Planning For Success

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"I love it when a plan comes together" - Hannibal - A-Team

I don't know who said, "If you fail to plan you plan to fail." There is some truth to that. However, just because you plan does not mean you will not fail. Successful planning takes some other things as well. You can plan all you want, but if you go against God, you will fail!

Proverbs 16:1 says, "To man belong the plans of the heart, but from the LORD comes the reply of the tongue." Again, Proverbs 16:9 says, "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." You can plan all you want but if it goes against God's purpose it will fail.

Proverbs 19:21 explains that, "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails." If you want to succeed then you need to plan according to God's purposes not yours. One thing that will bring success into an individuals life or that of an organization is following God's purposes.

The above picture is often what planning is about for some people.

Now delving into the purpose of God for your life is a whole other topic which we can cover at another time. I will say that it could be summed up in the greatest commandments (Mark 12:28-31). However, there are individual gifts God gives each of us which also determine the various purposes which God has in mind specifically for our individual lives.

We may all have the same macro-purpose which is shareuniversalsly but then we have micro-purposes by which we uniquely accomplish the larger shared purposes. So in order to plan your life, you must find God's purpose for you based upon his mission, his commands, and your individual gifts. The same is true of an organization. Follow his mission, and his commands by the use of your unique giftedness.

Proverbs 16:3 says, "Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." Finding God's purpose in his word, seeking his wisdom in prayer (James 1:5), and acting upon his commands and our conscience is how we commit our way to Him for success. The word for "commit" in Proverbs 16:3 is the Hebrew word "gaw-lal" which means, "to roll together." We must "roll" our way up with the Lord's way, then we will find success. We must align our purposes with His purposes.

The question is, how do we know whether or not we have rolled up our purposes with his? How do we know we are doing his will not just in our macro-planning but also in our micro-planning? Here are three steps toward rolling up your purposes in Gods.

1. Make sure your plans line up according to what God says is right and wrong.

Proverbs 12:5 says, "The plans of the righteous are just, but the advice of the wicked is deceitful." God is just and true. He leads in righteousness ndeceitiet or sin. God's purpose is not for you to sin but to do good. To say it plainly, your plans must obey Biblical teaching or they are NOT in line with God's purpose. God's word and God's will will never contradict each other. For example, it is never God's will that you commit fornication with someone so you can evangelise them. God is never calling you to sin. It's never God's will that you break his commands to accomplish his plans for you.

2. Make sure you get advice from multiple wise advisers

Proverbs 20:18 "Make plans by seeking advice; if you wage war, obtain guidance. " One of the ways God teaches us is by using those who have rolled themselves up in his purposes to the point where they are source of divine wisdom, having walked with God already. Each man contains his own set of unique gifts, insights and wisdom. No man possesses all gifts, insights or wisdom. Therefore, we neeed multiple advisors to gain a full spectrum of knowledge to base plans off of.

Many advisors are necessary. Proverbs 24:6 says, "for waging war you need guidance, and for victory many advisers." How many plans have failed because people rushed in with haste without seeking advice? How many people have listened only to limited advice and lost sight of God's purpose? Even bad advice can make good advice more clear. Wisdom listens to all sides of matter in order to discover the truth. Proverbs 15:22 says, "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed."

3. Make sure you diligently plan and follow your plan rather than hastily choose.

Proverbs 21:5 says, "The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty."

Too often people rush into things. I have seen people discover the Macro-purposes of God for their life or their church, then they rush to obey them without properly planning God's micro-purposes for them or their congregation. For example, it is one thing to know that God wants you evangelise the lost. But if you rush into it without considering how to approach outsiders, you will disobey God's command (Colossians 4:5) and most likely drive the outsider away from faith rather than to it.

Our church decided we needed two worship services to make room for growth. Wanting to solve the problem, we rushed into it without fully involving many advisors and consulting the deacons over areas of ministry effected by this change. We implementedted it in a short time without giving time for diligent planning and prayer. This haste led to a very bumpy transition.

Success comes to those who plan by discovering God's purposes, hold to His word, seek many advisors, and plan diligently before acting.