INTRODUCTION

Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, popularized the phrase “three feet from gold.” The idiom is a succinct way of expressing one of the most common causes of failure: the tendency of giving up just as victory is within reach.

This simile stems from a story of a young man who spent months digging for gold during the gold rush. Then he made the decision to leave. He sold all of his equipment to a “junk man” who sought counsel prior to start digging only to find out that gold would be found just 3 feet from where the previous miner had stopped. He was absolutely correct. Before quitting, the first miner was only three feet away from striking gold.

On the other hand, we have the individual of Isaac in Genesis Chapter 26 verses 17 – 22

¹⁷ So Isaac went away from there and pitched his tent in the Valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. ¹⁸ And Isaac dug again the wells of water which had been dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham; and he gave them the names by which his father had called them. ¹⁹ Now Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and found there a well of living [spring] water. ²⁰ And the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, saying, The water is ours. And he named the well Esek [contention] because they quarreled with him. ²¹ Then [his servants] dug another well, and they quarreled over that also; so he named it Sitnah [enmity]. ²² And he moved away from there and dug another well, and for that one they did not quarrel. He named it Rehoboth [room], saying, For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.

DO NOT MISS OUT ON THE FORTUNES

There’s no way of knowing what fortunes or success (‘gold’) we will miss out on if we quit a little too soon. The reason for quitting could be that the year did not turn out as expected; you were temporarily defeated or that you were afraid you wouldn’t be able to achieve your goal. Like Isaac our eyes must be on God and His promises to us. Genesis 26 verse 2 spells out the instruction [² And the Lord appeared to him and said, Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I will tell you.], while verses 3 and 4 spell out the reward for obedience. Keeping our eyes on the instructions in the coming days is key to reaping the benefits. May our Father grant us the grace for obedience in Jesus name.

1. Prayer of thanksgiving
2. Ask for forgiveness and mercy
3. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, make room for me today and in the days ahead – in my business, career, profession, academics and ministry
4. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, baptize me with the spirit of discovery
5. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, baptize me with wisdom and solutions to global issues
6. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, fortunes and success that you have placed around me, grant me the wisdom and tenacity to discover them
7. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, help me to be fruitful in this land.
8. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, silence every form of quarrel around me – every form of contention
9. Pray: Father in the name of Jesus, separate me from every spirit of discouragement and contention
10. Thank God for answered prayers.