Question 1

Why are goals important?

Accepted Answer

Genesis 12:1-3The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.”God’s goals set the agendas for our lives. God’s promise to Abram gave Abram such a strong purpose and direction that he risked everything to pursue it.Mark 10:45“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”1 Corinthians 9:26So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.The right overarching and intermediate goals keep us focused on our primary mission and determine how we conduct our lives. Jesus’ goal of giving his life in service for others shaped the way he lived each day, guiding every interaction with the people he met. Our own smaller goals need to be guided by the same overarching goal of unselfish service to others.Job 6:11“But I don’t have the strength to endure. I have nothing to live for.”Goals give us strength and endurance during the challenging times in our lives.1 Corinthians 9:16Preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News!2 Corinthians 5:14Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life.Hebrews 12:1-3Since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up.God-centered goals are motivating. Keeping focused on Christ and his purposes for us will help us endure and persevere.1 Peter 3:8-9Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing.Defining and achieving our goals can be rewarding when they help and bless others.Psalm 40:8“I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart.”Pursuing godly goals brings fulfillment and joy to our lives.Galatians 6:9So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.2 Corinthians 4:18So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.Pursuing godly goals should energize us and bring us hope and blessing.Proverbs 4:25-27Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil.Pursuing godly goals helps to keep us focused on what we are pursuing. Our focus on the goodness of God’s path protects us from temptation.John 17:4“I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.”Galatians 2:8The same God who worked through Peter as the apostle to the Jews also worked through me as the apostle to the Gentiles.The goals given to us by God protect us from trying to do too much. God is glorified, not by our doing everything we can possibly do, but by our fulfilling the goals he has for us. Just as Peter was called to the Jewish people and Paul was called to the Gentiles, God gives each of us a different role to play in his greater plan.1 Chronicles 22:1-5Then David said, “This will be the location for the Temple of the Lord God and the place of the altar for Israel’s burnt offerings!” So David gave orders to call together the foreigners living in Israel, and he assigned them the task of preparing finished stone for building the Temple of God. . . . David said, “My son Solomon is still young and inexperienced. And since the Temple to be built for the Lord must be a magnificent structure, famous and glorious throughout the world, I will begin making preparations for it now.” So David collected vast amounts of building materials before his death.A leader’s bold vision can help people accomplish great goals. David’s vision for the Temple was fulfilled in the construction of a magnificent structure for the glory of God. David wasn’t called to actually build the Temple. That task was given to his son, Solomon. David’s path was to make preparations for the building.

Question 2

How can I pursue my goals?

Accepted Answer

Matthew 28:19-20“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”Acts 1:8“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”No matter what we do, Jesus’ ultimate goal for all his followers is making disciples of all people, everywhere. In our work toward this goal, he promises us the Holy Spirit’s help.Romans 15:20-24My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else. I have been following the plan spoken of in the Scriptures, where it says, “Those who have never been told about him will see, and those who have never heard of him will understand.” In fact, my visit to you has been delayed so long because I have been preaching in these places. But now I have finished my work in these regions, and after all these long years of waiting, I am eager to visit you. I am planning to go to Spain, and when I do, I will stop off in Rome. And after I have enjoyed your fellowship for a little while, you can provide for my journey.Ephesians 6:19-20Pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike. I am in chains now, still preaching this message as God’s ambassador. So pray that I will keep on speaking boldly for him, as I should.We should never stop pursuing the goals God has called us to. If we are doing what he wants us to do, we will achieve far more than we thought possible. Paul was an older man when he wrote the book of Romans, but he was still driven by his goal to spread the Good News of salvation in Christ to people everywhere. This goal led him to travel throughout the Roman Empire and to reach out to people of all cultural and religious backgrounds. He dreamed of bringing God’s Good News to Spain at the western end of the Roman Empire, a goal that always called him forward.1 Corinthians 9:26So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing.Philippians 3:13-14No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.We should keep our eyes on the target and resist the temptation to get side-tracked. To be most effective and make the most significant progress and impact, we should stay focused on our primary goals.1 Corinthians 14:1Let love be your highest goal! But you should also desire the special abilities the Spirit gives—especially the ability to prophesy.As we pursue our goals, we must be careful not to step on others. Loving others should always be our highest goal. Our love for God and other people needs to shape how we pursue our calling.2 Corinthians 5:9So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him.James 4:4You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.Whatever we choose to do, our goals must be pleasing to God.

Question 3

What kinds of goals does God want me to have?

Accepted Answer

Mark 12:30-31“‘And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”1 Corinthians 13:1-3If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.No matter how much we develop our talents, no matter how impressive our accomplishments, no matter how much we help people, and no matter how closely we follow God’s commands, if we do not love, we have missed the greatest goal of all. The Christian walk is a lifestyle of learning to love.Isaiah 26:8Lord, we show our trust in you by obeying your laws; our heart’s desire is to glorify your name.Jeremiah 45:5“‘Are you seeking great things for yourself? Don’t do it! I will bring great disaster upon all these people; but I will give you your life as a reward wherever you go. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”1 Corinthians 10:31So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.Colossians 3:17Whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.We should pursue goals that bring glory to God, not ourselves.Romans 14:19So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.God calls us to the goal of fostering harmony and love with other Christians.Matthew 6:19-21“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.”Matthew 6:24“No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”Galatians 1:10Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.James 4:4You adulterers! Don’t you realize that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God? I say it again: If you want to be a friend of the world, you make yourself an enemy of God.Our primary goal should be to love God, not the pleasures of the world. Earthly wealth and human praise are cheap baubles. We should never let Satan use them to con us out of eternal treasures.2 Corinthians 5:9So whether we are here in this body or away from this body, our goal is to please him.Our goal should be to please God in whatever we do.Hebrews 12:1-2Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.Jesus is the perfect example to inspire our lives. More than that, he walks alongside us on our journey; so, we can look forward to celebrating with him at our destination. Jesus should be our constant source of encouragement and inspiration.