God Has Done Enough

Ahhh,  another year, another “New Year New You”  Facebook post.  

On December 31st, millions of saints and aints  will head to their favorite Watch Night Service (some of whom will go there and then head to the club) and ring in the new year by praising the Lordt and asking him to bless those 2018 goals. Pastors all over the country will be praying down the angels from heaven and asking that their members be blessed in abundance, with cups that runneth over, chile.  And undeniably,  people are going to shout “AMEN” when the Pastor asks God to do “a new thing”  in 2018.  

But lean in, sis.  Let me let you in on a little secret. God has done enough.

There’s a scripture in the Bible that says “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” For the most part,  people do a really good job on the first leg of the race.  We are pretty good at asking.  We find all kinds of ways to make requests.  We tell our friends.  We write it down.  We make elaborate vision boards.  We journal about it. We post it on social media.  There’s nothing wrong with any of these things.  Heck,  I’ve done every single one of them.  EVERY. SINGLE. ONE.  But,  that’s normally where we stop.  And, to make matters worse, after we stop (and subsequently don’t reach our goals), we blame it on goal-setting.  “That’s why I don’t make New Year’s Resolutions….they don’t even work.”  

No boo.  YOU didn’t work.

So,  let’s try something different in 2018. Instead of laying at the altar and crying for the 30 minutes about your how your dreams and desires from 2017 didn’t come true; instead of treating your church’s New Year’s Eve service like a pep rally before a football game;  instead of petitioning God yet again about the same goals you had in 2017 (and 2016 and 2015 and 2014); let’s do some work.  Let’s look at the other two parts of that scripture and let’s execute.  

The Second Leg - Seeking
Do some research and create a plan for your goals.  Don’t just talk about losing weight.  Find a program to join that will teach you about portion control.  Do some research on the internet about foods you need to eat and then plan some time to prep your meals for the week.  Don’t just set a goal to start that nonprofit.  Go to Google, type in “How to Start a Nonprofit”  and figure out what steps you need to take.  Then, plan out a deadline for when you are going to take those steps.

Remember that when you set a goal it needs to be SMART - specific, measurable, achievable, reasonable and results based and time-sensitive.   That being said,  “I want to be healthy”  is not a goal; that’s a wish.  “I want to lose 15 lbs in 4 months” is a goal.

The Third Leg - Knocking
Too often, we are asking and seeking with no action.  We go to God with these amazing dreams (and we may even do the research) and then we expect that He’s going to magically drop those accomplished dreams in our lap.  Bye, Felicia.  God has done enough.  He has given you life, health and strength.  He gave you the idea for the goal or dream you want to accomplish.  He gave His son who has provided you with redemption and salvation.  He gave you Google.  You can literally type in a question about how to do ANYTHING and in less than a second, you can get thousands and thousands of answers.  Chile, what else do you want?  God to do it for you?  Nope.  It’s your turn to put in some work for the things you want out of life.  It’s your turn to knock on some doors.  Ask for help from your network.  Say your dreams out loud to as many people as will listen. You never know...someone you know may know someone else who can help you accomplish your goal. But the time for hoping your dreams come to pass without any actual work on your part is O.V.E.R.  You want it?  You gotta be #TeamAction in 2018.

If you’re interested in putting some action behind your dreams, subscribe to shannondenean.com to stay connected.  In January, we’ll be setting up a community of people who are serious about reaching their goals as well as providing  sure-fire methods to helping you get to the finish line of your dreams. We’ll also provide you with some check-ins to keep you on point.  

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