By HEATHER CATHLEEN COX
Staff Writer
reporter@sbnewspaper.com
Heather Cathleen Cox
We definitely need to establish a plan for our lives if we want to be successful. There’s a well-known ideology that states if a person does the same thing repeatedly, they will get the same results. So, in order to obtain something different, a person must do something differently.
If our current life plan consists of many things that do not bring joy, for instance working umpteen years at a job we loathe, living in a messy home when we hate messes, never taking time to enjoy our hobbies or friendships, we must acknowledge the fact that our plan (or lack thereof) is actually keeping us from personal success.
Although it’s possible to cement a life plan into motion accidentally—perhaps the plan “established itself” through the years—if we desire a better life, we absolutely must derive a better life plan.
I guess I’m posing the thought that some unsuccessful people actually try really hard to succeed, yet they hit an invisible ceiling of sorts that they just cannot seem to identify or rise above. In essence, not all people who fail lack enthusiasm or effort. So why is this so?
We have all known someone who works two or more jobs yet never seems to make ends meet, whose life appears to spectators as if the person is merely running around like a gerbil in a spinny wheel, clearly going nowhere new. Maybe they’re working hard, planning well, adapting, not throwing in the towel and doing all the “right” things, but the person never seems to get ahead or even catch up with life’s twists and turns.
If we are totally dissatisfied with the life plan we have set into motion—if hard work, trying our absolute best, and keeping up appearances only yields the frustration of turning wheels but going nowhere—this is an indicator that our present plan isn’t the plan God intended for our lives.
Comparatively, if we will humble ourselves and ask God for direction, He will be faithful to offer it to us. Proverbs puts it way better than I could when it says in chapter 16, verse 9: “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.”
We should each test our true desires with our knowledge. If you know that you are not a morning person—and whether or not you go to sleep before 7:30 p.m., the only way you will be awake to see 5 a.m. is if you catch it on the flip side—planning a very strenuous morning routine is not a smart decision for you. It doesn’t matter if 2,089 people you know swear by their regimented morning routines, or if you’ve heard 20 famously successful people explain that they get more done before 10 a.m. than most do all week; if it doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t work for you.
We can’t all be doctors. Furthermore, all doctors cannot be brain surgeons. Besides, what good is a brain surgeon if you need a podiatrist? When we envy someone else’s life because, from the outside, it appears glamorous or flashy or simply better than ours, we’re setting ourselves up for failure. We cannot walk in another person’s shoes, so it makes zero sense to even entertain the idea. Galatians 6:4 instructs, “Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else.”
It’s time we begin setting ourselves up for success! This will entail focusing on our strengths and playing to them, rather than our weaknesses. If you really want to achieve great things in life, you must make an intelligent life plan that fits with your own skill set and stick with it. You must commit to persevering, long after you first desire to throw in the towel. However, the fuel in the gas tank of anyone’s success vehicle lies in asking the Lord to direct them on the journey of life. The only way to receive this gift is to be open to His gracious redirection moment by moment.
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