Guest Blog Post - 3 Reasons New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work and What You Should Do Instead if You Want to Succeed in 2012 by B.C. Fleming

I periodically like to feature guest posts here on my blog. Today is another special! B.C. Fleming is an author and speaker who offers some valuable advice for the New Year! Enjoy!

3 Reasons New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work and

What You Should Do Instead if You Want to Succeed in 2012

By B.C. Fleming

Author and Speaker

In the military we are results oriented, period! And there is no excuse for not producing results. Nobody wants to be known as "that guy" who can't be counted on. I know very few, if any, successful people who take New Year’s resolutions seriously (and I’m blessed to know quite a few, actually). A great number of people who are successful at what they do are successful because they are results-focused and results-oriented, they don’t make excuses for failure, they are go-getters and stubborn in their commitment to not give up and stick with it and they don’t stake the success of their careers or personal lives on short-lived, “feel-good” marketing gimmicks that reappear once a year every January (not to sound harsh, but let’s be honest).

1. New Year’s resolutions are meant to be broken. They don’t work because nobody keeps them. People make their resolutions with the intention of receiving some sort of pleasure or reward and expect it to happen almost instantaneously. When it doesn’t come fast enough they give up. But I can tell you from personal experience that the desire to avoid imminent pain or discomfort will move more people in a given direction faster than any other force, even the promise of pleasure or reward. Most people, when it comes to their resolutions, focus only on what they want to happen. But you will take more consistent action when you have the daunting thoughts of the things you don’t want to happen in the forefront of your mind accompanying those things you do want.

2. New Year’s resolutions do more damage than goodbecause people don’t know how to properly set and actually achieve goals. Most people are half-hearted in their commitments to their New Year’s resolutions because they want the result without the work. Then they feel like failures when they choose to give up in a month or two because they’ve decided that what they thought they wanted isn’t worth the effort. Again, they beat themselves down mentally and feel like failures because they gave up and it’s back to square one.

3. People despise change. People instinctively try to avoid change instead of embracing it. People like their comfort zones and New Year’s resolutions require people to get out of those comfort zones and to stay out of them. Pursuing and reaching a New Year’s resolution typically involves a moderate to major change in a person’s daily lifestyle. Doing something different takes time to develop into a habit—roughly 3 weeks according to some experts. Drastic, sudden changes in personal lifestyle typically won’t last for any extended period of time because most people simply don’t want whatever it is they said they wanted badly enough.

B.C. FLEMING’S SOLUTION TO YOUR ANTI-NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION:

1. Make a list of 3 things you absolutely DO NOT want to have happen in your life this year (in the “resolution areas” as I call them—areas you’re looking to improve in). Underneath that list of things you don’t want to happen, make a sub-list of 3 simple, practical things you are going to do every single day in order to avoid having those things happen. At the end of the paper, write one short, simple phrase stating your ultimate goal or desire in doing these things—and be specific (seeing your end result written down is KEY)—and then write down a specific date as a deadline.

2. Make 3-5 copies of this short, simple list.

3. Tape these on your mirror, next to your toilet, in your car, on your refrigerator, on the backside of your front door—anywhere you will be forced to run into them and look at them on a daily basis. Then do the activities listed which will ultimately lead you to your goal. Success here is in keeping it simple and doable. 

4. Stay consistent! Truth is, if you want something badly enough and are willing to do whatever it takes and stick with it, you’ll get it. Remember… At the end of the day you have nobody to blame and your success is your own fault!

*To INSTANTLY download a FREE copy of “Fleming’s Ridiculously Simple Plan for Achieving Your Goals,” simply go to www.BlownUpGuy.com, scroll to the bottom of the page and click the yellow button that says “GOALS!”

Thanks to Audra at the B&B Media Group for providing this great article!

‘Revise Us Again: Living From a Renewed Christian Script’ by Frank Viola – Book Review

It’s my observation that it is human nature to stick to the tried and true, to the familiar. This theory is backed up by Frank Viola in his new book, ‘Revise Us Again: Living From A Renewed Christian Script.’ His opinion is that we need to allow the Lord to recalibrate our thinking and to rewrite our life script.

Here is the synopsis of this insightful book:

Rescript Your Spiritual Life. Every person follows a script for living, a life guide that directs our behavior and shapes our choices. As believers, we find the original script for living woven throughout the Bible. Yet while the Christian message is simple, it can become complicated by our environment, our culture, and our religious ideas and traditions. For this reason, we are all in constant need of revising the scripts by which we live.

Author Frank Viola believes we need to revisit and revise what it means to live the Christian life. Drawing from his rich background in ministry, Viola examines ten key areas that impact every believer and explores fresh ways to revise them.

Conversational, insightful, and practical, Revise Us Again encourages us to examine those religious habits that we unconsciously pick up from others and rescript them with new habits that line up with our new nature in Christ.

Here is the biography of this author:

Frank Viola is a frequent conference speaker and author of numerous books on the deeper Christian life and radical church restoration. His books include the best-selling From Eternity to Here along with Pagan Christianity (coauthored with George Barna), Reimagining Church, Finding Organic Church, Jesus Manifesto (coauthored with Len Sweet), and The Untold Story of the New Testament Church. Frank’s website contains many free resources, including audio messages, an interactive blog, a quarterly eNewsletter, articles, and more. Frank and his family live in Gainesville, Florida.

Here is the book trailer:

In the Introduction, Mr. Viola shares what he hopes will happen after people read this book:

My hope is that the Holy Spirit of God, who writes not on tablets of stone but on tablets of our hearts, will use this book to help edit those religious habits that do not map to His heart, and in turn, begin rescripting us into the glorious image of Christ. (p. 11)

Mr. Viola focuses on ten areas in which our life script could use some possible 

revisions from the Lord:

1.    Revising the Lord’s Voice

2.    Revising Christianeze

3.    Revising Christian Code Language

4.    Revising Our Semantics

5.    Revising Our Message

6.    Revising Our Awareness of the Divine

7.    Revising Our Attitudes

8.    Revising Our Spiritual Expectations

9.    Revising the Holy Spirit’s Ministry

10. Revising Our Chief Pursuit

I was intrigued by a point Mr. Viola made in the chapter looking at Christian Code Language – specifically as it refers to a phrase used often by Christians, “Let me pray about it:”

I’m certainly not suggesting that we give up the practice of bringing things to the Lord’s attention and seeking His mind on them, especially those matters that are complex and where our response will affect the lives of others. But “let me pray about it” has become the universal answer that Christians give to undesired requests.

Forgive the personal illustration, but I think it may help some readers. When I have been faced with a crisis and I need the Lord’s precise guidance, I have set myself apart for three days to seek His face on the matter.

In every case, God has been faithful to give me clarity at some point during the three- day period. So I’m not against bringing vital matters before the Lord to discern His mind.

Such cases, however, are the exceptions. As Christians, we possess a mind (1 Cor. 2:16; Phil 2:5 NKJV). We possess a frame of reference where we know by instinct or wisdom what our responses should be in most situations. (p. 41)

I used that exact phrase with a friend who suggested I take on a responsibility. Now I am wondering what my motive was in relying on that thought process! I do see how that expression can be abused.

I found the most interesting chapter to be the one focusing on revising our attitudes:

Numerous things about the Christian life amaze me. One of them has to do with a phenomenon that has repeated itself throughout church history. I call it “being captured by the same spirit you oppose.” (p. 85)

He elaborates:

Those who are captured by the same spirit they oppose tend to impute the motives of their own hearts onto those who threaten them. Christian leaders who have inflated egos or deep insecurities are easily threatened by others. As a result, they will unwittingly read their own heart motives into the hearts of others.

Psychologists call this “projection.” I can’t face my own shortcomings and defects so I unconsciously project them onto other people. I accuse others of the very same dark things that are lurking deep within my own heart. (p. 89)

The Holy Spirit really convicted me when I read that section of the book…

Speaking of the Holy Spirit, Mr. Viola made an interesting point about placing too much emphasis on the Holy Spirit instead of on Christ:

To my mind, the Holy Spirit has but one job: to reveal, to make known, to magnify, to glorify, and to make central and supreme the Lord Jesus Christ. (p. 123)

In the chapter looking at revising our spiritual expectations, Mr. Viola makes an enlightening (pardon the pun!) point about night and day, and darkness and light:

So God’s beginnings start with evening. What we call the end of the day, God calls the beginning. In fact, every life-form begins in darkness. There are nine months of darkness for a human, and then the human sees light. At night when we are asleep, our bodies are resting and restoring, but we are unaware of it until morning. To put it another way, God’s beginnings are our nights. And what we call the end, He calls the beginning. (p. 103)

Mr. Viola goes on to share this principle: God takes away to establish, and what He establishes is always better than what He takes away (p. 101). 

Examples from the Bible include the lives of Job, Joseph, Moses and Aaron, and David. This principle culminates in the life of Jesus:

God took away the first man, Adam, and put him out of his misery. He then established the second man, Jesus Christ (Rom. 5-6; 1 Cor. 15:20-49).

Our first birth was a birth into Adam. We inherited his nature and incurred his judgment. So God rejects our first birth. It is our second birth – our new birth into Christ – our birth from above that God accepts. (p. 114)

He goes on to share this encouraging thought:

….[W]hen you are going through the dark night, remember: it’s not the end. It’s only the beginning. As high as God is going to elevate you is as deep as He digs to lay the foundation.

There is a spiritual principle that the Lord never gives anything, but that He first allows it to be lost. Jesus said that until you lose something, you can’t really have it (Matt. 16:25; Luke 6:38). God gives something first, then allows it to be taken away, that it may be given again. This is the principle of death and resurrection, and it is repeated all throughout Scripture. Ever notice all of those re-terms in the Bible: restoration, regeneration, restitution, recreation, rebirth, renewal, resurrection, revive, etc? (pp. 114-115)

He wraps up ‘Revise Us Again’ by reminding us of our freedom in Christ:

Thus the Christian life is rooted in liberty – the liberty that is in Jesus Christ (Gal. 5:1). This is a liberty that sets us free from trying to be good. It is also a liberty that sets us free from practicing evil. It is a liberty that brings us into a living knowledge of the One who indwells us – the One who happens to be the greatest Liberator in the universe as well as the Savior and Lord of the world.

So the next time you hear someone preach or teach, ask yourself, “What gospel am I hearing? Am I being exhorted to feel comfortable in my sin and justify it (libertinism)? Am I being exhorted to try harder to be a better Christian (legalism)? Or am I being presented with my beautiful Savoir, the Lord Jesus Christ, and reminded of my high standing in Him as a son or daughter of God (the gospel)? (p. 154)

Those are some great questions to ask! And blessed hope that we have been set free!  

I am really grateful to read books that challenge my thinking; ‘Revise Us Again’ certainly did that. It has been a while since I have read a book in the Christian Life category. I have been reading a lot of fiction lately; it is nice to get back to the real world with this book! Mr. Viola clearly writes with a heart for the Lord. He has sifted through all of the man-made additives to the Gospel, and has brought us back to the heart of it – Jesus Christ as Lord. I know that, personally, I need that reminder, with all of the distractions in this world, that He is all we need. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Viola wrote this book. It has redirected me back to the importance of Jesus, and away from all of the extraneous issues that take our focus away from Him. If you want to be challenged to revise your life script, read ‘Revise Us Again.’

You can order this book here.

This book was published by David C. Cook and provided by The B & B Media Group for review purposes.

‘The Titus Mandate’ by Ted Bigelow – Interview + Book/Author Information

The Lord warns us that we need to be aware of wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15) – “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” In his book, ‘The Titus Mandate,’ Ted Bigelow shows us how to spot the wolves and protect yourself and those you love from this effective satanic tactic.

Here is information on ‘The Titus Mandate:’

The church is supposed to be the safest place on earth for Christians, so why is it often a place of deep dissatisfaction? Many Christians suffer from difficult church situations and are unsure how to live and worship with such stress, let alone grow in the midst of it. Much of this pain comes from being under poor church leadership. According to Ted Bigelow, if your church doesn’t follow God’smandate for leadership as set out in the book of Titus, it is almost certainly headed for disaster.

All Christians want to be a part of a safe and godly church so that they can invest in its ministries and mission without fear or compromise. Yet thousands of real churches, perhaps yours, have been infiltrated by dangerous men. Many Christians have been so hurt by these wolves that they have left church, vowing never to return. Other sheep, unaware of what they are witnessing week by week, pay the wolves to preach their error.

In The Titus Mandate, readers will follow Paul’s special attaché Titus on his treacherous mission to the Mediterranean island of Crete. You’ll learn for yourself what Titus experienced as he went toe-to-toe with the wolves, carrying out God’s very public mission to rescue Christians and churches from danger. Paul’s journey will teach you to spot the wolves and protect yourself and those you love from Satan’s most prolific form of spiritual peril.

Through reading this book, Christians will be equipped to:

· Understand the biblical reasons for most negative church experiences and gain scriptural wisdom about their church trials.

· Trust in the Lord whose wisdom brings such trials into His children’s lives, enabling them to move forward in their walks with Christ.

· Discern safe churches from unsafe churches.

· Participate in church in a way that draws them closer to the Lord.

Taking the truth from Scripture and applying it in the church is easier said than done, so The Titus Mandate provides specific instruction on how to live out God’s principles that make church a secure place. One’s confidence in church will be restored as God’s ways are explained, applied, and contrasted with those ways that bring danger. The Titus Mandate is a rescue plan for Christians and their churches. Readers will be able to feel confident that the leadership they have chosen will be trustworthy shepherds for their families.

Here is the biography of this author:

Ted Bigelow is Senior Pastor of Grace Church in Hartford, CT, USA. He holds the Master of Divinity and Master of Theology degrees from The Master’s Seminary and a Doctorate from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Here is a Question and Answer session with Pastor Bigelow:

Q:  Your book discusses how so many have been hurt by the church today. Have you had any personal experiences that affected your knowledge of this?

Indeed! One time especially. Now I can say, many years later, that I am thankful to the Lord for this, but at the time I was hurt, confused, and there was no one to go to for counsel.

I had been so scared to bring up the issue I had with a pastor in our church that I had waited a year to speak to him. When I did, my own pastor hung up on me, and I was devastated! There were other men who were leaders in that church, so I went to one of them and asked for his help, but he told me that this problem shouldn’t get in the way of the pastor’s successful ministry. I didn’t share the issue with anybody else but, when I tried to talk to the pastor again privately, he and the other leaders literally kicked me and my wife out of church. That really hurt us, and it took several years of being under godly leaders before my heart sort of thawed and began to see perhaps why the Lord allowed us to go through that. The pastor left ministry soon after and, sadly, many aspects of his life fell apart.

Q:  Who is qualified to be a shepherd in the church? Where are these qualifications found in Scripture?

Before any man can serve the Lord in church leadership, he must meet a list of 26 requirements in his life. When a man meets all these requirements, he is to be recognized by the sheep as a truly qualified shepherd. The list is found in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. It is stringent and weeds out a lot of men who might like to be church leaders. But this list also motivates men to become more like Christ, the True Shepherd of the flock. It provides a God-given target for men to aim their lives and ministry. Furthermore, this list is the same for every church in every culture, because every man who grows in Christ-likeness looks more and more like the qualities of this list.

Q:  How does a great church begin to lose the Gospel?

A great church loses the Gospel by violating God’s word on safety and protection. You see, when a great church makes its decisions using the world’s methods, the sheep treat each other in a worldly way. Instead of preferring each other as more important than one’s self, church decisions are made selfishly, instead of in the manner of preference (Philippians 2:3-4).

Furthermore, a great church marks its own obsolescence when it makes leadership positions a matter of popular vote and not biblical qualification. Leaders are relegated to consultancy not shepherding, while their policies are up for public review and possible censure. The kind of men who succeed well at popularity are never those who confront sin and error, and yet this is exactly what God requires from a leader.

The Titus Mandate relieves the stress of complying with the world’s methods and enables both sheep and shepherds to put into motion all the competency and power God’s Word grants them.

Q:  What is the priesthood of the believer and why is it needed in the church today?

Like a little pill that eradicates a deadly disease, the priesthood of every individual believer is a tool of healing in your church in the hands of a mighty God. Just as Jesus has made all Christians “a kingdom, priests to his God and Father” (Revelation 1:6), so we are “being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood” (1 Peter 2:5). We offer ourselves to Him in prayer and obedience. Only a church that pursues obedience to God in all things is a safe church for the priest of Jesus Christ. The priest of Jesus Christ must represent Him and say, “No compromise allowed!”

Where there is compromise, the believer has authority to call the church to obey Christ’s Word because he or she is empowered by their mighty priesthood. It is an honor bestowed by Christ upon every genuine Christian and authorizes each Christian to demand that God’s Word is obeyed in every aspect of personal and church life. Without believers living up to their priesthood, every church corrupts itself.

Q:  Will my church be void of disagreements if it follows the model of leadership from Titus?

No church will be void of disagreements in this life but, in spite of our tendency to disagree, Jesus Christ nonetheless commands us:

“…that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10).

In order for that to happen, we need to live together in a church that, first, has a single leadership team—the kind commanded by Paul in The Titus Mandate. Secondly, we need a way of handling our disagreements so that everybody submits their own roles and responsibilities to Scripture, not personal preference. Since God shows us who and how decisions are to be made in His church, we need to esteem His ways in Scripture as higher than our own.

Q:  How can readers find a church that follows the guidelines for leadership as expressed in The Titus Mandate?

It’s actually really easy; in fact, you can find out in two questions. First, ask if the leaders are appointed by the qualifications in Scripture or by votes. And second, ask if the leaders must receive approval from other people before they can make a decision. If they must do this, they don’t have the authority God wants true elders to have.

You can order this book here.

This book was published by CreateSpace and provided by The B & B Media Group for review/promotional purposes.