Introduction:

1. Now that I am a Christian, my life and my future are more important than ever before. I need to give special consideration to what I am going to do with the rest of my life.
2. Jesus taught that a man must plan his life and consider the consequences before he acts. Just like the builder, I must give serious thought to what I am doing before I begin. I want to be a successful, fruitful unfaithful servant of God. (Lk 14:27-33)
3. To achieve these goals, I must give consideration to the following areas:

A. I must resolve right now to be a Christian for Life.

1. I can't please God any other way. Jesus taught I must keep the word with patient faithfulness. (Lk 8:11-15)
2. Scriptures that will help me to recognize that fact: Rev 2:10; 2 Tim 4:6-8; Heb 10:35-39; 1 Pet 1:3-6
3. These Scriptures emphasize the great blessings which are to come to the faithful. All of these great blessings are mine at the end IF I remain faithful unto Him!! All the more reason to determine to be a faithful Christian for life!

B. Family Considerations:

1. What kind of a person will I marry? (to the unmarried). What are the benefits of marrying a Christian? Should I marry an unbeliever? The person I marry will have more bearing on my personal happiness than anyone or anything else in the rest of my life.
2. What about the rearing of the children? I must plan to rear them properly. I must consider their spiritual welfare in all the decisions I make. (Prov 22:6; Eph 6:4)
3. What about moving (due to job, personal considerations, etc)? Should I move my family into an area where there is no congregation of the Lord's people? What could be the consequences of moving where there is no church? Consider the difficulties that will be encountered.
4. When I go on my vacation, will I plan it where I can be with the saints on the Lord's day? Can I take a vacation from the Lord? What should I do?

C. What kind of decisions will I make in regard to developing my talents and my personal growth in service to God?

1. A Christian never arrives at a point where there is no more room for growth and challenge. A Christian's life is a life of continual striving for higher goals. (Phil 3:13-14) 
2. I need to set goals for my personal growth. I need to grow both in knowledge and spiritual strength. Where do I plan to be on the “Spiritual Maturity Ladder" in one year, five years? I need to resolve myself to study each and every day! (2 Pet 3:18)
3. I should set goals for developing my talents. If I really want to be of service to God, I must begin NOW to equip myself with the qualifications necessary to succeed.
4. Area of service: Elder, deacon, preacher, teacher, personal worker, elder's wife, deacon's wife, helper to the sick, song leader, etc.
5. It is good to decide at an early age (in the faith) what you would like to accomplish. One reason for the lack of elders, deacons, preachers, etc is because young men never made the decision while they were young to work towards qualifying themselves in this endeavor.
6. There are many 50 year old men in the church who were converted 30 years ago, but are not qualified to be elders because they were not thinking and planning ahead. They did not set goals for growth and service.

Conclusion:

**Each and every one of us should consider our future as a Christian. We should honestly evaluate ourselves as to what talents and abilities I have and how I can develop them to the fullest extent for the service of God.

**Remember, God doesn't expect more from us than we're capable of delivering!! But, He does require -we put our talents to work as good servants! (Luke 17:10)