Your Promised Land
We can learn great lessons for our own life from the Bible. Do you recall God telling Moses about the Promised Land, and more importantly, the life he wanted His people, to have? (Deuteronomy 1: 6- 8) He gave them a vision of a new life in this Promised Land; a new place for them to prosper and enjoy. There was one small catch. They were going to have to fight to conquer this new land. It wasn’t going to be easy to take this land. For one thing, there were 7 foot giants blocking their way. Giants are big scary things, not that I have ever seen any myself. But they sound scary. The very word “giant” creates fear. There may not be 7 foot giants in your way but we have our own giants blocking us from reaching our goals and entering our very own Promised Land.
What are your personal giants? Fear of failure? Fear of the unknown? Lack of confidence? Lack of structure? Lack of support? Poor follow through? Lack of faith in your abilities? Limited resources? Uncertainty? The list goes on but nothing I mentioned is insurmountable. You can conquer all of these things. But you will need to reach out and ask for help. Find good, wise and experienced travelers that possess what you lack. (Deuteronomy 1:13) Gather people who can encourage and support you, share ideas, talk you out of giving up because it’s hard, keep you accountable, possess expertise you don’t have, and give you a push, love you and pray for you. Get creative about finding the resources. There are no shortages in God’s economy.
What is your vision for yourself for 2018? In order to look ahead, we need to look back. Before God told Moses about the Promised Land, He reminded him of the past. God said, “you have stayed too long in this place.” They had gotten too comfortable wandering in circles; never getting anywhere. If we don’t learn from the past we are likely going to repeat it. Did your activities last year help you get closer to the place you want to be, the person you want to be? If nothing much has changed, then it’s time to add other elements to your plan. If you want to be different, better, happier, thinner, richer, have better relationships or be more successful, then you will need to do something different.
Having a vison of a new life is important. But that’s not all you need. Remember the Chinese proverb. “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”. Each small step along the way is important in reaching your goals. Planning the steps that take you there is critical. Taking the right actions will determine the outcome.
May God bless you on your journey into your very own Promised Land in 2018.
Maureen,
That was very well said and written! Thank you for your enlightening words.
Thank-you for the reminder that I need to take tangable, specific steps.
Well said. We do often need to see where we have been as we move forward. Often we are making more progress than we think we are. It is those baby steps.
great reminder that we cant do it alone. facing our fears is the only way to get over them . thank you Growth skills. john and henry are the real deal.