1. Start with the end in mind. (2 Timothy 4:6-8; Psalm 65:11; Proverbs 3:5-6)

While we never arrive at our final destination in this life, we can get on the right path, with the right tools, making the right decisions. A great future begins with great decisions. “Therefore choose life” (Deuteronomy 30:19).

2. Daniel didn’t have a great start to life, but he found that the cure for a bad past was a Holy Spirit filled future! (Daniel 1:6-20)

Daniel made great decisions and developed great habits that resulted in a Holy Spirit directed future. Not only that, Daniel’s decisions influenced his three friends: “God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams” (17). They were healthier and ten times better than all of the other politicians and philosophers (15; 20).

What was Daniel’s advantage? “[It was] because an excellent spirit was in him” (6:3). You can raise your child to be a champion by being an example. The principles and values you live by are transferable.

Set your standards high, then commit to living them out. “Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself” (1:8). You must say, “I am going to do what is right according to God’s Word, not the opinions of man or the dictates of my flesh.”

We are free to choose what we think, say and do. The key to will power is want power. How much do you want a Holy Spirit filled future? You have to want it enough to get up earlier, stay up later and do whatever it takes. Our will has to be activated for an excellent spirit to be developed and God’s favor released.

Seven I wills for a Great Start 2012

1. I will discipline my body and bring it into subjection. (1 Corinthians 9:27; Psalm 69:10)

2. I will pray no matter how busy I am. Daniel prayed three times a day (Daniel 6:10). Acknowledging Him in all of your ways, makes the difference between drifting and being directed in life (Proverbs 3:5-6).

3. I will study His Word until something comes alive in my spirit. The Word makes dead things come alive: Sarah’s dead womb, Abraham’s dead body (Matthew 4:4; John 6:63). James Young Simpson was a Scottish doctor who invented anesthetic after reading Genesis 2:21.

4. I will be a worshiper in the midst of a worshiping congregation. (Hebrews 2:12 Amp; Luke 4:16; Hebrews 10:25)

5. I will be a good steward of the resources God has placed in my care. (1 Timothy 6:17-19)

6. I will open myself to new relationships. You are the carrier of somebody else’s blessings (Genesis 12:3). If you shut the door to the blessings going out, you also shut the door to the blessings coming in.

7. I will look for something in everything to give thanks for. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

The same day Mathew Henry was robbed he wrote these words in his diary: “Father I thank you that this was the first time I was ever robbed. I thank you that even though they took my all, it wasn’t much. I thank you that all they took was my money and not my life. I thank you Father that I was the one who was robbed and not the one doing the robbing.”

People with this kind of attitude always come out on top!

Dr. George Hill
President and Founder, VCI