There are three stages of everything we try to do in life, and while we may bounce back and forth from one stage to another – no one ever stays in one stage the entire time.  Accomplishing a goal usually takes a good understanding of where you are in the process.  We need to know what these three stages are and how to succeed in them.

To succeed in them, we absolutely must be able to compartmentalize our feelings and thoughts! That way we can finish things we start.  That way we won’t be known as a flakes or quitters.

 

1) Swept Off Your Feet! – The First of Three Stages

 

• This first stage is everyone’s favorite!  It’s fun!  You have an idea, and you have been completely swept off your feet by it.  You’re in love with the idea of being something, doing something, going somewhere, or being with someone.  There’s nothing wrong with that!  Proverbs 18:1 shows us that it is desire, hunger, passion, and excitement that often propel us to great accomplishments.

 How to succeed when you’re here:

 1. Know that you’re romantically swept up in an idea. 

• Be very careful about making any sudden decisions and especially any financial commitments!  The Bible word for that is hasty, and we’re constantly admonished in Scripture to not be hasty (Proverbs 14:29; 21:5; 29:20).

 2. Count the cost.

• There’s nothing wrong with having great ideas, but having a life filled with half-built towers (Luke 14:28) makes people wonder about your reliability.  Would you want to ask you for help on something?  Could you trust someone like you to get the job done?
• I can’t stress this enough: test your enthusiasm to see if it will last!  How?  Do as much as you can without making a financial or public commitment and see how resilient your fervor really is.  We were all built to do different things, so don’t let delusions of grandeur sweep you away.

 3. Ride the wave!

• If you’ve done the first two things, then ride the emotional high that you’re going through as much as you can.  Stay up late, do as much as you can, and enjoy this stage while it lasts.

 2) Gut It Out – The Second of Three Stages

• Welcome to the valley of the shadow of death for your project, goal, relationship, or idea.  It is no longer fun; you must rely upon diligence to get through this stage.  Don’t have any diligence?  You better find a way to develop some or you’re going to have a very hard time in life!

 Here’s some examples of the second of the three stages of everything:

 1. Marriage. 

• You could listen to her breathe on the phone for hours on end and not talk about anything (phase 1), but now you don’t care if you have to put in extra hours at work (phase 2).  You still love her, but she’s not as exciting as she used to be.  Hopefully, it’s not worse than that.

 2. Ministry. 

• You were so excited about being a missionary!  A life long dream.  The slides.  The pictures of the needy people.  Your heart burned within you!  Two years into deputation or maybe half way through your second term, and you are feeling a little weary.
•  The average pastor lasts three years in his church before going somewhere else.  It was so exciting at first, for the church and for the pastor, but three years into it that feeling is gone and it’s time to move on.

 3. Projects. 

• I believe that everyone has a book within them, but few people have the diligence to make it happen.  They get slapped in the face with the fact that it’s not all romantic fun and then quit.  The same applies to any idea or project.  “I always wanted to…” becomes the reality rather than “I finished it!”
• The reason people usually don’t succeed in what they were so excited about was because they weren’t able to gut it out.  Remember Pliable from Pilgrim’s Progress?  That can be us sometimes!

Can you relate to this?  Ever had something that was once exciting turn into a drudgery?  Don’t quit!  Hang on!  You’re not alone!

You can find the second half of this series here:  The Three Stages of Everything and How To Succeed in Them – Part Two

Share to Save

 

Pic 1: https://www.flickr.com/photos/chiropractic/6705190811/in/gallery-124229892@N02-72157644473285974/
Pic 2: https://www.flickr.com/photos/ginoandsharonphotography/12934206363/in/gallery-124229892@N02-72157644473285974/
Pic 3: https://www.flickr.com/photos/tyrian123/4069089515/in/gallery-124229892@N02-72157644473285974/