• What are the real numbers? We must know the numbers that matter.

A. A GOOD SHEPHERD COUNTS AND KNOWS HOW MANY SHEEP HE HAS.

• He knows how many sheep he has and keeps counting them.

Luke 15:4-6 (NLT) 4 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. 6 When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’

Insight: If we don’t know where we are at, we cannot get to where we desire to be. All directions start from present location. It takes time, effort, and sometimes it is painstaking to find out where we’re at right now.

Question: How can we know if we’re making progress if we don’t know where we started from?

B. BEFORE YOU CAN SET CLEAR GOALS OF WHERE WE DESIRE TO BE WE MUST FIRST KNOW WHERE WE ARE AT OR EXAMINE OURSELVES.

• Until we have an honest assessment of where we are at, we will never be able to move forward with intelligence, faith, passion and intentionality.

2 Corinthians 13:5 (AMC) Examine and test and evaluate your own selves to see whether you are holding to your faith and showing the proper fruits of it…

Illustration: The first thing the GPS needs to calculate is present location before it can give you specific directions.

C. BEFORE YOU BUILD OR GO TO WAR YOU MUST FIRST COUNT.

• Get the numbers that matter.

Luke 14:28,31 (NLT) 28 “But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? … 31 “Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?

D. EXAMPLE OF QUESTIONS YOU MUST ASK YOURSELF AND ANSWER TO ACHIEVE GROWTH?

@ How many people showed up to my D.G this week?

@ How many D.G leaders have I developed and launched? (Or how many D.G’s are in my network?)

@ How many people did we recruit into our D.G network this week and what was the total attendance?

@ How many volunteers are serving in my ministry right now?

@ How many sales, policies, etc. . Did I sell this week, last month, year to date?

@ How much do I weigh?

• This is where we are setting goals, putting our vision, wants and
  desire on paper. We are determining , committing and declaring our “Big 90 day Goal”

Insight: Let us know what we want to accomplish, who we want to become, and where we want to go or else we will never
accomplish it or succeed. A life without a goal is a life without a target. We must know what is our bull’s-eye.

A. GOD PROMISES WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART.
Psalm 37:4 (AMP) Delight yourself in the Lord And He will give you the desires and petitions of your heart.

Delight: (anag) to be happy, to be pliable, moldable, to live and find enjoyment in.
Desires: (mis-ala) requests, petitions, prayers, wants.

Psalm 37:4 (EXB) 4 Enjoy serving the Lord, and he will give you ·what you want …

• What are you going to do in the next 90 days, this week, today, to achieve your big 90 day goal?

A. YOU MUST CREATE AN INVESTMENT PLAN, STRATEGY AND THEN EXECUTE IT.

Matthew 25:16 (NLT) “The servant who received the five bags of silver began to invest the money and earned five more…. 20 The servant to whom he had entrusted the five bags of silver came forward with five more and said, ‘Master, you gave me five bags of silver to invest, and I have earned five more.’ 21 “The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!

Insight: God expects us invest what he has given us and to create a profit. God wants to give us more, resources, people and responsibilities. More is His vision for our lives.

B. EVERYONE WHO DOES NOT HAVE AN INVESTMENT/GROWTH PLAN AND CREATE A PROFIT GOD CALLS WICKED AND LAZY.

• The consequence of a non investor is decrease, demotion, and destruction.

Matthew 25:24-30 (NLT) 24 “Then the servant with the one bag of silver came and said… 25 I was afraid I would lose your money, so I hid it in the earth. Look, here is your money back.’ 26 “But the master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy servant! If you knew I harvested crops I didn’t plant and gathered crops I didn’t cultivate, 27 why didn’t you deposit my money in the bank? At least I could have gotten some interest on it.’ 28 “Then he ordered, ‘Take the money from this servant, and give it to the one with the ten bags of silver. 29 To those who use well what they are given, even more will be given, and they will have an abundance. But from those who do nothing, even what little they have will be taken away. 30 Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

C. IF YOU DON’T CREATE A GOOD PLAN YOU WILL NOT PROSPER OR EXPERIENCE GROWTH.

Proverbs 21:5 (NLT) Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.

(ERV) Careful planning leads to profit. Acting too quickly leads to poverty.

(GNT) Plan carefully and you will have plenty; if you act too quickly, you will never have enough.

(ISV) Plans of the persistent surely lead to productivity…

(VOICE) A well-thought-out plan will work to your advantage, but hasty actions will cost you dearly.

• Who is mentoring, discipling you?

A. ALL OF US NEED PEOPLE IN OUR LIVES THAT SHARPEN US AND KEEP US ACCOUNTABLE TO OUR COMMITMENTS.

Proverbs 27:17 (AMP) As iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens and influences another through discussion.

B. ACCOUNTABILITY MEETINGS MUST BE SCHEDULED OR THEY WILL NEVER BE EFFECTIVE. (Daily, weekly, monthly, etc…)

Matthew 25:19 (NLT) “After a long time their master returned from his trip and called them to give an account of how they had used his money.

C. WHAT HAPPENS IN THIS MEETING?

@ goals, and plans are discussed and committed to. (replan and recommit.)

@ progress is celebrated. (what progress have we made since our last meeting?)

@ encouragement, coaching, and encouragement.