7 unchangeable principles of success

SEVEN (7) UNCHANGEABLE PRINCIPLES OF SUCCESS
Genesis 39:1-6
Success is not something that only a chosen few can achieve. Everyone can be successful in every area of his or her life. You just need to know how to do things in such a way as to make sure you succeed every time. Success comes as a result of forming certain habits, and continuing in them.



To succeed, you need to be a certain type of person. Don’t be discouraged if you are not yet that type of person. The successful person thinks in a certain way, talks in a certain way and acts in a certain way. (Proverbs 21:5; 22:29; 12:24)
1. VISION- Pro.29:18; Gen.37:5-11
Have a clear picture of what exactly it is you want to achieve or become. Keep this picture at the top of your mind at all times. Doing something you want to do, because you want to do it, will motivate you to succeed at it.
2. BELIEF- Rom.4:18; Ps.75:6,7
Believe without a shadow of doubt that you can do it. Believe that you will succeed. Believe in God that He will help you get what you want. Stay away from negative influences (books, people, anything negative), which makes you doubt your ability to succeed. Surround yourself with things that remind you that you can, and will succeed.
3. AFFIRM- Phil.4:13; II Kgs.4:26
Make a habit of saying out loud what you hope to achieve. Speak of it in the present tense. If you feel awkward speaking out loud to yourself, write down the affirmation. This helps your mind stay focused on the goal.
4. COMMITTMENT- Pro.10:4; 13:4
Make a firm commitment to action. Decide to take whatever steps you need to take to help you achieve your goals. Then honor the commitment you have made. Too often we find it easy to keep our commitments to others while neglecting our commitments to ourselves.
5. SET A SMART GOAL-I Sam.17:45-50
Now that you know what you want to achieve or become, you need to define it by making it a goal. Your goal has to be Specific, Measurable (i.e. you need a standard to help you know when you’ve achieved it), Attainable, Realistic, Timed (state when you hope to achieve it).
6. PLAN AND TAKE ACTION-Jos.2:1;6:10,16,20
Work out a plan of action. Breakdown the plan into steps. Take a step or two each day, reminding yourself that each step is bringing you closer to your goal. Perform each act to the best of your ability, filled with faith, determination and purpose to reach your goal.
7. PERSISTENCE-Ruth 1:16; II Kgs.2:2,4
Do not give up until you have achieved what you desire. In the course of things, be willing to change any part of your plan which turns out to not work and try something else. Thomas Edison did not give up in his quest to invent the light bulb, even though he ‘failed’ 10,000 times. Now that’s persistence! See every failure as a stepping stone to success. Learn from it and push on towards your goal.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT
• Stop settling for less than you want
• Don’t let anyone talk you out of your vision
• You have to give up all your excuses. 99% of all failures come from people who have a habit of making excuses.
• Pay attention….Your results don’t lie. The easiest, fastest and best way to find out what is or isn’t working is to pay attention to the results you are currently producing.
• Decide what you want. The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want.
• The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will.
• Unless you change how you are, you will always have what you've got.
• Act as though it is impossible to fail.
• Confidence is the companion of success.
• Choice, not circumstances, determines your success.
• Life's real failure is when you do not realize how close you were to success when you gave up.
• Success: willing to do what the average person is not willing to do.
• What am I willing to sacrifice for what I want to become?
• Yesterday's failures are today's seeds that must be diligently planted to be able to abundantly harvest Tomorrow's success.

By Bro S.G

Please post contributions or any questions or comments.

Dating: a Christian Perspective - part II

The Dark side of Dating

One thing is certain, youths are in the vulnerable period of life and during this time, you may feel powerful surges of sexual desire. There is nothing wrong with this; it is part of growing up. However, there is a great problem with teenage dating because teenagers are just beginning to learn how to control these sexual feelings. A biological fact of life comes into play: The more you keep company of someone you like of the opposite sex, the more sexual desire can grow, whether you want it or not. It is the way all of us are made! Until you are older and more in control of your feelings, dating may be too much for you to handle. Unfortunately, many youths find this out the hard way.

Let’s examine and learn from what a youth said about his experience with dating:
“When we started dating…we didn’t even hold hands or kiss. I just wanted to enjoy the pleasure of her company and talk. However, she was very affectionate and would sit very close to me. In time we started holding hands and kiss. This created within me an even stronger sex drive. It affected my thinking to the point that I wanted to be with her, not just to talk, but to hold her, touch her and kiss. I couldn’t get enough! I was literally going crazy with passion.” Little wonder, then, that dating often ends up in secret sexual relations.
True, you may well know God’s law regarding sex and you may sincerely desire to remain a virgin, but always remember the biological fact of life that comes into play: The more you keep company with someone of the opposite sex, the more sexual desire can grow, whether you like it or not.
1 Corinthians 6: 9-10 KJV “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God”.
1 Corinthians 6:18-20 KJV “Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's”.
Now let’s turn to Genesis 39: 2-11 NIV and learn from how another youth avoided a secret sexual relation by means of his knowledge of God’s law regarding sex and his desire to remain pure/chaste/virgin:
Genesis 39: 2-11 NIV. “The LORD was with Joseph and he prospered, and he lived in the house of his Egyptian master. When his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD gave him success in everything he did, Joseph found favor in his eyes and became his attendant. Potiphar put him in charge of his household, and he entrusted to his care everything he owned...Now Joseph was well-built and handsome, and after a while his master's wife took notice of Joseph and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he refused. "With me in charge," he told her, "my master does not concern himself with anything in the house; everything he owns he has entrusted to my care. No one is greater in this house than I am. My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her. One day he went into the house to attend to his duties, and none of the household servants was inside. She caught him by his cloak and said, "Come to bed with me!" But he left his cloak in her hand and ran out of the house”.
Proverb 1:10 KJV “My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not”.
Put into pointers, the dark side of dating include:
I. Frustration: Yes! You may argue that not every youth that spends lots of time with someone of the opposite sex ends up having sexual relations; some let their display of affection stop just short of it. Okay! But think of this, what results when one is worked up emotionally and has no honorable outlet for such feelings? Frustration!

II. Torn Emotions: Teen romances are always doomed relationships, often terminating in heart break. During the teen years your personality is still in a state of flux because you are discovering who you are, what you really like, what you want to do with your life. Someone who interests you today may not interest you tomorrow and when romantic feelings have been allowed to flourish; someone is bound to get hurt. Several research studies have linked “a fight with a girl friend” or “disappointment in love” to the situations responsible for many youth suicides. After a secret sexual relation, a boy may find that his feelings for the girl are not as strong as before; he may even find her less attractive. A girl on the other hand may feel exploited. Recall the Bible account of the young man Amnon and how lovesick he was over a virgin Tamar. Yet, after intercourse with her, “Amnon hated her exceedingly; so that the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her, Arise, be gone”. – 2 Samuel 13:15.
A girl had a similar experience. She explained that after having sexual relations, she hated herself for her weakness, and hated her boyfriend. In fact, the sex relations they thought would bring them closer ended their relationship. She stated that she didn’t even want to see the boyfriend again. Yes, by having premarital sex, a couple crosses a line over which they can never go back!

III. Teenage Pregnancy: By observing that some of their friends had enjoyed sexual relations without getting pregnant, some girls figured they could do so, too. The truth is whenever one engages in sexual relations there is the risk of pregnancy.

IV: Sexually transmitted Diseases: Some youths feel no guilt whatsoever about having sexual relations. However, sexually transmitted diseases often result from premarital sex.

Galatians 6:7 KJV “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap”. Pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases are just some of the ways one can reap an unpleasant harvest from fornication. Even using birth control is no guarantee that a girl will escape pregnancy.

-Bro Daniel

So what are your thoughts or questions on the dangers of dating?

Dating: a Christian Perspective - part I

In many places dating is seen as a means of romantic entertainment, a fun activity. Dating takes many forms. For some it is a formal structured affair, the agenda includes giving flowers, having a lovely dinner, and a good –night kiss with member of the opposite sex. For others, dating simply means spending time together with someone you like of the opposite sex. There are teenage boys and girls who are often seen together but who claim to be “just friends”. However, whether you call it dating, going together, or just seeing each other, it usually amounts to the same thing: a teenage boy and girl spending lots of time together socially, often unsupervised. Dating was not the custom in Bible times.

The Pressure to Date
I. Peer Pressure: It is not uncommon for you as a teenager to feel under pressure to date because most of your peers probably date, and naturally you do not want to seem weird or different.

II. Pressure from a Relative: The pressure to date may also come from close relatives. A teenage girl explained that when she was asked to go out on a date at age 15, her aunt advised her that whether she wants to marry the boy or not has nothing to do with dating, it is a part of ones natural development as a person and that if she always turn guys down, she will be unpopular and no one will ask her out. This teenager recalls: “Aunties words sunk down deep and I was asking myself, would I be cheating myself out of a good opportunity? The boy had his own car, lot of money; and I felt I would have a great time. Then, I started asking myself, should I date him or not?”

III. Personal desire for warmth and affection: For some youths the pressure comes from their own desires for warmth and affection. They want to be loved and appreciated. An 18 year old female explained that since she was not close to her parents, she turned to her boyfriend to find closeness and to have someone to whom she could pour out her feelings who would really understand.

A teenager should not begin dating simply because he or she feels pressured to do so! Dating is a serious business. It is a part of the process of selecting a marriage partner. Marriage? Yes! This may be the last thing on the minds of most youths who date. But think of this, what justification could there be for two people of the opposite sex to begin spending a lot of time together other than to investigate the possibility of marrying each other?

-Written by Bro. Daniel

So what are your thoughts on the pressure to date?