Success

Click here to read the Old Paths Journal.

Obtaining Success

 

Joshua 1:8

"This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success."

The greatest book on success is the Word of God. You will find more fail-safe principles for success in the Word of God than you will in any other book. However, Joshua chapter 1 is probably the greatest chapter on success. The only time you will find the word "success" in the Scriptures is in the verse above. One of the reasons for that is because God wants you to focus more on the principles that lead to success than on the desire for success. If you will just practice the principles of success, then you will find success. You will find in the first eight verses of this chapter six principles that will lead you to success.

The first principle for success is initiative. In verse 2, God told Joshua to "arise." This is initiative. Successful people are people who have initiative. In other words, you must be able to get yourself going without someone else having to push you. Until you learn to push yourself, you will never experience success.

The second principle for success is drive. In verse 2, God told Joshua to "go." Successful people not only have the initiative to get up and do something, but they also have a drive that won't let them stop. In today's terminology we would call them workaholics. Initiative gets you up, but drive keeps you going. In other words, drive keeps you going when you don't feel like going. Drive keeps you going when you don't have immediate success. Drive is the determination that you won't let anything stop you.

The third principle for success is attitude. In verse 6, God told Joshua to, "Be strong and of a good courage." Your attitude is very important to your success. Attitude will determine whether you will go up or down. You must have a positive attitude in the midst of negative in order to succeed. You must have a fearless attitude in order to succeed. You will never succeed if you let fear control you. You must have a positive and fearless attitude to overcome the obstacles and believe that whatever you are doing will happen.

The fourth principle for success is counsel. God says in verse 7, "...that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee:..." Joshua got his counsel from Moses. In other words, good spiritual counsel is an important part of success. You must be willing to get counsel and follow it if you want to succeed. You will never succeed without counsel.

The fifth principle for success is obedience. God says in verse 8, "This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth;..." Obeying God's Word is important to your success. You may succeed to a certain degree without following God's Word, but you will never achieve your potential until you obey God's Word. Obedience to God's Word brings blessings, and blessings are a big part of success.

The last principle for success is meditation. God says in verse 8, "...but thou shalt meditate therein day and night..." You must meditate, or think about God's Word in order to obtain success. That means you need to read God's Word daily if you are going to think about It. Furthermore, you need to take time to meditate or think of ideas. Thinking is a very important part of success. If you are not a thinker, then you will not obtain success.

Success never comes easy, but when you follow the principles that lead to success, it is much easier to obtain. Stop focusing on trying to succeed and simply focus on following the principles the lead to success. You will find the byproduct of those principles will be success.

Music

Click here to read the Old Paths Journal.

The Value of Christian Music

 

Deuteronomy 31:19

"Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach it the children of Israel: put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for me against the children of Israel."

The power of music on one's life is amazing. Studies have shown that you can control crowds through music. Music is powerful because God created mankind with the need for the right kind of music. Music is so important to God that He created angels for the purpose of singing in Heaven. The Devil also knows the power of music. That is why he has tried to corrupt music by providing his own style of music. However, when you study the Scriptures, you will find that God wanted His people to listen to the right music. Though music is one of those topics where preference often defines what is right and wrong, the Scriptures do give us clear guidelines on the value of good music.

First, music teaches. In the verse above, God shows that it teaches when He says, "...and teach it..." All music will teach you to do something. That is why it is important that the music you listen to teaches you the ways of Christ. God used the song of Moses to teach the children of Israel what way they should walk. You need to make sure that your music teaches you the ways of Christ. This is why the world's music is wrong because it doesn't teach you the way of Christ, but rather it teaches you the way of the world. Music is valuable because it teaches you. So, be careful to listen to music that will teach you the right way.

Second, music reminds. In Deuteronomy 31:21 it says about music, "...that this song shall testify against them as a witness;..." The word "testify" is talking about reminding God's people. Your music should not only teach you the right way to live, but it should also remind you to live right. Whenever you listen to your music, does it immediately remind you of God, or does it remind you of something you did in the world? Music is a great tool to help people remember the right ways of living, so be sure that your music reminds you of God's way.

Third, music witnesses. In the verse above, you see that the music of the children of Israel was to be a witness. In other words, your music should tell others to Whom you belong. Let me ask you, when others overhear your music, can they tell you are a Christian by the songs you listen to? You may think it's nobody's business what type of music you listen to, but whether or not you like it your music should testify to others that you are a Christian.

Last, music convicts. Good music will convict the backslidden Christian about their backslidden ways. That is why most of the contemporary Christian music is wrong. It wouldn't convict people of their worldly lifestyles because it sounds like the world. If you are living wrong, your music should convict you.

Music is a valuable tool. Be sure that you listen to the type of music that teaches and reminds you of the right way, the type of music that is a witness to others that you are a Christian, and the type of music that will convict you if you are living wrong. If your music does this for you, then you can rest assured that you are listening to the right music.

Leftover?

Click here to read the Old Paths Journal.

God is Not a Leftover

 

Deuteronomy 17:1

"Thou shalt not sacrifice unto the LORD thy God any bullock, or sheep, wherein is blemish, or any evilfavouredness: for that is an abomination unto the LORD thy God."

If you were to do a survey and ask people if they enjoy leftovers over the original meal, you would probably find that the original meal would be desired the most. There are some who like leftovers, but there is nothing like having a meal for the first time. It's fresh, and the taste always seems to be more flavorful.

Just like you like to have a meal for the first time, God likes to have your best as well. Too many Christians seems to give God the leftovers when what He desires is your best. Could you imagine how you would feel if God gave you His leftovers? Just think how you would like it if God gave you the crumbs of someone else's blessings. I know there are some who would say they would enjoy that, but if you're like me, I don't want someone else's crumbs, I want God's blessings to their fullest.

In the verse above, God commanded His people not to offer any bullock or sheep that had a blemish when giving their sacrifice. Though one of the reasons God said this is because the sacrifice represented the sinless Son of God, Jesus Christ, He also said this because He truly wanted the best from His people. God's desire for the best has not changed. It is only fair to God for you to give Him your best when He gave you His best in Jesus Christ. God didn't give His second best to die for your sins, but He gave His only begotten Son as the sacrifice for your sins. If God can give His best for you, then the least you can do is give Him your best.

Christian, don't give God your leftovers. When it comes to your time, give God the best. Far too many Christians only give God the time that they have left to serve Him. For instance, there are many Christians who serve God, but only when they have time to serve Him. God deserves better than that. When you schedule your week, you should always place time in your schedule to serve God first before you fill in the rest of the schedule. Don't give God your leftover time, give Him the best time.

Likewise, don't give God the leftovers of your life. It is sad that many will waste their life in sin, and after sin has wasted most of their lives they finally come to God and give Him the leftovers. Yes, God will take the leftover of that life and use it, but God deserves the best of your life. Don't wait until you have no energy and life to give God to serve Him, but give Him the best part of your life.

Moreover, be sure to give God your best effort. It would be sad that God gave His best effort to pay for your sins and He only gets the leftovers of your efforts. In everything you do, be sure to give God your best effort.

Finally, don't give God the leftovers of your day. You should start everyday off with God. Don't live your whole day and at the end of the day finally give God what is left. It is best to start your day off with God. Yes, you can get something from God's Word at the end of the day, but you will get more from His Word if you will start your day off in It.

Don't give God something that you wouldn't like to receive yourself. If you wouldn't want God to give you His leftovers, then you need to be sure that you don't give Him your leftovers. You will always find the greatest blessings in the Christian life when you give God your best.

Opportunistic

Click here to read the Old Paths Journal.

Opportunistic Christianity

 

Numbers 24:1

"And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness."

In the verse above, there is a phrase that portrays Balaam and many modern day Christians.  The phrase is, "And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel..." God previously told Balaam that he was to have nothing to do with Balak. Yet, when Balak came with his offers of money and position, Balaam questioned whether or not he should go. In fact, Balaam went back to God to ask Him again if he should go. God knowing Balaam's heart, told him to go. When you read the story, you will find that eventually Balaam realized his going was wrong. Once Balaam arrived at the place where he was to curse Israel, God gave him the blessing whereby he was to bless them. Finally, when Balaam saw that God was pleased with blessing Israel, he didn't ask God whether he should bless him, he just immediately started blessing them because he saw the opportunity.

The problem with Balaam was that he should have done what God wanted him to do in the first place whether or not he benefited from it. Balaam didn't do right because it was right, he did right because he saw the opportunity to be blessed. His opportunistic actions eventually resulted in the loss of his life. If Balaam would have done right at the first, then he wouldn't have had to face Balak's fury and God's judgment.

In Christianity today there seems to be many Christians who serve God only when the opportunity benefits them. When times start getting tough while serving God, these opportunistic Christians jump ship for the next best opportunity. Christian, you ought not to serve God and do right because of what you get out of it. You ought to do right and serve God because it is the right thing to do.

Likewise, I have found there are many preachers who are opportunistic preachers.  Recently I had a conversation with a preacher who asked me why so many preachers continue to follow false doctrine when they know its error. My response is that they do it because they are opportunity seekers. They are looking for the largest crowds to preach to and the influence they can have in society or their circles. This world doesn't need opportunistic preachers. What this world needs is preachers who will stand for right and preach truth even if they lose every bit of influence they have. Truth should be the issue in preaching and not what opportunities may come from compromise.

Are you an opportunistic Christian? Do you find yourself doing right only if you benefit from it? Let me help you answer that question. If you stop doing what you are supposed to do when times are tough, then you are an opportunistic Christian. If you won't do something for Christ because it will inconvenience you, then you are an opportunistic Christian. Christian, you need to get to the point in your life when you do right because it is the right thing to do. Don't let opportunities dictate your decisions, but let right dictate your decisions and actions. If you become an opportunity seeker, then one day you will stop serving God and compromise. 

Let truth be your motivator to do right.  Do right even when you see no benefits coming from it. Doing right always benefits at the end, but you must work through those dry times until those benefits come. The only way you will accomplish this is by focusing on doing right because it's right to do and not on the benefit.  If you will focus on the right, then the benefit will be a bonus and not a requirement to keep doing right.