Do you know anyone who just needs to get their life together? I mean, you look at their life and you see how they have allowed themselves to be stuck in a rut that they can’t seem to find their way out of. Maybe you have looked at your own life and have admitted to yourself that you are not living up to the potential that God has blessed you with. You want to make a change for the better, but you just don’t know where to begin. The first step towards self-improvement is to admit that your life is not all that it can be—you must admit to yourself that you need the help of the Lord in order to create the type of life that He predestined and desires for you to have.
When I was a youngster, I often heard the old folks talk about the importance of having the right priorities in life. Now that I am older, I see that not only do the youth have misplaced priorities, but many adults are lacking in that area too. One of the pivotal moments in my life came when I realized that no matter what I accomplished in life—it was temporary. Having a great family—temporary. College degrees—temporary. A great career—temporary. Wealth—temporary. Material possessions—temporary. Suddenly, I realized that if I prioritized these things in my life over my relationship with God that I was wasting my time and energy. It was in my twenties that I realized that life was short and that none of what I attained in my life would mean anything. It would all be meaningless. I would have to leave it all behind—except for what I accomplished in terms of my relationship with God. It was then that I knew that I had to prioritize that which would stand the test of time. When contemplating the end of my life—the day I stand in judgment, I realized that God would not ask about my personal success or the things that I attained in this life. Rather, He would inquire about my relationship with Him and my works and deeds. I knew then that everything else in my life would have to take a backseat to Him. If you want to improve your life, you must first place your relationship with God above everything else this life has to offer. When you do that, you open the door to God assisting you in getting the rest of your life in order.
After you have the Lord firmly in your corner, you must evaluate the people you have in your life. I Corinthians 15: 33 says that, bad company corrupts good character. Hebrews 12: 1 states that we should, throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles us. If we truly want to be all that God would have us to be, we must stay close to the people who are good for us—and separate ourselves from the people who hinder or prevent us from being at our personal best. Distancing yourself from bad influences can be difficult to do, but it is necessary if you really want to improve and get your life back on track.
Lastly, you must be willing to work towards making progress in your life. James 2: 26 emphasizes that faith without works is dead. You can want to get better, you can pray that you will be better—but if you truly want to improve, you must also work at it. Decide today what steps you will take to make personal strides in your life. Commit to one or two things that you will do to begin to work your way towards having the life that God intended for you to have. With His help—nothing will be impossible for you.
Make God the top priority in your life and try your best to live that way. Re-evaluate the people who surround you and stay close to those who are for your good—and distance yourself from those who are hindering you. Finally, get ready to do some hard work. If self-improvement were easy—everybody would be satisfied with their life. You will have to take action if you want to get your life together—but once the work is done, both you and God will be proud of the new and improved YOU!