TOYL Purpose and Objectives Supplement

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I. What's the Purpose of you Life (Isa 43) and your Plan to fulfill it? (Happiness is a by-product see studies in TOYL and Truthbase)

Commands to glorify God (1Cor 10:13), which is not our default. Miss the destination thru lack of diligent focused attention (Heb 2)

Titus exhorts to be sound-minded (2:2,3,5,6,12, life governed by objectives rather than: instinct, security/significance, pleasure...????) 

Titus 2:11 grace of God that brings salvation...12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soundmindedly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope, appearing of glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. 15 Speak these things, exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.

II. We're Wired to Seek Certain Goals: 

Dopamine: “The Reward Molecule” Every type of reward seeking behavior studied increases the level of dopamine in the brain. To feel more extroverted and uninhibited try to increase your levels of dopamine naturally by being a go-getter in your daily life and flooding your brain with dopamine regularly by setting goals and achieving them.

Oxytocin: “The Bonding Molecule” is a hormone directly linked to human/dog bonding and increasing trust and loyalty.

Serotonin: Confidence Molecule. Ultimately the link between higher serotonin and a lack of rejection sensitivity allows people to put themselves in situations that will bolster self-esteem, increase feelings of worthiness and create a sense of belonging. To increase serotonin, challenge yourself regularly and pursue things that reinforce a sense of purpose, meaning and accomplishment. Being able to say "I did it!" will produce a feedback loop that will reinforce behaviors that build self esteem and make you less insecure and create an upward spiral of more and more serotonin.  {See studies on Happiness in TOYL and Truthbase.net}

III. Do you value having Biblical Objectives: and  Specific, Measurable, Activating, Realistic, Transforming SMART Goals?

A. It’s a matter of life or death, not a suggestion. There is only one final destination where I want to end up, and I’ve been told that the road is narrow & difficult, not many people travel there, I will face all kinds of opposition and I’m supposed to seek it diligently. Jesus was determined, Paul was looking to win the race. If I don’t focus on my final destination, the Bible says that I will die 

(Heb 4:11, Mt 7:13-14, Lk 9:51, 1 Cor 9:24, Phil 3:11,12,14, Mt 16:25)

B. I shouldn’t be satisfied with moving generally in a good direction (or comparing myself to others). God has an expectation of me in proportion to how much I’ve been given - so how quickly or slowly I change is going to be judged as well as how much I’ve changed / obeyed (Lk 12:48, 24:25; 2 Cor 10:12)

C.  Sin is missing the mark. The mark is a specific target. I need to focus on the target to get it right. Start with looking at my target instead of looking elsewhere. Obeying God the way He wants requires wisdom and understanding, which I won’t have unless I start thinking about and doing the right stuff (it also means I need to declutter my mind from information/habits/actions that detract)

 (1 Cor 9:26, Prov 4:4-7).

D. Having objectives will help me combat temptation/filter out choices/more confidently determine the will of God because I know firmly in my mind why I’m saying “yes” or “no” to something. (2 Cor 10:5)

     Having objectives can help me to combat sin because I have a direction in which to focus. (Isa 50:7; Mk 1:38 purpose Lk 9:51 flint)

E. Not having objectives will mean that I will fail at perseverance for the prize in the face of difficulty, trial & temptation (Heb 12:2,4)

F. It is in my nature to serve myself and my desires. Serving God is an unnatural thing. It is a folly and a deceit to think that I can serve Him without the effort of having a purposeful objective to serve Him. Reminding myself about objectives takes effort and self-denial. (1 Cor 9:27, Rm 8:7-8, 1 Cor 2:14, Col 3 - put to death, put off, put on - these are long lists of behaviors that require effort. If they came naturally, they wouldn’t be commands, Mt 16:24-25)

G. If I don’t have the right objectives, I won’t have wisdom. If I despise or disdain wisdom (think little of it), I am basically wronging my own soul and loving death (Pr 8:35-36, Pr 5:12-13)

H. Scripture describes the consequences of lack of awareness and non-preparation for the Master’s return (this is what happens to stewards who are not disciplining themselves to obedience): Eternal punishment (Lk 12:46-47)
I.  Paul did not consider himself to have grasped the prize. Am I living with the same sobriety of mind? Does it serve me to be lulled into thinking that I’ve got the prize in the bag when Paul was unsure of his reward and being persecuted for his faith? (Phi 3:13, 1 Co 9:27)

J. Nebulous ideas are not a good idea for objectives. My objectives need to be backed by Scripture, concrete (based in reality), personalized and written down so I can remind myself of them when I forget.

K. God desires to have a loyally loving relationship with me. If I desire to reciprocate and enjoy all the blessings that God has for me to reap from it, I must guard/protect it, as well as relate to Him accurately and correctly, all of which is a relationship objective. Those who didn't focus on it were disloyal and God saw them as prostitutes, alienated his soul from them and let them get cursed for their disloyalty. (Ps 86:8-11, Eze 23, Ps 119:10-11)

L. Listening to God's still small voice, seeking him with all my heart, following him - requires giving him my full attention. It is a direction to orient myself which will allow me to be strong in the face of trouble. Perhaps this is another relationship or spiritual objective - if I want to have peace and confidence which will help me to overcome the world. I have an internal compass which if I orient towards knowing and serving God will establish me and give me power to overcome anything 

(1 John 4:4-6, 1 Kings 19:11-13, Jer 29:13, Ps 119:23, Mt 7:24-25

Questions for Reflection/Discussion/Response:

1. Do you know how to glorify God, and can trace everything you do flow from/to that purpose? Why not? When will you start?

2. Do you see anything untrue about the thots in #III? If they are true, then are they the expression of your heart/values?

3. What's stopping you from developing and using Biblical Objectives and SMART Goals to achieve your Purpose on earth? (not the HS)