CHAPTER 2: ORIGINAL BLUEPRINT
I often talk about the original blueprint. It’s a way to wrap my mind around God’s plan for each of us. Overall it is my hope to know what that could be. How incredible to be what He wants? What He planned for you? Aren’t you curious?
Jeremiah 29:11 New International Version (NIV)
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Doing your best is never good enough. Doing your best, your very best, your very best thinking and doing will get you in a whole lot of trouble. When talking to people in prison ministry they would always say, “hey, I was just out there doing my best, trying to get by.” Like many of us, our best will get us incarcerated in some kind of prison, whether it be in your head, debt, unrealistic expectations, that’s a good one isn’t it? Expecting people to do for me. Then if they fall short, holding a grudge. No good comes from any of it. I decided I needed to better than my best. Better than your best. Like paying a charge card more than the minimum, right? You’ll eventually pay it off, but just paying the minimum, it never gets paid off. Try harder, do better, push in the ways the Lord has put ahead of you. Take care of what you have before you reach for more and more and more. Realize what can be done and for me, I had to get out of my head that more is better. I needed to learn to take care of what I have — He will decide when more is better and He is always right on time.
1 Peter 4:12-13 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.
Doing God’s path needs an instruction book and you will be tested. You will be tested! How else would I know that I was ready for the next adventure in Christ. The greatest turn around manual I’ve ever encountered is the bible. People, thousands of years ago, struggling just like you and me, and the solution was and still is, “how to lean on God.” We’re not inventing new problems. Our buddies back in the day of bible stories had the same issues as me and you!
1 Corinthians 10:13 New International Version (NIV)
13 No temptation[a] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[b] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[c] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
The Original Blue Print. If you get scared and don’t ask for help you will change course. Like an astronaut out in space on his way to Mars. He can’t see the Earth anymore and the ship isn’t close enough to see Mars. Suddenly the brain takes over and says, “maybe we have lost course, perhaps we should make adjustments.” If the guy makes an adjustment at this point, it could be fatal. Doubt is the opposite of encouragement, but sometimes the test is to “stay the course.” Stay on the course the Lord has set, pray to Him for correction and direction, well sure, but the hardest prayer for me is “give me the strength to just stay on track.”
Challenges are ever so painful, and change never seems to stop, for the better or not so much. If you’re trying in God’s work, reading, studying, sharing, learning to walk the path with God, it’s risky. I might think of comparing what I’m doing to what the guy across the street is doing. Well, Ralph and Wilma never go to church, they have a boat, party all the time, looks like a great life. They don’t have to do all the stuff I do. Long story short, don’t make comparisons, what God has planned for me is perfect for me. I caution all of us, don’t compare yourself to others. You have no idea what is really going on with people. Stay the course. What I see on the outside may not be truth and what God has for me is on the inside is the best medicine for me. You’re your book, stay busy working in the fields of the Lord. Remember money is a biproduct of living correctly. Not the other way around.
Hebrews 13:5-6 Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?”
Impossible situations come up all the time, how do we navigate? What is the path to the original blueprint, our destiny, those things that God wants for us, His will? Nobody wants to fall off course and waste time, right? Then again, what happens when you find yourself off course? Call for Him, He will come. I have called out, I have lost myself and lost my course and cried for the Lord to help me. And He did and He will.
Matthew 18:12-14 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Ninety-nine Plus One
12 “What do you think? If any man has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying? 13 If it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray.14 So it is not the will [a]of your Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones perish.
You are something great – with God you can achieve that great. Without Him it is not possible for me to obtain or keep anything good for very long. All of you are on course or fighting to get back on course. All of you are gifted and realize the tremendous responsibility required to do your life. The greatest writer in the new testament is Paul and he paid a tremendous price for following the Lord. When you think you can’t stay the course, remember Paul.
2 Corinthians 11:24-30
Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.
After reading that, my path is easy. How did I stay the course of Chapter 2, The Original Blueprint?
- Go to church when you don’t want to and read the book until you do want to.
- Stay the course, make your company cash positive even when you’re bored and think there’s more to life than whatever you’re doing.
- Promise God you will put Him first and take care of all that He has given you.
- Include in your promise especially things you don’t like to do.
- Quit drinking, quit smoking, quit abusing life and money
- Pray for the next adventure to be more challenging than the current adventure
- Stop blaming anybody for anything
- Stop fighting everybody
- Prepare yourself for the next day, while taking care of this day
- Complete your projects
- Quit going into debt
- Quit looking for quick money schemes
- Quit hurting people
- Quit asking for more when you’ve got plenty
- Only complain to the Lord, nobody else. (a personal favorite)
- Ask Him to help you with this list and quit acting like it’s okay to make mistakes.
- Quit saying I’m only human!
Genesis 1:27 New International Version (NIV)
27 So God created mankind in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
Philippians 1:6 New International Version (NIV)
6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Rule of thumb. Each thing He gives to me, I do it with Him — for Him, completely and better than my best with His grace. My goal is to knock it out of the park on every pitch. If it doesn’t work out, put it in His hands and try again and again and again. There are seven disciplines of business in Chapter 47, best you check it out. For now, let’s make a quick list, since we are all in a hurry, this might be easy to remember. How to discover the Original blueprint God meant for me.
- Check my study bible, remind myself where I was yesterday in the book, refresh the lesson and move into the next set of verses.
- Workout so I don’t find myself out of shape, in a bad mood and bad health
- Check and recheck my AP/AR, Work In Progress — return people’s phone calls, emails and texts
- Pray for clarity and direction to bring Glory to the Kingdom, don’t lie to people
- Whatever is on the list in my business for today, get it done, completely, don’t wait till tomorrow, complete all of it successfully. Push to be great!
- Remember Family First, Business first, they are the same thing.
- Repeat 1-6
John 15:16 English Standard Version (ESV)
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you.
Don’t waste time on silly things. Move forward and behave yourself. Good things are not going to happen, they are already happening! Imagine God is with you every step. Invite Him in, choose to live correctly, waste not even a moment as you jam, slam, pedal to the metal, run away from mediocrity and discover the next moment God has made for you. Be delivered, as we say from the hands of fate, into the hands of destiny! Ride with the King as we say in Chapter 1, Ride with the King through Chapter 2, stay the course, eye on the prize, run to win.., into the arms of Jesus. Amen.
