"Complete What You Started to Do" - Continue with BEFORE MAKING A DECISION

Analyze your motives.   Our motives matter to Jehovah.  (Proverbs 16:2)  He wants us to be honest in all things. So when we make decisions, we too want to be honest with ourselves and with others about our motives. If we were not completely honest, we would likely have difficulty sticking to the decision. For example, a young brothers may decided to become a regular pioneer. After some time, however, he struggles to fulfill the hour requirement and he finds little joy in his ministry. He may have thought that his main motive for pioneering was his desire to please Jehovah.  Could it be, though, that he was primarily motivated by a desire to please his parents or some person he admired?

Consider the situation of  a Bible student who decides to give up smoking. At first, he struggles, doing well for a week or two, but then he gives in to the urge to smoke. Finally, though, he is successful His love for Jehovah and his desire to please Him have helped him to conquer the habit. - COLOSSIANS 1:10; 3:23. 

Be specific.  The more specific you are, the more likely you are to complete what you start. For example, you may have decided to read the Bible more often. But if you do not have specific schedule in mind, you may not achieve your objective.  Or the elders  in a congregation may decide to shepherd the flock more often, but after some time, they have not followed through on that decision. To be successful, they could ask such questions as these:  "Have we identified the brothers and sisters who would especially benefit more from shepherding?  Have we set a specific time to visit them? 

Next time: "Complete What You Started to Do" - Conclusion of BEFORE  MAKING A DECISION

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