Walking Towards the Goal

Walking Towards the Goal

Welcome back for another exciting year of Just For Christ ministries. We hoped you liked yesterdays message given to us by Minister Mark about walking towards our goals through our strength in Christ. We begin the lesson from Joshua 1 and as always remember to pay attention to key principles such as:

·      God always makes due on his promises.

·      God knows our goals and wants to expand their territory.

·      We may start out with one goal but God can turn it into  a blessing for all. Ex. It all started with one goal Abraham’s goal was to have a son, one son brought a nation, a nation fell into slavery, God brought out the nation, and this was the nation that gave us Christ.

·      None of us want our blessings to pass by because we doubted.

We begin in:

Joshua 1:1-2à God is speaking to Joshua. Ask yourself: What can you expect when God speaks to you? As you are giving, your goals to God we need to remind ourselves that God does care about our goals and that whatever He tells you it is going to be for your good. You only have to tell God once, because He remembers and cares about our wellbeing. From God:

·      You can expect assurance

·      Direction and instruction

·      Freewill aspect (the freedom to make your own choice)

·      The reality check (answer you don’t want)

·      Truth

·      Promise

·      Peace

·      Faithfulness

So the question is: How are you choosing to listen to God? You want God to listen to you, to answer you, but are you going to do the things to listen him.

à Are you listening with doubt? Patience is required to listen to God. You must be still and learn to mediate and be still. Are you partially listening to God? Sometimes we need to stop and be quiet and listen to God and be eager to hear his voice. God always lets you know ahead of time, but you must be willing to listen and trust his voice.

Next as you are walking towards your goals:

àDo you have a Mentor/Wise Counsel? Joshua’s mentor was Moses. Moses was exceptionally faithful to God, but remember your mentor is not perfect. Think do you have someone who you can come to for wise counsel someone who you can rely on to pray for you, and give you spiritual advice. Think about people whom you worked with or people who you have worked under, and a divine connection with.

Afterwards, be honest with yourself:

Joshua 1:2à Are you taking steps to walk towards your goals? God’s command was for Joshua to take the nation of Israel into the promise. What steps are you taking, literal, practical everyday little steps? Be specific. Your goals require you to take some form of action the hardest part is always to start, because to achieve our desired results our goals require execution and effort. Also remember your goals are not just for you, think about who else are affected by your goals. How is your family affected by your goals? Are you goals making everyone else better in the process?

Then there is:

Joshua 1:3-4à Preparation: God always has a plan for your goal that calls for you to take part in his plan. God’s plan always requires some work on our part, because God wants us to workout our faith.

            In this verse God is giving Joshua ownership and authority in the way He walks. God wants Joshua to walk as if the promise was already his, in your goals do not just walk, but walk with authority have some ownership.

Key Note:

Satan will still let you have your goals, but He wants ownership over the walk.

à What comes with ownership/authority over your goals?

·      Accountability

·      Responsibility

·      Dedication

·      Commitment

àJoshua 1:5à Joshua was able to see every step Moses underwent through his journey. Moses was transparent with Joshua a good indicator of a wise council. Therefore Moses had a testimony and Joshua was able to see how God worked in Moses life and how God brought Moses through Egypt and against the many enemies of Israel. Joshua was able to see God’s faithfulness. God was reminding Joshua that He was never alone. We can walk in authority because God is always with us.

à So ask yourself: What barriers are standing in your way of your Goals? Why are they Barriers?

·      Haters (enemies, insults)

·      Deadweight (habits, people we should let go of)

·      Comparison (comparing ourselves to others)

·      Sacrifice (the loss of giving things up)

·      Satan (our biggest barrier)

·      Abused Friendships (multiple chances of friends)

·      Emotions (I don’t wanna do it…!)

Next: Can you remember a situation/goal that God helped you through?

Joshua 1:6à “Be strong and of good courage…” To walk this out we must recognize where we gain our strength from and who we need to be connected to.

àWhat are some of your sources of strength?

·      Different friendships, friends that encourage us

·      Family

·      Music (pep songs)

·      Ourselves (pride)

But the source of our strength should be:

God! We can do nothing but by God. Admit our weaknesses.

Our goals cannot be achieved underneath our own power.

It is through God that Moses was able to be as successful and effective leader as He was, it was only through God and now Joshua must learn to abide and rest in his own relationship with God as well. So, how will you grow stronger in the Lord?  Are you seeking to know God like you seek to know your significant other? We must:

·      Study God’s Word essential

·      Know our journey is a faith walk

·      Prayer and solitude

Once establish these elements then we can, “BE STRONG AND OF A GOOD COURAGE. FIRST WHEN YOU CONNECT WITH GOD’S STRENGTH, THEN YOU HAVE THE STRENGTH TO BE COURAGEOUS.”

The effects of courage

Courage

YOU SHOULD NOT BE:

1.     Comfortable (insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting the same results)

2.     Content

3.     Complacent

YOU SHOULD BE CHALLENGED

1.     Challenging (anticipating something different, a different result)

2.     Change (the greatest impact and result you can gain)

Joshua 1:6-7à God urges Joshua to be obedient to the laws that Moses had written. As a result of being obedient, Joshua will become prosperous. We can be a walking blessing at any given moment. That faith in God elicits that walk in prosperity learning to walk to our goals.

            Why do we focus on the earthly prosperity of others? Remember we have two bank accounts the earthly bank and heavenly bank account that last forever. What does your account look like? Make sure you understand God’s promises in your life you will understand what God can and will do for you.

So….

Joshua 1:8

One thing to know it, but it’s another thing to dwell in it, for the Word of God to become a part of you. Consistently, always mediating upon the Word of God. You can achieve your goals in 2015 and are you getting connected to God’s Word. Ask God: What goals do you have for me?

And finally ask yourself this

What do you need to do to stay focused?