MY AUDIT
Recently I conducted an audit of my walk with Christ and pursuit of His purpose in my life. Although I found many positive things, my mind leaned toward the things that needed much improvement. I know these items seem to be popular with everyone, but my intension is to communicate them with you, and by doing so, it would make me vulnerable and accountable to personally execute them. So, here they are…
1. Lack of Knowledge:
- Wrong decisions in my life were made because of wrong information.
- Wrong information resulted in lack of knowledge.
- A lack of knowledge is not just a lack of information but also an inability to use it!
- Hosea 4:6 “”my people are destroyed for a lack of knowledge”
- I must Read more… Study more… Process more… Teach more….
- I refuse to be STUPID!
2. A lack of Passion:
- This means a lack of pursuit. Not desiring to pursue Him will cause me to stagnate and bog down into a survival stage.
- I MUST CONTINUE TO DREAM! If my dream does not inspire me, then it won’t inspire others… If it doesn’t get me out of bed, then it won’t get anyone out of bed!
- Jesus, my example, was motivated to endure the cross because he had passion.
- My greatest responsibility as a Christian is to pursue God everyday!
3. A lack of Persistence:
- I was designed to create solutions and to solve problems. Not accomplishing this is a problem in persistence.
- It will always be too soon to quit! I have realized that no one remembers quitters!
- I must HOLD firmly to my purpose regardless of how difficult the journey is!
- Persistence is what fuels my purpose! My purpose and destiny become achievable when it’s fueled by persistence!
What about you? What are the areas in your life that are lacking? Are they the same as mine?
Uhhhh Santo!!!… Pastor as it happend before, you always hit the nails on the head, precisely, I struggle with some of them but is not about to struggle… i guess. It’s about to endure and make them right and i guess the three of them are locked up one to another.
Our persistence decay because our passion isn’t strong enough to keep us going and that flame of passion is diminish by our inability to keep it burn as hotter as we can because we dont know how( lack of knowledge).
I’m really sure that we as leaders, we are about to be full of knowledge through the men of GOD(pastor manny), who is putting full throttle in this journey of saving this region, imparting the word of God into this community.
I was dealing to make myself an audit just to know in which areas i’m failing and take the best action to correct them. And i’m only going to be able to when i humble myself ont to God and lay down my failures on the altar, and ask forgiveness….. like the word of God says “Create in me a clean heart and renew the spirit in me…” so we have to be clean in order to recognize that we need knowledge which is the word of God, then that knowledge will generate passion to know more and do more for who He is and with all of that will be desperate to pursue more of Him without any fear because He is worhty to be praise and we persist follow Him without any shame or opposition.
Thanks pastor for your thought this morning is really encouraging that we are opening our heart so you pour fresh mana into us.
Javi… that’s the secret to personal growth… Keep it up!!!
I love it Javi!! Thanks for being honest and forthright. I see you growing much!!
I read this blog and I immediately wanted to pray a Psalm. You have a way with words Pastor, and a great communicator. Thanks for the outline. I found myself in all of these areas.
Awesome Maritza… and thanks for the compliment.
I think we all face the same lacks, of course some of us stronger than others. For me the strongest are lack of knowledge and lack of passion. I know I have so much to learn and many times I can settle and stop pursuing seeking the answer, that is something that I have to work on. Also I lack passion because I can get discourage when I forget about the promises of God over my life. I know persistence is big too, I believe God is faithful and when He promises something He will make it happen. I think that when you grab the concept of pursuing knowledge and passion, immediately your persistence increases and you don’t give up until you get the gold.
Excellent Mario… Stay with that at all times!!!
Wow. Yeah. Pretty much the same as yours. I’d also add stewarding of my time. I many times find myself just wanting to sleep any chance I get because I feel so tired all the time. This is definitely the area I need most improvement in. Without it, there is no way I can even start to work on the others.
There you go… Locating yourself of already half the battle!
I believe I have lacked in the area of pursuit ultimately leading to lack of passion, dream and vision. Simply put, I have tried to live off of yesterdays manna while never actively pursuing todays. My pursuit has lacked in both presence and word. This problem has led to feelings of survival, weakness, frustrations, fatigue, doubt, and spiritual cataracts. Cataract is the clouding of our eye which prohibits light to enter therefore impairing our vision. Cloudiness is always formed by lack of pursuit. I must not impede but rather facilitate His presence in my life through pursuit. His light must penetrate in order for me to see and passionately dream again.
Thank you for your vulnerability Pastor. It helps us all relate both to you and ourselves.
Johnny, the moment we stop pursuit we begin a decaying process that leads us further away from Him. Keeping Him as Lord is demonstrated by our pursuit of Him on a daily basis.
Basically the same as yours.
Auditing is the tool God uses to correct our path.
The way to get to our goal is never a straight line, but a zigzag as we let the Holy Spirit correct the deviations caused by our own errors and deficiencies.
Keller… Very well put. I’m glad were in the same boat to our destination!
Pastor,
I am no different than the greater populous. Any person that thinks they know it all, is a fool. I believe we make wrong decisions even with the right information. We go against our better judgement. We say “I can MAKE it work”‘ knowing very well that it is not the way to go. This is rooted in pride, and is exclusionary of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Sometimes it is the right decision that we make, but it is the wrong timing. This is also catastrophic to us, because it will cause us to question our own belief system. Then becoming apprehensive to any future decisions that must be made. Even in our wrong decisions, if we analyzed and information is gathered from it, then knowledge is still acquired, thus being beneficial to us.
Passion is rooted in intimacy, which comes out of relationship. Any relationship not fostered and nurtured shall become cold and indifferent. Anytime my passion dwindles it is a byproduct of not taking care of my relationships. I don’t think we can be TOO passionate. I must be vigilant in my relationships, in order that intamacy is accomplished and ultimately there may be fruit that comes forth from it.
Persistence is what keeps it all moving forward. It is momentum. If we fail to do what we know is right on a consistant basis, we lose momentum. The problem with momentum is, once we lose it, it is now that much harder to regain it. We cannot grow weary in well doing…
Good stuff thanks…
AD… thanks for responding… i pray that we learn much from our audits. I sure don’t desire seeing the the same scenery around the mountain… Let’s make the adjustments and seeing a greater dimension of Him.
I believe I lack mainly in lack of knowledge which then carries into the other two. For example if you dont know much about a product or topic and what its all about it’s hard to believe in it or trust in it. When someone tries to sell you something that you dont know enough about you usually refuse it and dont want to get involved. Also how can you truly have passion for something you dont know anything about let alone pursue it. Thats why i believe it starts with knowledge and getting to know God more in our lives. When we know God more he answers more questions about our lives and purpose. So once you get those answers it will stir your passion because now you know what you’re striving for and that will cause you to increase your pursuit since now you know the objectives and goals of were God needs you to be. But of course you wont get those answers without getting to know God first and increasing your knowledge in him.
Geo… I believe its time for you to get some knowledge in you. Hunger for more knowledge… ask the Holy Spirit to teach you as I instruct you. Your learning will come when you allow the Holy Spirit to teach you. If you hunger for knowledge and pursue it by being teachable, you will increase your capacity of knowledge and understanding.
I am with you 100%.
Katia…. in which area? Surely you have more to say or ask….
This is a quote from a gentleman on Hour Of Power Sunday morning:
“I love to read many book, but I have only read on book that loves
me: The BIBLE”.
Without your love, I couldn’t forgive. You are the reason that I live.
For without your word, my hopes and dreams would fly away like a
bird.
Guide me my Heavenly father to pursue knowledge with passion.
I love it Cindy!!! Hunger for knowledge and understanding!
Well Pastor I feel the same way and I think that I fall in everything that you talked about because I know that I need to read more and pray too. if we don’t take a audit of our lives we will just stay in the same place.
Manny…. then let’s apply the audit to physical action…. Let’s do what its saying we are lacking in
Yes, they are definitely the same as yours. I especially struggle with lack of knowledge; I do not retain information as much as before. I know it the old age. I do agree that we must continuely audit our lives and make the adjustments needed in order to fulfill the purpose God has for us. I pray that I continue to move forward. Pastor thank you for always sharing.
Jalina…. you are welcome. But know that the older we get the better we can retain knowledge. You are not getting old and its not the age…. LOL! Ask God to help you to remember! He will teach you!
They are kinda the same I struggle in lack of knowledge to retain bible verses and remeber them word by word and quote them. I am learning how to do it and learning how to share it Thank you for sharing always.
Januel…. Read and memorize 2 Timothy 2:15
I know this might be a little out of the context of this blog, but I am so grateful to be part of this leadership and this blog. Just recently I find myself desperately looking for more blogs to read. I may not reply to them as much but I read them every day. It is amazing how someone else in my life (like my Pastor “YOU”) can make my entire mood and emotions of the day change with just heart pouring words. It motivates me and keeps me with the strength to keep going.
What am I lacking? A mentor; A leader who falls out of his tracks but gets right back and teaches me how not to fall off the tracks; A leader who warns me from the hazards but yet still be able to pick me right back up after I have fallen.
Living all my entire life around the ladies has been really tough. I always had to put myself in the position as the protector, the provider and the leader. But I lack that big brother, a brother who can guide me and can snap me out of the foggy moments.
I lack that strong leader – And I am so grateful to GOD that “YOU” are the chosen one to lead me.
It may sound cliché, but comes from my heart.
Peter…. No cliche there – You really communicated your heart. I will be honored to be the one who can pour into you. I will do my best to make sure you stay connected to the life-giving flow of this church. Very good response and thank-you for sharing your heart!
The area I am lacking in the most is knowledge. I have never really been a fan of reading unless it pertain to weather or sports. In those areas I have the most knowledge in, but in areas like politics and world religion I am oblivious. Ever since joining the internship program at Impact Church, I have learned about so many things I had been clueless too. Though it cuts against my very being, I am beginning to read more about things other than sports and weather. Though I am nowhere near as ignorant as I was 5 years ago, I still have a lot of reading to do.
The neat thing about realizing the lack of knowledge is that as soon as we begin to just simply read, we begin to eliminate our lack of knowledge. Ignorance is not a condition but a choice.
I think I am lacking in the same areas as you. I think knowledge is a big one for me. Because I failed to obtain knowledge or due to my ignorance I have paid a hefty price in some areas of my life. Some areas which caused me a pretty penny. I have decided to forget the past and try not to make the same mistakes again and thank God for grace and mercy and a future. Also, pursuit and dreaming are occurring again in my life. There are dreams that I have put on the book shelf. I am excited this year and I have been reading over them again and the words spoken over my life. I am believing again. When I am faithful in the small I know God will enlarge my capacity. The later of this year will be my lets get it together season.
Jazz… I see you growing leaps and bounds… Continue to press in and press through… Discover the areas of your life that need improvement and work on them… You have much to offer the kingdom!!
Thanks Pastor for your openness, some Pastors want their people to believe they’re holier than thou as if it’s the Father, Son, Holy Spirit and them(LOL)
I think my biggest hinderance is consistency. I’ll go a season seeking knowledge and being passionate and persistent. I’ll declare and confess God’s word and believe for the impossible as well but then my humanism kicks in and though my spirit may be willing, my flesh and mind just doesn’t cooperate. It’s almost like yo-yo dieting. You start out strong but as soon as you don’t see the results you hoped for, as fast as you wanted it, you give up and conform back to old habits. There seems to always be a battle going on inside me and I have the revelation of flesh and spirit warring against each other but even with that revelation, it’s not a battle that my spirit always wins.
Pastor since you’ve been challenging us about pursuit of purpose, I have pulled out my journal containing the vision that God gave me for a business and prophetic words God has spoken to my husband and I through various men and women of God. I’ve been born again for 16 yrs and the prophetic word has not changed from then to now (to be a distribution center of wealth for the Kingdom). That’s not something that I like to openly discuss because people assume you’re a lover of money. Well my husband and I have money so that’s not the case- we desire wealth, to see the kingdom of God unhindered and forcefully moving forward. I would love nothing more than to write a check for the Perez’ to do what they were called to do in Peru and the Betancourts in Africa, etc, etc. I can’t afford to not be in pursuit of purpose because nations are depending on it.
I’m standing in faith with you Andrea!! One day you will be writing those checks!!!
I would also say lack of knowledge. Making stupid decisions, and lack of persistence. Thanks for the audit. I need to do one for myself.
Audits are important and quite necessary!
The areas I’m lacking are similar to the ones you wrote about; I find that when I do audits of my walk with Christ I usually tend to identify them really quickly but sometimes not a lot of change takes place – that actually is one of the things I would add as well, not making changes once I identify what I need to fix right away.
Yes Mel… We recognizing and not making adjustments is like looking in the mirror and forgetting once we walk away.
I actually wrote a response and withheld it…feeling the need to ponder it deeper. Then this morning I saw it…my weakness, at it’s core is an innate tendency of “self-sabotage”. It’s not a conscious thing, but I can trace it back, even throughout major and minor accomplishments.
It won’t be practical to explain in detail on this blog format, but I’ll tell you that it has set me in motion to fix it.
Good stuff.
David…. Many of us carry that same weakness…. self realization is half the battle… make your adjustments…
To answer the question specifically…the are I’m lacking in is efficiency and risk management.
Yes, I see myself in all three areas and some more than others. I’m working on the knowledge area, which is something I always thought I lacked. That pursuit keeps hitting me on the head, especially these last few days. Pursuit helps to get you to where you’re supposed to be. There are times that I know I didn’t pursue as I should have. Acknowledging that, I have to move past that, learn from it and be persistant in my pursuit. They all are linked to one another.
Excellent!! So proud of you April!
I believe one of my, don’t know if it’s weakness or strength, is being too spiritual about things. I know God is dealing with me in many areas which need His alignment. Another area is being constant. I tend to begin things giving it all but DISCOURAGEMENTS tend to stop my progress. Wow I’m also weak at that ” letting discouragements dictate my forward progress”… As I write more things are evident and exposed in my heart. Well last but not least, another weakness is being lead by emotions. Pastor I can keep going and going and going .. 2Chorinthians “Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.That is why, for Christ sake , I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. FOR WHEN I AM WEAK, THEN I AM STRONG. I thank you for your transparency and vulnerability which I highly respect. WOW thats another weakness of mine!! Not being vulnerable…. I told you Pastor I can keep going : ) GOD HELP ME!
Luis… Don’t be so hard on yourself. 🙂 And yes, your weakness becomes your strength when you fall completely on God’s grace! as long as you remain humble and teachable you will succeed.
Ooops Pastor I apologizze, I didnt answer the question with my reply. Thats waht happens when replying at 1am. Ill do it again sir. Have a blessed day.
I haven’t had an audit of my life lately but with this blog I don’t need it, you said all LOL. I can say that I’m lacking all three points but the difference is that you decided to do something about it and I haven’t until NOW. Thanks Pastor for this word I really need it.
You are welcome Jessica!