How to Walk in Success

January 30, 2008 at 7:40 am | In Daily Inspiration | Leave a Comment
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I saw this cartoon on the web and thought it so apt in describing about humanity seeking God desperately for success. :)

Friends, have you ever wished for success? I have! Just like the rest of humanity, I do not want to live life mundanely – just going through the motions. I want my life to count. I want to be successful.

However, success, in most people’s definition, is merely about material possessions.

Someone once said this: “He who has the most toys wins!”

I disagree… because he who has the most toys still dies!”

Success is more than just earning a status. Success is about a meaningful life — walking out your calling, your purpose with God’s supernatural competence, in a context of meaningful relationships.

Friends, are you waiting for success? Waiting for success to come your way?

If you are, you can keep on waiting; for the rest of your life. Why? Because success is not attained with you just waiting for it.

Someone once said this: Success is about who you are & what you do every day and every night. Nobody becomes a success overnight. It is a purpose-driven life, totally focused on living out your destiny daily.

This revelation came just recently when I was conversing with God. God started speaking to me about His definition of success and most of all, how I can be successful in Him.

 

Read with me, Joshua chapter 1:1-9 on God’s simple principles for success.

The inspiration for the SUCCESS acronym came during a time of meditation.

  • S – Spirit led – The Spirit life is most important. 

  • U -  Under cover – God’s guidance from His word -”Allow Me to guide you daily

  • C – Calling – “Walk out My calling for your life. Stop struggling with Me and start doing what I have called you to do. Many times, you have allowed your own feelings and frustration to hinder your progress in your calling.”

  • C – Confidence – Confidence comes with you knowing His abiding presence.

  • E – Expect great Exploits – Expectancy keeps you going!

  • S – Stop the negative – Stop complaining, grumbling and thinking negatively.

  • S – Start afresh each day with God’s presence. See life simply. See the potential. See through God’s eyes of success daily.

Friends, success doesn’t come all at one time. In fact, many times, success comes to you only through a process, when you have walked through different phases.

Don’t be contented with the past. Do not dwell in past glories. Get going. Move on, move into your promised land. The Promised Land symbolizes success to Joshua.

Friends, what is your Promised Land? It could be your specific calling and purpose in life. Or perhaps, it could be achieving a tertiary education, a post-graduate degree, or overcoming some of your fears in life.

Or your Promised Land can even be to see a reconciliation take place in your marriage, seeing a turnaround in your career, seeing that all-important deal take place which will turn your company around and make it profitable.

Friends, you can be like Joshua today. You can cross over and possess your Promised Land. I would like you to be able to identify what your Promised Land may be. If it is certain measurable goals that you desire to attain, I would like you to keep them in mind as I continue sharing on the S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Acronym.

 

Now, let’s look at Joshua and see how God guided him to be successful.

  1. Joshua knew how to walk in the Spirit. He heard God speaking. Just like his master, Moses, there was Spirit-to-spirit communication. He was guided by the Spirit of God. Joshua learnt this when he was an assistant to Moses. Even after Moses left the Tent of Meeting and the Presence of God, the Bible says that Joshua would remain.

  2. Joshua knew that God was with him and that God will guide him into the Promised Land. The guidance comes from God’s presence, God’s promises, and God’s commands. He was instructed not to depart from it, neither turning to the right or the left but to strictly follow it.

  3. Joshua was called to lead God’s people to cross Jordan, to take the land and then distribute it to the 12 tribes. That was his calling, that was his purpose — to bring new life and hope to a new generation of Israelites to possess the PROMISED LAND filled with milk and honey.

  4. Joshua was confident. He was bold and courageous. He was instructed to be very bold and courageous. He was reminded not to be discouraged. Why? Because discouragement destroys confidence and without confidence, we cannot achieve success.

  5. Joshua expected God to keep His word. Joshua expected God to work miracles and wonders through him. Joshua expected great exploits from God. He saw how Moses parted the RED SEA – He knew that God could do it. He was EXPECTANT.

  6. Joshua knew the need to stop complaining. Grumbling caused the Israelites to wander for 40 years because of the evil report of the 10 spies. This time round, he knew better; maybe that’s why He only sent 2 spies! 2 spies who brought back a positive report.

  7. Joshua told the people to SEE the ARK & follow it. Start seeing the ARK daily in your life – for you have not been this way before. Start seeing possibilities… start seeing God at work.

So, how can all these be applied in your life?

  • S – Success begins with God’s Spirit. It can’t be achieved by your own flesh. Breakthroughs must be birthed in your spirit first. Maybe you have been trying too hard — trying to achieve something without God’s approval and favor. Allow God to birth some new ventures, ideas within you as you read this post. I have heard many testimonies of how God has released strategies for business, business ideas, design concepts, marketing strategies… to His people as they sought His face.

  • U – Success comes when you come Under cover – under God’s daily guidance. We can’t make it with His help. Are you spending time with God regularly? Are you seeking Him for wisdom, counsel and guidance? Whether you are a student, professional, homemaker, clerk, we all need God’s guidance in the arenas of our work, business and family.

  • C – Success comes when you obey His Calling for your life. You can’t run away. Maybe you have resisted the call of God. Perhaps you are trying to be someone you are not. you have lost sight of God’s calling upon your life as SALT & LIGHT in the marketplace. Perhaps you only see your profession solely as a source of monetary supply. Your work is a worship unto God! Perhaps God is calling you today to that place of rededication again.

  • C – Success comes when you are Confident in Christ. You can do nothing without God. A recent crisis may have shaken your confidence. If confidence is lacking, run to Jesus. Don’t trust in “horses and chariots. Trust in the name of the Lord our God.” He is your Confidence today.

  • E – Success comes when you Expect great exploits. You can do more than just the ordinary. Snap out from the mundane… expect something from God — today!

  • S – Success comes when you Stop confessing negative. It’s time to put a red traffic light sign on the negative and tell the vehicles of discouragement and negativity to stop in their track.

  • S – Success comes when you Start Seeing God at work before you. Start seeing possibilities in impossibilities, opportunities in crisis.

Friends, God wants you to be successful – but you can only attain it through His principles. Do not stray away from His truth.  Remember, God loves you and He has a wonderful plan for your life. You may have made numerous mistakes, but do not be discouraged. Confess your inadequacies to Jesus and ask Him to lead you.  Walk with Jesus onto the paths of Success today!

Shalom!

Rev. Bryan Tan

Bryan Tan Ministries

Lifting People into their Destinies

Fearfully & Wonderfully Made

January 23, 2008 at 2:15 am | In Daily Inspiration | Leave a Comment
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My son came back home from school yesterday bursting into tears. Choking in sadness, he tried to tell us what happened. It was photo-taking day in school and most of the boys came with hair nicely “gel-ed”. He did not! During photo-taking, a small group of children and one adult commented that he did not look nice at all; just because his hair was not “neatly combed”.

He was badly hurt by the negative comments. He continued crying; wallowing in self pity.

While comforting him, Jen and I recognized this as a teaching moment. We reinforced our love for him. We reminded him that he is good-looking; much to our parental pride. We shared that God made each one special and we are valued by God regardless of what others might say. We taught him not to be affected by negative remarks but learn to defend himself without being rude.

Finally, he was pacified and was happy again.

During the time of talking with Victor, I was reminded of how easy it is for us (even as adults) to fall prey to negative remarks. All through life, we go through daily bombardments of thoughts like “you’ll never make it”, “why can’t you be as good as…”, etc. If we are not careful, we can actually believe in these lies. The moment these negative thoughts form a stronghold around our mind, our perspective of our identity is tainted and tarnished.

HOW WE SEE OURSELVES AFFECT HOW WE LIVE. 

If our perspective is always negative, we will be negative. If our perspective is one of insecurity, we live feeling insecure of who we are. If our perspective is one of fear, we live demonstrating a lack of confidence. These wrong paradigms, if not being checked, will begin to re-shape our lives and affect our future consequentially.

So the question is, “Do we know our identities? Do you know who you are? Have you momentarily forgotten about your God-given identities?”

As children of God, we must see ourselves through God’s eyes. We cannot afford to allow ourselves to be defined by the world. We can either believe in these negative remarks, and live beneath our potential in God or we can renew our mind with God’s truth about our identity in Christ and rise to live as a victor.

This is not some new age theory or self help philosophy. I am not talking about mere SELF IMAGE. We cannot be consumed by SELF (man-made theories) to make us feel good about ourselves. The self talk without being God focused can be self deceiving and in denial.

Our self image must come from God and His truth. God’s word is absolute, unchanging and true. HOW YOU SEE YOURSELVES IN GOD AFFECT HOW YOU LIVE. So, let’s focus on Psalm 139. These scriptures tell us a lot about our identities; the way God sees us. God is love and He values you. If we as earthly parents know how to value our children, how much more will our Heavenly Father pour His love on us?

  • God knows you intimately (Psalm 139:1-6).

  • God is always with you; even through extreme situations (Psalm 139:7-12).

  • God created you special. There is no replica. You are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139:13-16).

  • Your self identity is only as strong as your thought life. You need to treasure God’s thoughts about you (Psalm 139:16-18, 23-24).

So, as you meditate on these verses, allow God to speak with you about His heart for you. Stop believing in the lies of the world. Make a decision today not to allow the world and your surroundings to define you. Allow God to define you and BELIEVE His word.

So, the next time you look in the mirror, say this with conviction, “I am fearfully and wonderfully made by God.” The next time you are tempted to think negative thoughts about yourself, remember Psalm 139 and … remember that our heavenly Father loves you.

Blessings

Rev. Bryan Tan

Bryan Tan Ministries

Lifting people into their destinies

 

What is popular is not always godly!

January 9, 2008 at 6:16 pm | In Daily Inspiration | Leave a Comment
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I had a conversation with a Christian Minister today and we had a great discussion time encouraging each other in our walk with God, our family and our ministry. In the midst of a short yet fruitful sharing, we chanced upon the topic on obeying God.

This conversation triggered my memory of what I wrote in my journal a few months ago.

 I was in the process of making a decision and different people had offered their well meaning advice. I was torn in between obeying God and trying to please men. It was during this time of tension when God spoke, “What is popular is not always godly.” Immediately, that brought clarity in my spirit and I knew deep down inside, God had confirmed that I was to obey Him wholeheartedly as contrary to popular thinking.

In no way am I against seeking council from people whom we respect. I am 100% for it. We must seek God, seek inputs from godly people around us and make a decision accordingly. But sometimes, in the process of weighing your options, the temptation to choose the easy way out is so attractive. I am sure you can also identify with that.

Yet, this is the time we need to be reminded that popular opinions may not always be God’s opinions. As disciples, we must allow His word to take centrality in our lives. That means we are to obey even when it is inconvenient, difficult and unpopular.

In reading Deuteronomy 28, I felt God reminding me not to be too casual when it comes to the things of God. We often fall into the trap of carrying a frivolous attitude when it comes to Christianity; especially with regards to God’s commandments. We go for every session of impartation, anointing, blessing, prayers for business breakthroughs but when it comes to plain obedience, we tend to make come out with 101 excuses. This is our HUMAN NATURE – unredeemed and unsanctified. But we don’t have to remain that way. Choose God, choose obedience and choose life.

God’s word clearly exhorts us that obedience is of great importance for a Christian.

Here are some principles I have learnt from Deuteronomy 28:

  1. Obedience must be wholly from the heart. Lip services don’t count much in God’s kingdom.

  2. Obedience cannot be partial. Partial obedience is still disobedience.

  3. Full obedience leads to careful attention to God’s commands. Our attitude to God’s commands matters alot.

  4. Full obedience releases the blessings of God.

Friends, obedience brings pleasure to our Father – that should be our aim as children of God. Obedience also brings blessings. So, make this your personal commitment today and live a life of obedience unto JESUS. 

Here’s my prayer, use them as your own too.

“Lord, let me grow in absolute obedience. Let me live a surrendered life. Teach me to live according to Your opinions rather than the “popular thinking” of this world. Place a desire within me to be LIKE YOU- one who remained obedient to the Father, His will even to the extent of death. Make me an obedient servant today.” AMEN!

Blessings in JESUS,

Rev. Bryan Tan

Bryan Tan Ministries

Lifting People into their Destinies

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