Admitting I have been wrong
Never easy to say those 5 words, but important to say them if they are true. For me, its a bit earthshaking in a way what I discovered, or began to feel, or led to see....which ever way it happened. And yes, its not earthshaking for anyone else perhaps, just me. Shakes what I have been thinking for the past couple of years, which in turn had taken me down some side roads of life that perhaps I didn't really need to go.
Its about this whole motivational mindset that has filled just about every corner of society. Its preached from pulpits, spouted from every television talk show, in every magazine, even in religious book stores and certainly in a huge percentage of calenders sold or given away each year. I bought into this mentality but there was always a little corner of it that didn't lay right, but I excused it as being negative thinking, some kind of emotional baggage eating at me, doubt is bad, the books say. Believe, grasp and enjoy was the mantra of the day. God let me have my time, but He was poking me ever so gently to look in the right down a different path. I didn't listen. So finally He just showed me in black and white what that little corner that never lay right was about. The truth was there for me to see. I felt ashamed for falling prey to such a mighty distraction. The motivational mindset was deteriorating the very foundation of my belief system and I was seemingly OK. with that.
I read this one small paragraph on the Internet that put it all in perspective for me. "Stop using self projected goals to generate motivation. Put all goals at the foot of the cross. . . then rest.
Let Jesus be your goal setter, motivator and planner... His success for you might look a lot like failure to those without spiritual eyes." Dean VanDruff
I read this little bit on the Internet, have no idea who this person is, or anything about them, but what I read, I saw to be truth The Motivational Genre
My eyes were opened and I know now, the road I had travelled was not the right one. Since I have written about such things on my blog, I felt it only right to share what I know now. Yes, I know many of you already know this and for this I am grateful, but to those that don't, well I can say, been there, done that, and now I know its not the road for a Christian to be on.
God is working on me. I am a work in progress. Just like simple living, its a journey, not an all at once arrived at spot. We have been living simply for about 2 decades now and still learning more. I have been a Christian for many decades and still stubborn in wanting some things my way. May I live long enough to fully surrender my all.
Its about this whole motivational mindset that has filled just about every corner of society. Its preached from pulpits, spouted from every television talk show, in every magazine, even in religious book stores and certainly in a huge percentage of calenders sold or given away each year. I bought into this mentality but there was always a little corner of it that didn't lay right, but I excused it as being negative thinking, some kind of emotional baggage eating at me, doubt is bad, the books say. Believe, grasp and enjoy was the mantra of the day. God let me have my time, but He was poking me ever so gently to look in the right down a different path. I didn't listen. So finally He just showed me in black and white what that little corner that never lay right was about. The truth was there for me to see. I felt ashamed for falling prey to such a mighty distraction. The motivational mindset was deteriorating the very foundation of my belief system and I was seemingly OK. with that.
I read this one small paragraph on the Internet that put it all in perspective for me. "Stop using self projected goals to generate motivation. Put all goals at the foot of the cross. . . then rest.
Let Jesus be your goal setter, motivator and planner... His success for you might look a lot like failure to those without spiritual eyes." Dean VanDruff
I read this little bit on the Internet, have no idea who this person is, or anything about them, but what I read, I saw to be truth The Motivational Genre
My eyes were opened and I know now, the road I had travelled was not the right one. Since I have written about such things on my blog, I felt it only right to share what I know now. Yes, I know many of you already know this and for this I am grateful, but to those that don't, well I can say, been there, done that, and now I know its not the road for a Christian to be on.
God is working on me. I am a work in progress. Just like simple living, its a journey, not an all at once arrived at spot. We have been living simply for about 2 decades now and still learning more. I have been a Christian for many decades and still stubborn in wanting some things my way. May I live long enough to fully surrender my all.
Comments
Its just about putting God first and foremost when we think of what goals we are setting. Rather than looking at say, "the law of attraction"
It's been a long time since I dropped by. I always enjoy your pictures, your stories about family and simple living. I can relate to your post. I've read several books in the past year or so that fall along the same line. I'm reading Radical by David Platt. He talks about how the American church has manipulated the gospel to fit our cultural preferences. I'm being humbled and challenged to walk away from my comfort zone.
I love that we serve a Savior that never gives up on us... the Holy Spirit that nudges (and sometimes shoves) us to grow and transform in authentic discipleship. It is ALL about putting God first.