“A New Self in 90 Days” Review

Introduction

Thanks For taking the time to read this article. I appreciate the opportunity to share some things about my new book “A New Self in 90 Days.” I want to assure you that I’m not here to sell but only to serve. That has been my policy on this website since it was first established thirteen years ago. It was never for the purpose of making money. In this article and in the book, I want to show you how you can improve your life significantly through the five most important disciplines of life.

I realize many of you reading this have already achieved much in life. I also know you desire to be more, no matter where you are.Maybe you are doing well, but still, deep inside, you know that your life can be even greater than it already is. “A New Self in 90 Days” will give you some ideas and disciplines to help you accomplish that.If I just gave you one rule to set you up to become “A New Self,” it would be: Always do the right thing. You might wonder how that is possible. It is only possible when we walk with God, and He walks with us, meaning that we put God first in our lives.

How many of you like Chick-fil-A? I’m sure a lot of you do. It is America’s favorite restaurant for eight years running. One of the best interviews I’ve ever heard was with Dan Cathy, owner, along with his two brothers of Chick-fil-A. Dan said his father, who always put God first, said that the formula to Success has three “Ms:” Master (Knowing who your Master is) – Mate (Having the suitable mate) – Mission (Knowing your mission in life). Dan’s Father, Samuel, and mother, Jennette, began their first business on Tuesday, May 23, 1946, with a restaurant called Dwarf Grill, with only two employees, he, and his wife. It was called Dwarf Grill because it was tiny. Today, Chick-fil-A has 3,000 restaurants with around a quarter million employees. Putting God first is the secret to true Success in a Christian’s life although it may not always result the same as the example above. The success of a Christian comes in many forms but primarily by being in the center of God’s will allowing Him to be first in life.

All knowledge comes from God; we gain it differently from several sources. Acquiring and using it is the secret to a life of meaning and Purpose. We never get too old to continue learning and never know it all. Even at my age, I have to work on myself every day.

You may wonder where I came up with the information for “A New Self in 90 Days:” Much of the information came from a lifetime of experiences. For instance, I have 50 years of experience in marriage. My wife Margaret and I together have 96 years of experience. I have 44 years of experience from my first marriage and 6 with Margaret. She has 40 years of experience from her first marriage and 6 with me. Both my first wife and Margaret’s first husband passed away from cancer.

From the 51 years I’ve been in the ministry, I have gained much information from thousands of sermons prepared and preached and from many bible studies taught. I have read many books and heard many motivational speeches on personal growth. Most importantly, I spent ten years researching and writing the book.

But here is something quite amazing to me: When I began,I did not even know what I was writing about. I wrote on topics as they came to mind and put them aside for the book. In nearly ten years, I had most of the material for the book but no title or sub-topics. I began to think of the most important things in life to use as sub-topics. I could only think of five. Love was not one of them. You might wonder why since it is the greatest thing in the world; Henry Drummond wrote a book back in the seventeen hundreds called “Summon Bonum,” the greatest thing in the world, which is Love. It was based on the Love chapter of the Bible, 1 Corinthians 13. Love indeed has its rightful place, and it is listed under a relationship with God who is love according to Scripture. There are also other important things like prayer, but again, it is also listed under a relationship with God. It is interesting that in nearly ten years, I had not written anything except articles for those five sub-topics even though I had yet to come up with them.

There is only one way I can explain how I was able to write the book. The Bible says, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; [This is putting God first.] and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). If I had leaned on my understanding, I would never have been successful in writing and publishing “A New Self in 90 Days.” Everything we know we learn from someone else or by experience, but it is GOD WHO DIRECTS OUR PATHS, that is if we choose to let Him.

Even though I have read Colossians many times, I did not recall when I chose the sub-topics that four of them and the source of the book’s titleare mentioned in the third and fourth chapters of Colossians.The third sub-topic, “Finances and Building Wealth,” is based on the wisdom of Solomon from Ecclesiastes; Solomon was probably the richest man who ever lived.

The first sub-topic, a relationship with God, is the greatest, and from it flows the other four.

A Relationship with God (Colossians 3:1-4)

What is the value of putting our relationship with God first? Matthew 6:33 KJV says, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” This verse is part of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus teaches his disciples about the principles of the kingdom of God. The verse encourages believers to prioritize their relationship with God and trust Him to provide for their needs.

If you ask the average church member how many things are associated with their relationship with God, they may name four or five. The book list is 32 of which each one reveals the advantages of having a relationship with God. I want to give you a formula that helps me build a relationship with God: It also increases the number and intensity of good days and raises the mood.I do this first thing in the morning when I reach my office. Try it and see if it works for you:

1. Deep breathing for 3 minutes, about 75 or 80 times: Deep breathing has several health benefits:
2. Prayer: “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” (James 5:16). Remember, according to Scripture, we have not because we ask not. Prayer is the lifeline between God and His children.
3. Gratitude: “This is the day the Lord has made, rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24). “Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name” (Psalm 100:4). I list five things I’m grateful for each day and write them down. It starts the day on a positive note.
4. Devotional: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what the will of God is, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2). Choose the devotional guide you prefer or design your own. I have been using the radio Bible broadcast online with the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee. I am now only lacking Malachi and Revelation of a five-year study though it will only take me about four years.
5. Bible Study: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15). According to Lifeway research, only a third of church members read the Bible daily. Also, according to the study, Bible engagement is one of eight signposts that consistently show up in the lives of growing Christians.  And Bible reading is one of the most predictive of spiritual maturity, becoming a New Self. 
6. Planning: “Those who fail to plan, plan to fail.” “A man’s heart deviseth [plans] his way: but the LORD directeth his steps” (Proverbs 16:9). “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established” (Proverbs 16:3). Planning is setting goals and ways to reach them and depending on the Holy Spirit to direct our paths.

Below is an example of the importance of “A Relationship with God:” 

The Bible teaches: “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world and loses his soul” (Matthew 16:26). Five of the wealthiest men in the world are Americans: Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffet.They seem to have gained the whole world; they all share one thing in common other than their wealth: They do not believe in God. So, based on the Bible, what have they profited? Absolutely nothing from an eternal perspective. A relationship with God is worth more than all the world’s money, diamonds, silver, gold, real estate, and everything else. If you do not have a relationship with God and would like to have one, which also secures your eternal future in heaven, go to www.otobefree.com for a step-by-step guide from the Bible. Millions have done this, so why not you also?

Marriage and Family (Colossians 3:18-21)

Did you know that only 6% of marriages reach the 50-year mark? It requires the right blueprint, which God gives for a lasting and successful marriage in Ephesians chapter 5:21-25: “Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God. 22Wives, submit yourselves unto your husbands, as unto the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body. 24Therefore, as the church is subject unto Christ, let the wives be to their husbands in everything. 25Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it;” God has an order of leadership: “But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man. The head of Christ is God” (1 Corinthians 11:3).

I include verse 21 above because it is often omitted when discussing submission. Not only are wives to submit to their own husbands, but we all are also to submit to one another. This is directed toward Christians. It is always feasible for husband and wife to discuss things before coming to an agreement and before deciding. Any decision the Husband makes should be in the interest of both. Another thing to remember is that we all are in submission to someone and also to the laws of the land. By the way, God assigned to the husband the most difficult responsibility: “Husbands Love your wives even as Christ loved the church and gave Himself for it.” I can’t imagine a wife who would not be willing to submit to a husband who loved her enough to lay down his life for her. The primary responsibility of building a successful marriage is the husband’s responsibility, and when he fails to love his wife as Christ loved the church, it can cause the marriage to fail.

The Marriage & Family section is significant. The divorce rate in the United States for the first marriage is 44.6%, and it does not improve with second and third marriages: According to Jennifer Baker of the Forest Institute of Professional Psychology in Springfield, Missouri, 67% of second marriages and 74% of third marriages end in divorce. The first thing that improves a marriage is when both husband and wife are dedicated and committed to God, and the second thing is entering marriage with the attitude of giving rather than taking. Just these two things alone can improve your marriage beyond all your imagination.

Finances & Growing Wealth, Ecclesiastes 5:10-15

I want to share with you some of the dumb financial mistakes I made when I was young because I did not have the knowledge I write about in “A New Self in 90 Days:” When I was 23 years old, it was about the same time Walmart went public, July 2, 1962. I had friends who invested in Walmart stock. They were telling me what a great opportunity it was. Did I listen and invest? No! But there was a reason: I had a new car, house, and furniture and lived from paycheck to paycheck. I did not have a penny to invest. A little investment at that time would be worth a fortune now, but I did not have the knowledge I included in the book section about finances and growing wealth.

1952 Kemmons Wilson opened the first Holiday Inn location in Memphis, Tennessee. I drove past there many times over the years. In 1963, a year after Walmart went public, Holiday Inn did also. Once again, I heard what a good opportune investment Holiday Inn was. I lived in West Memphis at the time. But again, I had no money to invest. Today Holiday Inn has over 500 locations.

The knowledge in “A New Self in 90 Days” can be worth much money and more than money to some who believe in the disciplines and apply them to their lives. For example, in 2022, the average annual income of a high school graduate in the United States was $34,320. The average starting salary for college graduates in 2022 stood at $55,260, the highest on record. Here is the thing: if a high school graduate or a college graduate consistently invests what an average smoker in America spends on tobacco, they can have over six million dollars by retirement age. Suppose they apply the first principle in growing wealth by paying themselves 10% of their gross income and investing it consistently. In that case, they will have financial freedom in retirement and be a multi-millionaire. I doubt that neither high school nor college graduates are aware of that. It is in the book “Finances and Growing Wealth.” This example is calculated by investing in the S&P 500, which has earned an average of 11% to 17% annually since 1957; this is not intended for investment advice but for information only. It is wise to see a professional financial advisor before investing.

The first rule of good finance management and growing wealth is giving part of your income away and paying yourself a part of it. 10% in both instances is an excellent place to start.

Personal Development, Colossians 3: 5-17

The key aim of personal growth is finding our Purpose. Someone said that our career is what we get paid for, but our mission is what we were created for. A fundamental approach to personal development is emotion. Emotion is the third part of the soul, the mind and will are the first two parts. A relatively new term, “Emotional Intelligence,” is called EQ. Some psychologists argue that EQ counts twice as much as IQ and technical skills combined to become successful.” It is essential to learn to measure emotion. Using the right amount of emotion at any given time is the key. Getting angry, verbally abusing others, and shouting is an extreme use of emotion, which negates its purpose.

How important is the subject of personal growth to people today? Well, I didn’t know when I wrote the book that there had already been 50,000 books published on the subject. Tony Robin has written several worldwide bestsellers. He is said to be the all-time great leader in personal growth. At 17 years old, he was broke, barely making $40 a week as a part-time janitor, but he was looking to change his life, so he splurged on a $35 three-hour personal development seminar with Jim Rohm. Robins said, “It turned out to be one of the most important investments of my life. He gave me a way of looking at life that allowed me to not ask [if] life would be easier, but to ask if I’d be better. He got me to realize that the secret to life was to work harder on myself than my job or anything else because then I’d have something to give people and he really shaped me.” Today, Robins owns 107 businesses and still runs his personal development seminars.

His recent seminar in Chicago sold out. It cost the organizers 1 million dollars to hire Robbins. 

Tickets started at $1,095 for a standard seat. Executive seats went for $1,395 and VIP was $1,695. Diamond sold for $2,395 and Diamond Premiere for $2,995. Hugh Jackman and others have paid Robins a hefty fee of $1,000,000 for about 36 private coaching sessions. Some of Robin’s seminars are in Three parts: health, finances, and relationships. “A New Self in 90 Days” costs $20.60 at Thrift Books with free delivery, which also covers those three things and more for far less than Tony Robins’s seminars. I’m not saying that Robin’s seminars are not valuable. I believe they are if you can afford them.

One of Robins’s bestselling books is “Awaken the Giant Within.”Here is a contrast between Tony Robbin’s New York Times bestseller and “A New Self in 90 Days.” Please understand me; I’m not saying that my book is better, but that it has a different approach, and I am convinced a better approach because it includes God in your life.

“Awaken the Giant Within,” according to the description of the book, is the psychology of change (Mind change): Robbins provides a step-by-step program teaching the fundamental lessons of self-mastery or Self-help that will enable you to discover your true purpose, take control of your life, and harness the forces that shape your destiny.

“A New Self in 90 Days” is a spiritual change, a step-by-step program with lessons of the driving force of the Holy Spirit within controlling and enabling you to discover your true Purpose and manage the forces that shape your life and destiny.

Jim Rohn was associated with Tony Robbins and was his mentor. He gave one of the most fantastic motives for becoming a new self: “If you want to have more, you have to become more. Success is not something you pursue. What you pursue will elude you; it can be like trying to chase butterflies. Success is something you attract by the person you become. For things to improve, you have to improve. For things to get better, you have to get better. For things to change, you have to change. When you change, everything changes for you. Success is just a few simple disciplines practiced daily.” – Jim Rohn. 

Over 32 years ago, the late Dr. J. Vernon McGee defined becoming the new self this way in his radio Bible broadcast: “We first receive the truth of God in our mind as God reveals it through His Word, and then we bury it in our heart, and then it presents itself by how we live. In a nutshell, that is the book’s Purpose: receiving the truth, appropriating it to our lives, and then living by it.

Much of the effort to become a better person revolves around how you think. “The mind has everything to do with what you become. Two opposing nouns can define your mindset, determining if you will become a new self: On the negative side is Malevolence < >, and on the positive side is Love. Malevolence is not a word we often hear, but it quite commonly characterizes some Church Members. Malevolence is a mindset that must be avoided entirely if a person is ever to become a new self.

Even though the noun Malevolence might be unfamiliar to us, its synonyms are very familiar: Resentfulness, hatred, bitterness, malice, spite, hostility, ill-will, enmity, vindictiveness, balefulness, venom, maliciousness, malignance, ill-nature, viciousness, to name a few.

Becoming a new self strongly depends on changing the mindset. A case study determined that changing your mindset is more effective in dealing with bad feelings and depression than antidepressants. According to Proverbs 23:7, you become what you think. You attract what you feel and create what you can imagine. Your thoughts mold your worldview. The Christian worldview results from a relationship with God, which becomes our foundation for life and changes our attitudes, behaviors, and actions. The late Dr. Wayne Dyer captures this reality in only six words: “AS YOU THINK, SO SHALL YOU BE.”

A person may be brilliant and talented, but achieving Success requires more; it includes dedication. Neither is it just dedication that counts; you also need to have a few right disciplines to succeed. Those mentioned in the book are life’s five most important disciplines. 

One of the things that holds a person back more than anything else is waiting for a Reason to get Started. “A New Self in 90 Days” Is a place to get started; it is not reaching the finish line, but gives you a head start.

Three principal areas of concern in life determine performance, Success, Purpose, and fulfillment: 

• Discovering Values
• Developing Life Skills
• Determining Purpose

These concerns make up most of the emphasis on personal growth. A person’s continued development of these things is a lifetime endeavor that will open new opportunities and enhance and preserve a life of quality and Purpose. Success in life is dedication and Ambition to Be Better: The late Jim Rohm, an advocate for personal growth, said, “Success is something you attract by the person you become.” Most people have that desire but lack the will, dedication, and knowledge to achieve it.

The world defines Success as “doing what you want to do when you want to and with whom you want to.” Success, according to the Bible, is different from that of the world. Success for a Christian is obedience to the known will of God: Following God’s will for life is a tremendous success for all. Listen to what God says: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV). For God’s plan to become our future and hope, we must commit ourselves to Him and put him first.

The book also emphasizes the importance of good health connected to personal growth: Steve Harvey said that our future Success depends on Mentality, Emotions, and Physical Health. You are the CEO of all three of those things, as well as your Spiritual State.

Human Relations (Colossians 3:22-25-4:1-6)

As you can see, “A New Self in 90 Days” is primarily about relationships. Someone said, “The quality of your relationships is the quality of your life.” I heard an author of several books say, “The most important thing in life is relationships.” The more we learn About relationships, the greater our destiny in life. There are a few principles, if followed, that can build lasting and quality relationships. You will find them listed under Human Relations in the book.

The summary

1. The critical verse for the title of “A New Self in 90 Days” is found in Colossians 3:10: “And have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” There are three points in that verse that I would like to emphasize:

• “Put on a new self” (This requires our involvement in cooperation with God)
• “Renewed in the knowledge” (this involves gaining the knowledge required for becoming the new self). Learning is not beneficial to us unless we appropriately add it and use it.
• “In the image of the Creator” (This is the objective of a new self, to be the person God created us to be); God created man in His image, but man lost his first estate when sin entered the human race.

2. Success in life is first having the dedication and Ambition to Be Better: The late Jim Rohm, an advocate for personal growth, said, “Success is something you attract by the person you become.” Most people have that desire but lack the will, dedication, and knowledge to achieve it.

• The world defines Success as “doing what you want to do when you want to and with whom you want to.” 
• Success according to the Bible is different from that of the world. Success for a Christian is obedience to the known will of God:
• Following God’s will for life is the most tremendous Success. Listen again to what God says: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV).

“A New Self in 90 Days” is available at Thrift Books,  Amazon,  Barnes & Noble, and bookstores across the world as well as many other locations on the Internet. When you buy the book, you invest in yourself, which is the greatest investment of all.