Focus: Succeeding From Behind

Text: Mk.5:27

"When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press BEHIND, and touched his garment."

This message is an excerpt from one of my yet to be published works, and I do hope it blesses your soul.

No one has come into this world to be a failure. God who created us always succeeds in all He does. Our universe is His handiwork. Even the cross that looked like a failure turned out to be the biggest success of God in history. God succeeds in whatever He does, and He made us in His image to be part of His success story. Look at the woman of issue of blood succeeding from behind! She came through the crowd - from behind, and got the healing she so desperately desired. The crowd in front of her was yet to succeed, but she pressed her way from behind with strong desire and great determination to succeed. Listen, God knows what to do to take you from the end of the tether to the top of the ladder. It is never late for you to succeed.

But how do we achieve success in life? What do we do to actualize destiny? Let me tabulate a few prerequisites for us.

1. Desire to succeed

No one succeeds accidentally or by mere chance. Success is born out of desire. Joseph was a dreamer. He started life, dreaming of a great future. To succeed, we have to dream and desire to succeed. David said, "One thing I have desired, and that I seek after…" God is not against our desire to live a meaningful life. Our Lord Jesus Christ says, "Whatever you DESIRE…" The psalmist says, "Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the DESIRES of thine heart" (Ps.37:4). We yearn to earn. Divine destiny is first planted in the heart as a dream, and from there we pursue to achieve it.

2. Decide to succeed

Success is achieved by design, not by default. It takes intention and action to succeed. Make up your mind to succeed. Success is by deliberate choice and desired intention. It is not enough to desire; we must decide to take action if truly we intend to succeed. You can't afford to leave the business of succeeding to chance.

3. Dare to succeed

Decision must lead to action. Success is not for weaklings. No one can idle or talk his way into success. We can't afford to sit by with folded hands, waiting for a big flash in our frying pans. We either venture out or we vegetate. The comfort zone makes success hard to achieve. Dreaming is not enough; we must dare to succeed. Paul says, "This one thing I do…"

4. Determine to succeed

Determination is the language of success. It takes guts to succeed. The path of success is fraught with challenges, obstacles and difficulties, and so determination is fundamentally required to succeed in any venture. Faith perseveres amid all odds.

Joseph never dreamed about the troubles he went through in the hands of his brothers and the pain he endured in Egypt. He saw only glory in his dreams, not the agony. But God let him go through all that in order to arrive at greatness. Success is like going against the tide. Life is not smooth when the wind is contrary. The winds of life can be really boisterous at times.

We constantly meet with crises right at the curve of change.

It is said that nothing ventured, nothing achieved. Determine to steer and stay the course of the ship until you arrive at your desired destination. You just can't afford to fail God, your world, or yourself. And be assured that immediate failure often leads to ultimate success. Vision, action, passion and determination are the elements needed to achieve success.

I pray that you succeed to the glory of God. Amen.

by Bishop Moses E. Peter