This is the last study in our series – THE GOD FACTOR. We pray this series has been a blessing to you and also a challenge to your hearts to become ones who walk in the SUCCESS that was purchased for you at Calvary. The only true and great success can come through Christ Jesus.

In Parts 1, 2 and 3 of THE GOD FACTOR we discovered:

• The Lord wants us to be successful; He has made every provision for EVERY ONE of us to fulfill our destinies in Him; There are keys for success (from the Word), and when we implement these keys (by that I mean, when we sow these principles into our lives) we breakthrough, we excel and we achieve. Success comes to us. Victory and blessing manifest in our lives.

• People who are successful THINK DIFFERENTLY than those who are mediocre. There are common patterns of thought they possess. They have what we would call a SUCCESS MINDSET. These men and women expect favor; they are always thankful; they sow liberally; they don’t look back at past mistakes; they always look forward; they consider what they do have and not what they don’t have. THE MAN WITH A SUCCESS MINDSET EXPECTS SUCCESS.

• People who are successful SEE DIFFERENTLY. They know THE POWER OF FOCUS. They note obstacles and difficulties but are not fixed on them. When God speaks to them, they simply believe and “see” the result, the answer, the promise, the victory, the blessing. Focus holds faith in place while we enter in. Focus causes us to see past the natural into the spirit realm. Focus causes us to see what others do not see. Focus is fixed on what God has said.

Over the past four years Allen and I have read countless biographies of SUCCESSFUL men and women – some who have achieved great things for the Kingdom and others who have achieved in natural pursuits of business, medicine, architecture, the arts or music. We have been struck by two things: firstly, many of these successful ones experienced great difficulty in childhood, and suffered extreme abuse and dysfunction in their families; and, secondly, we noted that many had overcome insurmountable obstacles in order to reach their PLACE OF SUCCESS.

Often men only see the SUCCESS. They do not see the hardships, the challenges and the personal growth that has taken place within the heart of that person to make him a success. They do not see the time, the effort, and the disciplines that these ones had worked within their lives to make them and keep them experiencing SUCCESS.

One of the greatest success stories ever is that of God’s man, JOSEPH (see Genesis Chapters 37-50). This man changed his world! He was wealthy, influential and powerful. He was wise, disciplined and moral.

He was misunderstood in his young years; he was imprisoned, forgotten, and falsely accused before he became truly successful – before the Lord raised him up to administrate a company. Yet, for all the disappointment, physical hardships and rejection, he NEVER blamed anyone……not his brothers, not those who forgot him in prison, not Potiphar or his wife. This man of God lived by the principle of BLAMING NO MAN for his life circumstances.

One of the greatest keys TO SUCCESS is to take 100 percent responsibility for your life – for every word and every action. THIS IS THE FIRST SUCCESS KEY WE SEE IN JOSEPH’S LIFE. To take one hundred percent responsibility means: never making excuses, not looking back at those who have stolen from you or hurt you, and never wanting to get even. It means always remembering your God is GOD. All things – all circumstances, all hurts, all disappointments end with HIM. That means: total responsibility for finding the Lord’s will for your life; total responsibility for your obedience to Him; and total responsibility for putting into place the disciplines that will cause you to be successful.

One Hundred percent total responsibility means being personally accountable for where we are at: relationally, career-wise, financially and spiritually. It means standing up and saying if there are areas of my life that are not totally under the Lordship of Christ, I need to bring them under His rule; if I am failing in some areas, then I need to find His principles and build them into my life so that I will be successful; and no matter what is happening, choosing to keep the big picture of His call to be successful.

In spite of his circumstances, JOSEPH WAS A DREAMER……as a young boy, as a man in prison and as an older man leading a nation, he dreamed. He spent time meditating, praying and worshipping. He did not “while away” his time. He invested his time in developing relationship with the Lord and building into his life a picture of success for the future. Allen often says, “we can waste time, spend time or invest time”. If we desire success, we need to invest our time wisely, and dreaming is indeed a wise investment.

Great dreams only come about when we birth them in prayer. They only manifest when we bring them before the Lord. They only come to life when we spend time walking the floor and praying in the spirit calling them to live in God’s way and time, calling into position those who are to be part of the dream.

Allen and I speak quite often of our dreams – the things the Father has spoken to us. We meditate on those things. We imagine ourselves possessing the promises, manifesting the prophecies – successful in every arena of life. We DREAM! We already know what it will be like to walk in the reality of our dreams.

Dear friend, in all humility, I tell you if you look to the Lord and build within your life His success principles, you cannot fail; I tell you that you have been born to win; YOU HAVE THE GOD FACTOR!