Do you feel that with the many pressures and challenges of life your giving your 100% just to juggle the day to day?

 

We all have goals in life, great things we want to achieve for God and His Kingdom. 

Yet, with the many pressures of life we can easily become overwhelmed and lost when it comes to pursuing the deeper goals and desires God has placed on our hearts. 

 

Uncertainty about where to start and what exactly to do can paralyze us into a state of indecision and inaction. Having a tool to break through these moments will change everything.

 

Prayer is always the first place to start, but while we often must wait on the Lord, we can’t forget to take action and “knock” so that He can open the door to a fuller and richer life.

 

This exercise will renew your strength in God and give you a strategic plan of action for rising above life’s biggest challenges.

 

A similar form of this exercise is called “mind storming”.  I added an additional step to give it the supernatural dimension of renewing one’s heart and mind in God.

 

Step 1: Take a piece of paper and write out your biggest goal/challenge in the form of a question - be as specific as possible

 

Examples:

How can I form the habit of daily meditation?

How can I get out of debt?

How can I lose 20 pounds?

How can I be more understanding with my spouse?

How can I get a certain job?

How can I break habit "x" and form habit "y"?

 

Step 2: Write out 20 answers to this question

 

This will require you to rack your brain and be creative in seeing new and different ways of doing things.  The first 5 will come easily, the next 5 will be a little harder and the last 10 will definitely require you to be creative and think outside the box.

 

Most people fail on their goals because they have a bad or incomplete strategy. Thinking you just need more motivation and then setting out to do the same things you did before will more than likely just prolong the road to failure.  Dig deep – go beyond things you would normally do, and challenge your brain to use its God given imagination to find the breakthrough idea you need.

 

I use this exercise a lot – for business, personal goals, relationships and in the spiritual life.  I have often found that the breakthrough idea I needed was my 20th answer.  Persevere.

 

Step 3: See the great things God wants to bring into your life through this challenge

 

Prayerfully ask yourself these questions and write out the answers:

 

What is great about this particular challenge?

How might God be using this challenge to better me as a person?

How might God be using this challenge to guide me in His plan for my life?

 

We naturally see what is hard and terrible about the challenges in our life.  In this state, not much gets done except wishing our problems away.

 

Focusing on what is great about the challenges in your life will help bring you peace and even excitement when you can see God’s providential hand at work. Your greatest challenges will become your greatest blessings.

 

Step 4: Identify the next action you need to take and do it as soon as possible

 

When you complete that action, tackle the next priority on your list.  Make a point to do something everyday.  In one week, you will have made tremendous progress.

 

So grab a piece of paper and hone in on your biggest challenge.  Improving this area of your life will give you the leverage and momentum to knock out your smaller goals on the way.

 

If you did this exercise today, how improved would your life be in one week?

 

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