You allow God to order your footsteps when you give Him time and space to prioritize the tasks and the steps before you.
You need a vision for your life to know where your flight plan is taking you, but vision without a plan and timetable is only one side of the equation for doing what you were created to do. King Solomon in his book of Proverbs gives this insight:
“Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained,
But happy is he who keeps the law.” Proverbs 29:18
Allow me to paraphrase the truth of this proverb in light of listing steps and adding deadlines— something you will do today. The Deborah Gall translation is, “Without clear vision, you wander day-to-day doing this and that. With a clear vision and a step-by-step path, you will live joyfully knowing you are operating as who you were created to be, doing what you were created to do.”
Of the 10 steps or action items that you listed yesterday, God knows the order and priority of each. Created For So Much More book study participants* tell me this exercise is one of the most helpful and productive because it brings immediate results when put into action.
Take a look at your list of 10 items. Ask the Lord to highlight three of them. Which three is He saying “now” to?
Star or highlight those three steps.
Next, take a look at those three steps and look at your calendar. Next to each of the three steps, write the date by which you will accomplish that step. Be realistic but also challenge yourself.
Deadlines may feel confining to you, but do not let that stop you. Giving yourself a deadline is a powerful way of setting goals that get done. Do not wander day-to-day doing this and that.
Set the deadlines for the three steps you have highlighted.
Now, commit to meeting those deadlines. Do you need an accountability partner? Connect with one of the cheerleaders in your life who will root you on to successfully accomplish the steps you have highlighted.
When you have accomplished your top three steps, take another look at your list of 10 and repeat the process. When you have accomplished all 10, go back to your dream diagram and ask the Lord to show you the next area to work on.
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
How do you realize your big audacious dream? One step at a time.
Dream Big, Dear One, then Work Small
*I will be leading an online/zoom 12 week study of my book, Created For So Much More starting on January 16. Email me at [email protected] to register.