Webster’s Dictionary defines Success as:

“outcome, result”

A successful outcome is something that follows as a result or consequence.

According to Webster…..marketplace is defined as:

“an open square or place in a town where markets or public sales are held in  the everyday world.”         

Let’s talk about the marketplace or workplace of life…..the things we’ll discuss can apply on your job….your business or as the definition says:  the everyday world.

If you want to be a lawyer………you study law.

If you want to be a doctor or a nurse….you study medical procedures.

If you want to be a teacher……you study education.

If you want to be a hair stylist….you study cosmetology.

If you want to be successful….you study the principles of success. 

The greatest success book ever written is the Bible.

God doesn’t have a problem with wealth…. but people tend to ... even Christians.

God doesn’t have a problem with success…..but we do.

The only limitation to our success is self-imposed and it’s roughly six inches wide.

Take your fingers and put one on each side of your head beside each ear.

We place limitations on ourselves…. limits based on our past experience or what we’ve seen or been taught.

Let me show you what I mean.

Proverbs 4:23 in the New Living Translation says:

“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.”

Experiences and the influence of others can create impressions that can get stuck in our thinking.

For example, if your mommy said, we Johnsons have always worked this land for someone for generations; you could get the idea that you were destined to be a poor dirt farmer and nothing more.

Proverbs 4:23 in the King James Version says:

“Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.”

The word issues is a real estate term and it means:

“the borders, the parameters.”

Your heart sets the borders of your life.

The outside circumstances don’t set the borders of your life; it’s what’s in your heart that sets the borders.

That’s why the Proverb says to guard your heart with all diligence.

Our borders are set by our experiences whether real or spoken.  What’s in your heart depends on what you saw, heard and experienced starting as a child.

It’s not just when you hear something new … but when you choose to believe it could be real for you … that you will begin to change what you thought was permanent.

I remember the first time I heard preaching about being financial prosperous and God actually wanting to bless people.

That was news to me.  I’d never heard it put that way before. 

When you’ve been broke that’s the kind of preaching you like to hear…..but while the teaching excited me….I was hesitate to accept it…because he had crossed a border I had in my heart.

The Denomination I grew up in was in line with the theology that some people are going to be rich, some people are going to be poor and there’s nothing you can do about it.

There are many Christians who mean well and sincerely preach what they believe.  The question you have to ask as a listener is: does it line up with what the Bible has to say?

You’d better check!

If you want to be successful then you’re going to have to expand the borders of your mind.. . .past your current limitations. 

The longer we live, Bev and I are more convinced that the job we’re doing right now is just preparation for the next job. 

When you outgrow what you’re doing, God promotes you.  If you don’t … well, you can guess the rest. 

That’s why we don’t want to do just enough to get by…we want to excel in everything we do.

You cannot walk in the victory God has for you until you expand those borders.

There are no limitations we’ve found on how expanded those borders can become. You can keep pushing them back further and further because as much as you can imagine, based on the Word of God, God can do it through your life.  So, we need to move those borders.

 Romans 12:2 says:

“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

The Message Bible translation of Romans 12:1-2 says:

“So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”

Let’s go a little deeper in Verse 2….the Word says, “be not conformed to this world.”

The word conformed there in the Phillips translation means “pressed into the mold.”

Don’t let the world. . .press you into its mold.  That’s what society does every day of your life until you’re old enough to recognize its forces and begin to push back. 

Advertisers tell you what to wear, where to eat, what deodorant and toothpaste to use.  The television and movies tell you where the ‘right’ people live, what’s hip to say and deal in everything from how to treat people to how to behave in school or on the job.

Even the news media tells you what’s right and wrong. 

Everyone should fit in …should go along to get along.  Be obedient to those who want conformity to their world opinion.

Conform means to be made into an image.

The Bible talks about being conformed to the image of Christ. We want to be more and more like Him. The Bible warns us not to let the world conform us …  by letting the world press us into its mold.

What kind of mold are we talking about?

By setting borders to the world instead of the Word.

We set the borders of what we can do based on what we have done … or we set the borders of what we can do based on what someone else has done … or what we have been taught or heard … or even overheard and believed.

Abraham Maslow, the well-known American psychologist, said:

“The story of the human race is the story of men and women selling themselves short.”

You are where you are today because you have chosen to be there based on either good or not so good information.

If you’re not where you’d like to be in life….chances are there’s something you don’t know yet….cause if you did….you wouldn’t be where you’re at.

Your success in life. . .in the marketplace can grow only to the extent that you do….that’s why the renewing of your mind is so important….expanding your borders creates new success in your life.

Here are seven keys to obtaining success in the marketplace.

ACTION IDEA #1

IF YOU WANT TO BE SUCCESSFUL….YOU NEED TO INCREASE YOUR VALUE.

Abraham Lincoln said:

“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend seven sharpening my axe.”                                                                 

How do you sharpen your ax?

Do we spend more time on our bodies. . .brushing our teeth, taking a bath or shower, fixing our hair, putting on deodorant & perfume and other such products than we do dressing our mind?

If you figured out how much it cost for all we do to look good on the outside, would we find we also spend that much time and money on what we put on the inside? 

Our personal library reveals the depth of our respect for money and success.

On a monthly basis the average person spends probably about $300 on auto payments; $130 on gas; and $800-1,300 on an apartment or mortgage.

Now look at your checkbook.  How much did you invest in books and CDs?

How much did you spend on Cable TV with rental movies, entertainment and other upgrades?

We need to ask ourselves each day:

What can I do today to feed my mind more of the thoughts, words, people and pictures that are consistent with the very best person I can be.

Do we give 30/60 minutes each day to reading the Bible (first) and then other books that motivate us?

Are you taking notes and underlining thoughts you want to remember and act on?

If you read 60 minutes each day you could complete about one book per week.

The average American reads less than one book per year.

One book a week means you will read 52 books this year.

Earning a PhD from major university requires the reading and synthesis into a dissertation of 40 to 50 books.

Learn from church services, events, seminars and rallies…that move you outside of your comfort zone.

Someone once said:

“If you are not continually learning and upgrading your skills….somewhere, someone else is, and when you meet that person in the competitive marketplace you will lose.”

Here’s the bottom----I mean bottom line….. Jesus was always improving Himself . . . should we do any less?

Luke 2:52 says:

“And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.”

And one more thing…. Jesus began each day with proper preparation.

Mark 1:35 says:

“And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”

ACTION IDEA # 2

STOP MAKING EXCUSES AND BLAMING EVERYBODY ELSE.

I want you to get a hold of this truth….the world doesn’t owe you a living….all it owes you is an opportunity….If you want to get paid more, then make yourself more valuable.

“My boss doesn’t pay me enough.”  Then find another job.  It’s probably not your boss’s fault anyway.  Even if he doesn’t pay you enough, that’s still no excuse. ….not being paid enough is oftentimes a cop-out for not doing the job you were hired to do and striving to excel at it.

Here’s a fact, you will never get to the next level until you fix the level you’re on.  Here’s the good news….if you can fix your finances at your current level, you will be able to fix them at any level.

Making one excuse will only lead to the next excuse.  Quit making excuses.  We can blame everybody else for our situation as long as we want to, but it won’t help or solve the problem.

If you messed up, fess up, get up and move on.

ACTION IDEA #3

ASSOCIATE WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.

Hang around with the right kind of folks.

Don’t drink coffee with the person just because they are sitting in the break room.  Don’t’ go to lunch with the person who happens to be closest to the door.

You are a living magnet; you attract into your life, the people, ideas and circumstances that harmonize with your dominant thoughts.

You can always learn from others…..Jesus did…..

Luke 2:46 says:

“And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. “

Jesus also encouraged everyone around Him including His staff to learn everything they could about their jobs.

2 Timothy 2:15 in the Amplified Bible says:

“Study and be eager and do your utmost to present yourself to God approved (tested by trial), a workman who has no cause to be ashamed, correctly analyzing and accurately dividing [rightly handling and skillfully teaching] the Word of Truth.”

ACTION IDEA #4

YOU GOTTA KNOW WHERE YOU’RE GOING…IF YOU EVER WANT TO GET THERE.

If you want to be successful, then you must have goals.

Jesus understood the necessity of goals.

Luke 2:49 says:

“And He said unto them…I must be about my Father’s business.”

Jesus knew what happened to people without goals.

Matthew 15:14 says:

“…if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.”

Jesus was focused on His goals.

Luke 19:10 says:

“For the Son of man is come to seek and save that which was lost.”

Jesus didn’t let what others thought deter Him from His goals.

John 1:11-12 says:

“He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”

Jesus never let rejection keep Him from fulfilling His goals.

Matthew 10:14 says:

“And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. “

Are you convinced you need goals?  If you don’t have them. . .don’t fret. . .just get them.

When it comes to goals. . .you visualize, feel, touch, taste, see and live them.

Charles Schwab visited a millionaire once---Schwab told him he would give him a system that would change his managerial leadership—the millionaire told Schwab if he did, he’d pay him $1 million.

Next day, Schwab gave him a sheet of paper folded over……it contained three points.

1.  Make a List….2. Put the priorities in order….3. Do the list.

The millionaire crumpled the paper—“A million dollars for that?”

Schwab said, “I told you I’d give you the greatest secret of management ever written.”

There’s proof for the three points.

Several years back USA Today gave out the following statistics about people who had set New Year’s Resolutions the year before.  4% of the people who made the resolutions put them in writing…none of the others followed through…46% of those who put them in writing and followed through achieved the resolutions.

Napoleon Hill, “What is the average number of times a person tries to achieve a new goal before they give up?”

Less than one.

Get a spiral notebook where you can keep goals…for the rest of your life.

Most people who teach about goals…tell you to think about your goals each day. 

Don’t think about your goals, think from your goals.

ACTION IDEA # 5

LEARN TO INCREASE  YOUR PRODUCTIVITY BY 1000%.

If you work on yourself continually, you can increase your productivity, performance and output by 1/10th of 1% (1/1000th) each working day.  Does that seem impossible?

1/10th of 1% each day translates into approximately ½ of 1% each week.

½ of 1% each week translates into 2% per month.

2% improvement per month translates into about 24% improvement in productivity, performance and output each year.

Almost anybody can increase productivity, performance and output by 24% each year.

An improvement of 24% each year, compounded per years, means you will double your productivity, performance and output in 2.7 years.

Over the course of 10 years by improving yourself by 1/1000th per day (1/10th of 1%) 24% per year, you will increase your productivity, performance and rewards by 1,004%.

ACTION IDEA #6

BUILD VALUE IN WHAT YOU DO.

Make a list of all the things you do on your job over the course of a month.

Don’t be concerned about how long the list is.

Now you must ask the key question….   If you could only do one thing on your list all day long, which one activity would contribute the greatest value to your company?

Once you identify it.

Identify # 2

Identify # 3

These three items will account for 90% of all the value you contribute to your company.

Everything else should be delegated or outsourced.

Stephen Covey who wrote the “7 Habits Of Highly Effective People” said: “Always keep the main thing the main thing.”

ACTION IDEA #7

IT’S TIME TO TAN

When I say T.A.N.. . .I mean, TAKE ACTION NOW.

Why should you want to be successful in the everyday world?  Because that’s what Jesus wants for your life.

Jesus knew His Boss rewarded service.

Matthew 25:20-21 in the Amplified Bible says:

“…he who had received the five talents came and brought him five more, saying, Master, you entrusted to me five talents; see, here I gained five talents more.

His master said unto him, Well done, you upright (honorable, admirable) and faithful servant!  You have been faithful and trustworthy over a little; I will put you in charge of much.”                                       

Jesus recognized members of His leadership team that did good work.

Ephesians 2:10 in the New Living Translation says:

“For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”

Jesus believed in reward motivation for others.

Rev. 22:12 in the New Living Translation says:

“See, I am coming soon, and my reward is with me, to repay all according to their deeds.”

Less we think our rewards are only eternal consider the words of Mark 10:30 in the Amplified Bible which says:

“Who will not receive a hundred times as much now in this time—houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come, eternal life.”

God’s desire is for you to experience success in the marketplace NOW.

One more thing. . .

Write this next statement down.

The only way you lose is if you quit.

Jesus taught that you should never give up.

Matthew 10:22 in the New American Standard Bible says:

“And you will be hated by all on account of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.”

Jesus never gave up.

Luke 18:1 in the New Living Translation says:

“One day Jesus told his disciples a story to illustrate their need for constant prayer and to show them that they must never give up.”

Jesus never gave up and neither should we.  He’s counting on us.

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