Who Before DO
Why Paul?
Paul was a man of Discipline…
1 Cor 9:27 But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.
Presented discipline as a fruit of the spirit
Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control (discipline);
Luke wrote about Paul’s habits…
Ac 17:2–3 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead
“Paul could no more have stayed away from the synagogue than he could have given up his food. So there ought to be a principle, made our own by custom, which shall absolutely lead us in the right way with a force which cannot be resisted.” Biblical Illustrator. This is the power of a Habitude
Big Idea: Your Identity is not defined by your Habits; Your Habits are determined by your Identity
Text: Rom 7:15-24 ESV
15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? (Ro 7:15–24, ESV)
The key to you succeeding in reaching your goals by 2030 is unlocking the power of daily disciplines, ie: establishing a Healthy Habitude (attitude of discipline)
15 I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate...18 I want to do what is right, but I can’t. 19 I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway... 24Oh, what a miserable person I am! Romans 7:15, 18-19, 24-25 NLT
Three Reasons We Don’t Succeed
1. We focus on the WHAT not the HOW
It’s not your “WHAT” that determines success, It’s your “HOW”
“You don’t rise to the level of your goals, you fall to the level of your systems.”
James Clear, Atomic Habits
This is exactly what Paul taught…
24 Isn’t it obvious that all runners on the racetrack keep on running to win, but only one receives the victor’s prize? Yet each one of you must run the race to be victorious. 25 A true athlete will be disciplined in every respect, practicing constant self-control in order to win a laurel wreath that quickly withers. But we run our race to win a victor’s crown that will last forever. 26 For that reason, I don’t run just for exercise or box like one throwing aimless punches, 27 but I train like a champion athlete. I subdue my body and get it under my control, so that after preaching the good news to others I myself won’t be disqualified.
(1 Co 9:24–27). TPT
Where you land in 2030… your latitude and longitude will be dictated by your habitude
2. We don’t see results fast enough.
Incorrect Assumption we make
Small decisions don’t make a big difference…
7 Make no mistake about it, God will never be mocked! For what you plant will always be the very thing you harvest. 8 The harvest you reap reveals the seed that was planted. If you plant the corrupt seeds of self-life into this natural realm, you can expect to experience a harvest of corruption. If you plant the good seeds of Spirit-life you will reap the beautiful fruits that grow from the everlasting life of the Spirit.
9 And don’t allow yourselves to be weary or disheartened in planting good seeds, for the season of reaping the wonderful harvest you’ve planted is coming! (Ga 6:7–10) TPT
Our life is the sum total of all the small decisions that we make!
Small, Smart Choices, + Consistency + Time = Radical Difference.
Darren Hardy
Compound Effect—Darren Hardy
It’s the things that no one sees that bring results everyone wants.
3. We let what we DO define our WHO
19 I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway... 24Oh, what a miserable person I am!
The Enemy wants you to believe that you are what you do
Connect failures to identity.
The Habit Identity Feedback Loop
An unhealthy identity creates unwise habits.
Unwise habits reinforce an unhealthy identity.
24 Who will rescue me?
8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.
(Ro 8:1–2)
Pauls says… there is a cure
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
(2 Co 5:16–17)
Your Idenity in Christ is Paul’s Message
For you have acquired new creation life which is continually being renewed into the likeness of the One who created you; giving you the full revelation of God. Christ’s resurrection is your resurrection too. This is why we are to yearn for all that is above, for that’s where Christ sits enthroned at the place of all power, honor, and authority! Yes, feast on all the treasures of the heavenly realm and fill your thoughts with heavenly realities, and not with the distractions of the natural realm. Your crucifixion with Christ has severed the tie to this life,(who will rescue me from the body of this dead man) and now your true life is hidden away in God in Christ. And as Christ himself is seen for who he really is, who you really are will also be revealed, (A wretched man no more) for you are now one with him in his glory!'
Colossians 3:1-4,10-11
New Year, Most people create: DO GOALS.
Encourage you to start with WHO GOALS.
Who do you want to become? Who will you be in 2030
Who I Am IN Christ
I am a New Creation, 1 Cor 5:17
A Child of God, John 1:12
& The Child of a King, Romans 8:17
That means I am royalty, 1 Peter 2:9
He calls me a Royal Priest, 1 Peter 2:9
& a Holy Nation, 1 Peter 2:9
I am More than a Conquerer, Romans 8:37
The Head and not the Tail, Deuteronomy 28:13
The Victor not the Victim, Philippians 4:13
I am Seated with Him in Heavenly Places, Ephesians 2:6
Therefore I am a Snake Crusher and a Demon Caster-Outer, Luke 10:19
I laugh at adversity for I already have the victory, James 1:4
I am the Lender not a Borrower, Deuteronomy 28:12-13
I have the mind of Christ, 1 Corinthians 2:16
And I am a partaker in the nature of God, 2 Peter 1:4
His Joy Is My Strength, Nehemiah 8:10
For I am Fearfully and Wonderfully Made, Psalm 139:14
I am Apple of His Eye, Deuteronomy 32:10
And His Masterpiece, Ep 2:10
He calles me His Righteous, 2 Cor 5:21
A Holy Temple of God - 1 Cor 6:19
I am a Friend of God - John 15:15
Co-Heir with Christ - Rom 8:17
And a Citizen of Heaven - Ph 3:20
I am One with God - 1 Cor 6:17
I’m blessed going out, I’m blessed going in, Deuteronomy 28:6
I’m blessed, I’m blessed, I’m blessed