Goal Setting God’s Way

Every New Year I encounter the same interior battle between the good business practice of setting goals and my Christian understanding of God’s outworking of our purpose and plan. When does goal setting or making New Year’s resolutions cross the Christian line into self-determination?

On the goal-setting side, I’ve taken business courses on time management and goal setting. I believe you can’t get where you want to go without a clearly defined plan.

On the God’s will side of this equation, I know God is in control and if He planned for me to be the next Beth Moore, that is what I’d become. But, if that was not His plan, I could work my fingers to the bone and never achieve success (or if I did, it would be hollow when I got there).

So how do we marry these two concepts? While searching the Scriptures, I discovered the answer tucked within Paul’s letter to the Romans. Paul writes,

“I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you. I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong- that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.” (Romans 1:9-13 NIV)

We can glean several things from Paul’s goal-setting process. First, Paul knew God well enough to make a decision that would be in line with God’s character. This sounds so easy, but if it were then we’d all where WWJD bracelets and be done with the whole thing. So, the first goal I am setting for myself this year is to grow in my knowledge and understanding of who God is. This means setting aside the time necessary to build a relationship. It might also mean taking some things off my schedule.

Second, Paul did not shy away from opposition or a challenge. When his plans to visit his brothers and sisters in Rome were derailed, he looked for the opportunity in the delay. How our lives would change if we saw every setback and every delay as an opportunity?

And finally, Paul repeatedly refers to his willingness to submit his plans to God’s sovereignty. It is interesting to note that Paul submits his plans to God; he isn’t seeking to know God’s plans for him. I meet so many people who are waiting for God to direct their steps instead of making choices with God-given wisdom and then saying, “here are my desires Lord, this is what I believe I am to do, but your will be done.” In our Scripture passage, we see Paul fully embracing his gift of free will while resting in the knowledge that, in the end, God is still in control.

What does this mean for you and I? It tells me we are free to set goals and make plans to achieve those goals. But it also reminds me that God is bigger and wiser than you and I, and He will, in His sovereignty, guide us as He walks with us each and every day in this New Year.

Cheri Cowell is a speaker and the author of Direction: Discernment for the Decisions of Your Life, which offers a biblically-sound, non-nonsense approach to making God-centered life choices.

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