BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

2 0 : B V O V Believers who are determined to fulfill God's assignment for their life take action. They don't wait for their church, ministry or business to appear out of nowhere. They do the work. Taking action requires us to get out of our comfort zones and be willing to feel awkward and vulnerable. We must do what most people won't do. Remember the four men who took their sick friend to meet Jesus in Luke 5:20? When they arrived at the house, they couldn't get in. They didn't let that stop them. They climbed on top of the roof with their friend on a stretcher, tore oƒ the shingles, and lowered him in front of Jesus. "And when he saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee." Their actions were a result of their faith. They were willing to do what most people would never do. Even today, Jesus sees when we take action. We shouldn't wait for the opportunity to come before we prepare. We need to prepare now so that when the opportunity comes, we're ready to seize it. This Is Your Wake-up Call Now is the time to listen up, clean up, grow up, look up and get up. It's time to throw oƒ old habits that are keeping us from accomplishing our assignments. For me, I began practicing these habits one day at a time, and they revolutionized my life. I couldn't see where I would end up when my life was on the verge of collapse, but God could. Through His Word and the people He put in my life, I began to change. Today, I have the privilege of teaching thousands of business leaders, helping young women get free from self-harm and destructive relationships, and leading people to the Lord. I get to do that and more because I put these keys into practice. But they aren't only for me. They're for all of us. So right now, commit to accomplishing the assignment God has given you. Don't wait or let opportunities pass you by. Be like the Apostle Paul and say, "My life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus" (Acts 20:24, NLT). Then join me, and let's get to work! "I could fill a library with all I learned from my dad about fulfilling an assignment from God, but everything I learned started in one place—getting quiet before the Lord." Here's the crazy thing: I worked as a ghostwriter for my dad. Over those 11 years, I probably wrote 25 books from his teachings. I never grew in my own knowledge, though. I would wake up at the last minute to go to work, jump in my car, turn on the radio and sing all the way to the ošce. After work, I'd race home and watch TV for hours. I was more interested in watching other people live their dreams than going after mine. After my wake-up call, I knew something had to change. I started setting the alarm on my phone and forcing myself to read for 20 minutes. It felt like torture. Then something surprising happened: Everything in my life began to grow. God said in Hosea, "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge" (Hosea 4:6). I didn't want that to be me. I didn't want destruction in my life. I wanted purpose, so I made a habit of studying God's Word. Now, more than 20 years later, I still study the Word every day to educate myself. It's made a huge diƒerence! Key #4: Look Up When God was revealing His assignment to Abraham, He told him to "look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be" (Genesis 15:5). God wanted Abraham to use his imagination to get a vision of all God had for him. In the same way, we must see our dream on the inside before it shows up on the outside. Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no vision, the people perish." The opposite is also true: With vision, we come alive. Having vision allows us to see where we're going. Once we can see our vision, it's time to follow Habakkuk 2:2 and "write the vision, and make it plain." Notice it doesn't say to make it broad, vague or hazy. It says, "make it plain." In other words, we need to write it down and be specific. Key #5: Get Up The final key is to act. James 2:17 says, "Faith by itself isn't enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless" (New Living Translation). Faith requires action. It doesn't matter how much we know if we do nothing with it. i Terri Savelle Foy, daughter of Jerry and Carolyn Savelle, is the founder of Terri Savelle Foy Ministries. For more information visit terri.com

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