You Have to Finish to 'Finish Well'!

In this Finishing Well UPGRADE, Dawn examines some of the ways we can obey God to finish well, and also why we may not finish projects or accomplish goals.

Many Christians are familiar with the parable of the talents (bags of gold) in Matthew 25:14-30. Jesus told a story about two faithful servants who were good stewards of what they had been given, increasing their master's wealth. Their master praised them, saying (vv. 21 and 23), "Well done, good and faithful servant."

For many years I've heard sermons and conference messages about how wonderful it will be to hear Jesus say that to believers for their stewardship on earth.

But the thought hit me recently, "You have to actually finish in order to 'finish well.'" I'll address that later in this post.

But first, What hinders us from finishing well?

I think the biggest hindrance to our finishing well is a matter of obedience.

When God makes clear to us a command, a responsibility, or some other point of action, we need to obey. My favorite evangelist, Del Fehsenfeld, Jr., said, "Obedience is doing exactly what God says, when He says it, with a happy face."

Obey completely, immediately, and with the right heart attitude.

So why, when God makes it clear He wants us to do something, do we lag behind—or worse, fail to move into action.

In Psalm 119, chapter one, I see at least three ways we fail in our goal of finishing well.

1. We fail to Submit to God's Word (Psalm 119:1-2a, 4)

The psalmist says,

"Blessed (happy) are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the LORD. Blessed are those who keep his statutes . . . You have laid down precepts that are to fully obeyed."

God gives us commands, instructions, and rules guiding behavior. When we are not diligent to submit God and His Word, it will be harder to and keep His laws, statutes, and precepts—the responsibilities He places upon His people.

We can be in utter rebellion against something we read in the Bible, or subtly resisting it.

The devil doesn't care which it is.

Finishing well requires that we yield to the Word of God, and allow the Holy Spirit to use the Word to teach, guide, and correct us.

2. We Fail to Seek God with Our Whole Heart (Psalm 119:2b)

The psalmist tells readers to seek God "with all their heart," not part of it.

Partial, unenthusiastic love leads to partial, unenthusiastic obedience.

Deuteronomy 6:5 exhorts us to love God with ALL our heart, soul, and strength. No room for half-hearted love there.

Loving God extravagantly is how we obey Him "with a happy face."

Perhaps our lack of genuine love for God comes from not recognizing Him as the "first love" of our lives. We forget what it was like to be a new believer and our pledge to follow Jesus anywhere and obey Him in all things.

Truly loving God motivates us to want to obey Him. 

"Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always" (Deuterionomy 11:1).

Finishing well is more than doing all the right things; it is being right with God—in a vital, loving relationship with Him.

3. We Fail to Walk in God's Ways (Psalm 119:3)

The psalmist says of those who are blessed, 

". . . they do no wrong but follow his ways."

Our many sins hinder us from obeying God completely and immediately: selfishness, pride, fear, unbelief, giving in to ungodly peer pressure, love of people rather than God, greed and coventousness, anger, lust, etc.

King Saul disobeyed God because he was "afraid" of what people might say (1 Samuel 15:1-3, 12-29), and it cost him his kingdom. He did not finish well.

Finishing well requires the desire to walk with God in purity, and persistence in keeping short accounts with God concerning our sin.

The Goal is to Obediently, Faithfully Finish!

Certainly God can redirect us to new goals—which might include abandoning old ones.

And some people die before "finishing" their goals; but God weighs our success in terms of obedience and faithfulness to His goals for us.

But here's a practical point to ponder. In a November 22, 2021, motivational podcast "Finish More Goals by Asking 1 Surprising Question," Jon Acuff, author of Finish: Give Yourself the Gift of Done, said if we are not finishing our goals, we should ask,

"What am I getting out of NOT finishing?"

He explored three possible responses (summarized here):

• By not finishing, we control the outcome.
• By not finishing, we get praise for being a martyr, for being noble.
• By not finishing, we have lowered expectations from others—rather than building up a reputation of faithfulness and success that we have to live up to.

I have seen all three of those responses activated at certain points in my own life. Even worse, sometimes I don't even begin because of fear of failing or fear of others' opinions.

Acuff said,

"If what you gain by not finishing is greater than what you get out of finishing, you'll always be stuck."

If we are going to finish well—especially in the spiritual realm—we need to obediently begin and faithfully finish what God has asked us to do, regardless of our own fears and inadequacies, regardless of others' opinions, and regardless of the consequences.

To summarize, we finish well by loving and submitting to God and His Word, and then walking in His ways—keeping in mind that we can not only hear the Father's "well done," but there are also crowns to be won!

What is keeping you from finishing well? What is keeping you from finishing at all—or even not beginning? What can you do, starting today, to change that?

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Today, is the creator the blog, Upgrade with Dawn. She works part time at Revive Our Hearts, and is a regular columnist at Crosswalk.com. She and her husband Bob live in sunny Southern California, and they have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Graphic adapted, courtesy of Joshua Hoehne at Unsplash.

Finish Well: Embrace Freedom

In the previous two UPGRADE posts, "Take Courage" and "Build Strength," we considered a number of ways seniors can finish well. In this final post in the series, I (Dawn) want us to consider how we can "Embrace Freedom."

In my span of 65 years, I've discovered two kinds of seniors.

One kind retires from life and fails to dream new dreams. As one such woman told me, "I'm just waiting for the rapture." You may have heard someone say that too.

The other kind grabs hold of every day, buying up the time. As one senior I know said,  

"I don't know how many days I have left on this earth, but I'm not dead yet and I'm going to drink my cup of life dry!"

The first woman foolishly sqandered many opportunities to serve the Lord. The second woman was living out Ephesians 5:15-16, redeeming time, wisely making the most of every opportunity.

I want to be like that second woman. I want to redeem the rest of my years. Because I have freedom in Christ, I want to embrace freedom and finish well.

Now I don't know what redeeming the senior years looks like to you, but here are four ways I'm going to embrace freedom in my own senior years.

First, I'm going to . . .

1. Purge the Unnecessary.

In today's culture, with so many things to buy and so many storage units to keep them in, it may not be as natural to pare down in the senior years as it used to be. To be sure, many are "down-sizing" as they get older, but others are still burdened down with too much stuff.

In our elder years, we should be simplifying our lives, purging out the unnecessary, making much of our sweet memories, and preparing for heaven!

Many problems would be helped or even solved, if we just owned a lot less.

• We might find extra hours in our day or more money in our checkbooks;
• We'd have a lot less housework to do—like dusting all those knick-knacks;
• We'd eliminate a lot of stress about our stuff;
• We'd find the calming freedom of "space;"
• We'd be able to, perhaps, release ourselves from others' expectations (just think about the freedom of not having to keep up with the Joneses or fashion's dictates); 
• And maybe we'd finally learn true biblical contentment.

It's not about being a minimalist. It's about becoming a wiser consumer and a better steward. It's about finding the joy of freedom. It's about not being "encumbered" and distracted by so much stuff!

If you're looking for help decluttering, there are many good books that can help. I recommend Kathi Lipp's book, Clutter Free, and Marcia Ramsland's, Simplify Your Space.

2. Use Resources Wisely.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to enjoy financial freedom in old age? That doesn't just happen. Many seniors have frittered away valuable dollars that could have been invested for the latter years.

But regardless of our past foolishness, we can still learn to be good financial stewards. There are so many helpful resources to read and apply, like Ron Blue and Jermey White's Faith-Based Family Finances; Dave Ramsey's Your Money after the Big 5-0; and numerous books and booklets by financial expert Ellie Kay.

It's not just financial resources we need to consider. I believe God wants us to walk through our homes and ask Him how we might better use the material goods in our homes. Maybe we could lend or give an item we own to someone in need. Or maybe we could sell something we have to make compassionate use of the money we generate.

Maybe there is a skill we have that could be used for the Kingdom. We could make quilts, blankets or clothing for someone in need. We could paint someone's fence or help plant a garden. We could write or edit for a financially-strapped ministry. Ask, "What can I do?" Then ask, "How can I use this, Lord?"

Another wise use of resources is considering where we might leave special financial gifts in our will for a favorite ministry or two after we pass on. (You do have a will, right?)

3. Keep on Dreaming.

As people in many walks of life have noted, when we stop dreaming, we start dying inside. If nothing else, our dreams die! And that's sad. Seniors need to keep on dreaming. Dreaming is a diamond for old age with many facets.

Part of dreaming is creativity—figuring out ways to act on our dreams and keep on contributing to our families, church and society.

Creative expression is said to benefit the elderly, promoting health and wellness. I've always admired people like "Grandma Moses" (Anna Mary Robertson Moses), the American folk artist, who started painting in earnest at the age of 78!

Dreaming also includes visionary thinking. Cam Townsend, founder of Wycliffe Bible Translators, went to Moscow and learned Russian to assist in Bible translation when he was 72.

Another part of dreaming is reading and being a lifelong learner. Did you know Chief Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes began the study of Greek at the age of 92? People no doubt wondered why he waited so long. He said, "When else would I have had the time to take it up?"

So keep on dreaming. It will keep your mind young and give you unexpected opportunities to serve the Lord.

(Lost your way and think you can't dream again? Cindi McMenamin can help—read her book, When a Woman Discovers Her Dream.)

4. Pursue New Adventures.

Related to dreaming is: Never be afraid to try something new. When I think of the word "freedom," I often associate it with the word "adventure."

There's just something exciting and freeing about going on an adventure with God!

My friend Pam Farrel has modeled adventursome living over the years. I loved Pam's book, Becoming a Brave New Woman: Step into God's Adventure for You. 

This year, "Adventure" is Pam's focus word—with perfect timing. God is taking Pam and her husband Bill on a big detour in life, but rather than sitting around and complaining about it, they are contemplating what might be right around the corner! They are on a fresh adventure with the Lord. They are anticipating new opportunities with their family and growth in their ministry together.

When we allow God to lead us as He wills, as our Sovereign Lord, we can know that all our adventures will be for our good, others' benefit and His glory.

So don't be afraid of new adventures. Embrace them! (I'm determined to run my life race, wherever it takes me, with joy! Isn't that what you want too?)

• Let's take courage and fight the good fight (2 Timothy 4:7).
• Let's build strength so we can "press on toward the goal to win the prize" (Philippians 3:14).
• Let's "run in such a way"—embracing freedom in Christ—as to get the prize" (1 Corinthians 9:24, NIV; Hebrews 12:1).

Let's FINISH WELL!

What does finishing well look like for you? What is God asking you to change in the days to come so that you can hear His words, "Well done, good and faithful servant"?

 Dawn Wilson, founder and president of Heart Choices Today, is the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God (with Pam Farrel), and Upgrade with Dawn. She is the Director of the San Diego chapter of Network of Evangelical Women in Ministry (NEWIM). Dawn is the co-author of a devotional, LOL with God, and contributed "The Blessing Basket" in It's a God Thing.She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Graphic Adapted: image courtesy of Mike Enerio, Stocksnapio.com.

Finish Well: Take Courage

If we want to finish well, I believe the first thing we must do is take courage!

As I (Dawn) mentioned in an earlier post, I am resetting my priorities and goals in order to "Finish Well" ... to complete the rest of my life with joy. I think it's important for seniors to pause and evaluate, to determine what needs to change in order to someday hear God's "Well done, good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21), but also for a better life while we are on earth.

God, I believe, gave me three marching orders last June: (1) Take Courage; (2) Build Strength; and (3) Embrace Freedom.

In this and the next two UPGRADE posts, let's consider these three "resets."

Today, it's TAKE COURAGE.

I think these are days when Christians must be brave. There is too much at stake for our nation, churches and families for us to sit back, timid shadows of the warriors God calls us to be "for such a time as this."

The Israelis have a word for this: hazaq (pronounced Hah-zahk).

Hazaq is a verb meaning to be or become strong, firm or courageous. It is one of the Hebrew words used for man's power ("strong hand") and also God's power.

Hazaq was often used in the Old Testament to encourage soldiers to be strong (for example, Deuteronomy 31:6; 2 Samuel 10:12) and not be afraid of their enemies, because God would go with them. According to a biblical scholar friend of mine, a form of this phrase (Raq hazaq) is still used today by Israeli soldiers. They shout, "only be strong".)

We see this concept in Psalm 27:14:

"Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!" (ESV)

We are to wait for and confidently expect the Lord! We are to allow our heart to "take courage" in Him!

Marvin Wilson, in his book Our Father Abraham,* describes how, in ancient and modern-day synagogue services, an entire congregation will shout loudly to each other, "Hazaq! Hazaq! Venith Hazeq!" ("Be strong. Be strong. Let us strengthen each other.")

One of the secrets to taking courage is to come alongside each other, supporting each other in the battles we must face!

I think there are at least four practical ways we can be strong and "Take Courage"—especially in the second half of life.

1. Face Uncertainties Bravely.

Our confidence is in Christ, as Psalm 27:14 indicates. Because our confidence is not in our weak flesh, we can face the uncertainties of life bravely.

In fact, when we trust the "arm of flesh," we are playing into the enemy's desire to destroy us! (See Isaiah 31:1; Jeremiah 17:5; 2 Chronicles 32:8.) We must always face life's uncertainties with the Lord, not in our own strength!

It's foolish to stay up worrying at night, afraid of the unknown. God is faithful in our future as clearly as in our past and present. And what's even more precious, if we have trusted Christ, God is our loving Father. He desires what's best for us—no matter our circumstances—and we can trust Him.

Wise King Solomon said it plainly:  

"Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes, for the LORD will be your confidence..." (Proverbs 3:25-26, ESV).

2. Confront Your Weaknesses.

Face down your weaknesses. And your failures. And your sins.

God can enable us to courageously face who we've been, what we've done, and who we are in our darkest moments even now. Covering up or hiding what is true about our lives is not the path to growth or freedom.

We like to stay hidden in the darkness, hiding our ugliness. We don't want to come to the Light of God (John 3:19-20); but who do we think we are kidding? Jeremiah says our "ways" are not hidden from God's sight (Jeremiah 16:17; Isaiah 29:15).

We must come to God and welcome Him to enter the secret places in our hearts if we ever hope to have mercy, forgiveness and strength in ministry.

• "Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy" (Proverbs 28:13, NIV)
• "... Forgive my hidden faults" (Psalm 19:12b, NIV)

When we have that merciful freedom of forgiveness, there's no need to fear being "exposed."

3. Stand for Righteousness.

And then, when our spiritual house is in order, we're in a better position to have spiritual influence. And oh, how this world needs spiritual influence ... BIBLICAL influence.

Even as we are courageously taking all our sins and faults before the Lord—"confessing" them, agreeing with God about them (1 John 1:9)—we need to remember who we are in Christ!

We are already righteous in the sight of God, because of what Jesus has done for us (2 Corinthians 5:21; Romans 3:22a; 4:5; 10:4).

The life we now live is "in the Son of God" who loved us and gave Himself for us (Galatians 2:20). In and through Christ, we can approach God with freedom and confidence. And in that confidence, we can stand against the wickedness in our world.

We can stand for righteousness, knowing God will be with us, enabling us to do the work He calls us to do.

4. Become a Warrior.

God calls us to be soldiers in His army. We must determine to impact this world for Christ, using our spiritual gifts and the Christian disciplines as tools for our warfare.

In Christ, we can be a soldier of the cross. We can go into to battle, enabled for the fight by the grace of God.

• Some will do battle on the front lines, exposing Satan's lies with the truth of the Word of God.
• Some will battle as mighy prayer warriors for those in the thick of the conflict.
• We all have a part. No one should be standing on the sidelines.

So take courage! In Christ, you will finish well.

Which of these four "Take Courage" goals is hard for you? Ask the Lord to show you how you can change in order to finish well.

* Marvin Wilson, Our Father Abraham, p. 190.

Dawn Wilson, founder and president of Heart Choices Today, is the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God (with Pam Farrel), and Upgrade with Dawn. She is the Director of the San Diego chapter of Network of Evangelical Women in Ministry (NEWIM). Dawn is the co-author of a devotional, LOL with God, and contributed "The Blessing Basket" in It's a God Thing. She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.

Graphic adapted, from pixabay.

2016 - An Opportunity to "RESET"

As we enter another year in just a few days, I (Dawn) am thankful for a fresh opportunity to reset my priorities and goals. In fact, "reset" is my focus word for 2016, and the topic of this New Year's UPGRADE.

We reset diamonds, reset odometers, reset alarm clocks, but—praise the Lord—we can also reset our lives.

To reset is to "set again" or to "set differently." I'm going to do both.

In 2015, I turned 65. I'm well into the "I want to finish well" stage of life. Whether the Lord gives me 30+ more years or fewer, I want to honor and serve Him with all my heart.

"Well done, good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21). "Good and faithful servant" isn't just something I want to hear someday. It's what I want to practice being now.

This past summer, I lamented my advancing age and wondered if God could use me in the coming years. I basically wimped out, weeping, and two Christian women, Anita and Yvonne, had to "prop me up" again with truth from God's Word.

But I couldn't sleep that night. And in the middle of the night, the thoughts that came—could they have been from the Lord?—became my marching orders for the next "however many" years.

At the end of next month (Jan. 21, 26 and 28), I'll be writing more about the three fresh goals I believe God gave me for finishing well, but for now, I just want to list them because they are a huge part of my "reset":

1. Take Courage.

2. Build Strength.

3. Embrace Freedom.

I believe I need a major "reset" in all three of those areas, and I'm going to study these topics all through 2016 in Bible study, scripture memory, prayer and meditation.

But don't get me wrong. It's not about better self-effort!

I'm very aware that no lasting "reset" can happen without God working in and through my life. It's all about Him and what He wants to do ... or not do.

He may hijack my plans and send me in directions I can't imagine right now ... and that's fine with me too, because He's in charge and I trust Him. And I just need to be ready to move forward with Him.

The verse I've chosen for 2016 is Isaiah 43:19:

"Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." (ESV) (*See my note at the end.)

Yes indeed. We may experience dry seasons, but God gives us many fresh opportunities to reset our lives.

Think about it:

• Some embrace New Year's resolutions as a way to jumpstart the year.
• Some evaluate the year just past and make new goals.
• Some, like me, choose a word for focus and change.
• When you think about it, every Sunday is an opportunity to reset as we come together around God's Word and then listen and apply.
• Even better, every morning—as we consider God's faithfulness to us—we can rejoice in a new day to repent of sins and reset our commitment to faith and obedience to God.

The truth is, the Father and the Holy Spirit are working within all of God's children at every moment to make the biggest reset of all: 

• He is sanctifying our lives (John 17:17; 1 Corinthians 6:11; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 2 Timothy 2:21; Hebrews 10:14) ... and as a result,
• He is making us more like the Son, Jesus (Romans 8:28-29; 2 Corinthians 3:16-18; Galatians 2:20).

For many years, I've thanked God for the wonder of His grace in giving me the desire and ability to cooperate with the Holy Spirit as He changes my mind and heart. It's been exciting to see God at work.

Are you grateful too?

Thank God for each reset opportunity!

What is God asking you to "reset" this year?

* [Note regarding Isaiah 43:19 - While the context of this verse is the prophecy of God (Israel's only Savior, vv. 11, 15) planning to deliver His people from Babylon, it speaks to me in a powerful way too. It reminds me our Creator God is always doing "new things" in our lives so we can honor and serve Him even better as we are enabled by the Holy Spirit. We simply need to be alert and ready to obey Him!]

Dawn Wilson, founder and president of Heart Choices Today, is the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God (with Pam Farrel), and Upgrade with Dawn. She is the Director of the San Diego chapter of Network of Evangelical Women in Ministry (NEWIM). Dawn is the co-author of a devotional, LOL with God, and contributed "The Blessing Basket" in It's a God Thing. She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe. 

Graphic Adapted: Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

5 Steps to Stop Resting on Your Laurels

This Spiritual Growth UPGRADE by Dawn Wilson considers the importance of continuing to grow in every area of life and not be content with victories in the past.

The old expression "resting on your laurels" refers to relying entirely on successes in the past for continuing recognition. It means we're too satisfied with past achievements to move forward into growth and new success. No real, consistent effort is made to improve our own life or the lives of others.

Laurel leaves were woven into a ring for contest winners in ancient sporting events. The laurel ring—a Victor's crown—was placed on the winner's head for all to see. It brought great praise and honor to the one who wore the crown.

But imagine if that victor just "rested on his laurels" and never did anything else that mattered. How foolish.

Victors would be counseled, "look to your laurels." Be careful not to lose the rank you achieved in future competitions.

I cannot help but compare this to the Christian life. 

Too many Christians—having fought the good fight of faith in their youth—sit back and reminisce about past answers to prayer, past Kingdom work and past victories. Past blessings are wonderful, but they're never meant to be the "end all" of the Christian life. And . . . 

Resting on your laurels is the opposite of UPGRADING your life!

So how do we stop resting on our laurels and move forward into new victories?

1. Take a Moment to Remember

We're not to live in the past, but that doesn't mean we don't reflect on what God has done and what it took to get to a place of victory... a place of rest ... a place of peace ... a place of fruitfulness, etc. "Remember the wondrous works He has done..." (Psalm 105:5). See also Psalm 103:2; Deuteronomy 8:2.

2. Take Stock of What You Have

What is in your hands?  What has the Lord given you NOW to work with? New resources? New skills? New vision? New people to help? New opportunities open with new supply! "Whatever your hand finds to do, do with your might...." (Ecclesiastes 9:10a).

3. Take Hold of Faith

Remember that you can do nothing without the Lord (John 15:5; Jesus' example—5:30), and without faith (in Him), it is impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6).

4. Take New Ground

Like the Children of Israel, moving forward into the Promised Land (Joshua 21:43), you can always take new ground when the Lord directs your steps.

• You can take new ground physically. (Lose weight? Get stronger? Get healthier?)
• You can take new ground mentally and emotionally, learning new things and biblical ways to cope with the circumstances of life.
• You can take new ground socially, reaching out to others with selflessness and a servant's heart.
• And you can always take new ground spiritually. What book of the Bible will you study? What scriptures will you memorize? What will you pray for? Who will you mentor? What can you do to make some corner of the world a better place to the glory of God?

Jesus grew in all of these areas (Luke 2:40, 52) and so can you! There's no reason to stop growing.

And don't forget, in these ungodly days:

• You can take new ground against the enemy (Satan). As long as we have breath, we must fight the good fight of faith. We can't leave it to others. The Captain of our Soul has work for us to do.

 5. Take Every Opportunity to Praise

We forget that God is God and we are not—and all we ever hope to achieve is because of His good grace. So we must take every opportunity to praise Him, honor Him, bring Him glory.

As my friend Pam Farrel reminds me, "Those who honor God, God honors" (see 1 Samuel 2:30). If you want to move forward in victory, be sure you are honoring God. 

Don't miss this. We can't just sit back and rest on our laurels. We've got to reach forth and take new ground. Because we are soldiers of the cross, and as followers of Christ, we are "on mission" until He calls us home to glory.

My friend Nancy Leigh DeMoss helped me remember a hymn that speaks to this truth. Isaac Watts, in his hymn, "Am I a Soldier of the Cross?" wrote:

"Am I a soldier of the cross, A follower of the Lamb,

And shall I fear to own His cause, Or blush to speak His Name?

Must I be carried to the skies On flowery beds of ease,

While others fought to win the prize, And sailed through bloody seas?

Are there no foes for me to face? Must I not stem the flood?

In this vile world a friend to grace, To help me on to God?

Sure I must fight if I would reign; Increase my courage, Lord.

I'll bear the toil, endure the pain, Supported by Thy Word...."

Watts went on to write about the "robes of victory" the saints will wear someday.

Much like a laurel wreath, our victory robes will celebrate what has been achieved, not for us but for the Kingdom. And the glory will all belong to the Lord!

I want to finish well, don't you?

Are you resting on your laurels? How can you move forward to gain new ground? 

Dawn Wilson, founder and President of Heart Choices Ministries, is the creator of three blogs: Heart Choices Today, LOL with God(with Pam Farrel), and Upgrade with Dawn. She is the Director of the San Diego chapter of Network of Evangelical Women in MInistry (NEWIM San Diego). Dawn is the co-author ofLOL with God and contributed "The Blessing Basket" in It's a God Thing. She and her husband Bob have two grown, married sons, three granddaughters and a rascally maltipoo, Roscoe.