Singles, I want to let you know. God wants you to be whole. He wants you to be complete. I say that because there are many who believe or hope one day they will be married. But you gotta understand.
Marriage is designed for two whole people. to come together. In the kingdom of God, 1 plus 1 equals 1. Hello and welcome to Destined for Victory where we feature the preaching ministry of Pastor Paul Shepard. And coming up next, an encouraging word for single men and women.
It's a message about obedience, success, and setting wise priorities. Along the way, you'll discover three ways to become whole and complete as a single person.
so you can become whole and complete as a married person. Online, you'll find us at pastorpaul.net, where you can listen to any recent message on demand, including today's. That's pastorpaul.net. Subscribe to our podcast at Spotify or wherever you enjoy your podcasts.
Now let's listen closely to Pastor Paul's Destined for Victory message. Priorities for Victoria Singles. I hope. You already understand that life to the full doesn't Require marriage.
Now, for many, it includes marriage, but life to the full doesn't require. Marriage. You can live a life to the full without having a husband or wife. in your life.
So I want to talk with you. about seven areas of our lives where We need to make sure that we are Tapping into the wisdom of God, because wisdom builds our house on seven pillars, meaning you have a well-balanced, you have a complete, you have a full approach. to life. And if you get these seven categories straight, You'll be able to enjoy life. to the full.
And I want to see all singles in the kingdom of God really enjoying life. I don't want to see any of you waiting, hoping one day that you can start living by getting married. That's not the way you want to approach life. I can't wait. To get married, so I can really start living.
No, I'm gonna encourage you as we wrap up this series with these two messages, I'm gonna encourage you to get started living now. Because even if you do get married somewhere in the coming years, you're going to want that person to meet you in the process of living. Nobody's looking for you while you're standing on the side of the road of life. Nobody's driving the freeway of life saying, I wonder where there's somebody I can pick up. They're not looking for a hitchhiker.
They're looking for somebody who's already living. Already enjoying life, already building their life on seven pillars, and they are doing their thing. You will be a lot more attractive to the person you plan or hope to marry one day when they see you busy living. And so, I'm going to help you make sure you looked at these seven categories properly and you are enjoying your life. Going to cover three in this message.
The first category of priorities is spiritual. Priorities. Let's talk first about your spiritual priorities. Success in life is defined throughout the scriptures as listening to God and putting into practice what He tells you to do and to be. Back in Joshua, God said to Joshua, be careful to do everything I'm telling you.
Joshua, he said, because then you will have good success. I love that. That God said, Joshua, if you do what I'm telling you to do, you're going to have good sales. Success. One of the things I love about that passage in Joshua 1 is it suggests that not all success, as defined in the world, is good.
And I need to make sure you understand that not everything that people say is success really is good success. There is a success that is not good. At all. There is a success about which Jesus said: What does it profit a man if he gained the whole world? and lose his soul.
You're not successful if you lose at the end. It amazes me what people call success. That's really not success.
Some folk think having a certain image Is the epitome of success. Everybody looks at me a certain way and sees me a certain way. But that's not success, that's just image. And how many know you can be vogue on the outside, but vague on the inside? Don't you know some vulgar, vague folk?
If you don't, I know some. I can introduce you. When I introduce you, I won't call them that, but I'll just get behind them and point. This is an example of what I was messing. Remember that message I preached?
This is it, right here. Vogue on the outside, vague on the inside. You ever met somebody? Beautiful. And as soon as you talk with them, about three, five minutes.
You are waiting for somebody.
Somebody, please call me. Get me out of here. Why? Because image is not success. Man looks on the outward appearance, God said to the prophet Samuel.
When Samuel went to Jesse's house to anoint one of his boys, remember what the Lord said to him? He saw the first couple of boys, they're big and strong and what have you. God said, don't look at the outside, man looks at the outside. He said, God looks at the heart. I'm going to point out somebody whose heart is right.
And so, image is not a proper way to define whether or not a person is successful. Don't spend all your time dressing for success. I mean, you can dress for success, but don't think it's success when you get through dressing. I know they write books and they send you the interviews with a certain image and image consciousness, and in its place, you know, image has a role to play, but that's not success. You can't dress for success.
You can dress to impress certain people, but again, that's not success. And I tell you all the time, don't bother putting a hundred dollar hat on a nickel head. Get the head straight first. Get some value in your head.
So image is not success. Education is wonderful, but education doesn't spell success. How many know you can be an educated fool? I bet you know some of them too. I know people who are smart and dumb at the same time.
They have a great Academic education, but when you see them live their life. Yeah. You say, what in the world? Because academic education doesn't spell success. Many of us, our parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, were not nearly as academically educated as we are.
But a lot of them had a whole lot more sense. I need a witness, somebody. They had a whole lot more sense. My grandmother never graduated high school, but there were days when she said, Boy, you've been listening to me. I'm coming back from where you're going.
You think you know something, but I can tell you. what you don't know. I've been down that road that you heading down. and can tell you some things. Wealth is not success.
Don't believe me, ask Jesus in Luke chapter 12. He talked about, he gave the parable of a rich fool. Wealth is not success in and of itself. That rich fool was busy building barns so he could store up his harvest, and he didn't even know the purpose for which God gave him the harvest in the first place. And Jesus told the story and he said, His soul is going to be required of him, and then whose things shall these be?
At a certain point, you got to realize you're not taking this stuff with you, so that can't spell success. I saw a bumper sticker years ago, never forgot it, it was so stupid. It said, He who dies with the most toys wins. And somebody had the nerve to put that on the car and drive around and show the world how ignorant they were. And I thought, no, somebody needs to create Another bumper sticker that I can put right next to that wouldn't say, he who dies with the most toys is still dead.
Next to that, put another one that says, you never saw a U-Haul follow a hearse. The idea is you can't take it with you. You didn't win anything 'cause you accumulated a lot of stuff. In fact, you see a lot of these dysfunctional families. All you do, the more stuff you have, is leave them more to fuss over.
And so that can't be a measure of success. And singles, I want you to know marriage is not a measure of success. For some people, they married well, and so marriage is a blessing. But you all know who are still single, you know plenty of your married friends, and you wouldn't trade places with them. to save your mama's life.
Come on singles, y'all know it's the truth. Still ahead, the second half of today's Destined for Victory message, featuring the teaching ministry of Pastor Paul Shepherd. As always, you can hear any of our recent messages on demand at pastorpaul.net. That's pastorpaul.net. Listen and subscribe to the podcast at Spotify, at Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
You know, the Great Commission has to be funded to be fulfilled. It always has. We're so grateful for the prayers and donations and friends and partners like you because you are reaching people all over the world with the love of Jesus Christ. Let's keep that momentum going and let's do it together. To make a safe and secure donation online, do so at pastorpaul.net.
or call 855-339-5500.
Now, from our teaching series, Straight Talk for Singles, let's get you back to the rest of today's Destined for Victory message: Priorities for Victorious Singles. Y'all know some married folk that you say, what in the world were they thinking? What made them think it was a good idea for them to get together? No, no, that's not a measure of success. Proverbs twenty-five 24 says better to live on a rooftop alone.
Than to share a house with a quarrelsome person. And just add to that principle not only a quarrelsome husband or wife, but an angry husband or wife. a dysfunctional husband or wife. A crazy husband or wife. An issue-driven husband or wife.
Somebody who want to take out their issues on you. No, no, no, no, no. You don't want that.
Some of you sisters I'm believing for are Boaz. B-O-A-Z. And some of y'all gonna get You get the point. Dysfunctional as can be. Crazy ass can be.
Stupid ass can be.
So it's not a proper measurement. of success. Therefore, I want to encourage you where your spiritual priorities are concerned, make sure that you build a solid foundation of. A growing relationship with the Lord Jesus because, in that, you build the foundation upon which true. Success.
develops. You got to make a commitment to be a fully devoted follower of Christ. Jesus, when he met people, that was what he was pushing for every single time. And now that he's come into your sphere of influence, that's what he's pushing for. He wants you to be a truly, fully devoted follower of his.
Why? Not because he gets something out of it, because he came to give you life to the full. And you only get that when your life is anchored in Christ. That's what Matthew 6:33 is all about. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and everything you need, God says, I'll add to you.
In other words, if you get your life rooted in kingdom priorities, get your spiritual life right. He says, I'll make sure that you have a life that you can live to the full. And so make sure. My single brother, my single sister, make sure that you are not a brilli cream Christian. I date myself whenever I say that.
Brill Cream was a product that advertised on television back in my day, back in the sixties when not everybody had a even a color T V. I remember watching the Brill Cream commercial on our black and white T V. But Brill Cream was a hair gel. It was just grease really. But uh And its slogan was, A Little Dab will do you.
That was it. You see on the commercial, they put this little dab. a brilli cream and then rub their hands together and get their head together. And the slogan was a little dabble, do you? Don't be that kind of Christian.
Don't be a little dab of Jesus, he'll do you. Yeah, every now and then I go to church, yeah. Every now and then I fall through there, you know. No, no, you don't need to fall through here every now and then. You need to be here as a matter of lifestyle.
This is where I am. This is where I worship God. I am a kingdom first person. I'm a fanatic.
Well, you're just a fanatic. Exactly. I'm a fanatic for Christ. You a fanatic for something, I just fanatic for something better, that's all. You fanatic for a team and you don't know whether they're gonna win or lose.
But you buy season tickets and you buy all the garb, and your car looks like the team, and all that stuff, and you have flags waving as you're driving to the stadium and all of that stuff. You're just a fanatic for your team. Cool, I'm a fanatic for something that's more important. Jesus died for my sins. He died to make sure I don't bust hell wide open.
I'm a fanatic for that. I'm going to spend eternity in the presence of the Lord. I'm going to live abundantly in this life with the Lord.
So yes, I'm a fanatic for him. That's not a bad thing, that's a good thing. And you need to decide you're a Jesus man, you're a Jesus woman, that I'm kingdom first in the way I live my life. I can't do everything because I'm kingdom man or woman. I can't say everything.
I can't go everywhere. I'm a kingdom man or woman. There's certain things that are off-limits for me. I'm a kingdom man or woman. That's where you want to get because that is where you can find the Lord blessing your life in a very rich way.
And so you want to have other. Elements to your life, but you want to make sure your spiritual priorities are set and they are firmly in place. Along with the spiritual priorities, you need to be committed, connected to a church. That's part of Kingdom First Living. The early church established itself immediately after the day of Pentecost into local churches.
I need to make sure you understand in no uncertain terms this newfangled idea of spirituality without organized religion. There's a Greek word for it, baloney. Organized religion. See, people throw that out because there's a whole lot you can put under the tent of organized religion. I'm not endorsing organized religion as a whole, but Christianity, as passed down to us by Jesus and his apostles, is to be an organized way of living kingdom values.
And that is a good thing. That is a right thing. And the early church organized itself into churches. And you knew who was part of every church.
So that Paul, the only reason we have a New Testament is because Paul knew he could go to a city and he or one of the other apostles would raise up a church. And then he could write them as their spiritual father. Because he knew they all gathered in one place. They all had organized leadership. You knew who the elders were.
You knew who the deacons were. You knew what was going on there. And he was able to write to the church at Galatia, to the church at Ephesus, to the church at Colossi, and on and on, to the church at Thessalonica, on and on. Why? Because the church understood it had to be organized.
Cut out all this stuff. I'm spiritual, but I don't believe in church. You got to believe in church. Jesus raised up the church. He said, Upon this rock, I will build my church.
The gates of hell won't prevail against it. You need to be committed, connected to a church. You need a pastor. You know him by name. You ever met these people?
Every now and then they try to impress me. I'm out in the store somewhere, and we strike up a conversation. They hear I'm a pastor. And they say, Oh, yeah, yeah, okay, yeah. I go.
Well, I go to new. You know, whatever. And I saw, oh, okay, great. I'm not familiar with that. What's your pastor name?
Oh, Lord, have mercy. Oh, wait a minute. You know, we just got a new one last year. Ne never mind, boo, that's all right. You don't go to church.
You don't even know your pastor's name. I don't want any destiny folk out there that I'm like, uh uh I used to live in Philadelphia. You need a pastor more than you need a whole lot of things.
Somebody who will lead you and feed you in the things of God. It's good to have an image consultant, but it's necessary to have a pastor. It's good to have an academic advisor, but it's necessary to have a pastor. Good to have a financial advisor, Dave Ramsey and Howard Dayton, and those people who help us get our finances straight. But it's essential to have a pastor who will lead you and feed you in the things of God.
So get your spiritual priorities in order. Make sure. That area of your life is as the Lord wants it to be. Because at the end of the day, We are spiritual beings. having a temporal experience.
You gotta understand, you are a spiritual being. You are a being that is going to exist for all eternity.
So, you gotta sow into not only time, but eternity. And that's what walking with Christ does: get you ready for time. And it gets you ready for eternity. I would never invest all of my time here on something that only pays off here. Because at the end of this life, and I mean, think of it, compare it to eternity.
You only got 70, 75, 80, 90, 100. 105 if you're real, real Careful with yourself. After that you checking out. Tell yourself, I can't be all vested in earthly things. I'm checking out of here.
None of us sitting up here are going to be on this planet 100 years from now.
Some of us seventy, some fifty. Psalm thirty. Psalm twenty. No.
Some ten.
Some five.
Some of y'all may not. Make it through another 365 days. That's just the way. Existence on this planet works out. You don't have to be old to die.
You don't have to be sick to die. You can get up, kiss everybody in the house on your way to job, think you're coming back. Making plans for dinner. What y'all want for dinner? I'll bring it in.
You don't make it in. I'm a pastor, I can tell you story after story. People who had plans, he said he'd be back. All it takes is just one unexpected moment. And you check out of here.
All kinds of things happen. They don't even have to be tragic. It's just called life. on this planet. And you need to be Fully invested in your spiritual development because who you are, the spirit person, is going to exist for all eternity.
And when this life, as soon as you check out of here, the Bible says to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. I've heard about all the folks. Oh, no, they were an atheist. And I think, well, when they died, they weren't. That gets settled immediately after you close your eyes and this world.
You need to invest in spiritual things. Because we're all going to meet our Maker. That's just the way it is. And so you gotta be spiritually developed. Make sure.
That above all, you're building on a firm foundation. Thanks so much for being here with us for today's Destined for Victory message: Priorities for Victoria Singles. Always glad to have you with us.
Well, for years now, Destined for Victory has been committed to using the media to reach as many people as we can with the gospel of Jesus Christ. I asked Pastor Paul once to talk about why radio was so important. Here's what he had to say.
Well, I want to tell you that it's important to me as a discipler. That my voice is heard, and it is used to help people grow in their knowledge of the Lord and in their faith walk with Him. Fact of the matter is, my voice doesn't sound like most of the other folks you hear on Christian radio. I'm well aware of that, and I'm really comfortable with that. I come from my own unique background, both ethnically and in terms of life experience.
There are things I share, there are things I say, and there are the ways that I say them that are unique. I believe that that perspective needs to be heard throughout Christendom. And so, while I'm so grateful for all of my heroes, your heroes are mine. I listen to the same people, the guys who have been on the radio for decades and have proclaimed God's word faithfully. I really do appreciate those guys.
But I've learned not to be intimidated by them because I've got my own way of processing and own way of sharing and helping people to learn and to grow in their faith.
So, it's quite intentional.
Sometimes I like to be really colloquial in what I say and how I say it because I'm just using who I am, and I think God wants to use that. He's the one who called me. I didn't call myself, He called me, and I believe He knows what He was getting when He called me into the ministry. And so, I'm just trying to make a difference because the gospel really does change lives, and I believe I have a unique calling to help present the gospel from my own perspective. And I pray that that's resonating with listeners, and I pray that that means enough to them that they'll make sure my voice can continue to be heard right along with our other heroes who teach the gospel of Jesus.
That was Pastor Paul's mission. It remains our mission to day to bring timeless truth for a victorious life on radio, online, and on our free mobile app.
Now, we can't do any of this without your help, so today we're asking you to send a generous donation to Destined for Victory. And when you do, we'll be happy to send you our brand new booklet, Grown Up Faith. This is a great read because it will challenge you to move beyond any childish or immature habits and begin to embrace the kind of maturity that honors God and blesses your life. This practical biblical guide will help you stop living on impulse and start living with greater wisdom and purpose. Again, that's Grown Up Faith, our thank you gift today for your generous donation to Destined for Victory.
You can give by phone by calling 855-339-5500. That's 855-339-50500. or visit pastorpaul.net to make a safe and secure donation online. You can also mail your gift to Destined for Victory, Post Office Box 1767, Fremont, California, 94538. Make sure you're investing in your own happiness.
I call it being your own CEO, chief enjoyment officer. Make sure you are your own chief enjoyment officer. I'm not looking for somebody else so I can enjoy my life. I'm going to enjoy my life. If you want to hang with me while I'm enjoying it, come on.
That's tomorrow in our continuing Destined for Victory message: Priorities for Victoria Singles. But until then remember. He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion. In Christ, you are destined for victory.
