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You Were Made to Be Successful. Stop Settling – Part Two

Gary Keesee • Feb 15, 2017

It may not look possible right now, but…

It’s not impossible with God.

God had to fix me. He had a specific purpose for my life, and He wanted to help me get there. I didn’t know it then, but… I had to change.

Look at Joshua. Moses had mentored him to be a successful leader. Then, Moses died. Suddenly, Joshua was responsible for a huge nation of people and a wilderness journey.

Joshua could’ve easily looked at his situation and said, “You’ve got to be kidding me. I can’t do this. I’m not qualified.” But he didn’t.

Instead, Joshua focused on the promises God had made him: that He would give him every place he set his foot; that no one would be able to stand against him all the days of his life; and that He would never leave or forsake him. He reminded himself that God had already marked him for success.

Those are the same promises God has made you—

  • He will give you every place you set your feet.
  • No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life.
  • He will never leave or forsake you.
  • God has already marked you for success.

Sure, the task before Joshua was impossible without God.

The task before you may be impossible in your own strength, but it’s not impossible with God.

That’s why you’re going to have to know what God has promised you. You’re going to have to know that He is faithful; that He has a plan, and that He’s never caught off guard or taken by surprise.

If you’re going to do anything great in your life there is going to be pressure.

There are going to be things that happen that don’t look possible.

But it’s not impossible with God.

You will have to make tough decisions, pass some tests, and learn how faithful God is.

And you will have to practice the art of remembering His faithfulness, and that He has marked you for success.

Years after college and life insurance sales, I began pastoring and speaking at churches around the country. A few years later, our church was making plans to build a larger facility.

One day, we were on a tour of another facility to see how they had laid things out. They showed us their television studio. Now, I never had any intention of doing television but, as I walked through that production room, the anointing of God hit me so hard I had to leave the building. I was shaken at what God had said.

And God lined things up. A guy who produces major Christian media wanted to do our show. But then we hit an obstacle—it would cost $250,000 to start a television ministry.

Now, keep in mind that our people were already committing their funds to build our new church building, and Drenda and I had committed a couple hundred thousand dollars to the new building ourselves. We didn’t have $250,000 to start TV.

But one night, there was a gold coin in an offering at one of the churches I was speaking at, and when they gave it to me, God told me that He had that gold coin placed in the offering to remind me that He had told Peter where the gold was (in the fish’s mouth.)

He was assuring me that He would tell me where the money was—that it’s not impossible.

So I held onto that gold coin. I held it, and I prayed , and prayed , and prayed some more.

That gold coin was my reminder of God’s promise, and that He always keeps His promises . It was my reminder that He had a bigger plan than anything I could see—that He had marked me for success.

That first year, through various circumstances, God brought in all the money we needed.

Then came the second year.

We were in the middle of everything. Our new church building was going up, and television costs were increasing—to about $50,000 a month. I was feeling the pressure.

I couldn’t see how we could keep paying for television. It looked impossible. I had no clue where the money was coming from. My mind just couldn’t see it.

So, one day, I was feeling really sorry for myself.

I told God it wasn’t fair. It was too much. I was bellyaching.

There was a conference in Atlanta I had planned to attend. I wasn’t in a good place in my mind when I went to that conference, so I just sort of hid in the back. No one knew I would be there, so I thought I’d just blend in.

But something incredible happened at that conference.

__________________________________________________________________________

Find out what happened in my brand new series, Marked for Success .

Of course, there’s much more to Marked for Success than just telling you what happened at that conference in Atlanta. I believe this two-part mentorship series will encourage you to reignite your God-given dreams and set you back on course toward the successful life God has destined for you.

Refuse to settle, quit, or back down. Request your copy of Marked for Success now.

The Power of Choice: How to Choose Happiness in Every Situation

By Gary Keesee • 08 May, 2024
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?

5 Steps to Release the Kingdom in Your Life

By Gary Keesee • 10 Apr, 2024
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.

Want Growth and Success? Here Are 10 Steps to Help Take You There

By Gary Keesee • 13 Mar, 2024
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.
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