“For the Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and my native land, solemnly promised to give this land to my descendants. He will send his angel ahead of you, and he will see to it that you find a wife there for my son.” Genesis 24:7 (NLT)
Many people start the calendar year off with a goal. They resolve to lose weight, to spend more time with their kids, to read more, to achieve something specific at work, or some other noble (or not so noble) goal.
But not every goal is a godly goal. Godly goals are attached to God’s promises in his Word. His promises give us the courage and faith to move forward when it’s much more natural to be scared or worried.
In Genesis 24, Abraham gave his servant, Eliazar, a very tough goal: find a wife for his son, Isaac. At first Eliazar let fear get the best of him. He asked Abraham, “What do I do if I find a wife for Isaac, but she won’t come with me?”
Abraham then reminded his servant of God’s promise: “For the Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and my native land, solemnly promised to give this land to my descendants. He will send his angel ahead of you, and he will see to it that you find a wife there for my son” Genesis 24:7 (NLT).
After Abraham reminded Eliazar of the Lord’s promise, his fear vanished. The same thing happens with us. It’s scary to put everything you have into a big goal. No one wants to fail.
But the Bible urges us not to look to our own strength to reach our goals. In fact, if we can accomplish our goals in our own strength, we’re not pursuing godly goals in the first place.
What does God’s Word say about your goals for this year? You’ll never know unless you get to know what the Bible teaches. It’s like having an insurance policy, but you don’t know what that policy covers. You’d worry about many things needlessly.
In the Bible God promises to help us as we get healthy, become better parents, eliminate our debt, and more. But unless we know those promises and claim those promises, we’ll worry needlessly about achieving those goals.
The truth is, you don’t have to have big faith to accomplish huge goals either. You just need a little faith — in a big God! Your God is the God of the universe. He can do anything.
Are you ready to trust God for the unbelievable?
Talk It Over
- How do broken promises from people in our past impact our ability to trust God?
- What promise from God’s Word do you need to lean on for your 2014 goals?
- How does leaning on the promises of God give you the needed confidence to pursue your goals?
