent, led to the extraordinary success of these individuals. Bloom noted, "We expected to find tales of great natural gifts. We didn’t find that at all. Their mothers often said it was another child who had the greater talents."
What they found were extraordinary accounts of hard work and dedication:
The pianist who practiced several hours a day for seventeen years; the swimmer who rolled out of bed every morning at halfpast five to do laps for two hours before school, etc. (1) That’s how you get to the topyou give your all!
Some of you are going to find that material success is not really all that satisfying. There are a lot of lonely people driving Cadillacs and Mercedes, living in homes with marble floors and crystal chandeliers. These folks are finding out too late that upward mobility is not necessarily the formula for a peaceful heart or a loving home. So we need to reexamine for a moment Christ’s words. We overlooked some of them. He said, "IF ANYONE WOULD COME AFTER ME, let him deny himself and take up his cross AND FOLLOW ME." He’s not talking about Rolex watches at all, is he? He’s talking about forgetting ourselves for the sake of others. Isn’t that what he did? Isn’t that what the cross really is all about? He’s not talking about becoming real gogetters but real gogivers. He’s not talking about stocks and bonds, but soup kitchens and bread lines. He’s not talking about winning the rat race, but serving the human race in his name. That’s the kind of selfdenial and cross bearing about which he is concerned.
saying to you is this. Jesus DID give us the ultimate success formula. And the upward mobility he offers is truly out of this world. But the formula he gives us goes beyond the superficial values of today’s materialistic culture. It goes beyond looking out for No. 1. It is found in forgetting ourselves and losing ourselves in service to others. And do you know what? It works. It really works.
According to research conducted by George Gallup, 12% of Americans are "highly spiritually committed." They are those who truly understand what Jesus meant when he said, "deny yourself, take up a cross and follow me." Gallup says the members of this group are "a breed apart from the rest of the populace in at least four ways: 1. They are happier. 2. Their families are stronger. 3. They are tolerant of people of different races and religions. 4. They are communityminded." They are involved in service to others. That is cross bearing that really makes a difference.
So we have a choice. We can heed part of Jesus’ words deny yourself and take up a cross and have all the success this world has to offer. And there’s nothing really wrong with that. Jesus wants us to be the very best of whatever we choose to be, as long as it does not cost us our souls. There is a better way, however. Use him as your guide. Deny yourself by giving yourself for others in his name. That’s where real happiness lies. That’s what ultimate success is all about.
Jesus told a parable about a man who owned a vineyard. In that vineyard was a fig tree ” a fig tree that had no fruit on it. "Cut it down," the owner said to his vinedresser. "For three years I have been looking for fruit on this tree and have found none. Cut it down. Why should it use up the ground?"
Time and time again Jesus showed his impatience with people who do not take advantage of the opportunities God has given them. They are nice people but they are not producing fruit. Christ asks, what is it that you are passionate about? What is it you are giving your life to accomplish? What fruit are you bearing?
NOTE, FIRST OF ALL, THAT JESUS ISN’T ASKING THE FIG TREE TO PRODUCE BANANAS. Jesus isn’t asking anything extraordinary out of the fig tree. He isn’t asking the fig tree to become an oak or a redwood. Jesus is asking only that it accomplish what fig trees ought to accomplish ” bear figs.
A man was walking through the countryside when he noticed a young fellow standing at attention in a field. In the afternoon, the walker came back along the same path and noticed that the fellow was still there.
Curious, he approached and asked what the young man was doing.
"I’m practicing for the Nobel Prize," the man replied.
"How’s that?" asked the visitor.
"Well," said the young man, "one of the criteria is to be outstanding in your chosen field."
If you and I are going to be outstanding in our chosen field, we are going to have to do more than stand around.
OF COURSE, THERE IS ONE AREA OF LIFE WHERE ALL OF US ARE EQUALLY GIFTED. That is in following Jesus and bearing spiritual fruit. The question is, is it that important to us? Are we willing to give it our best? To Jim Mertz the question is phrased like this: Do we really love Jesus that much?
should it use up ground?" And the vinedresser answered, "Give it another year, sir. Let me put fertilizer around it and if it bears fruit, well and good; but, if not, you can cut it down."
There’s still time. Wouldn’t this be a good time and a good place to ask ourselves whether we are bearing the fruit that Christ means for us to bear ” in our jobs, in our homes, in our communities, in serving him? We’re not asked to be something we are not. All Christ is asking of us is that we be the best that we can be. That is the secret of success.
We are living in a day when the importance of the local church is not recognized by its own members. It is understandable that those outside of a church would not see the importance, but it is unacceptable for God’s own people not to recognize it. He has chosen this institution as the means whereby He is going to redeem mankind – and He has called you to be a part of that redemptive process. He has called on you and me to work together to reach people in the depths of their lostness, to lead them to Christ, to teach them to follow Him, to teach them His Word and to minister to them and mentor them as they grow and mature and join in the work with us!
Now, the dictionary defines success as attaining a favorable or desired outcome. That definition of success is fine when you think about specific goals that are set. For example, our goal this year is to save $4200 for the resealing and striping of our parking lots. If we do it before December, then we were successful, and if we don’t then we won’t attain our desired outcome. But applying that definition to a church’s overall ministry won’t work.
While I am sure there are others, I have found that there are generally five standards that people misuse to determine whether they are in a successful church.
1. The Membership Roll
2. Sunday’s Attendance
3. The Bank Balance
4. Total Assets
5. Nice Facilities
Success is coming to the end of our time of ministry, having fulfilled God’s will for our church.
How do we bring God glory? That leads us to our mission: The Great Commission. Jesus said in Matthew 28:19-20,
“Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.”
You could break our mission down into two major parts. First we must be reaching out to lost people. There are four ways our church is going to grow – and an honest look at them will tell us whether we are being successful in our mission.
Self-help books and how-to manuals are immensely popular today. People want to know how to be successful, whether it is winning friends, making money, getting a promotion, losing weight – its all about being successful. Yet, God’s Word is the original success manual and every truly helpful manual has ‘secrets’ that are based in God’s Word
There is a common desire within every person to feel successful. We often measure our worth on the basis of how successful we are. How we measure that success is often based on a worldly standard rather than a godly standard. Success by the world’s standard often means luxury, wealth, and possessions, achievements, notoriety, and fame, beauty, brains and brawn.
If we measure our lives by the world’s standards we will have an inaccurate and incomplete view of whether or not we’re successful. God’s standard of measurement is nothing like the world’s standard.
(Illustration of books I saw in the bookstore: Ned Grossman, How to Succeed in Life. 1. We become what we think about. 2. Decide exactly what you want. 3. Determine the price you have to pay. 4. Commit to pay the price. 5. Work hard, one day at a time. 6. Never give up.
There was another book on success nearby that had 3 formulas for success, similar to the first one. What was really interesting is where I found the books: on the clearance table.)
God’s formula for success is completely unlike the world’s formula. And His formula works for every person, in every situation, whether it’s at school, in our business, our families, or our church. The pathway to success cannot be traveled by anyone who does not practice God’s formula for success. These principles are taken from Joshua 1:6-9.
Principle #1: BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS
Notice the number of times God brings this command before Joshua. (v. 6, 7, 9).
What is courage? Courage has several synonyms: bravery, valor, fearlessness, heroism, confidence, nerve. It also has several nicknames: guts, grit, backbone.
There’s one very important thing we need to notice about courage. You will never witness courage in someone who is at ease in Zion. Courage is seen in the person who’s back is against the wall, when the odds are against them, when the pressure is on, when the flaming arrows are close, when the pain is intense, when the attack is at hand.
Real success is not a matter of strength and courage alone, but strength and courage that comes from the knowledge that God is walking with us.
Don’t miss the point! For Joshua to lead the people into the land of Canaan and claim God’s promise he must be strong and courageous. They couldn’t do like their fathers had done a generation ago and grumble and complain and refuse to enter the land because of their fear.
The 5 keys found in the bible for our success can be spelled out in one word...R. E. A. C. T.
React is an acronym for Remember, Evaluate, Accept,
Change, Trust
HAVE A VISION FOR WHAT GOD CAN DO
• This last key is not in the text, but I think it is very important. I want to ask you, when you look around what do you see?
• SO would see a church of around 90 people that has been running about 90 or so for the last ten years. Some would say they see some people and a nice building.
• As you look at your life right now, what do you see?
• I tell you what I see. I see a church that is positioned to take this community by storm. I look out here and I see a lot of loving people, I see a lot of gifted people. I see a lot of people who care for each other.
• I see a church that could reach 2 to 3 times its’ current size because of the untapped potential of the each of you.
• When I look out I see what God can do with each of you.
• When I used to look in the mirror, I saw a waste. A waste of potential. I think God that Maurice McNeely looked at me and saw a PREACHER. I saw a sort of loser, he saw a preacher with potential.
• What am I talking about?
• I am speaking of seeing things for what they can be, not the way they are!
• I am talking about VISION.
• When this church was built, it took vision. When we decide to build upon it, it will take vision. We cannot look at what we are now, but what we can be as we partner along side God!
• What can God do with this church? ANYTHING! What can He do with you? ANYTHING! We sell ourselves and the Auburn Christian Church short if we do not look at ourselves and the church with VISION!
• I am thankful I bought into the vision Maurice saw for me. Will you buy into the vision I see for this church and for you? Maybe you have a better one.
• Don’t be tied to they way things are now, see them for what they could be with God!
• VISION!
"a rabbi and soap maker who went for a walk together. The soap maker had some negative things to say about religion: "What good is religion? Just look around you. what do you see? Trouble, misery, wars - even after all these years and years of preaching and teaching about goodness, truth, peace. What good is religion with all its prayers and sermons if all this evil still exists?
The rabbi kept quiet as they continued their walk. Then they noticed a child playing in the gutter. The child was just filthy with dirt and mud. The rabbi said to the soap maker: "Look at this child! Now you say that soap makes people clean, but what good is it? With all the soap in the world this child is still dirty. What good is soap after all?"
The soap maker immediately answered him: "But rabbi, soap can’t do its job if it isn’t used!"
"That’s exactly right,’’ said the rabbi. And so it is with religion. It will not accomplish anything unless people use it!"
Contributed by: Tim Zingale
Some people get to the top of the ladder of success only to discover they’re on the wrong ladder.
Contributed by: Robert Leroe
A study of 300 highly successful people like Franklin Delano
Roosevelt, Helen Keller, Winston Churchill, Albert Schweitzer, Mahatma
Gandhi, and Albert Einstein revealed that one-fourth had handicaps such as blindness, deafness, or crippled limbs. Three-fourths had either been born in poverty, came from broken homes, or at least came from exceedingly tense, disturbed situations.
SOURCE: John Maxwell, Developing The Leader Within You
"Success has nothing to do with what you gain in life or accomplish for yourself. It’s what you do for others."
-- Danny Thomas
Physician, theologian, and philosopher Albert Schweitzer stated … “The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.”
John Maxwell, The Success Journey, p. 17Physician, theologian, and philosopher Albert Schweitzer stated … “The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.”
John Maxwell, The Success Journey, p. 17
Do you remember your high school reunion? Many who attend the 5 and 10 year class reunions just want to impress each other with how successful they have become. By the 20th many have given up on impressing their friends and are just happy to survive. As you near the age of 40 you can begin to tell the difference between the “haves” and the “have nots” – between those who have arrived and those who got lost along the way.
At one such reunion two high school buddy’s sat at a table to talk. Many at the reunion could tell the first friend had found the secret to success while the other was still just a “wanabee.” The “wanabee” asked his wealthy friend about the secret to his success. “Well I’ve asked God to help me make my financial decisions along the way. I’d pray, ‘Lord show me what to do,’ then I would open my Bible and point my finger on the page. The first time I did that the word was ‘oil,’ so I invested everything I had in the oil market. Later I went to God again and when I opened my Bible I pointed to ‘gold and silver,’ so I bought into the precious metals markets. Most recently I pointed to the word ‘gates.’ I wasn’t sure what God was trying to show me at first, but I soon realized God was leading me to invest in the computer markets. With God’s help I’m nearly as rich as Bill Gates himself now!”
Later that night the “wanabee” was back in his hotel room. He knew he needed help; he had maxed out all of his credit cards to try to impress all his high school friends, but it wasn’t working. He decided if it worked for his friend maybe it would work for him too, so he opened the nightstand drawer and pulled out a Gideon’s Bible. He sat on the bed and prayed, “Lord, I need your help; please show me what to do.” He opened the Bible and pointed at the words “chapter 11.”
We can find wisdom for right living from God’s word, but it isn’t just hit or miss.
Contributed by: D. Greg Ebie
