What’s your motivation?
One day during my first year of teaching 6th grade, I overheard a little guy say a really nasty thing to the young lady sitting beside him. I immediately responded with, “What in the WORLD would make you say such a thing?” He looked up at me with big, brown eyes, shrugged his shoulders and innocently answered my question with another question, “The devil?”
Well, he wasn’t wrong.
What is it that makes you do what you do? What motivates you?
If you are like me, you love when a new year begins, and can start making all kinds of plans for a life of MORE…
More organized.
More exercise.
More healthy eating.
More success at work.
More money saved.
More family time.
More getting it all together.
More on top of all the stuff!
More, more, more….
So, what motivates us to do all this?
Other people?
Social media?
Ads?
Netflix shows?
Celebrities?
News?
The world will tell us we need more, to do more, be more…in order to be happy, to find peace, to live a full life.
So, we do it. We make the resolutions, we create the plans, we set goals. Because after all, we want to be happy, we want the peace, we want to live life to the fullest, right?
Then, what happens? You know where I am going with this! Because we have all been there! Did you know that January 13 was National Quitters Day? It’s a thing! We had high hopes for twelve days in the new year, and by the 13th, we’ve decided we just can’t do it.
Sometimes we are able to stick with it, but as life gets lived, we find our objectives change from getting more to just getting by. Reality set it, and we start questioning our motivation.
Again, what was our motivation to start with?
I feel like SNL’s “church lady” when I say, “Could it be…. Satan?”
Just like my little guy who wanted me to believe he wouldn’t be motivated by anything else when he was unkind.
How many times do we allow our own selfish desires, based on someone or something other than the Holy Spirit, to direct our paths? And, as a result we struggle? Not only do we not feel fulfilled, but we actually feel less.
Satan will tell you that you need more….God says He is enough.
“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19 (NIV)
Satan will tell you that you need to be more….God says you are perfect the way you are.
“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well”. Psalm 139:14 (NIV)
Satan tells you that you need to do more….God says you are already loved; yesterday, today, and tomorrow!
“For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38-39 (NIV)
So, if you celebrated Quitters Day this week or you are finding that your plan for the new year has already been sabotaged, know that it’s never too late to find more of Jesus, to live more fully in the Fruit of the Spirit, to have more of God’s peace. When you are motivated more by God’s word than all the other noise out there, you will find all you need.
“….. “Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.” John 14:8 (NIV)