A PROCESS PREPARES, A PROMISE SUSTAINS

Story

When we arrived at the rehab center, the doctor introduced himself and went to shake Mike's hand and was shocked that he could not move. You see, Mike was paralyzed from the neck down. The prognosis was that "IF" he walked again, it would be about a year and a half. They started physical therapy right away. We had so much favor that they put him in treatment five days a week. Rehab was no joke. They worked him tirelessly. The more movement he regained, the more pain was associated with working out. The pain became excruciating. Let's add this, and he was also on a ventilator. Not only was it hard to work out, but his breathing was also impaired.  He wanted to take a break and not do anything, but quitting was not an option. We needed this process to prepare him to be where he wanted to be, home back to normal. 

Lesson

Most people do not like the process of recovery. Some procedures can be excruciating. Think about anyone who has broken a leg and they have to go through therapy. Anybody who has had any surgery knows that it is a painful process. People do not like pain, and so they do not always endure. Everybody likes pleasure, but sometimes pain comes before pleasure. We all understand that God does not require us to go through painful situations to enjoy happiness, but there are unfortunate situations in life that will occur. You have to be willing to endure that hardship like a good soldier to get to the results. You must be intentional with where you put your focus. There will always be processes in life, but if I get caught staying there, I can become weary like the children of Israel. God brought them out, but they became tired from the way He took them. They lost sight of the promised land and started to complain about all of what they were encountering. 

The sustaining power of a promise is priceless. Jesus even looked at the joy before Him to endure the cross in Hebrews 12:2. Jesus could have put His focus on all of the bad He was going through, but He chose not to. Decide today where you will decide to put your sight. Get a vision of what you want in your mind and live in it until you see the manifestation. Whatever you focus on will expand so, remember to focus on the promises of God to be sustained. 

Faith Principle 

Keep your eyes on the prize. If you keep your focus on the promise, it will sustain you during the process. Until you can focus on what you are aiming for, you will never hit your target.

Challenge  

What are your specific goals right now? Check your focus often. People are often distracted by the world—social media, what others are doing, lies the devil tells (such as you are not doing enough or you are a failure because it looks like you are not doing as well as others). If you take your focus off of these distractions and put them back on the promise, you will hit your target— guaranteed.

Word Weapon 

"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because [a] narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matthew 7:13-14