This morning we continue our journey into this new year with a focus on making “Intentional Progress.” Yesterday I shared six steps to experience progress in any area of your life, but I only covered the first one (I shared with you some things you can pray about in seven different areas of your life).
Here are the steps again:
1. Pray/Discern
2. Plan/Prepare
3. Wait/Discern God’s Timing
4. Execute/Measure Progress
5. Wait/Faith & Patience
6. Receive When Harvest Time Comes
What I normally do every day is provide you a scripture or a passage of scriptures, break them down, and give you practical application. That has been my m.o. for over 24 years, and it will not change. What I have done for the last couple of days, and what I am today, is simply laying the foundation for the year. I will provide you scripture to support every one of these steps, and we will walk through several Bible examples, as well, that will further solidify what God is saying to us about 2022.
For today, let’s go over steps 2-6 to see how they apply to our lives.
So what does this mean for you today? Let’s get into it and see.
Step 2. Plan/Prepare.
– After you have prayed and taken the time to discern what you believe the Holy Spirit is leading you to do, in any given area, you then have to plan/prepare to execute and receive what He said.
– Prepared blessings come to prepared people.
– Identify clear goals that clarify what you believe God wants you to do in this season into actional steps.
– Be as specific as you can so you can have clarity of thought, prayer, and action.
– Put your goals on a vision board or somewhere you can review them regularly.
Step 3. Wait/Discern God’s Timing.
– Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit concerning what to do when, in what area of your life.
– I cannot overemphasize the importance of being led by God’s Spirit.
– This is how Adam lived before the fall. This is how Jesus lived, and He is our example.
– Jesus only said what He heard the Father say, and He only did what He saw the Father do.
– The right thing at the wrong time becomes the wrong thing.
– The promises of God have a timing component. The goal here is to be led by the Holy Spirit in all things, at all times, so you are in sync with God
– You don’t want to be ahead of God (where you are out there without God’s grace), or behind God (where you missed your opportunity).
Step 4. Execute/Measure Progress.
– When you have the “green light” from God, it is time to move. I told you yesterday that delayed obedience is disobedience.
– How will you measure progress?
– Review your goals periodically.
– Hold yourself accountable and have accountability partners (if you have to).
– Getting started and then measuring the progress you are making will keep you motivated to continue. The more you practice this, the more this will become your lifestyle.
– God is a God of progression. The more you walk with Him and allow Him to walk with you, the more accustomed you will be to constantly improving, advancing and growing in many areas of your life.
Step 5. Wait/Add Patience To Your Faith.
– Getting started is great, but remaining consistent is the key long-term success in God’s Kingdom.
– God is looking for faith and patience (Heb 6:12).
– The word translated “patience” in Heb 6:12 means: the force of consistency.
– When you are believing God for something in faith, remember that you are in a “faith fight.” The devil will do all he can to get you to give up before the promise manifests.
– You shall reap if you do not quit (Gal 6:9). But if you quit before your harvest comes due, you may miss out on God’s best simply because you did not have the patience to endure.
Step 6. Receive the Harvest when it is time.
– Don’t get so busy working and grinding that you are don’t discern when it is your time to RECEIVE.
– Your harvest has a due date. Be ready to receive when your harvest is due.
– Be open to receiving the help of those God sends your way.
– God will give you favor with the people He has ordained to help you.
– God identified David to Samuel, and his life changed forever through that one encounter.
– God’s favor will bring you from the background to the forefront (like David).
– God used Pharoah to promote Joseph from prisoner to Prime Minister in one day.
– Be open to the people God is going to send your way to open doors for you that no man can close.
– Favor will bring you before the right people at the right time.
– Favor will bring opportunities that you have not earned, nor could ever earn.
– Favor can do more in a minute than labor can do in a lifetime.
Step 7. Start the process all over again with the next thing.
This is enough for today. Once again, I will provide scriptures for all of this in the days and weeks to come.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for blessing me to see the importance of being in sync with You at all times. You gave me Your Spirit, so I can hear from You and discern what You have planned for my life. I die to self daily. I learn to discern the voice of Your Spirit. My desire is to only do what You lead me to do and to only say what I am led to say. Living this way, I am a conduit of Your glory on this planet. My life is a conduit through which heaven is manifested on the earth. And as I am led by Your Spirit, You lead me to be purposeful, intentional, and deliberate in my actions. Living this way, I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word. Apply it and prosper!
