05/13/2019
Do you long for worldly things above all else? Do you gauge your success in life by the physical possessions you have accumulated? Well there is something about our faith in God, and Jesus Christ, that satisfies far more than all of the gold, power, and earthly achievement that we can gather. The secret to this treasure is to set Godly goals, and define what we will do and not do to achieve them...
“The Lord is my portion; I promise to keep your words. I entreat your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to your promise.”
Psalms 119:57-58 ESV
What do we value; this is a question that every company and organization asks itself as part of its business plan. I work for a large hospital corporation, and there are a couple of documents that contain our core beliefs, and guiding principles. These are the basic beliefs that we, as a company, hold as being true, and they define what is important to us. The first is our mission statement which in very succinct language states what our business aim is, and the second is our values statement, which lays out how we intend to behave personally, towards one another, our customers, and with those we do business with as we achieve our business goal. These are a set of honorable principles, and behaviors, that not only define who we are, but insures everyone we come into contact that we will behave in this manner. They also define what we view as more valuable than making a profit... more valuable than gold. We will not violate these principles in order to achieve what we have laid out in our mission statement, nor will we do business with those who do not believe as we do.
“the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”
Psalms 19:9-11 ESV
Each of us should take the time to jot down these things for ourselves. Whether we realize it or not we all have such goals and principles that guide our lives, but without documenting them they will remain fluid... unless we define what we value more than anything else, then we are apt to cross personal and societal boundaries to achieve our wants and goals, and those goals tend to be governed by whim.
It’s alright to have a stated goal of becoming a millionaire by the time you are thirty years old... but what are you willing to do in order to achieve that? Are you willing to lie, cheat, and steal to get there? No? Well then there are some guiding principles that you already value more than this particular goal... there is a behavioral goal that is higher, and more important than making a million dollars!
As Christians and people of faith we are declaring the principles laid out by God in His Word (the Holy Bible) to be our foundational beliefs upon which the entirety of our lives are built, and our boundaries set... we will not violate these principals of behavior and belief to achieve any other goal. Listen to Jesus...
“"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."”
Matthew 22:36-40 ESV
So what is our first and most valued goal? To love God and place Him above all else... congratulations... you have established your number 1 goal, your greatest goal, and by declaring you will love your neighbor as yourself you have defined the second.
It’s interesting how these commandments or goals, stated by Jesus, are different from those that were previously given to Moses. Jesus tells us that these are things we will do, but those given to Moses were a list dominated by things we are not to do, listen to the laws God gave Moses...
1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall make no idols.
3. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
4. Keep the Sabbath day holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.
This is also a set of guiding principles, or behaviors for us, and just as Jesus told us that we have things we should do, these Ten Commandments define others, most of which we will not do. Both are important!
Sometimes we need to define what a goal is, and what we will do to achieve it, such as my goal to love my wife, and how I intend to achieve that goal... by loving her as myself.
“In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.”
Ephesians 5:28 ESV
but at other times we define what our goal is, and then list those things we will not do to reach it...
“"And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.”
Matthew 6:7-8 ESV
In this example my goal is to pray, but I will not do so by ranting, reciting, or otherwise rattling off many words.
So now that we understand as Christians, and people of faith, how to set and prioritize our goals, and how to define our values and behaviors, I challenge you to establish some well documented goals and beliefs for yourself. Begin with what you value most in your life, and then proceed from there. By doing this you will bring order to the chaos of life, and place those things you value above all else in their appropriate place.
“"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
John 3:16 ESV
We see by this scripture that even God has established goals, and this is His goal as it relates to us... His goal is to love the world, and to provide us with a means of acquiring eternal life, and He accomplished this goal by giving His only Son in sacrifice...
Are you ready to set your life in order? Are you prepared to define what you treasure the most, and what you are willing to do, or not do, to achieve it? If so then I suggest you begin with the greatest core document on the subject... the Bible.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for your Holy Word that guides me through my life. I thank you for your Son Jesus Christ who has redeemed me, and has provided me with a means of forgiveness as I seek to obtain my goal of loving you with all my heart, soul, and mind. Help me Father to set my priorities as you would have them be set, and to place you above all those things I might value as treasure. You are indeed my greatest treasure Father, and are more valuable to me than anything I find in life. You teach me to live, and to behave with honor... you teach me to value love above lust, truth above lies... and all those many character traits which set me apart from those who are in the world. Order my life Holy Father, by establishing my wants and desires in full consideration of your love and will for me. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you my God who establishes me, and leads me into righteousness by your Word, and for your name’s sake. Praised be your name Merciful Father, and all love, honor, truth, goodness, and merciful grace, your banner... your glory! Forevermore!
“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy."”
1 Peter 1:14-16 ESV
Rich Forbes