Retooling to Pursue
by Dr. John Tetsola

As a new season and year arises, it is often a time of reflection and a time of preparation for new pursuits. True pursuit doesn’t happen unless there is a retooling of some areas of our lives. Retooling is very essential in the successful attainment of any vision. Often in your pursuit, you will have to stop and retool to make sure you’re not off track and are still focused on the original promise upon your life or ministry. Here are some essential areas that need retooling during this new season of pursuit.

Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

John 4:34

The first area that needs retooling during seasons of pursuit is your focus. Focus helps us to effectively pursue the promises of God for our lives. Focus is the adjustment of your spiritual eye which allows a picture of what God promised you to be produced. In order to be successful in the pursuit of vision over our lives, we must consistently sharpen our focus so that the picture of the vision can be clearly seen. Jesus was focused to accomplish His assignment. If you can see it, you can seize it, and if you change your focus, you can change your failures. Retool your focus this year and you will see a significant change in your vision.

But I have this [one charge to make] against you: that you have left (abandoned) the love that you had at first [you have deserted Me, your first love].

…Repent (change the inner man to meet God’s will) and do the works you did previously [when first you knew the Lord]…

Revelation 2:4-5b AMP

The second area of retooling is in the examination of your priorities. Have you abandoned your first love? Are you pursuing the work of the ministry above the Author and Finisher of your faith? Do you love the prestige of position more than the practice of the Holy Spirit’s presence? You can operate on automatic pilot and be miles away from the Lord. Repent and change your inner man to meet God’s will and standard this year. Lavish the Holy Spirit with love and adoration—just as you used to do when you first knew the Lord. As you examine your priorities and put them in proper order, you will begin to notice an increase in your anointing as you pursue. 

Because you have guarded and kept My word of patient endurance [have held fast the lesson of My patience with the expectant endurance that I give you]…

Revelation 3:10 AMP

A third area that needs retooling is the area of patient endurance. Patient endurance helps you to guard and pursue the first word and vision of God in your life. If you don’t guard your first word and hold fast your lessons of godly patience, you will never accomplish God’s assignment. Patient endurance paints the picture of expectancy and helps you stay in the race “for the joy set before you.” Jesus had many opportunities to be sidetracked and to opt out of what He was called to do. If you fail to see the overall picture of why you do what you do, you will focus on the present pain of the process, and lose sight of your promise. Determine to retool your spirit again in the area of your endurance.  

A fourth area that needs retooling and constant examination is our motives. Why do we do what we do? Is our driving motivation for the glory of God, or is it for a plateau of power and notoriety? What fueled Jesus’ ambition was the fulfillment of the will of God. His agenda was the Father’s agenda. If you are going to be successful in the pursuit of the promises of God for your life, you must have right motives, and the Holy Spirit’s agenda.

Because of faith also Sarah herself received physical power to conceive a child, even when she was long past the age for it, because she considered [God] Who had given her the promise to be reliable and trustworthy and true to His word.

Hebrews 11:11 AMP

A fifth area of retooling is learning to trust God. To trust means to fully rely on, to have confidence and faith in God. As simple as this may sound, this is the very valley where most Christians collapse. They believe, but they don’t have the strength to wrestle the opponents of their promise. In order to wrestle, you have to get up close and personal to your opponent. The Bible tells us that Jacob wrestled with the Angel of God. Learning to trust God is more than just speaking a word of prayer, or of simply “naming and claiming it.” You have to move past “Lord I believe, but help thou my unbelief.” Faith can be built, and this is the fight of your faith. No one can fight this battle for you.

According to the above Scripture, Sarah received the physical power to conceive a child even when she was long past the age for it, as a result of faith. In times past, Sarah chuckled with the laughter of unbelief when presented with the promise of a son. Several years later, she tried the faithless currency of “helping God,” which ended in the birthing of Ishmael. Notwithstanding, the physical power to conceive would never have become available to Sarah unless she operated with the spiritual currency of faith. Like Sarah, we trust the Holy Spirit to vacillating degrees when we seem to be long past the age of seeing the manifestation of our promise. While it takes faith to even muster up the strength to believe God, God gives His best to those who leave their strivings with Him. 2007 is the year for the Holy Spirit to unveil Himself in a greater measure, therefore embrace the full manifestation of the Holy Spirit’s ability and power. Empty yourself of you, and have complete confidence that God will come through for you. It’s not about any of your doubts or fears, but it is about trusting and relying upon the trustworthiness of God and His ability to fulfill every word of His promise to you. Don’t quit and abandon the pursuit of the promises of God for your life. Retool and pursue.

by Dr. John A. Tetsola