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Do you know the difference in a wish and a goal? Lots of us wish for many good things, but not too many of us see those good things happen in our lives because we’ve never turned our wishes into goals.
A goal is not a wish. A goal:
- Is realistic and achievable.
- Has a time schedule.
- Is simple and specific.
- Is measurable in terms of numbers and specifics.
- Is written down for accountability.
I could wish all day that I could be an accountant but that could never be a goal because it’s not achievable for me. A goal has a time schedule and is measurable in some way or another. I may wish to lose weight, but in order to do that, I need to set a goal and a time frame for that goal. “I will lose five pounds in four weeks.” That’s a goal.
Now, given that definition of a goal, are you truly a goal-oriented person, or do you just wish a lot? I find many of us are very good wishers, but not many of us take those wishes and turn them into goals that we work to achieve. Well, after all, wishes don’t take any energy or discipline; goals do. Wishes don’t require any commitment from us; goals do.
For instance, you may wish that you had a closer walk with God; you may wish that you really knew how to pray with power; you may wish that you knew the Bible better. Those are good wishes, but my friends, until you turn them into goals, your spiritual growth will stagnate.
If you listen to this program regularly, you’ve heard me suggest things for you to do that will help you turn wishes into goals. For instance, I’ve encouraged you to put on the inner garments of Colossians 3 on a daily basis; to set specific guidelines for your thought life and practice bringing your thoughts into captivity; to establish a time each day that you spend getting to know God, and many more. Those are just ideas to help you turn from a wisher into a doer.
Now, ask yourself this question: Am I a task-oriented person or a goal-oriented person? What’s the difference? Well:
A task-oriented person focuses on doing things right.
A goal-oriented person focuses on doing the right things right.
Are you doing the right thing or just doing things right? Certainly a goal-oriented person must be a task-oriented person frequently. But it’s possible to be task-oriented without being goal-oriented. In other words, you could work very hard and always be busy, but never truly be focused on worthwhile goals and never see any of your dreams and plans realized because of being task-oriented and not goal-oriented.
Why is it important for a Christian to be a goal-oriented person?
The Bible frequently admonishes us to look for the big picture and set our eyes on the goal. We’re reminded not to just look at the visible things around us, but to fix our eyes on the invisible things; to see beyond the obvious and set our eyes on the eternal. Well, that’s really what being a goal-oriented person is all about. It’s the ability to look beyond the everyday duties and responsibilities and minutia that tends to eat up all our time, and make sure you’re focusing your life and energy on goals that add value and make a difference.
Jesus said:
Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. (John 13:17).
Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it. (Luke 11:28).
I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do (John 17:4).
These passages underline the fact that Jesus was a doer, and he didn’t waste time talking about what he wanted to do. He did what the Father had sent him to do. He came to this earth with certain goals in mind, and nothing was going to stop him from reaching his goals.
He said that he had come to do the Father’s will, and he did it. At times the disciples tried to dissuade him from the Father’s will, his enemies tried to keep him from doing the Father’s will, Satan tempted him to try to keep him from doing the Father’s will. But Jesus was a goal-oriented person, and nothing would make him take his eyes off the goal.
Do we ever need more Christians who will become goal-oriented doers and not just wishers and dreamers! Perhaps you’ve met the Tator family. There’s Dick Tator, the father, and Emmy Tator, his wife, their daughter, Hessie Tator and son Aggie Tator, and then there’s Grandpa Spec Tator! Well, believe me, the world is full of Spec Tators and Hessie Tators. People who have good intentions but never reach their goals because they don’t know how or they’re not willing to turn their wishes into goals and then do them. That’s where the blessing of God comes to us—in the doing.
What are the results of being a goal-oriented person?
- You bring glory to God.
When we are doers and not just hearers, God is honored. That really should be all the reason we need to motivate us to be more goal oriented. It pleases Jesus, and isn’t that enough? But there’s more:
- You are blessed—happy, fulfilled, joyful.
There is real joy, deep satisfaction, in being productive and seeing that you’ve quit talking and gone to doing! God intended for us to be that kind of people, so obviously, we are happiest when we are in his will.
Let me emphasize that when you are goal-oriented and you become a doer, not just a wisher or a hearer, you benefit more than anyone else. Do you find yourself discouraged a lot? It could be because you’re not turning wishes into goals. Do you find that you are often discontented with your life or yourself? Perhaps that’s because you never get around to doing the things that will bring more value and meaning into your life and make you feel better about yourself.
- You are a good steward of your gifts and talents and will receive a better reward.
The Bible frequently talks about the rewards that await us in heaven, and we will receive awards based on our performance. Now, getting into heaven isn’t based on our performance. That’s based on our faith and trust in the blood of Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sins that he freely offers. But the Bible clearly teaches that rewards will be given for those who have obeyed the Lord and used their gifts really well. Those rewards we will receive in heaven are the things we can cast at the feet of Jesus when we worship him on his throne. Want to have some tributes to bring to Jesus? You need to be goal-oriented and turn some of those wishes into goals so you’ll have rewards to give to Jesus.
Also, if you remember the parable Jesus taught about the talents, he illustrated that those who use their gifts and talents well will be blessed with more to use. When you are a goal-oriented person, you will be using your God-given gifts more effectively, and that will open up the door for God to give you more talents and abilities. If you’ve been thinking that you just don’t have what it takes to do what you want to do, it could be because you aren’t using what God’s given to you. He won’t give you more talents and abilities until you use the ones you have.
- You are more content with who you are and less likely to want to be like someone else.
When you set and achieve goals that help you to accomplish things and get things done, you will have less and less reason to be jealous of others and more and more content that God has created you for special reasons and you can realize who you were meant to be in Christ.
- You have less stress in your life.
Becoming a goal-oriented person is a great way to reduce stress in your life. All those wishes that have been hanging over your head–all those things you’re going to do someday—they begin to weigh on your mind, even when you’re not consciously aware of them. That can cause major energy leaks and make you exhausted a lot, just thinking about those wishes that should be turned into goals.
So, there’s any number of wonderful reasons why we should get serious about turning our wishes into goals and becoming goal-oriented people.
There’s another thing that’s essential if you are to become goal-oriented, and that is you must be a proactive person, not a reactive person. You might ask what I mean by that.
What is the difference in a proactive and a reactive person?
A proactive person is one who recognizes that she is responsible for her own actions and choices in life. Proactive people do not blame circumstances, conditions or conditioning for their behavior. They do not look for a scapegoat to take the blame for their poor performance.
A proactive person has the ability to subordinate an impulse to a value. They understand the need to wait for the best and not be driven by the desires of the moment. They know you have to work for things, earn your right, prove your worth and put in your time. They are willing to do without something today in order to achieve their long-term, valuable goal later on. Let me repeat that: A proactive person has the ability to subordinate an impulse to a value.
Proactive people are driven by values that they’ve carefully thought about and made a part of themselves. They have made decisions about what is important and what isn’t. They have standards of conduct and principles of behavior that they refuse to compromise. They think beyond the moment and prepare themselves to make good choices by establishing their own personal guidelines for their lives.
A reactive person is one who has chosen to empower things to control them. Things such as circumstances, other people, conditions. Reactive people are often affected by their physical environment. If the weather is good, they feel good. If it isn’t, it affects their performance. They are affected by their social environment, by how other people treat them, by how they feel. Reactive people build their emotional lives around the behavior of others, empowering the weaknesses of other people to control them.
Proactive people are looking for ways to make it happen. Reactive people are looking for excuses. Which one are you?
Well, if you want to change, if you want to be more goal-oriented, you can, because Jesus gives us the power to be what we could never be by ourselves. Look for part two of “Becoming a Goal-Oriented Person” and I will give you some very practical things you can do to help you become more goal-oriented. I’m including a form that you might find helpful in turning wishes into goals.
Turning Wishes into Goals…and Turning Goals into Action Handout