I made the above image a couple years ago to try and capture these goals. Sometimes I explain the last goal (to finish well) as the strategic focus of my life. If I finish well, then naturally, I will have treasured Christ, lived the Word, and made disciples. At the end of his life Paul was able to say, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith" (2 Timothy 4:7). The ongoing prayer of my heart is that I, too, will be able to say with Paul, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith." By God's grace--and only by His grace--I will finish well.

All this got me to thinking recently what it takes to finish well. I came up with the following list of characteristics of one who fights the good fight, finishes the course, and keeps the faith. It is in no way exhaustive. You may think of additional characteristics. But these are good ones with which to start.  And, these all assume one is a believer and surrendered to God and sold out for Jesus. To finish well, therefore, a person must...

1. Be a visionary. The writer of Proverbs wrote, "Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, But happy is he who keeps the law" (Proverbs 29:18). Vision, especially a vision to finish well, restrains a person in such a way to keep on target.

2. Be willing to suffer. It amazes me the number of so called believers I encounter who think any suffering is a sign of weak faith. The Christian life is not an easy one. If our leader (Christ) suffered, we can expect the same thing. Peter wrote, "Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose" (1 Peter 4:1). Earlier, in 1 Peter 3:17, he indicates suffering is often God's will for the believer. The primary reason for suffering, I believe, is to make us more like Christ. Suffering also serves the same purpose as vision--to keep us on target.

3. Not get bogged down by past successes and failures. Paul said, "But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ" (Philippians 3:7). A few verses later he writes, "...forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead" (Philippians 3:13). It is good to celebrate victories but we should not camp out there. Furthermore, the devil will try to bog us down by pointing out past sins and failures. We must forget those, too. If God has forgiven us in Christ Jesus then we must move on. Otherwise, we'll fail to stay on target.

4. Be patient. In our fast-food world we want what we want and we want it now! James said, "Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains" (James 5:7). A farmer doesn't go out and dig up his recently planted crop to see why it's not growing. He continues to "farm" while patiently waiting for the harvest. Likewise, a believer who wants to finish well is going to be patient. Sanctification (the process of becoming more like Jesus) is an often slow, tedious, and sometimes painful process. But if we're patient we'll eventually reap the reward of said patience--we'll finish well!

​5. Be willing to persevere no matter what. The Bible mentions perseverance or endurance multiple times. In other words, God doesn't want us to give up. Consider Revelation 14:12, which reads, "This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus." Finishing well calls for endurance. When you stumble, get back up and keep on persevering. When you fail miserably, get back up and keep pressing on. Run the race set before you until you cross the finish line. And how will you know you've crossed the finish line? You'll see Jesus face-to-face and He'll say, "Well done, good and faithful servant!" (Matthew 25:23).

Again, this is not an exhaustive list. Perhaps you know of more. Feel free to share via the comments section below. Comments will remain open for 60 days following the date of this posting. My prayer for me and my prayer for you is that we'd run the race and finish well, having treasured Christ, lived the Word, and made disciples along the way!

In my latest video blog installment I discuss the so called Prosperity Gospel, which is really no gospel at all. Colossians 2:6-10; 1 Timothy 6:11-12.

Today's video blog is in honor of my 24th wedding anniversary and focuses on the mystery of a Christian marriage as discussed by Paul in Ephesians 5:32.

For this video blog my son, Christian, joins me as we share some thoughts on Proverbs 22:6. He may be only 5 years old but I'm trying my best to teach him the ways of God. I pray God's grace supersedes my "best." Most of what he has learned is currently head knowledge but my prayer is that it would become heart knowledge as he grows older.

Continuing my thought from my previous video blog about the Gospel, this installment answers the question, "Why the Gospel?" The text is Romans 1:14-23.

Today I began a new endeavor which I plan to practice fairly regularly and that is making video posts as part of my blog. I am calling it my Fight for Joy! video blog, for the lack of a better name and description. I hope you enjoy and learn from this first post. If you follow me on Facebook they will also be posted there, probably before they are posted here. The text is 2 Corinthians 4:7-18.

For those unaware, my family and I spent three years living, ministering, and enjoying ourselves in Alaska. The summers were short and mild; the winters long and dark. I think we broke every winter snow weather record over the course of our sojourn there.

Alaska returned to the forefront of my thinking recently as I read a Baptist Press article about the Alaska Baptist Convention's Director of Evangelism being seriously injured in a gas leak explosion. You can read about it here. Please pray for Jimmy as he recovers in a Seattle hospital. The Alaska Baptist Convention posts regular updates on their webpage.

Thinking about Alaska also reminded me the work of missions is not complete. The Great Commission (Matthew 29:18-20) compels us onward even to the ends of the earth. And believe me, with a state more than twice the size of Texas with vast territory and only a few roads (most towns and villages are only accessible by air; some by boat, too), Alaska is quite literally the ends of the earth.

Here's a fact known by few. There are over 100 villages in Alaska with absolutely no evangelical witness. Having grown up in a small town in Mississippi with multiple evangelical churches I cannot begin to comprehend a place in the United States in such dire need of just one evangelical church. Please pray for Alaska villages and peoples, that God would raise up church planters, missionaries, and other Christian workers to reach this last frontier.

"See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled" (Hebrews 12:15). The root of bitterness is underground; it is easy to hide and camouflage. Seldom do you find anyone who will admit that they are a bitter person. They will either deny it or disguise it. Have you ever had to deal with bitterness in your own heart. I know I have and the scary thing is just when I think I've conquered it, it rears its ugly head. Bitterness typically takes root when someone has wronged you. I have found myself repeatedly having to deal with bitterness towards an individual whose poor leadership and misguided reasonings negatively effected me.

A response of bitterness, however, is never right when someone has done something wrong to you. As believers we must look beyond the seen to the unseen. God is sovereignly working in all of our circumstances to bring about His purpose for us. This, of course, includes the less than desirable circumstances we may experience.

So, what are we to do? Paul writes, "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Adrian Rogers wrote, "If someone has wronged you, cut it down and forget it. By the grace of God, bury that hurt in the grave of God's forgetfulness." The expectation for believers is that we be thankful and forgive.

But what if that root of bitterness tries to rear its ugly head from time to time. Well, reaffirm your gratitude to God and your forgiveness of the one who wronged you. Then take a lesson from 1 Samuel 15 and the story of Agag--hack that root to pieces; kill it! You will discover that your life is more joyful when you uproot & kill your bitterness.