William C. Sexton
St. Joseph, MO.
I am convinced that every person should have a GOAL in order to reach his potential in life. Perhaps the reason many fail in life is that they never have asked themselves if they have a goal, or WHAT THAT GOAL IS. I was asked recently to state on paper and in few words what my goal was. The following is my answer. I present it for your consideration and ask that you look at it and see if perhaps we are going in the same direction.
My ultimate goal is to be accepted in the end by the God of Heaven as having performed as His revelation teaches. This means that I must contribute to the knowledge of others regarding the true purpose of man and his destiny (Ecc. 12:13-14; II Tim. 2:15; Heb. 5:11-14). Man's duty, as I perceive it, is to serve God on earth and prepare to serve Him in eternity.
This means that I conceive that it is my duty to teach the word of God (2 Tim. 2:2). But, I agree with Paul, that it is a grand privilege too (Eph. 3:8). I am seeking to present His word daily as I have the opportunity, and I am preparing to spend my life learning and conveying scriptural ideas. I am therefore interested in learning as much as possible about why men do things as they do--the subject of their thoughts, the language they use, their acts of play and of work.
I am interested in learning how to communicate effectively. I am interested in learning how to adequately convey my ideas to others and how to grasp the ideas presented by others.
I plan to spend my life demonstrating the ability of man to learn, grow, and contribute to the well-being of others. Man, I believe, has the ability to understand the revelation of God--if he will only study and apply it. This I hope to demonstrate by my teaching and action. Man, I believe, grows as he learns more of the revelation of God (James 1: 22-25). Man, I believe, contributes to the well-being of man (including himself) when he applies the teachings of the scriptures. He must speak the truth (Eph. 4:15); do that which is for his "good," work lawfully and be honest in all of his dealings (Phil. 4:8-9). This is my goal, and I hope and trust that with the help of God I can reach it.
Do you have a goal? If not, is it because there is none worthI of your efforts according to your evaluation? Or, perhaps, is your goal to make a million dollars and leave it behind for your relatives to fight over? When we come to the end, will we be able to say with Paul: "For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing" (2 Tim. 4:6-8)?
There is a great need for men who want to go to heaven and know what they want--to prepare to preach the gospel. Motivation-- a burning desire to save the souls of humanity--as I understand gospel work, is necessary! Life is short at the best, and death is as sure as anything, but eternity is long. How will we and others spend eternity? What is your goal? May this encourage you to make going to heaven your ultimate goal. If you will do this, I believe that you will find the necessities to do the rest!
TRUTH MAGAZINE XIV; 28, p. 12
May 21, 1970
