Have you forgotten your ‘why’?
I’m young, but I’m not sure that’s an adequate excuse. Maybe “I’m broke” or “I’m weak” would suffice. What makes a good excuse? Before we answer that question, we’re forced to face another: Why use an excuse at all?
In my experience, I’ve located one overarching answer to this question: We make excuses when we don’t know our ‘why’.
Our ‘why’ is the reason why we progress, the reason why we love, the reason why we exist. As Christians, our why should always come from the lamp that lights our path, the Word of God (Psalm 119:105).
Most of our decisions begin with a ‘why’ — at times, a very strong ‘why’. We marry because our spouse makes us better than we ever thought possible. We go to school because once we receive our medical degree, we’ll have the necessary qualifications to be daily lifesavers. We pledge to give an annual amount to the local missionary out of obedience to God because He’ll provide the additional income.
But life inevitably brings storms and during those storms, we tend to lose sight of our ‘why’. When that happens, we’ll find any excuse to rescue us from trouble. We forget the reason we married, allowing offense to manifest its victory in divorce, and say “I fell out of love”. Failing grades mean failing lives and we choose to drop out with “college just isn’t my thing.” Money gets tight and all the sudden, “faith doesn’t pay the bills”.
How effective would the Kingdom of God be if we chose instead to battle through the tribulation? I assure you, God knew about the storm before it came, and the ‘why’ He gave you to fight with is strong enough to carry you through.
So, what’s the play call?
Establish your why with the truth of God’s Word. Choose to meditate on it instead of the circumstances surrounding you. Watch God work!
“…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” —Philippians 1:6
