Literally, to finish something is to complete it or bring it to a conclusion. If you finished a race, you completed it — even if you come in last. Finishing is about concluding. If you finished a novel, you read the whole thing. Finishing a job means the job is done. This word can also refer to a coating or polish used to make furniture look nicer or fancier. If you say someone has a finished look about them, they don’t have a coating or polish, of course — but the effect is the same. They have a clean, cultured, polished appearance. By “finishing well” I am referring to fulfilling the work that God gave us (John 17: 4) so that we pass into the next world satisfied (Psalm 91:16). Paul said regarding his final days in 2 Timothy 4:6-8: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” We are living in a day when many men and women are “beginning well” in the ministry but not many are “finishing well.” In the Christian life, it’s not how you start that matters, it’s finishing well that counts. Finishing well means walking with God daily in growth, obedience, and service throughout life right up until death, which can be at any time. The Bible has numerous examples of those who finished well. They include Abraham, Job, Joseph, Joshua, Caleb, Samuel, David, Elijah, Jeremiah, Daniel, John, Luke, Mary, Paul, and Peter. On the other hand, there are also those who started well but did not finish well, such as Gideon, Eli, Saul, Solomon, Judas, and Demas.
I believe nobody wants to come to the end of something and say, “Oops!” Or just find out “I really messed up!” Or, “If only I had . . .” Whether you are talking about closing out an event, a career, a year, a life or a chapter in your life, you want to glance back over your shoulder and see that you finished well. It is one thing to start the year and another to finish well and strong. Apostle Paul was granted his heart desire, and he wrote, “I have finished my course…….” It was with joy, not with money or earthly possession or with fame, for he died a martyr. He finished with joy, anticipating a crown. To depart and be with Christ is far better, since there are no turns for the worst. He said, to die is gain…. so even death is a paying proposition. Our Lord Jesus Christ endured the cross despising the shame for the joy that was laid before Him. We, His followers, should look unto Him while we run with patience and finish with joy. Some people start well and end badly, thereby ignoring or denying themselves the joy of finishing well and strong. I do not care how bad you may think the year has been, you started with high expectations and have been grumbling and complaining your way through….losing hope that nothing good is forth coming. That’s defeatist thinking.
Stanley & Clinton in their work “Connecting: Learning How to Learn From Others” define finishing well like this: “To finish well does not mean to reach perfection, but like Paul, to keep pressing on toward it. So, when your time comes to an end, you are still growing in your love for Christ and intimacy with Him, still pressing on to make Him known, still living as His disciple and loving the people God places in your life and relentlessly seeking to know and do God’s will.” Summation: keep pursuing perfection, keep growing in love for Christ, keep making Him known, keep following as His disciple, keep loving people, keep seeking to know and doing God’s will. That is certainly an acceptable definition of finishing well, isn’t it?
We are in the last days of the year; do not ignore last minute miracles. Pick up your pieces and keep moving. Our God is too big to fail!!!If He has brought you to this presence and day, He has not finished with you. Do not lose hope. Something good can still come your way, anytime now. It’s not over until it’s over. The referee has not blown the last whistle, so the game is still on. The three Hebrew boys said to the King, even if this God does not save us, we shall not bow to man-made idol. The worst to do is to reject yourself when God has not rejected you. Determine to finish well and strong. I do not know about you, like Paul, I shall say, I don’t care what has happened to me or what I have passed through, my desire is to finish well and strong and move forward into next year, trusting more than ever hoping to meet my goal and fulfill my destiny.
Reggie McNeal on The Art of Finishing Well writes, “All of us know leaders who showed great promise but failed to live up to their potential. While our mind goes to the glaring moral-failure flameouts that take Christian leaders out of their game, lots of other issues can also contribute to stalled or derailed leadership. Burnout and stale-out claim lots of victims. Others self-sabotage their leadership by not attending to character issues, making bad decisions, or failing to acquire needed competencies. Leaders who finish well practice continuous self-improvement. They practice and follow lifelong disciplines that set them up to do well over the long haul. Effective leaders understand that they need to keep paying attention to some key issues in their lives and leadership.
Ron Edmondson on 6 Steps to Finishing Well in Life and Leadership, suggests:
Step One: Get in the right race. Many people never achieve the success they wanted, because they entered the wrong competition. They are aiming for the wrong targets. We should ask ourselves “where do I want to go in life and what do I eventually want to accomplish?” Until we know how we want our life to end we will never know the steps to take to succeed. This is true for leaders. If you don’t have a vision for your leadership – where you’re leading people – you’re failing before you get started. Of course, I believe in life this starts with a decision to allow Christ to set your path. Proverbs 16:9 says, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”
Step Two: Discipline for the race. Winning happens over time – not in an instant. The greatest athletes work hours outside the game in order to perhaps win even a single game. Victory doesn’t often happen without hard, painful work to get there. It takes diligence and consistency to be a winner. Many times, victory was just around the corner, but the people gave up too soon. The best leaders I know also learn their individual skills and continue to develop them and they surround themselves with people who complement them – and cover for them in their weaknesses.
Step Three: Develop character first. People who truly win in life spend a great amount of time on the development of themselves and others around them. Most of the successful business people and church leaders I know set aside time each week for personal development. They are frequently in the gym, reading a good book, and attending church on Sunday. They develop their mind, body and spirit. They recognize that they must be relationally, physically and spiritually healthy if they want to have success in life.
Step Four: Accept Failure. Most winners are built through brokenness. The greatest leaders have failed many times. Before inventing the light bulb, Thomas Edison failed a thousand times. Babe Ruth had 714 home runs and 1,330 strikeouts. Abraham Lincoln was said to have failed so many times, in business, in his love life, in politics but finally became one of the greatest President of the United States. People who finish well in life and leadership allow failure to be their friend not their enemy.
Step Five: Ignore unnecessary distractions. Winners don’t give up when obstacles get in the way of achieving their goals. They find a way to work around them. They don’t waste a lot of time and energy on the wrong things. They build upon the strength of others. Life is full of disappointments and setbacks but those who finish well learn to keep pushing forward – even through the darkest days.
Step Six: Stay in the race. If a person wants to win, he or she has to stay in the race. One cannot be a quitter and still win. Many times, the winner is the one with the most heart. I know some leaders who need this encouragement – and they will need it many times in their career as a leader. Often, we see the underdog team come from behind to win simply because they have more passion and determination. If you want to be a winner – if you want to finish well – stay in the game! Choose today to be a winner! Finish well! Don’t let your “hope to do’s” become your “wish you had’s”.
6 Barriers to a Good Finish (Pastors who Finish Well) By Scott Thomas
- The Misuse of Money: Many leaders are careless in the handling of finances. Greed can sway sound judgment, leading to sin and eventual downfall. Too often God’s resources have been diverted to personal use. Clothes donated to the poor have been taken by those handling them. Pastor’s salaries have been supplemented from funds for evangelism.
- The Abuse of Power: There is a tendency for leaders to wield power over followers beyond its intended use and to view special privileges as their personal right. Their leadership style is more reflective of a “chief” than a “shepherd.” Rather than empowering followers for service, they lead for their own personal benefit. Usually, these leaders have no accountability system. They stand at great risk.
- Pride: Success in ministry can pave the way for inappropriate pride to develop within a leader. Self-centeredness can set in, leading to poor decisions and ungodly behavior. We do well to heed James’ counsel, “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” (James.4:10).
- Sexual Misconduct: Illicit sexual relationships have been a powerful tool in the enemy’s hands against God’s leaders. David’s sin with Bathsheba has been repeated countless times in our generation, with no less devastating effects.
- Family Dissention: Unresolved conflicts between husband and wife or between parents and children can have repercussions on leadership effectiveness. Leaders such as Eli and David paid a dear price in leadership due to family problems.
- Complacency: As a leader becomes complacent in ministry there is often a tendency to relax and rely on the successes of the past. Johannes Mazibuko, pastor with the Alliance Church in Swaziland, comments, “There are many repercussions when a leader ceases to grow also. One is that the followers do not grow also. You cannot lead people farther than you have gone yourself. Also, when vision is dimmed fights shine. When people are no longer developing, they start to quarrel.“ Gal 5;15
It is important to note that each barrier is deeply rooted in character issues, rather than in lack of ministry skills. Personal integrity lies at the heart of the matter. A Zimbabwean leadership trainer observes, “Some leaders look strong publicly, and yet they are finished in their private life. When there is a crack in your character, one day it will be opened. Many have long fallen inwardly only to have it surface later. A good leader is a good leader in his own personal life with God.”
Moss Ntlha, General Secretary of The Evangelical Alliance of South Africa makes the following assessment, “I find that there is a tendency for Christian leaders to want to be served rather than serve, to be out for glory rather than sacrifice. It’s very clear that without providing a leadership that has integrity, where what we preach and what we do is one, it’s going to be very difficult to convince anyone that we mean business.”
Considering these barriers, what can be done to ensure a good finish? The Apostle Paul realized that there is much that can be learned by studying the lives of other leaders. He wrote in Romans 15:4, “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of Scriptures we might have hope.” Referring to the stories of God’s people in the Old testament, he says, “Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.” The wise leader will 1earn from the mistakes of others and train himself to avoid them. In the words of an African proverb, “The person who is ever ready for war is never defeated.”
Marry Christmas and Fruitful New Year