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What Do You See for the Rest of Your 2020?
Gary Keesee • Jul 16, 2020
Partial paralysis.
An accident during his birth had severed a nerve and left the lower left side of his face (including parts of his lip, tongue, and chin) paralyzed. He was left with a permanent snarling look and slurred speech.
He was bullied as a child, and at 15, he was told his brain was “dormant.”
After being told his mind was no good, he decided to focus on his body and started pursuing bodybuilding. Then he decided to pursue an acting career, with little success.
“When I would try to get jobs in commercials, the director would go, ‘What are you saying; what language is that?’” he said. But he wasn’t speaking a foreign language.
Years later, after taking as many steps backward as he had forward, things finally changed.
After watching a highly anticipated boxing match in 1975, he went home and wrote a script for a movie.
He attempted to sell the script to multiple studios, with the intention of playing the lead role himself. In fact, he refused to sell unless he played the lead character; and eventually, after a substantial budget cut to compromise, it was agreed he could be the star.
That film is now considered to be one of the greatest sports films ever made.
That “guy” I’m talking about is Sylvester Stallone, and that film is Rocky.
Rocky gained Sylvester Stallone worldwide fame, and the Rocky film series has grossed more than $1.7 billion dollars at the worldwide box office.
What does his story have to do with YOU, especially right now?
His story illustrates something very important you really need to get right, friend:
Your VISION determines your outcome.
It’s mid-July. It’s been a completely crazy year.
If you’re like most people, you probably set some goals at the beginning of this year, wrote out some New Year’s resolutions, or made a list of things you wanted to get accomplished in 2020.
That’s all great. Goals and desires are good.
But goals and desires aren’t the same as vision.
We get it mixed up sometimes. We think vision is the same as goal setting. But it’s not.
Vision is what you actually SEE.
So you may have a goal or a desire to lose weight, but do you actually SEE yourself at your goal weight? Have you been envisioning yourself fitting into that smaller size, getting exercise, eating healthier, or doing what it will take for that goal to actually happen?
Or maybe you have a goal or a desire to be self-employed. Do you actually SEE yourself owning your own business, cashing the checks, making your own schedule, and celebrating your wins?
Sylvester Stallone SAW himself as the lead in Rocky.
His vision determined his outcome.
What about you? What do you see for the rest of this year? Are you having trouble envisioning much of anything for the rest of 2020?
If so, it’s time to change that.
Reactivate the vision you had for this year. It’s not too late.
What do you want the rest of your year to look like?
Do you want to be financially free? To get organized? To learn a new skill or hobby? To quit a bad habit? To travel more? To become a morning person?
Friend, whatever it is, YOU MUST SEE IT.
Your vision determines your outcome.
You have to know how to activate your vision in order to get things done and see real change come to pass in your life.
I should know. I had to learn this myself (again) not too long ago.
Earlier this year, I shared how, for 18 YEARS, I didn’t believe the financial services company Drenda and I had started before we began pastoring could be in the top 10 for production.
Sure, before we pastored, our business had been ranked number one out of the 5,000+ offices that offered the same types of services worldwide. But then we started the church, and the business went on the back burner. It’s how I thought it had to be.
It wasn’t until God asked me why I wasn’t onstage at a convention getting recognized and making His name known that my vision for our company shifted.
Suddenly, I could SEE our company being in the top 10 with God’s help. I could SEE myself on that stage making His name known.
Just like Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right,” when I couldn’t envision our company in the top 10, I was right.
And when I started envisioning our company in the top 10, I was right.
In both cases, my vision determined my outcome.
Friend, your vision will ALWAYS determine your outcome.
For years, the only vision I had for my life was ruin, and that was the outcome I was getting.
You’ve probably heard at least parts of our backstory, but many years ago, Drenda and I lived in downright poverty. Yes, we were believers, and we had a great family life. We enjoyed our marriage and our family, but we were struggling. Really struggling.
We went to a church that taught us God loves us and that He has great things planned for our lives, but we weren’t living it. We couldn’t SEE it. We were barely surviving.
Back then, the only vision I seemed to have was for finding used stuff that could still be used and for selling stuff at pawnshops to try to get money for a tank of gas or to pay a bill collector.
I couldn’t SEE getting a new house even though the little, 1800s farmhouse our family of seven lived in had seen better days. Not only did we have weeds growing through the broken windows, but also it seemed we were living in a house that already belonged to families of spiders and bees. In fact, there were so many wasps and yellow jackets coming into that house that we would have to pull our sheets down on our beds at night and check for them!
Many times, when we were getting dressed for church, we would hear a scream because somebody would put their arm in a sleeve or a jacket, and there’d be bees in there! Our kids got stung all of the time!
I couldn’t SEE getting new cars either, even though the two we had had also definitely seen better days. They each had more than 200,000 miles on them, the floorboards in both of them were rusting out, and they were beat up and bent.
To say we lived under intense financial pressure would be an understatement. Not only did we owe on our broken-down farmhouse and two rusted-out, bent up, high mileage cars, but we also had ten maxed out credit cards, three finance company loans at interest rates of 28%, more than $13,000 owed in back taxes, more than $26,000 owed to relatives, and judgments and liens filed against us.
I remember one specific time I had to mail an envelope. We had borrowed money from anybody and everybody we could. We had exhausted all of our options. In fact, we owed money to nearly anyone you could imagine—hospitals, dry cleaners—everyone. So I had a letter I needed to mail, but I couldn’t even afford the stamp.
I called my dad to ask if he had pocket change he could give me to buy a stamp.
A stamp, friend. A stamp.
And as if calling him for that small amount wasn’t humiliating enough, what he asked me in response made for one of the lowest moments of my life.
He said, “Do I have to breathe for you too?”
For nine years we lived like that. Fixing our situation looked impossible.
I couldn’t SEE us getting ahead financially, let alone living FREE financially.
Until I finally reached the end of my rope, and God said, Take the time to learn how My Kingdom operates.
With those words, we suddenly had hope for our future. We had vision.
Suddenly, we could SEE ourselves living free financially.
Of course, there’s much more to our story, but our lives drastically changed. We went from financial ruin to being completely debt free over the next two and a half years.
Our NEW vision determined our NEW outcome.
Friend, that’s what we want for you.
It’s not too late.
What do you see for the rest of YOUR 2020?
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IT’S NOT TOO LATE for your 2020! Activate your vision and see change in your life this year!
Let us help! Click here to get your Your Vision Determines Your Outcome 5-CD mentorship set and Better Than You Think book now!
Reading Time 3 mins 43 secs – Are you happy right now? Or are you feeling a little grumpy, or negative, or sorry for yourself? We’ve all been there. Years ago, I had one of those months. Yes, I said months , not days. I was negative. I was feeling sorry for myself. The weight and pressures of life and certain situations were bearing down on me. For some reason, during that time, I went to a conference I really didn’t feel like going to, and the speaker got up and said he was going to talk about being thankful. Great , I thought. Just what I want to hear. What I really wanted was for someone to join me in my pity party. But that wasn’t happening. Because God knew that wasn’t what I needed. He knew I needed someone to tell me the truth. See, I had taken my eyes off of all of the blessings of God. I had stopped remembering all of the amazing times He had come through for me. I had taken my focus off of His promises and put it on my problems. That message was just what I needed. The Holy Spirit dealt with me right then about my heart and how I had been ungrateful. I had to repent. God set me free that day. Here’s the thing: studies show that when you’re happy and thankful , you have 17% more friends. When you’re happy, you live longer and you have less health problems like heart attacks, strokes, colds, the flu, and even pain. Being grateful also strengthens your emotions, makes you more optimistic and less self-centered, improves your sleep, increases your self-esteem and your energy, helps you bounce back after a setback, reduces feelings of envy, helps your marriage, makes you look better, and makes you more productive. Proverbs 17:22 (KJV) says, “ A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones .” See that? Happiness is like medicine. Discouragement sucks the life out of you. Are you reading this and thinking, “ Gary, you don’t know what I’m going through. I have serious problems” ? I understand. But here’s the thing: happiness is not circumstantial. Happiness is a choice you make. I hear it all the time… “Gary, you don’t understand. I hate my house.” Sell it. “Gary, you don’t get it. I hate my job.” Quit it. Find a new one. “Gary, I just hate my life.” CHANGE it. You’re not stuck. You have options. Every single day, you make choices to do something or NOT do something. And you have plenty of reasons to be happy. Stop thinking you can only be happy when everything seems “perfect.” Because “perfect” is really rare, and I do mean really rare. In fact, odds are there will always be something in your life that isn’t “perfect.” The good news is, no matter what you go through or deal with in life, you can still be thankful and happy, because you can always trust God despite your circumstances. Philippians 4:6 (NIV) says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God .” Wait. Did you see what that said? Notice it didn’t say, “Only be anxious about the big things you can’t handle on your own.” Nope. It says don’t be anxious about anything . It also says by prayer—and with thanksgiving —present your requests to God. That means you should be thanking Him for all He’s already done and for what He’s about to do in your situation. You should be thanking Him before your answer shows up, because He’s faithful and good. Look at Judges 20:19–25. There, we see the nation of Israel suffering great loss after a huge battle. They had lost 22,000 men. 22,000. Can you even imagine? I’m sure you’ll agree that that was a really bad day. Then, on the second day of battle, they lost 18,000 more men. 40,000 men lost in two days. The Bible tells us they took a day off at that point. They stopped and regrouped. Then, in verse 26, we see that the entire army presented offerings of thanksgiving to God. Things had gone really wrong, and they needed to remind themselves that God was for them, that He is good and faithful, that He was with them. And the next day, they went out and won the battle. So, what about you, friend? Do you need to stop? Do you need to take your mind off the negative and remind yourself that God is for you, that He is good and faithful, and that He is with you?
Reading Time 2 mins 13 secs – In John 6, we read the story of Jesus feeding 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fish. Do you know it? It’s where we see Jesus teaching the disciples how to release the Kingdom of God into the earth realm. Basically, a large crowd was following Jesus, listening to Him teach, and watching Him perform miracles. It got to a point where the people needed to eat, and Jesus asked the disciples what they planned to feed the people. Of course, Jesus knew the disciples would freak out. They couldn’t feed 5,000 people. In fact, they started talking about how it would take more than half a year’s wages to buy just a bite for that many people. Jesus was teaching the disciples, and He was teaching us— the Kingdom of God has all the answers you need . How can you release the Kingdom of God into your life? Here are the five steps Jesus took. 1. Look at what you have. Jesus asked the disciples what they had to feed the people. What do you have in your life that you can give God to work with? Jesus multiplied bread into bread and fish into fish. What do you need multiplied in your life? Find some of it. That’s your seed. Also, remember that money can be named. You don’t sow money to believe for more paper or digital money. Money represents your life and can be named to be the thing you need multiplied. 2. Make sure you’re in faith. “To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see” (Hebrews 11:1, GNT). You have to know how to judge whether or not you’re in faith. How? Do you have the right picture? When you close your eyes, what do you see? Do you see yourself with the thing you’re believing for? Can you defend your position? Why do you believe it? Prove it! Because you can be sure that between the “Amen” and the “There it is!” the enemy is going to contend for it, so you better be able to defend it. Do you have joy, expectancy, and peace? Are you in agreement with your spouse? 3. Confess over what you have, and release it in faith. Be specific. Say exactly what you’re believing for and release the seed to God. 4. Get the plan from God. Be ready for new direction, new ideas, and new concepts by revelation from the Holy Spirit. Carry a notepad and a pen. Write everything down. 5. Act quickly! When God gives you the plan, MOVE! It’s wise to have counselors and get wisdom, but you need to act swiftly on any direction you receive from the Holy Spirit.
Reading Time 2 mins 34 secs – How can you make sure you’re equipped for the growth coming your way this year? Here are my 10 steps to posture yourself for opportunity and success. 1. Ask yourself how you’re handling your current responsibilities. Don’t run from your responsibilities. No matter where you are or what you’re doing, you should be a success. People will still see the evidence of God even if you think you’re in the wrong spot. 2. Detox your life of the things that keep you from having time to think. We live in a fast-paced world. There are plenty of things that can keep you distracted. But it’s in the moments that you stop to think that you’ll find ways to solve problems, and that’s where the opportunities are. So figure out what is consuming your time. Start saying no to some things. Find time to think. 3. Don’t hang around people who are always losing. I know people hit rough spots, but if the people in your life are chronically losing, it’s time to expand your circle. Hang around people who are better than you are, who don’t see things as impossible, and who have vision. It may be uncomfortable for you, but their influence will cause you to think differently. 4. Write down EVERY idea that you have, no matter how strange it seems. Most people filter opportunities and ideas through what they perceive their ability to be. This means most people discard ideas by the dozens because they don’t think they can do them. But God isn’t limited to what you know how to do. The ideas He gives you might seem so weird to you that you can’t process them fully. Write them down so you have time to think about them. 5. Research. Research. Repeat. You don’t need to know how to do something; you need to know how to learn how to do it. Research until you find what you’re looking for. 6. Count the cost before you jump. A lot of Christians hear God and jump out too soon, resulting in catastrophe. There are seasons for everything. God will prepare you for where He wants you to go. Be patient. 7. Always be in agreement with your spouse. Never, ever march out into battle without your spouse being in total agreement and your faith aligned. 8. Ask God for direction. Ask Him to help you, to show you where to go, and what to do. And always remember that prophecy from other people shouldn’t lead you; it should only confirm what God has already said to you. 9. Commit to never quit. Quitting is not an option. Once you’ve moved, don’t move again until God speaks to you. Stay with it. Walk it out. Don’t quit. So many people have so much potential, but they get uncomfortable and they quit. If you want to win, you should always be stretching. 10. Get ready to embrace bigger things. Your ability to see the big picture will keep growing as you change and grow on the inside. You’ll pick up on even more opportunities. For more principles, check out this FREE video on success.
As an author, speaker, television host, and successful entrepreneur for more than 27 years, Gary Keesee has helped thousands of families and individuals realize their God-given potential.
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