by Elder M. Russell Ballard

If one day I decided to set a goal of running a marathon (don’t laugh, this is purely hypothetical) there are certain steps even I know I would need to do before I achieved this goal. 

First, I wouldn’t plan the marathon for tomorrow.  There is no way I could cross the finish line on my own two feet tomorrow.  It wouldn’t happen.  I would fail my goal.

The second thing I would do is to find someone who has run a marathon to help me set short-term goals and come up with a plan to achieve the short-term goals.  I’d like to know a realistic time to set for myself to accomplish my goal and I’d write it on my calendar.  I’d also like to know what I would need to do to get ready to run a marathon and what to expect.

Then I would implement my plan and work for it following the steps outlined in the second step.  The whole time I would have to keep in mind my goal of crossing the finish line because the training process is probably going to be difficult.  I would have to change this non-marathon body into a marathon body and change is never an easy thing.  I may become frustrated or discouraged.  That’s why I would need to keep that image of me crossing the finish line in my mind and focus on it.  All things would need to point to that moment.

Elder Ballard describes about the difference of a goal and plan.  We set a goal and the plan helps us achieve that goal.  Check out his talk in the link below.

Return and Receive