I recently saw a commercial for a gym that had a great tag line, “Motivation is what gets you going. Habit keeps you coming back.” I thought about that line and how true it is for many things in life, especially going to the gym. Many people are motivated by New Year’s resolutions. They start going to the gym, stop smoking, eat healthier and the list goes on. Sometimes we just need the right motivation in life.
Too many times we are motivated by the wrong reasons. Maybe that is why the habit never kicks in, because our motivation was only based on emotion. If I am only motivated to eat healthy because my jeans do not fit anymore, then I may have the wrong motivation. However, if my doctor tells me that I am at a high risk for a heart attack then my motivation may be higher.
They say it takes doing something for 21 days before it becomes a habit. If you want to start flossing your teeth every day, then it would take you 21 days before that would become a habit. We all have good habits and bad habits. So the same 21 days would apply to the good and the bad.
Motivation is what gets us started, but habit keeps us going. Take that thought and apply it to spiritual disciplines. Say I want to start a Bible reading plan or I want to spend time in prayer each day. First, you need to discover your motivation. If you are motivatedout of guilt, then you will probably fail. Then you will feel guilty because you failed and then you will distance yourself from God.
Our motivation should be based on a desire for sanctification. That is a fancy term that means to be set apart and to be made holy.
We will always be seeking to be made holy while we are on this earth. We will always be striving to know Christ more, walk in the Spirit more, and be used by God more. These things happen as we spend time with the Father and allow Him to shape us.
Take some time today to think about your motivation. What is the motivation behind your life? What things in life have become habits, both good and bad?
Are you being set apart and being made holy? We all need to pray that our motivation be for God’s heart.
When I know and love Jesus then I am motivated out of a pure desire to make much of Him. Then I will be more likely to have a habit of spending time with Him, letting Him transform me and sharing Him with others.
•••
Editor’s note: Michael Smith is the youth pastor of First Baptist Church, Pea Ridge. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Church, Pages 2 on 02/06/2013