rwh24may Ep.365 – Run With Horses Podcast – Goal Setting
Podcast: rwh.podbean.com
Website: www.runwithhorses.net
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@rwhpodcast
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RWHpodcast
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rwh_podcast
Twitter: https://twitter.com/RWH_podcast
Author pages with links to all books on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0BCSDDVLB – James Norman Smith
https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B0BMGW51FW – Susan Jane Smith
**(24:00)**
Do you find yourself wandering through life, one day morphing into the next and one year much like the last? Is your life lacking the clear spiritual progress you would like to see? IF so, today may be just for you. We are looking at pursuing clear Biblical goals to get out of a rut and back on track.
Welcome to Run With Horses! My name is Norman and my goal is to help you thrive as a follower of Jesus. The spiritual life is simple in many ways, but potentially the most difficult part of your life. God invites you to grow, to live intentionally and to join in His mission. It’s very cool that we can do that together!
Thank you for joining me today! “If you’re new here, you can check out past episodes at runwithhorses.net. As always, I appreciate your feedback, questions, and reviews!”
**(23:00 – 0:00)* * PART 1
Goal setting is useful for followers of Jesus—especially for Baptist Christians who want to be disciple makers—because it helps us live intentionally, steward our time wisely, and align our lives with Christ’s mission.
### 1. **Keeps Us Focused on the Mission**
Jesus commanded His followers to “make disciples of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19–20, NKJV). Setting specific goals helps us stay focused on this Great Commission. Without clear direction, it’s easy to drift. But when we prayerfully set goals for relationships, spiritual growth, and ministry opportunities, we live with purpose.
Why do we drift so easily? The world is full of distractions. Even good things can hinder us from pursuing the best things. Our priorities should be clear but often seem fuzzy.
### 2. **Encourages Faithful Stewardship**
Ephesians 5:15–16 says, “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Goal setting helps us steward our time, talents, and resources for eternal impact. It keeps us from wasting energy on things that don’t contribute to Christ’s kingdom.
Every resource is ultimately God’s. Our time is our most valuable resource and the easiest to waste. Clear goals help us evaluate the use of all of our resources in light of God’s work in our life and in the world.
### 3. **Provides a Framework for Spiritual Growth**
2 Peter 3:18 urges us to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Setting personal spiritual goals (e.g., daily devotions, Scripture memorization, sharing the gospel weekly) helps us pursue maturity as disciples—so that we can help others grow as well.
Although God always does His work of sanctification, He invites us to be part of the process. making clear decisions based on His Word and His Work is part of the process. There are clear choices that help us to grow toward maturity. Prayer, Bible reading and involvement with the church family are foundational and it is easy to set simple realistic goals for each on that will help us stay on track.
### 4. **Promotes Intentional Relationships**
Disciple making requires time and intentionality. Setting goals to meet regularly with a younger believer, to start a Bible study, or to mentor a new Christian helps ensure we are actively investing in others for their spiritual benefit (2 Timothy 2:2).
Disciple Making is about people. Using our time wisely gives us more time for investing in others. Keeping our lives simple helps us free up time and resources to be generous in all areas of life.
### 5. **Builds Accountability and Encourages Perseverance**
When we set godly goals and share them with others in the church, we create a structure for encouragement and accountability (Hebrews 10:24–25). This helps us persevere when we face discouragement, setbacks, or spiritual warfare.
We need to ask for accountability. IT is difficult to do that when we aren’t actually working on anything related to our spiritual growth. With clear goals it is easy for others to talk with us about how God is working in us. Those conversations can be encouraging and help us perevere when times are tough.
### 6. **Reflects the Wisdom of Planning Under God’s Sovereignty**
Proverbs 21:5 says, “The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty.” While we trust God’s sovereignty over our lives, we are still called to plan wisely and act in faith. Goal setting is an act of diligence that honors the Lord when it is submitted to His will (James 4:13–15).God has a plan. He is organized and purposeful in all that he does. If we are to be growing in Christ-likeness, we are to be growing in purposeful choices that lead us closer to Him.
**In summary:** For a believer who wants to make disciples, goal setting is a practical expression of faithfulness. It helps us be intentional about growing spiritually, investing in others, and fulfilling Jesus’ mission—always depending on God’s grace and guidance every step of the way.
**(00:00) END PART 1**
**(27:00 – 5:00) BEGIN PART 2**
Implementing goal setting into a personal spiritual journey is a way for a disciple of Jesus to grow in Christlikeness and become more effective in making disciples. As a disciple committed to the authority of Scripture and the Great Commission, goal setting should be approached prayerfully, biblically, and purposefully.
How do you begin implementing goal setting in your spiritual life?
### 1. Start with God’s Purpose, Not Personal Ambition
Our goals must flow from God’s purposes—not personal preferences. God’s purpose for every believer is to be conformed to the image of Christ and to make disciples.
📖 “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son…” — Romans 8:29 NKJV
📖 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them… teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you…” — Matthew 28:19–20 NKJV
➡️ Action: Prayerfully ask: What would it look like to grow in Christlikeness and help others do the same this year?
⸻
### 2. Examine Your Current Spiritual Life Honestly
Before setting goals, examine where you are spiritually.
📖 “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.” — 2 Corinthians 13:5 NKJV
➡️ Action: Use questions like:
•Am I spending daily time with God in the Word and prayer?
•Am I regularly involved in the life of my church?
•Am I actively sharing my faith or discipling others?
⸻
### 3. Set Specific and Biblical Spiritual Goals
Your goals should be specific, measurable, spiritually motivated, and biblically grounded.
Examples:
•Spend 30 minutes each day in Bible reading and journaling.
•Memorize one verse per week.
•Start discipling one person by the end of the quarter.
📖 “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” — 2 Peter 3:18 NKJV
📖 “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” — Psalm 119:11 NKJV
➡️ Action: Write down 2–3 specific spiritual goals in the areas of Bible intake, prayer, fellowship, evangelism, and disciple-making.
⸻
### 4. Align Your Goals with the Church and Community
As Baptists, we emphasize the local church as the context for spiritual growth and mission.
📖 “And He Himself gave some to be… pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry…” — Ephesians 4:11–12 NKJV
➡️ Action: Ask:
•How can my goals serve the church’s mission?
•Who can help hold me accountable?
•Is there someone I can disciple as I grow?
⸻
### 5. Seek Accountability and Encouragement
Goal setting should not be done in isolation. Find others in the body of Christ to walk with you.
📖 “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.” — Proverbs 27:17 NKJV
📖 “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works…” — Hebrews 10:24 NKJV
➡️ Action: Share your goals with a mentor, pastor, or small group. Regularly review them together.
⸻
### 6. Make Space for God’s Work Through Grace
Goals are tools, not masters. You grow by grace, not legalism.
📖 “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” — Philippians 1:6 NKJV
📖 “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain…” — 1 Corinthians 15:10 NKJV
➡️ Action: Keep your goals flexible and dependent on God’s leading and grace. Review and adjust as He grows you.
⸻
### 7. Evaluate Regularly and Give Glory to God
Set regular times to evaluate progress—not for pride, but for growth and gratitude.
📖 “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” — Psalm 90:12 NKJV
📖 “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” — 1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV
➡️ Action: Monthly or quarterly, ask:
•What progress am I making?
•What adjustments are needed?
•How can I thank and glorify God for what He is doing?
⸻
Sample Spiritual Goals for a Disciple Maker
•Daily Time in the Word: Read through the New Testament in 6 months.
•Prayer: Pray for 5 people daily, including 1 person you’re discipling or evangelizing.
•Evangelism: Share your testimony or the gospel once a week.
•Discipleship: Start meeting with one person bi-weekly to study the Bible.
•Church Involvement: Commit to serving in a specific ministry in your local church.
⸻
By setting Christ-centered, biblically grounded goals, you actively pursue spiritual maturity and position yourself to make more and better disciples—all for the glory of God.
**(5:00 – 1:00)**
Doctrine Today
Jesus and His Present Ministry
The Holy Spirit’s Role in Disciple Making.
Dispensational Baptist view of the End Times
Understanding Theology is Important
The Gospel and Ongoing Disciple Making
Church Role in Discerning God’s Will
Barriers to Disciple Making
Spiritual Warfare
Jesus – Incarnation
God’s Sovereignty
### The Bible Transforms Us
1. We Are Commanded to Be Faithful Students of Scripture
•2 Timothy 2:15 –
“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”
•Disciple makers are workers who handle the Word.
•“Rightly dividing” means interpreting correctly—this requires intentional study.
2. We Teach Others What We Ourselves Have Learned
•Ezra 7:10 –
“For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the Lord, and to do it, and to teach statutes and ordinances in Israel.”
•The pattern is: seek it, do it, teach it.
•Disciple makers must not skip the study phase—they must model obedience.
3. The Word of God Is Living and Active
•Hebrews 4:12 –
“For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit… and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
•The Bible doesn’t just inform; it transforms.
•God uses it to reveal our motives and shape our hearts.
4. Transformation Must Begin With Us
•James 1:22–24 –
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves… he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror…”
•If we hear but don’t change, we are self-deceived.
•Disciple makers must live what they teach—or our message will lack credibility.
**(1:00)**
Most of us could stand to be a little more purposeful in our day to day choices. Instead of letting the schedule and other people drive our lives, making deliberate choices to pursue Jesus and His mission need to take first place. There is great potential for growth when we intentionally follow in His footsteps.
– “Thank you for listening today!
-If you enjoyed the show you can listen to all the past shows wherever you listen to podcasts. A good place to start is at runwithhorses.net. You can also write me at norman@runwithhorses.net or leave a comment on the Run With Horses Podcast facebook page.
Don’t be discouraged by the challenges you face. Keep your eyes on Jesus and embrace the opportunity to grow through the trial. Until next time, keep your eyes on Jesus and never stop running.”
**(00:00)**