It Is Time for an Examination

Haggai 1:5

Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.

Two times in the book of Haggai, God commands us to, Consider your ways. We often think of this command only for those living in sin, but in reality, it is a command from God to look at all of our lives and consider, or examine, those ways. It would be just as good to consider your ways when things are going well as it is to consider your ways when you've hit a wall in life. It is very good to consider your ways after a failure, but it is also good to consider your ways after a victory. It is good to consider your ways when you are financially in a mess, but it is also good to consider your ways when finances are rolling in, and it seems like nothing will stop you financially. Considering your ways is not just about the bad times, but the successful person will consider their ways in the good times as well.

The pastor must be careful about considering the ways of his church to figure out what he can do better to reach more people for Jesus Christ. The pastor who never considers the ways of what he is doing will often lead his church nowhere. You've got to consider the ways that are failing so that you can turn the failing areas into successful areas. You've got to consider or examine the ways of what made you successful, so that you can repeat those same actions so you can be successful again.

You see, whether you are a pastor, businessperson, business owner, or just an ordinary person living your life, considering your ways is one of the important principles that turns failure into success, and keeps you successful. Let me share a few things about the importance of considering your ways.

First, you will never consider your ways if you don't schedule time to consider them. I believe it is critical to set times annually and periodically to consider your ways. Before a new year comes in is a good time to consider your ways so you can make the next year successful. After every great success, consider your ways and see what worked so you can do it again. After a failure, study what caused the failure so that you don't do the same action again that would bring failure. These are times when you must schedule to consider your ways so that you can be successful continually.

Second, you must be honest with yourself when you consider your ways. None of us like to look at our lives and see the failures that we have caused, but if you are not honest with what has caused the failures, you will never be able to correct them. There is nothing wrong with failing if you correct that failure. You cannot correct something if you continue to lie to yourself that it was somebody else's fault or that it was not true. When you are looking over a success or failure, that is a good time to be very critical of yourself and the actions you took so that you can correct the wrongs or discover what made you successful so you can do it again.

Third, considering your ways is coming up with a plan to do better the next time. This is a good time to look at your vision and see if it needs to be enlarged. This is a good time to make plans that you can implement immediately so that your ways are more successful. Considering your ways can allow you to reach new heights for God if you will use those times of considering your ways as a time of correcting the wrongs and raising your bar for success.