One of the most dangerous diseases that can infect your life is the view that your success and happiness in life is based purely on luck. When you understand the truth that you were created to live life as a masterpiece of your creator, you must recognize the importance of discipline and action – not luck!

While it is true that many things in life are beyond your control and you cannot know the future, discipline and action are something you can control – should control.

Releasing Your Potential

The potential that God has planted within you will not be release by circumstances or luck. To realize and release your full potential you must make a conscious choice to live in discipline. Discipline is a choice, a moment by moment choice. As a masterpiece, you have been given the incredible power and freedom of choice. What you do with it will determine whether or not your life will reflect the masterpiece you were created to be or not. The more you choose to make discipline a part of your Life Palette the more you will do your part in releasing the incredible potential you have been given.

A Simple Strategy

There is a simple strategy for releasing your potential through discipline. It will empower you beyond a brute force that we conjure up in our minds when thinking about discipline. It’s found in the Bible in Philippians 3: “…I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” (Phil 3:12-14 NLT)

• Focus, Focus, Focus

Focus is a powerful gift that you have been given. Combined with discipline it will lead to great things beyond anything you can imagine.

• Forget The Past

You are not imprisoned by your past. Do not let the past dictate your future, your potential. The same is true with your successes, build on them, but look to the success of today and tomorrow. Don’t get lazy thinking that past success will guarantee future success.

• Keep Looking Forward

It’s not that you simply forget the past, good, bad or ugly, but that you look forward to the future that God has for you. Know that He has a future in your future: “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a on future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT)

• Press On

To press on is to live in discipline. When things don’t go as you planned or hoped, you keep going. When you feel like you can’t stand any longer, you keep standing. How long do you press on? Until you cross the finish line, until you receive the prize. Keep on keeping on until your life reflects the masterpiece that God has created you to be!

A simple strategy that the Apostle Paul lived and it worked. It will work for you as well. You may object and say that you are simply living by faith instead. Faith is important, faith is the starting point for everything and the strength to finish the race. Nothing will replace faith. Know this, every time the word faith is used in the Bible it is used as a verb. In other words this strategy the we see in Philippians 3 is a picture of what faith looks like on your Life Palette and in the life of a masterpiece.

What do you need to focus on to release your potential? Are there things that you need to forget about your past? Describe what you are looking forward to in your future. Ask God to give you the faith and discipline to press on until you finish the race that you have been given the potential to live and win!

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