Life Promises for Success: Promises from God on Achieving Your Best

First Chapter

LIFE PROMISES FOR SUCCESS

Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.

Chapter One

"I am only one, but I am one. I can't do everything, but I can do something. And what I can do, I ought to do. And what I ought to do, by the grace of God, I shall do." EDWARD EVERETT HALE

LIFE PROMISES

"I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope." JEREMIAH 29:11

Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. PROVERBS 4:25-26

You can make many plans, but the Lord's purpose will prevail. PROVERBS 19:21

Success Is a Journey

Success is a journey that we all take, and it affects every phase of our lives. In order to thrive during that journey, we have to have a clear view of what success is, what it isn't, and what it will take to achieve it. Many people define success by how much money they make or how far up the corporate ladder they can ascend. Coaches or athletes define it in terms of championships, winning records, or great individual statistics. Championships and wins are fine goals. Goals are important, but it's important to understand that people are not defined by their goals and whether or not they reach them. A win or a loss does not make you or me a better or worse human being. This is where, in our society, we've so easily lost perspective on the truth about who we are. We have to separate who we are from what we do. Understanding the difference between purpose and goals is essential to understanding the true definition of success.

LIFE PROMISES

Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! ECCLESIASTES 5:10

Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed. PROVERBS 16:3

Don't love money; be satisfied with what you have. HEBREWS 13:5

How Do You Define Success?

John Wooden, the legendary UCLA basketball coach, is one of my heroes. In his autobiography, They Call Me Coach, he defines the elusive quality of success: "Success is peace of mind, which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming." That's a great definition. First, it takes away any external characterization of success and puts the responsibility on the individual to define his or her own success. Coach Wooden wrote his definition in 1972, at a time when many people defined success by the kinds of cars they drove, the houses they lived in, what jobs they had, and what material possessions they owned. In other words, it was a lot like it is today. But Wooden's description of success transcends the dictionary definition. It's not the accumulation of material possessions or the gaining of a certain amount of prestige or rank. It's not moving up the ladder at work, becoming famous, or gaining political power. Success is found in "peace of mind."

LIFE PROMISES

Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! 2 CORINTHIANS 5:17

God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. PHILIPPIANS 1:6

Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me. PSALM 51:10

The Guy in the Glass

When you get what you want in your struggle for pelf, And the world makes you King for a day, Then go to the mirror and look at yourself, And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn't your Father, or Mother, or Wife, Who judgment upon you must pass. The feller whose verdict counts most in your life Is the guy staring back from the glass.

He's the feller to please, never mind all the rest, For he's with you clear up to the end, And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test If the guy in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum, And think you're a wonderful guy, But the man in the glass says you're only a bum If you can't look him straight in the eye.

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years, And get pats on the back as you pass, But your final reward will be heartaches and tears If you've cheated the guy in the glass.

DALE WIMBROW

LIFE PROMISES

Blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. JEREMIAH 17:7

Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you. DEUTERONOMY 31:6

Be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age. MATTHEW 28:20

What's Your Self Worth?

We must never let goals, adversity-or even success-define us. Those things don't hit at the heart of who we are. It's hard in today's society to keep success in its proper perspective and not base our sense of self-worth on what we do. But if we can get there, it's such a comfort. If we lose a game, a promotion, or an account, we're not losers-that's not who we are. And by the same token, if we win a game, get a promotion, or land a big deal, that doesn't make us wonderful people. We achieved our goal, and that has its place, but that success-or any failure-doesn't define us. The thing we should most enjoy about any endeavor is the road we travel together to get there.

"To be what we are, and to become what we are capable of becoming, is the only end of life." ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON

LIFE PROMISES

Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ... No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. ROMANS 8:35, 37

Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. PROVERBS 3:5-6

Who You Are

Many people get frustrated when they set out on a particular course and then can't reach the end. But you have to remember that success isn't necessarily doing what you thought was perfect for you when you were eighteen. As you progress through life, you may find that your purpose is a little different from what it was when you started out. Maybe you were fired from your first job, or maybe you just didn't like it. That doesn't make you a failure. Losing a job, changing your major, facing setbacks-those things don't make you a failure because they aren't about who you are.

"Fame usually comes to those who are thinking about something else." OLIVER WENDELL HOLMES

LIFE PROMISES

Let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up. GALATIANS 6:9

Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. HEBREWS 10:36

We are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. EPHESIANS 2:10

The True Measure of Success

Success is a journey. It is defined not by those outside of us-who give us awards or bestow honor-or even by getting that promotion or winning a championship. The true measure of success is whether we feel good about our ability to contribute to whatever team we're on. Ultimately then, to have a successful journey, we must have the faith and belief that we can and will be successful. It is vital that we be equipped and prepared for the journey and that we constantly remind ourselves of our ultimate purpose.

"We are only beaten when we cease to believe what we can be." AUTHOR UNKNOWN

LIFE PROMISES

I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. PHILIPPIANS 4:13

Dear brothers and sisters, never get tired of doing good. 2 THESSALONIANS 3:13

Whatever you do, do well. ECCLESIASTES 9:10

The Best You Can Do

Whether you're a business owner, you work for a corporation, you're a coach, a player, or a mother of three-no matter what circumstances are in your past and no matter what obstacles you face in the future-you can win in the game of life. You can succeed as long as you define success as the inner satisfaction and peace of mind that come from knowing you did the best you were capable of doing.

"The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short; but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark." MICHELANGELO

LIFE PROMISES

Let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. HEBREWS 12:1-2

I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 1 CORINTHIANS 9:26

Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. PHILIPPIANS 3:13-14

A Grand Adventure

Dr. Karl Menninger refers to hope as "an adventure, a going forward, a confident search for a rewarding life." I believe that every person needs to discover that perspective. We're all on an adventure, but some of us haven't fully embraced it. Moving forward and gaining confidence in search of true success is a lifelong endeavor. If we begin when we're young, we're able to see the changes we consciously make over the years, and we're better equipped to evaluate our progress. But even if we're not so young anymore, we can begin today to develop our purpose and set our goals for the years still to come. It's never too late to seek and find that rewarding life.

"Hope is an adventure, a going forward, a confident search for a rewarding life." DR. KARL MENNINGER

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Excerpted from LIFE PROMISES FOR SUCCESS by JIM TRESSEL Copyright © 2011 by Jim Tressel. Excerpted by permission.
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