It’s the heart afraid of breaking that never learns to dance.
It’s the dream afraid of waking that never takes the chance.
It is the one who won’t be taken who cannot seem to give.
And the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live.
From The Rose
Secular writers refer to faith as the “power of focus” or the “law of attraction.” Faith is a powerful tool in the hands of anyone. The problem is that we don’t know what it is. Most of us have a vague concept that faith is mental assent: agreement with or belief in God. That’s part of it, but faith actually produces things. It doesn’t sit around waiting for them to materialize. God spoke, and things that didn’t exist came into being. He is still speaking and things are still materializing. The difference is that He now has sons (Kings) who speak and things materialize – you can be one of them!
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good report. 3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. Heb 11:1-3 KJV
Passive dreams – We’ve developed a great coaching module to help Kings articulate and plan their dreams in The Price of Success. I’ve been surprised at the degree of difficulty in getting people to embrace their own dream and put it in writing. Here are seven obstacles we have to overcome:
1. Theology – we think God should sovereignly intervene so we don’t have to.
The servant mentality is a great ally of poverty. We hide behind pseudo-spirituality to justify our mediocrity. Instead, let’s take the responsibility to shape this world in His image.
2. Heart – I haven’t touched a dream that represents the true desire of my heart. I’m not motivated to plan an artificial dream out of my mind.
We all have to start with the desire God wrote on our heart. Our motivation has to come internally, not externally. A lot of people don’t know what their dream is. Maybe it has been covered over by years of “doing what you’re told” …or for 100’s of other reasons. They have suppressed it so long that they are no longer in touch with it. It’s never too late to take a look at what God has written in your heart.
3. Motivation – I’m not sure what I really want; and even though I think about it, there are many outward factors that I cannot overcome so I take life as it comes – there’s no other way.
Is my motivation coming from an internal leading or an external push?
Externally driven (servants) – view the future negatively, as happening to them in a way that is “reasonable and realistic.” We are not eager to look into our heart to face its dreams and passions or to step out with any initiative, because we look at our circumstances and people around us and make them responsible for the state of our lives. The absence of goals, planning and initiative is our passive shell of protection against the fear of failure – “if you don’t try, you can’t fail.” As a result, our lives are unfulfilled, unfruitful and unexciting. We are wounded over all those “outward factors” that press us into mediocrity. We expect our breakthroughs and help to come from the outside as well… but they never do; we never escape the treadmill of life; money is always in short supply; there are never enough weekends or vacations; retirement can’t come soon enough. Our work is mundane and monotonous, dull, tedious and boring. So are we – servants that have submitted to our circumstances.
Inwardly motivated (Kings) – We take responsibility for every area of our lives, we set up goals, priorities and we plan; despite occasional setbacks, we get up again, shake off the dust, learn something and we move on. We aren’t condemned by failure. We take life’s lessons as a challenge to learn, develop, mature and gain wisdom; we don’t allow outward factors or other people to determinate our self esteem or limit our destiny.
4. Practical – My dream is so big, I don’t know how to make a plan to get there.
There are plenty of coaches and mentors who can help you. You have to “ask”! The Price of Success is a great place to start. I can put you in touch with a coach who can help.
5. Past failure (Can’t start) – Other dreams have failed in the past, what’s the use?
Most of us have or have had hopes and dreams. Many have seen them postponed or crushed, so we subscribe to a theology that says it’s bad to dream of your own goals. In reality, God invites us to dream. He’s not looking for an army of servants filled with resignation and obedience. God wants friends who share His enthusiasm to build the Kingdom and feel some ownership in the plan… a plan they call their own. That’s the spiritual genius of becoming entrepreneurial. It releases a theologically correct aspect of our relationship with God – initiative! Give yourself permission to dream again; be childlike… so we can talk about putting that dream into practice.
6. Follow through (Can’t finish) – I just can’t make myself sit down, do it, and finish it! If the details were in print, I fear accountability for my dream.
Making progress on your dream will energize your heart. God is going to hold us all accountable someday anyway. Why not start now, and get the reward and the satisfaction from fulfilling your destiny?
7. Getting results – I went through the exercise but it hasn’t made any difference.
Some get excited and finish the planning but don’t see immediate results. They may doubt that going through the modules will bring any change. If opportunities do come, they may not be able to make the connection with the planning they have sown and write off the fruit as coincidence.
For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. Heb 10:36 NASU
Why people do take the time to plan their destiny – I have also seen people who do understand their life purpose, have written goals, afformations, a team, cash flow, a schedule and a business plan. The result is amazing. There is something about connecting with the desire God has placed in your heart and putting that process in writing that adds substance to your dream. Opportunities, divine appointments, ideas, creativity, relationships, and finances begin to flow toward you. Every day we look forward to some new area of progress on our dream. It’s exciting to get out of bed in the morning because we have connected the dots between our personal life and what God is doing in the Kingdom. It’s thrilling to be part of the Kingdom! God is raising up a first-fruits crop of spiritual entrepreneurs who know how to multiply finances and convert money into ministry.
Where to start – I want to suggest three simple sources of help, which you can implement with ease.
1. Self help – Read The Price of Success, and visit our Coaching Tools site. It doesn’t cost a dime and it will release the desires in your heart. I’ve gone through this process personally and helped a number of people as well – it works! It puts feet on your faith.
2. Coaching – If you need encouragement and motivation to finish the process, a coach can be a great asset. Be prepared to pay for the service, because it’s worth it. I can recommend some great coaches from our Interviewing Kings page.
3. Mentors – Once you know your vocational / ministry area, the next step is to find a mentor who is already successful in that area. I define mentors as those who make their money and ministry from their own business, and consult others to share their wisdom. Depending upon your area, we may be able to help you connect with a mentor or consultant from the Kings on our interview page.
