A MESSAGE TO THE YOUNGER – Clay Sikes
Years of life ‘teach us’ there is an unpleasant part of life that must be dealt with to get to the ‘pleasant part.’
Examples Are: Exercise is painful, time consuming, and often inconvenient, yet its benefits are without question. Painful surgeries can often produce a healthy life, as arduous study, reading, focus, and concentration produce a higher education.
A healthy marriage requires work and sacrifice. A successful life, in all aspects, requires work and sacrifice PERIOD!
There are NO SHORTCUTS! Living a healthy life requires diet and exercise.
LIFE AND BUSINESS
The same is so in business, as we often endure inconvenient setbacks, disappointment, failure, and discouragement to get to the prize – success beyond our wildest dreams!
Discipline, focus, commitment, and perseverance produce an end product – success.
Amazingly, this form of success is not limited to financial success ONLY, but of greater magnitude, the knowledge of becoming and being an OVERCOMER – a winner against all odds.
The character of each man or woman is inherently known by that man or woman. Perseverance UNTO victory reveals character unto one’s self – a hard-fought battle that leads to victory is sweet, particularly if one knows God fought the battle for us, through us! This character-building event in life CHANGES OUR CHARACTER – this is the real prize!
Business and job performance often parallel ‘life performance’ for a TRUE Christian – focus, effort, concentration, and perseverance ARE THE DIFFERENCE! Scripture teaches “To whom much is given, MUCH is required.” “Faith without works is DEAD.”
The path of a successful life is filled with obstacles we are destined to overcome or stumble and fall over. Only God IN US provides a capacity to overcome all obstacles – ALL! That’s a big word folks – ALL!!! A victorious life is a victorious life in all areas.
REACHING THE GOAL
We have endured much in nine years with our Solar Companies, and finally see daylight and opportunity on a scale never seen before, yet the pain to get here was almost ‘unbearable’ in terms of time, money, and disappointment.
Anything of great value will always come at GREAT PRICE – there are NO shortcuts, easy ways, or convenient methods. The greatest of all values is the knowledge of being in God’s Will in any effort ever made.
Scripture teaches, “Many are called, few are chosen… -The road is wide that leads to destruction, but narrow is the path leading to righteousness.”
I’m comfortable saying at age 76, MANY quit when times get rough, yet some are willing to travel the road less traveled achieving the ultimate award by hearing, “Well done my good and faithful servant.”
GOD TAKES US THROUGH
God is the glue that holds us together in tumultuous times. Every great achiever in scripture went through great difficulty to find God’s Order, Will, and Way – His Kingdom on earth; ultimately realizing “Thankfulness” is the cornerstone of promotion in any earthly Kingdom assignment. Staying focused when distraction abounds is God’s gift to His Overcomers.
I’ll end by admitting to you who read this, I am a quitter and a coward by my old nature. I run for the hills when the going gets tough; I’m lustful, mean, and arrogant – yet when I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior a power came into me changing my old nature. He gave me a new nature and new power to do what I could not do on my own.
He gave me the ability to believe and persevere in the face of catastrophic failure as a man and a businessman. He gave me discipline to do what I did not want to do, to hold on when everything said “let go.”
He gave me the courage to face death without fear, to control my passions, to love the unlovable, to do the impossible AND, He is no respecter of persons – What He will do for one He will do for another.
What He did for me He will do for you! Selah!
Clay Sikes
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