Realize Necessity! –
It’s been said that a salesperson learns to sell when they get hungry. With hunger comes the need to make money – rather, to sell. Necessity or need often fuels desire, and desire fuels success.
Think about it. It’s a whole lot easier to be successful if you need it or at least have the desire for it. It’s much harder if you don’t because it’s easier to do nothing and to not have goals.
We can create in our minds to some degree the necessity to do something by thinking about where we’d like to be in two, five, or ten years. If we will take this activity to the Lord, and let Him create the goal, He’ll give us the desire to achieve it, and He’ll provide for it.
However, achieving success still requires us to do our part. We’ll be able to more easily see the necessary steps when we work backwards from our perceived necessary two, five, or ten-year goal.
Consider the short-term goal in the following story:
And again he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house. And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them. And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee. But there were certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts, Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God only? And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk? But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.
Mark 2:1-12
Four people brought the man to see Jesus. However, their goal was more than seeing Jesus. They probably could have waited outside at a distance and done that. Instead, their goal was healing for their friend – something they found to be necessary.
The crowd was an obstacle. If they really wanted to succeed – have their friend healed – it was necessary that they find another way into the building. Their friend’s need – which ultimately became their need – fueled their desire. This desire – wanting to see their friend healed – motivated them to climb up on the roof. Ultimately, their desire fueled their success because they did what was necessary (climbing up on a building), to make what was necessary (putting their friend in front of Jesus) happen!
LIFE APPLICATION
Those 4 men did not have to take their friend to see Jesus. They could have stayed home. They could have quit outside the building when they saw the crowd, but they didn’t.
Are you willing to be successful today? Are you willing to go to God and let Him set your goals? Are you willing to realize the necessity of being successful in those goals and of each step along the way? Are you willing to let that necessity create a desire in your heart?