I discovered a startling truth which may help you with a problem you are facing tonight. As one partner described the dilemma, "I've known the Lord for eight years now and still have nothing to show for my walk with Him. My finances are still dry; my marriage is lukewarm; my career is in a rut and I have no direction for ministry. What's the matter?"

Unfortunately, this "stuck-in-the-rut" syndrome, described by our partner, is not uncommon. How can you break free? The Lord showed me that what is missing in many of these Christians' lives is diligence. The dreams are there, the desire to live a more productive life is there, but the diligence to actively pursue goals and stick to them is missing. Diligence means to persevere; to pursue steadily, earnestly and energetically. We have become a society of dreamers who abandon our goals with the slightest excuses. God's Word warns us that this is dangerous: "The soul of a sluggard desires, and has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. The sluggard will not plow because of winter; Therefore he will beg during the harvest. And have nothing" (Proverbs 13:4; 20:4).

What do you want to accomplish in your life? What excuses have held you back? Whatever they are, they don't have to keep you in bondage to spiritual, mental or material poverty any longer. Stop saying, "I can't plow because it's winter." Wake up and pursue the harvest with diligence. It's yours for the taking!

Heavenly Father, I repent of all the excuses I have used to hold myself back in my life. Grant me diligence and the self-control to pursue my goals to completion. Nothing can stand in my way as I persevere and overcome. Help me to lay hold of all I am to accomplish in You! In Jesus' Name, Amen.