One of the major problems people have with goals, desires, and dreams is the discouragement they feel when they fail. Because of that discouragment they downsize their goals or stop setting goals altogether. The other remedy that they come up with is to engage in self-talk that excuses or justifies their failure or worse yet, blames it on others. This attempt to not feel bad, not feel like a failure or a loser, effectively demotivates themselves so that the effort and self-control needed to succeed is gone.

I fail all the time in accomplishing my goals, and regularly am disgusted with myself for my poor showing at a particular goal. It takes some self-training to learn how to set lots of goals, some crazy big ones, to aspire to great accomplishments and stay positive and excited about the future and my potential for accomplishment in spite of the many failures.

The key for me is to celebrate the successes, no matter how few or small they may be, to thank the Lord for the ability and strength that I had to do what I did, and to remake goals that I didn’t accomplish, including dropping some that aren’t realistic for me at this point in my life.

The goals that I remake, may be the exact same goal, they may be adjusted down a bit, or dropped. Often I include some additional strategy or sub-goals to help in accomplishing them. I failed to make it to the top of Mt Adams this year so I made a goal to start running and to run a half marathon this fall to see if that will make the difference. There is the very real possibility that I not only don’t make it to the top of Mt Adams again, but I may also fail to run a half-marathon. I am not giving myself permission to fail making it easy to do so, but I am working at thinking accurately about myself and where I am in life.

I work at maintaining a good attitude about myself so that success and failure in accomplishing my goals don’t shape my self-worth. One of the things I purposely do is to be open and transparent with others about my weaknesses and failures. My recent blog about Patty’s reminders to me to pray with her being the reason we do successfully pray together, was a choice I made following this principle.

My goals are what motivates me and keeps me running the race set before me, they make my life a challenge and exciting, they keep me growing in every area of my life.

Every Christian will stand before Jesus at the end of their life and give an account of their life and be rewarded for the good work that they have done during their life. Paul talks about those things we have done for the Lord going into a heavenly savings account.

Philippians 4:16-17 for even in Thessalonica you sent a gift more than once for my needs. Not that I seek the gift itself, but I seek for the profit which increases to your account.

There are several activities that are mentioned that go into a savings account in heaven. One of them is prayer. The time we spend in prayer here on earth is put into an account under our name in heaven and when we get to heaven we get it back in the form of authority and power.

One of the major misconceptions held by many believers is that when we get to heaven we will all be equal, we will not be equal at all, not even close. There are at least five areas where there will be huge differences in us based on how we lived our life here and now.

1 Corinthians 3:13-15. each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work. If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.

1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

The other day Patty said, “You know, if you and I would pray together more there would be so many more things that would change, we have great power with God.” I am embarrassed to say that most of the praying that Patty and I do is because she reminds me. The more crisis events, challenges, and problems that our kids and grandkids have the more she reminds me that we need to pray.

My personal prayer passion and faith goes up and down a lot, mostly affected by my business in life. Lately as I have been encouraging people to participate in our “Five Days of Prayer” I have had a sharp upward swing in my conviction that prayer is probably the most important thing I do, especially the praying I do with my wife and my church family. God loves unified agreement in prayer, and promises to answer and work in and through us when we do pray.

I get so disgusted with myself when I let all my projects and activities push out my priority on prayer, Bible reading, scripture memory, book reading, and even my blog writing. It is a good thing I have such a godly wife to remind me what is important in life.

In the spring everything kicks into high gear growing. Our lawn needs mowing the day after it is mowed, all the fruit trees bud out and get leaves in a week, and people start planting their gardens.

As a follower of Jesus I have noticed that I have seasons of growth, growth in character and in devotion to Jesus. It isn’t as predictable or as cyclical as spring time growth, but it is observable and fairly easy to come to a conclusion on the cause.

Probably the most radical growth in my life came at the first Pastor’s Prayer Summit led by Joe Aldrich at Cannon Beach in February of 1989. Not only did I grow during the five days of the Prayer Summit, but my prayer life radically changed so that my growth has been at an increased rate ever since.

One of the normal things that happens to people is that they cool off and drift away from radical commitments and life change. Knowing myself, I am sure that is what would have happened to me, but the corporate prayer events at JBC have been very powerful re-energizers for me. In one week we start our “Five Days of Prayer” where we pray from 5 to 10 am and 5 to 10 pm Monday through Friday. I will pray for 8 hours each day, and will be very blessed by the time spent in the prayer room with all the others that choose to come.

I am having a hard time writing my blog tonight. My brain isn’t working very well and I keep falling asleep. ooops 30 minute slumber. I think the only wise thing that I can think of is “when you are sleepy go to sleep.”

I used to spend 45 minutes every day working on memorizing Bible verses. I did it because of the life-transforming power of God’s Word when we meditate on it and review it repeatedly. I also did it because I read that 40% of people with Parkinson’s develop senility issues, but I also read that the mental exercise of memorizing will keep that from happening.

But now, I rarely spend 45 minutes memorizing, usually 30 minutes and sometimes 15 or 20. Why? Because I get busy with other things and run out of time, because I am lazy, because I have lost my motivation to memorize, and it seems like that is just what happens to people for whatever reason. The solution for me is to recommit to my goal and make it part of my every morning commitment prayer.

I see it happen to many people with their Bible reading, their prayer life, and especially their church attendance. Many people drift away from faithfulness to the basic disciplines of the Christian life, then they drift away from God, then they declare that they have lost their faith. I see it happen all the time.

Often I will call a person who has missed attending church service for awhile and ask them if they still love Jesus, they assure me that they do, but I know that they don’t love Him the way they used to. In Revelation 2 Jesus says to those in the church at Ephesus, “ I have this against you that you have left your first love, repent and do the deeds you did at first.”

John 15:2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. John 15:8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.

We glorify God by bearing much fruit with our lives. That means we accomplish much with our life for God, which matters.

I wonder and ponder a lot about how I am doing as a disciple of Jesus. Am I bearing fruit, more fruit, and much fruit. Could I do better? If I think that I am doing alright is it because I compare myself to others or am I really bearing much fruit for God. Is there some new things I can do to bear fruit? I get tired so much easier and sooner than I used to, does God take that into account?

Accomplishing a lot with our life for God is important; it matters. How we do at the “Judgment Seat of Christ” where we are rewarded for eternity for the work we have accomplished with our life, our time, for God, it matters.

God gives strength to accomplish, He gives wisdom to accomplish, He gives resources to accomplish, and He gives opportunities to accomplish much that matters. Who does He give it to? Obviously not everybody, just look around, in fact, not to very many at all, as I said, just look around.

John 15:7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

There it is in plain sight for anybody to see. “Ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” Those who achieve a lot are those who pray a lot. The more we pray the more we will accomplish with our life for God, we will become more and more a high achiever for God.

September 12th to the 16th JBC is having a “Five Day Prayer” event. We will pray from 5 to 10 am and 5 to 10 pm. We will be praying for all the various ministries that are at Jbc. Some people will pray a lot and some won’t pray at all. I think what the determining factor is, whether you want, really want to accomplish much with your life that matters.

I am a big goal-setter. I plan as much of my life as possible. I make lists, and schedules about every detail of my life. Often things don’t happen the way I envisioned them happening. Some people get discouraged with their plans falling apart and stop setting goals and having dreams; it is just too painful and frustrating.

But I don’t get frustrated or discouraged; in fact, just the opposite usually happens, I go into solution mode in my thinking and planning, and the challenge re-energizes me.

I went tuna fishing today out of Newport with some friends. We went 65 miles out which took a long time and we caught three tuna fish and then we had the long boat ride back. There were four of us and our goal was at least 40 tuna. We were on the boat so long that I still walk funny when the floor doesn’t sway and rock.

I don’t have the time to go again this year, but I am making my goals for next year and I have two tuna trips planned! The apostle Paul tells his protege Timothy in 2 Timothy 1:7, “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” Paul is not talking about being timid with people, but being timid with life, don’t let life with its challenges, problems, failures, and disappointments intimidate you, instead conquer them.

These are pictures from last year’s tuna fishing trip, and I am going again tomorrow. I am hoping it is good tomorrow as it was last year. Last year was my first-time Tuna fishing and I hope to make it at least an annual event.