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A wealthy man, being interviewed by a reporter, said he became wealthy because of the four D's: determination, discipline and dedication. When asked what the fourth D was he replied, "Oh yeah, the death of my rich uncle who left me 6 million dollars."

Unfortunately, few of us are lucky enough to have a rich uncle. In fact, success is not given to us. Once an Italian immigrant went back to his country for a visit and told everybody that in America, every thing you touch turns to gold. You make money left and right." So one fella says: "I'm gonna go to America, and I'm gonna make money and come back." So he came to this country, stayed here two weeks, then four weeks, then six weeks. He couldn't make a dime. Then a friend advised him to go to his church and pray for God to tell you how to go about it. The priest is hiding in the confession booth, and when the guy starts praying, the priest hollers, "Go to work, you bum." The guy replied, "Are you crazy! If I had wanted to work, I'd have stayed in Italy."

Again, few of us are able to get money without working. So how can we succeed? Well, three steps are essential for any accomplishment:

I. FIRST, WE MUST HAVE THERE'S CONFIDENCE.

We must be able to honestly say, "I can do this." It's not wrong to believe in yourself. Confidence is not the same as arrogance. Paul said, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength" (Phil. 4:13).

He also said, "Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God" (II Cor. 3:4).

The writer of Hebrews said, "We confidently say, ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid. What shall man do to me?'" (Heb. 13:6).

Confidence means, "I have the ability." This includes finding our gifts and developing our skills.

Confidence means, "I have the time." This includes arranging our priorities and avoiding procrastination.

Confidence means: "I have the resources." This includes using our money and possessions productively.

Confidence is important. Several years ago a well-known television circus developed an act involving Bengal tigers. The act was performed live before a large audience. One night, the tiger trainer went into the cage with several tigers and the door was routinely locked behind him. Spotlights flooded the cage and television cameras moved in close so the audience could see every detail as he skillfully put the tigers through their paces.

Then, suddenly, in the middle of the performance, the lights went out! For thirty long dark seconds, the trainer was locked in with the tigers in complete darkness. Furthermore, their superb night vision enabled the tigers to see him, but he could not see them. Still he survived. And when the lights came back on, he calmly finished his performance.

When the trainer was asked how he felt, he admitted to feeling fear at first. He said, "If I had shown my insecurity, I'd have been in trouble. But then I realized that even though I couldn't see the big cats, they didn't know I couldn't see them. So, I just kept cracking my whip and talking until the lights came on. They never knew I couldn't see them as well as they could see me."

Confidence is essential! In order to succeed we must have confidence and say, "I can do this." When describing Joseph, the Scripture says, "The Lord was with him and . . . gave him success in everything he did" (Gen. 39:3).

II. NEXT, WE MUST HAVE MOTIVATION.

We must be able to honestly say, "I want to do this?"

It's not wrong to have ambition. Ambition is not the same as pride. Paul said, "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you" (I Thess. 4:11).

Motivation means: "I am enthusiastic." This includes our interest and deep concerns.

Motivation means: "I am convinced of it's importance." This includes evaluating activitie and establishing worthwhile goals.

Motivation means: "I believe it's God's will for me." This includes prayer and Bible study
Our achievements largely depend on the depth of our desire. We must never underestimate the power of motivation.

Recently the story of the spectacular escape of a prisoner pushed international news off the front page of Baltimore's newspapers. A prisoner had slowly and laboriously dug a very narrow tunnel from his cell out beyond the prison yard and then up into the street. The prison officials, informed of the escape, declared that it was "impossible." It does sound that way.
When the guards examined the pictures, it seemed even more unreasonable. Nevertheless, it happened. The power of desire was strong enough to give a prisoner the patience, the persistence and the knowledge to accomplish such a feat.

A woman said, "When I took my children to Washington, one of our stops was the Smithsonian Institution. While we were there, Chris-10 at the time-marveled at the Spirit of St. Louis, Charles Lindbergh's famous plane, which hangs high overhead.

"That's a pretty small plane," my son said. I studied it and had to agree it was no 747, but then I realized it was not the size of the plane that was important. It was the size of the dream and the size of the faith of the man who flew it that made the difference. These were the ingredients that carried Lindbergh across the Atlantic."

Whether we succeed or fail in our adventure of life depends not so much on our vehicle as on our desire and motivation. The more we consider such incidents, the more we realize that most of us simply do not have a very strong desire to accomplish great things for God, or we would do more!

Handel wrote the Messiah in little more than three weeks time. During this period of intense labor he seemed to be in the world but not of the world. He left food untouched. When the part which contains the "Hallelujah Chorus" was completed, Handel looked out the window, as his eyes glistened with tears of joy. A servant, who was near, heard him say, "I did think I saw all heaven before me."

In order to succeed we must be motivated and say, "I want to do this. The Psalmist prayed, "May he give you the desire of your heart, and make all your plans succeed" (Psa. 20:4).

III. FINALLY, WE MUST HAVE INITIATIVE.

We must be able to honestly say, "I will do this."

It's not wrong to be industrious. Being industrious is not the same as being a workaholic. Paul said, "Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord" (Rom. 12:10-11).

Initiative means: "I will start." This includes decisiveness and action."

Initiative means: "I will exert the necessary effort." This includes energy and determination.

Initiative means: "I will finish." This includes persistence and patience.
A study conducted at UCLA revealed that every great person had faced total failure before becoming successful:

John Milton lost his eyesight before he wrote his most impressive epic poetry, Paradise Lost.

Harry Truman was turned down by West Point, but then went on to become President of the United States.

Thomas Edison's teacher told his mother that her son was "too dumb to learn." But
thanks to Mr. Edison, the modem world enjoys many of the products of his Invention Factory in West Orange, New Jersey.

Mark Twain survived a life of poverty to become one of this nation's most prolific novelists and best-loved humorists.

Franklin D. Roosevelt overcame his tragic affliction with polio to become one of the world's greatest leaders.

After suffering a paralytic stroke, Louis Pasteur discovered the revolutionary process of pasteurization.

Admiral Byrd endured overwhelmingly oppressive loneliness to become an acclaimed explorer.

A man who had arthritis was discouraged and about to quit work. Then he read a biography about Renoir. He said, "This great artist had arthritis that was far worse than mine. He ended up in a wheelchair. When people asked him how he could paint with his twisted hands, he replied, "For the true artist there are no obstacles." With brushes strapped to his wrists, he finished a beautiful still life on the very day he died."

In order to succeed, we must take the initiative and say, "I will do this"; and then, more importantly, we must actually do it! Solomon said, "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed" (Prov. 16:3).

So, success requires confidence, motivation and initiative. But what is success?

In our society it is often measured by money, power and fame. A writer described it this way: He said, "When I opened the morning paper, I was struck by the headline. One of our city's most prominent businessmen was dead. For several days shock waves rippled through our business community. Everyone was stunned as details became available about the tragic airplane crash that took the life of such a big player.

That was about five years ago. I must tell you that today no one misses the man. In fact, since his funeral, I have heard his name mentioned only once or twice. You see, his death was shocking but because he had invested only in things rather than in people, hardly anyone was saddened by his passing. He was commercially successful, but relationally poor. He was a man who lived only for his own self-interests. He did not invest in other people. Everything he did, he did for himself."

But, what is real success. It's not about wealth or status. Instead, it's about being, doing and giving. It's about making the world better.

Our success honors God.. The father of a family is honored and his name is honored by the personal achievements of his children.

When the Scriptures describe David, they say: "In everything he did he had great success because the Lord was with him" (I Sam.18:14).

Do you have confidence? Do you believe you have the strength and ability and skills necessary to accomplish great things? God says you do. The Scriptures express it this way: "Each of you received a spiritual gift. God has shown us his grace in giving you different gifts. And you are . . . responsible for using God's gifts. So be good servants and use your gifts to serve each other" (I Peter 4:10, NCV)

Do you have motivation? Do you really want to achieve; to produce; and to make the world better? God says we should! Paul did this. He said, "I try as hard as I can to reach the goal that is before me" (Phil. 3:13, NCV).

Do you have initiative? Do you avoid procrastination and fulfill your responsibilities? Again, Paul supports this concept. He said, "We must not become tired of doing good . . ." (Gal. 6:9a, NCV);

Then he said, "Work the best you can. Work as if you were working for the Lord, not for men" (Col. 3:23, NCV).

Just think of all the good we could do if every Christian had confidence, motivation and initiative. Remember, our success honors God!

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These messages are from an unpublished manuscript © copyrighted 2003 by Miles and Maralene Wesner, Idabel, OK. Please use them in any way you think appropriate. The only thing we ask is that you give credit for original material in published works.

Sermons with the "I" prefix are from our "What's the Good Word" Series;
II from our "Pitfalls on the Path of Life"
III are sermons for special days and occasions.

OUR RATIONALE:

We are not political! We are not against anyone. And we have no doctrinal agenda. Rather, after many years of pastoring small churches and teaching (especially college students, who represent the next generation), we have chosen to emphasize certain very relevant, neglected aspects of the Gospel—namely: personal discipline (maturity and responsibility); family relationships (marriage and child rearing); general life skills and common sense.

Our social problems today prove that these characteristics are so important. Young people need them and are asking for them.

We are semi-retired—still teaching and ministering on a part time basis. All we're really interested in now is using our experience to help others. If you would like our Sermon Service or New Perspectives, please avail yourself of them. There is no obligation.

We also have much of this information in books—provided to you at cost while the supply lasts.

We can not improve on the messages from the great Evangelistic Preachers. Material in our Essays and Sermons usually present the Gospel from a psychological point of view.

My ministry has been blessed immeasurably by reading other people's sermons. When I started preaching 55 years ago, I waited for "inspiration" (usually Saturday night, about midnight) before I began my sermon preparation. Then, I discovered it wasn't inspiration at all—it was sheer PANIC. I would have welcomed this service.

Comments are always welcome. (Please indicate if you do not want your comments to appear in New Perspectives).

Miles E Wesner