Revival Times 2017 November 2017 | Page 25

They are grounded on faith, not human logic. Goals set by human reasoning alone do not take into account the supernatural power of God. If they do not stretch our faith, they lead to underachievement. A goal inspired by the Holy Spirit may not seem possible to us, but if we have truly heard from God, it can be done. On the other hand, over-ambitious goals rooted in unreality or pride are presumptuous. Unrealistic goal-setting is demotivating and leads to discouragement, when the goals are not fulfilled. Spiritual goal-setting is about having God’s vision of the future and determining to bring it about. As disciples of Christ, we must have a healthy future focus. God has given us a future and a hope, and we must be able to see it clearly in order to bring it about. He has a prepared purpose for our lives that we can delight in fulfilling. Goals help us lay hold of God’s plans and purposes and anchor them in the world of space and time. This does not mean that every Spirit-inspired goal will be achieved. We must act in purposeful obedience, doing what he tells us to do. The keys to partnering with God are always keen listening and active obeying. Faith without actions is fruitless. Taking the limits off God Be prepared to be challenged when you agree to work with God. He wants you also to dream big dreams. God is able to do exceedingly above and beyond all we can think or imagine. Audacious faith delights him. Nothing is impossible – if only we believe God. Real faith is rooted in revelation. It is not about telling God what we want, but hearing what he wants and then going out and doing it. God wants to challenge our human Working together Goal-setting is part of strategic planning. At KT we encourage leaders to set goals in every cell. Without goals, our 20:20 Vision will remain just a set of good ideas. With goals we know what we are going to do and by when. They are milestones on the road that mark the steps we need to fulfil in order to arrive at a certain place at a certain time. Highlighting resources Goal-setting highlights the resources we need in order to achieve our objectives. Setting a seemingly straightforward goal of launching a new cell will provoke an intensive process of strategic thinking and serious planning. It will also cause us to spend a lot of time in prayer. Planning ahead When you set your goals for 2018, take account where every cell member is on their discipleship journey, as well as also their realistic anticipated progress in the year ahead. All this time we continue our ‘conversation’ with the Holy Spirit, asking him for his wisdom and guidance. We do not want to miss what he is saying to us about the goals we should be setting! Achieving your goals The saying goes, ‘If you fail to plan, then you plan to fail’. If you don’t aim at a target, how can expect to hit it? But neither of these sayings guarantees that all your goals will be achieved! If the goals are not fulfilled as hoped, we never make people feel guilty or like failures. We listen to their experience and involve every cell member as we develop our goals for the next year. That way, each person takes responsibility for their part in achieving the goals beginning with their own, personal ones. ❖ Cell leaders can go to leaders.kt.org to find all of the information to remind themselves of our 20:20 Vision aims. Goals are faith statements – they declare what we believe about the future. Goals must: • be visual – you must be able to picture them. Otherwise they are not specific enough. You will never see with your natural eyes what you cannot first see with your spiritual eyes. • be achievable but ambitious. • be clear, measurable and time specific. • be written down bringing clarity and accountability. • be supported by specific action, broken down into specific steps. • call for real change – what to stop doing, what to start doing, and what to keep doing. • be kept in a visible place so that you will constantly keep them in view and under review. Revival Times November 2017 25