7 Rules of Success

1. Exhaust your arrows and you'll be undefeatable. Give life your all.

Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and said, "O my father, my father, the chariots of Israel and their horsemen!" And Elisha said to him, "Take a bow and some arrows." So he took himself a bow and some arrows. Then he said to the king of Israel, "Put your hand on the bow." So he put his hand on it, and Elisha put his hands on the king's hands. And he said, "Open the east window"; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, "Shoot"; and he shot. And he said, "The arrow of the Lord's deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians at Aphek till you have destroyed them." Then he said, "Take the arrows"; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, "Strike the ground"; so he struck three times, and stopped. And the man of God was angry with him, and said, "You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times." (2Ki 13:14-19)

Joash was a timid and fearful king; so, he was afraid and reluctant to give his all. One doesn't succeed by just trying a little. Only those who give their all for the vision are able to have the vision.

Remember Eleazer, one of David's mighty men. He never would give up and fought with all his might.

"Eleazar the son of Dodo, the Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David when they defied the Philistines who were gathered there for battle, and the men of Israel had retreated. He arose and attacked the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand stuck to the sword. The LORD brought about a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to plunder." (2Sa 23:9-10)

2. When you don't feel like walking, start running.

They say that, in the military, if don't feel like walking anymore, the commander asks you to run.

If you don't feel like cooking at all, try this: plan up to make a special dish and see how your energy boosts up.

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong." (2Co 12:10)

3. Aim high in order to hit the bull's eye. (Imagination, Ideals)

The Austrian psychiatrist, Viktor Frankl once said that no one will be able to hit the bull's eye, if he aims straight. One needs to aim a little higher than the target in order to get the shot into the target. Similarly, we need to have the highest ideals and aim perfection, or else we'll fall to mediocrity.

"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Phil 3:13-14)

4. You discharge with people lesser than you, you recharge with people greater than you.

There's nothing that can be said better than what Proverbs says:
"He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed."(Pro 13:20)

Spend time listening to people who are successful. Don't listen to unsuccessful people who try to be successful by criticizing the successful ones. They can't even damage them. But, if you sit with mockers, you'll lose the blessing of wise living (Psalm 1:1). Make friends with those who are experienced and men and women of character. Honor them and learn from them. Don't go down to the level of people lesser than you, by trying to please them. Instead, teach them what you have learnt. Don't allow them to drain you down. Don't keep negative people around you, who only complain and accomplish nothing. Your friends should be those who think positively.

Spend time especially in prayer and meditating on God's word. Remember, Jesus spent whole nights in prayer. He knew that there is no substitute for spending time with the Father.

5. Junk chokes. (Don't compromise your purity-Love)

"You shall not pervert justice; you shall not show partiality, nor take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous. (Deu 16:19)
"Surely oppression destroys a wise man's reason, And a bribe debases the heart." (Ecc 7:7)
"Her heads judge for a bribe, Her priests teach for pay, And her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the LORD, and say, "Is not the LORD among us? No harm can come upon us." (Mic 3:11)

Sin warps reality thinking and destroys right reasoning powers. It damages the conscience, darkens the mind, debases the heart, and corrupts manners. Never compromise with sin. Never allow even a jot of sin in your life.

Sinful people may look successful. But, the devil can't make anybody rich. He only will help someone plunder and exploit someone else. And, that is debasing action.

6. Create circumstances, don't be created by them. You always have the final freedom to choose your reactions. Don't be dead because the world wants you dead.

"So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way."(Luk 4:28-30)

Don't let things around you compel you, choke you, and make you their slaves. Know God, know yourself, and go the way God has ordered for you fearlessly.

7. Trust God with all your strength; and He'll put all His strength before you.

"As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the LORD is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him." (Psa 18:30)

When you trust in God, people and things will have to cross over Him first before they get to you. Surrender, submit, rely, and cling to God, and He'll cover you.