Is it possible to live a life of success and if so, what are the keys to that success. That is an extremely critical question, and God provides an answer for us because He doesn't desire for us to just wander through life. As Joshua was preparing to start a new phase in his life, three times God challenge Joshua to be "strong and courageous" because there would be battles to fight and struggles ahead. A life of success would not just come easily. Then God spelled out three keys that would provide success in life. These keys are found in Joshua 1:1-9.1. Center Your Life on God's Word Consistently. Don't be looking to TV personalities, personal experience, unsaved friends, etc., for your direction. It must come from God's word.
2. Deliberate on God's Word Daily. The term that is used is to "meditate" on God's Word day and night. This is much more than a reading a Bible passage and checking it off from the Bible reading schedule. This means to keep focused on how to apply what is learned to the decisions being made each day. These decisions will be guided by God's truth whether they be regarding family, business, relationships, work, school, and any other venue of activity.
3. Obey God's Word Carefully. God challenges that we should not turn to the right or the left - no detours in following the instructions. We are not to think that it is "good enough" if we are close.
These keys come with a promise - "then you will have success and then you will be prosperous." This is the only way to bring about success in life.
Here are some suggested tools to make this possible.
Bible Reading Schedule: You will need a Bible reading program or schedule. I recently came across this schedule that is broken into an Old Testament reading and a New Testament reading for each day. It makes a good option for doing a morning and evening reading. Sometimes one of the passages may be a bit difficult to find application for the day, such as the genealogies, but the other will include something that is applicable for the challenges of the day. This particular program also has only one reading for Sunday from the Psalms. You can go here (http://www.onegreatstory.com/reading.html) to download a PDF file which you can print and keep in your journal (see below) for reference. There are also some helpful hints for making your Bible reading time meaningful listed on this schedule.
Bible version you can understand. Many like King James, and that's fine or else use New International Version (NIV) or the New American Standard Bible (NASB). If you prefer to do your Bible study online, the Blue Letter Bible website will allow you to compare different versions in your reading (www.blueletterbible.org). If you prefer to take a Bible with you in an electronic format, Olivetree has some free Bibles available from their website for Palm, Pocket PC, Blackberry, iPhone, iPod, symbian and some others (www.olivetree.com). Though it is not a strict translation, I have been using God's Word Bible from Olivetree. It is a modern read, though there are some areas where the translation is more loose than what I prefer. It is also possible to purchase the NIV from these folks as well.
Journal & Writing Instrument. You need a journal in which to record your observations and thoughts from the passage which will be a reminder to you of what you have learned - the meditating part. You can write down how you might apply a truth from this passage for a decision which you are facing, or how to respond to a situation at work. Here is a helpful link on how to journal (http://www.enewhope.org/firststeps/journaling/) and here is an example of what your journal might contain (here). You can pick up a journal at any office supply store. Some are spiral bound which mean they lie flat when opened, others are actually bound which means they won't lie as flat originally, but will be easier to store on a shelf since the spiral wire won't get in the way. My preferred size is something close to 8.5 x 5.5 with as many pages as possible so that I can have one page per day for notes and thoughts. Obviously, it may be necessary to use two journals to make it through the year which is fine. I recommend a Pilot G-2 retractable pen for writing.
I would encourage doing your Bible reading with others - perhaps husband and wife, friends, even church family. This is a neat way to have conversation over the same passage/s that has been read for the day or week. This would be a great way to start 2009 on the road to a life of success!
Devotions for Children: If you are looking for a thoughtful devotional reading with interaction for children, Key's for Kids is a great devotional which you could read after supper at the table. Someone could read the Scripture passage, another person the devotional story which also includes great discussion questions and then have closing prayer. Here is a link: http://www.cbhministries.org/kfk/home.php where you can choose to print out a month of devotional readings or have each day's emailed to you. Campus Journal was an effective tool for High School age on up, but I haven't been able to locate it any more. If you know of one for this age group, let me know and I will add it to the list.
Suggestions to Make it Work:
1. Pick a time and place where you can consistently develop a this habit. Perhaps at breakfast, pour yourself coffee and your cereal, and ask God to give you insight. Then get out your Bible and journal and begin your reading and study.
2. Partner with someone else.
3. Keep at it! If you miss a day, keep on your schedule and make it up when possible.
Tomorrow, New Years Day, begin a new habit! The reading for the day is Genesis 1-2 & Matthew 1. Isn't 20 minutes a day with a guarantee of a life of success worth the investment?!
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