Coming up this week…

A free ebook on the 8 strategies successful people are using now to accomplish more next year.
Why I believe it's proper for Christians to set goals…it's even our "sacred duty."
And then, of course, 5 Good Reasons to Set Goals for 2017 (Even If You Hate Goal-Setting)

Click here to download or listen to this episode now.

Spiritual Foundations

There are those in the family of faith that believe that setting goals is "sinful arrogance". The argument for this belief comes from the book of James in the New Testament. James, the brother of Jesus, says this…

"Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit'— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.' As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16)

James is echoing the sentiment of this passage from the Old Testament:

"Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring." (Proverbs 27:1)

Do these verses teach us that setting goals is sinful arrogance? I don't think so. In fact, I think it is our duty as Christians to set goals, and I have three strong reasons to support that assertion. We'll get to those in a moment, but first I want to tackle this idea that Christians should not set goals at all.

People who hold this view (that goal-setting is wrong) usually offer as argument the idea that they are "free to be led by the Spirit". They want to be sure they are "open to God's will". There are at least three incorrect pre-suppostions embedded within this position. If this is your belief, you are assuming:

Your "feelings" and "promptings" are the one and only infallible way of accessing God's specific plan and will for any situation. You can only trust those feelings of yours to know when you are "in God's will". Hello, scary cult leader. Our emotions are important for relating to God and what He is saying, but they don't rule over everything else. Sometimes our feelings are just inaccurate. Even Jesus experienced this. In the Garden of Gethsemane the night before His crucifixion, he was emotionally distressed and asked God to spare him from the horrors that lay ahead. But Jesus ultimately conceded, "Not my will but Yours." Emotionally, he did not want to experience what was to come – but He knew it had to be done, and He did it.
The second pre-supposition those opposed to goal-setting make is that Holy Spirit only leads us spontaneously – that He never leads us to make plans. That is simply not supported by scripture. Paul made plans (Romans 1:13). The early Apostles made plans ( Acts 6:1-3). Jesus made plans (Matthew 10:5-15).
Finally, those holding the "no goal-setting" view are disregarding the fact that we can also hear the voice of the Holy Spirit though God's written word. The Bible makes it clear that we can receive fresh revelation from god through his written word ( Matthew 4:4, 2 Timothy 3:15-17).

Just like we are supposed to be good stewards of our wealth, we are also supposed to be good stewards of our life. Selah.

Tip Of The Week

Get Michael Hyatt's ebook, "Achieve What Matters in 2017".

This is an incredible download. More than 30 thought leaders, influencers, and high achievers all share their top strategies for starting the year off with a bang.

You'll recognize many of the names as they include multiple best-selling authors, speakers, and leaders of their respected fields. People like:

Tony Robbins
John Maxwell
Dave Ramsey
Marie Forleo
Andy Andrews
Jeff Walker
Amy Porterfield
Lysa TerKeurst
Andy Stanley
Chalene Johnson
Lewis Howes
and many others…

It's all available here.

As we get closer to the start of 2017, the timing on this couldn't be any better. The insights were pretty incredible, so make sure you take a look for yourself…

Also watch for the Free LifeScore App Wednesday, November 30th, (day after tomorrow, if you're listening to this on release day)…

If life were a game, what would your score be?

Even if you aren't competitive, how would you rank each area of your life?

Would you give yourself a good score with your health?
What about your finances or relationships?
What if there was a way you could measure yourself in the areas that matter most–so that you can improve?
What if you could get an overall score for your life, take it to the next level, and create the life you want?

Well, now you can. If you're not on our email list, get signed up today so we can notify you when this is released Wednesday, or you can go to https://rayedwards.com/lifescore (that link will not work until Wednesday, November 30th).

Feature Segment: "5 Good Reasons to Set Goals for 2017 (Even If You Hate Goal-Setting)"

You have goals already – wouldn't you rather set them consciously?
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Goals keep you moving forward, even when it's tough.
Having written, measurable goals keeps you accountable.
If you want to be your best possible self, you must have a plan to achieve that.

Some additional thoughts:

To be effective goals must be written, measurable, and regularly measured.
There are many systems for setting goals, the one that has worked best for me is Michael Hyatt's 5 Days to Your Best Year Ever.
When Michael opens up BYE, I hope you'll join me in the journey for 2017.

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