SEVEN STEPS TO CHANGING THE FUTURE (by Michael Cavanaugh)

I. Get the power to change.

Acts 1:7 - "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

     A. Power to believe.

Matthew 17:20 - "He replied, “Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

    B. Power to live righteous lives.

James 5:16 - "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."

    C. Power to defeat Satan.

Luke 10:19-20 - " I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

II. Pray God's will.

1 John 5:14-15 - "
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him."

To know God's will we must know the Word of God and seek Him.
  
Matthew 7:7 - " Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."

Acts 17:27 - " God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us."

III. Proclaim God's will.

Mark 11:23-24 - “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."

IV. Plan for the future God has shown you.

Proverbs 21:5 - " The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.

     A.  Invite God to give you His plans.

Proverbs 16:3 - "Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and he will establish your plans."

    B. Seek Godly advice.

Proverbs 15:22 - "Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed."

    C. Take steps of action.

V. Persevere through short term pain.

Psalms 105:17-19 - "and he sent a man before them— Joseph, sold as a slave. They bruised his feet with shackles, his neck was put in irons, till what he foretold came to pass, till the word of the Lord proved him true."

Vision keeps leaders empowered and thorns keep leaders authentic. 

VI. Praise God for the future.

    A. Joshua and the people of Israel praised God until the walls fell down.
    B. Paul & Silas praised God, and the prison doors were opened.

In conclusion:

"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, then to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much or suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory or defeat."  (Theodore Roosevelt)