What is my motivation?

MMMM Bacon

We have all seen the scene; the over dramatic thespian is struggling to get their lines right and they inquire with zeal to their director "what is my motivation?"

There is one thing that all of us are motivated by; food. I work at a special needs school and to motivate some of our students food items are used as reinforces for targeted behaviors. When "Jimmy" does something right he gets a skittle and when he doesn't, he doesn't. Seeing that connection I understand why I show up at work everyday; because if did not, I would go hungry. It isn't that I do not like my work or find it somewhat fulfilling, but the basic motivation behind me getting up and being at work by 8 is because, without being there I will not get feed the following month. That hungry drives us to wake up, even when we don't feel like getting out of bed. That hungry moves us to deal with situations that we would normally not put ourselves in. That hungry moves us to keep showing up everyday until we retire or find a better feeding trough. That hungry will drive us to do some pretty crazy things.


Lets look at this spiritually:


What about when Jesus said that those who hungry and thirst for righteousness will be filled, (Matthew 5)? What does that hungry and thirst for righteousness cause us to do then? Do we hungry for righteousness so much that we fight for our time with God? Do we thirst so much for him, that we feel it when we haven't been praying? Just like hungry pains seem to disappear if we ignore them long enough, so does the hungry drive for righteousness if we ignore it long enough. And just as if we are in a routinely of eating healthy and our appetite for good food grows. Just as our desire for the word of God grows as we spend more time with him. So I would like to challenge all of us to seek out the Lord and ask him to grow our appetite for righteousness and to keep eating of his word because he is the only true satisfaction in this life.


So fight for your time with God, just a man works hard for his food, so should we work hard for our to be more righteous.

The way God has made for us to grow in righteousness is through prayer, reading of the bible and being in a biblical community. Yet none of this matters unless God has changed your heart, he puts the desire for righteousness in your heart when the Holy Spirit gives you a new nature, one that hungers and thirst for Him, not for sin like you once did. So if God hasn't changed your nature, repent of your sins and believe the gospel; the fact that Jesus died for evil men, that is my hope, that is my motivation.