What’s My Motivation?

Thoughts on the Sabbath School Lesson for 6.9.12

Why do we do what we do? What motivates any of us to do anything?

People are trying to motivate us to do things all the time. They want us to spend our money at their stores. They want us to buy their product or drive their car. Teachers try to motivate their students to study and do their work. Bosses try to motivate their employees to work hard. Parents want to motivate their children to behave.

There are a couple of problems though. One, there are really only a few motivations available: hate, greed, fear, guilt, and love. And, two, some are more effective than others, depending on the situation.

For example, hate is only going to work in limited and specific situations, and most of those are not socially acceptable. Greed is more adaptable so it can work in more situations. Advertisers have really mastered using greed as a motivator. Fear and guilt may seem really effective at first, but they don’t usually create any long term or permanent behaviors.

If fear were more effective, no one would ever drive over the speed limit, smoke cigarettes, drink and drive, over eat, or any number of other things.

And if guilt worked every time, nobody would ever disobey a parent, make hurtful comments to a loved one, or break a promise.

Love, of course, is the only motivator that we should ever need or use, but it’s also the most difficult for us to use consistently.

Think about this: what motivates you and me to witness about Jesus? Well, it’s almost never going to be hate, and it’s probably not greed, but might it be fear or guilt? And, does it really matter why we witness, as long as we witness?

If you’re a parent, you’ve probably have said to your children when they grumbled about doing a task that you really didn’t care whether or not they wanted to do it as long as they did it. Could Paul have been saying the same thing in Philippians?

“Some indeed preach Christ even from envy and strife, and some also from goodwill: The former preach Christ from selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my chains; but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel. What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is preached; and in this I rejoice, yes, and will rejoice.” Philippians 1:15-18

I think Paul is saying something that parents and teachers say all the time. “Don’t you worry about what anybody else is doing; you just worry about yourself.” It’s none of our business what anybody else’s motives are. That’s God’s business.

As to our own motives, why do we want to serve God? Is it because we’re afraid that God will punish us if we don’t? Is it because we’ll feel guilty if we don’t serve? If either of those is true, then we’re missing the point. We’re still trying to prove to God that we’re worthy of His love and that’s legalism.

“Legal religion will not answer for this age. We may perform all the outward acts of service, and yet be as destitute of the quickening influence of the Holy Spirit as the hills of Gilboa were destitute of dew and rain. We all need spiritual moisture; and we need also the bright beams of the Sun of Righteousness to soften and subdue our hearts. We are always to be as firm as a rock to principle. Bible principles are to be taught, and then backed up by holy practice.” (E.G. White, Testimonies for the Church 6:417, 418)

Another issue is that no matter what it is, when we are motivated by fear and/or guilt, we don’t usually continue doing those things. They become a burden and we eventually quit, especially when we’re talking about something as personal as witnessing.

Witnessing because we have to instead of because we’re so in love with Jesus that we can’t help but tell people about Him is probably going to look and feel very differently to the people around us and to us. Have you ever been just talking to someone and suddenly that person’s whole look and attitude change? In the course of the conversation, you hit on something that he or she was passionate about. You can tell by the look on his face, by the excitement in his voice. He sits up straighter, and his eyes light up. There is no mistaking how he feels about that subject.

What do you look and sound like when you talk about Jesus? Are you preoccupied thinking about what to fix for dinner or what you feel you should be doing at work? Or are you “in the zone” talking about Someone you love more than you love your own life? Do you get excited when you talk about Jesus and what He’s done for you? Does every conversation you have come back around to Jesus because He’s always on your mind. Is His name always on the tip of your tongue?

I want to share this story with you. In an article he wrote for the Discipleship Journal,  author Jim White says, 

“I know a man named Hubert Mitchell who memorized the entire New Testament. As a former missionary in his sixties, he spent his days in downtown Chicago, going from office building to office building. Inside he would ask secretaries if he could have five minutes with their boss to talk about a personal matter. Frequently he would be ushered into the boss's office, and he would say, ‘I only have five minutes, but I want to ask you, did you read your Bible before you came to work this morning?’
“The boss would look at him as if he were crazy, and say,
‘No.’
“Hubert would smile and answer, ‘Sir, you sure missed a blessing, didn't you? I'd just like to share with you what God spoke about to me in the Bible this morning.’ He would open a New Testament and hand it to the boss, and say, ‘Let's start right here.’ Then Hubert would sit back and start quoting it word for word.
“The boss would listen, amazed. After five minutes, Hubert would say, ‘My time's up and I've got to go. Wasn't that a blessing?’ On most occasions the boss would ask him to stay longer, and they would talk.
“Hubert Mitchell led men to Christ all over downtown Chicago that way, because God's word was burning in his heart.”[1]

I want to be so in love with Jesus that I can’t keep Him to myself. I want everyone to know that He loves me so much that He couldn’t imagine His life without me, so He left Heaven and died so that we could be together forever. Jesus did it for you too. Don’t you want to tell everyone what He’s done for you?

“For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.” John 3:16 (AMP)

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[1] Jim White, "Motivation: For a Lifetime of Disciple-making," Discipleship Journal (May/June 1981)

Greed

How much of your life is motivated by greed?  Do you think there are people out there who are completely motivated by greed?  Bill Gates?  Donald Trump?  They seem like nice enough guys.  They give a bunch of money to charities.  It doesn’t look like they’re taking advantage of anybody to get more money.  Maybe they’re just really good at what they do.

Do you know anyone who you’d describe as greedy?  How would you define greed?   Somebody who wants more and more money, no matter how he (or she) gets it?  Or is that too narrow a definition?  Is it the driver who won’t merge at the end of a line of cars, but goes all the way to the front of the line and noses his way in there? (One of my pet peeves, obviously)  Can we always tell a greedy person just by looking?  Maybe not.  I’m thinking that probably all of us are greedy, otherwise, why would it bother me that that driver got in line in front of me?  Have you ever seen kids at a party with a piñata?  YIKES!  Never mind that we give kids a big stick and tell them to break something that someone made, but when it does break, we encourage our kids to get in there and grab as much candy as they can…hmmm. 

OK, so we’re all selfish, envious, and greedy, does that mean that anything we do to make money or make ourselves a better life is wrong?  Maybe…maybe not.  We’ve all heard about those folks who become so consumed by making “a better life” for their families that they completely lose touch with their spouses and children.  Their families feel cheated because all they really wanted was their mom or dad to spend some time with them.  Solomon found out that money and things weren’t what he really wanted at the end of his life.  God built us for relationships…with Him and with other people.

One of the questions that I might ask a student that I’m working with is, “Do you feel lonely even when there are other people around?”  And, kids being kids, he (or she) will usually look at me like I’m nuts and say, “No.”  But, sometimes, I’ll get a yes response and then I know that there are bigger issues to talk about.  So what do you do when you wake up some morning and realize that you are alone, even in a life full of people – wives, husbands, kids, friends, acquaintances, people you work with – alone.  How does that happen?

Sometimes, I think we are so busy just staying on schedule that we don’t have time to let other people in.  You meet folks in the hallway at work, and you nod and ask how it’s going, but neither of you expect or want any real kind of answer.  At home, you get up early, come home late, and with the kids’ homework, making/eating supper and the other evening type chores you may have in your life, you fall into bed without really talking to anyone again – and before you know it, you’re pretty much alone. 

Isn’t it wonderful to know that there is one day each week when we can pull away from deadlines, timelines and all the worldly things that clutter our lives?  What an incredible gift God has given us!  We have 24 hours to fill our loneliness with Him, with fellowship at church, and time with our families.  Saturday night the whirlwind starts up again, but for a little while, we have time. 

When my brother was just starting out as a pastor, he had a sermon in which he asked everyone in the congregation to take his shoes off, like God asked Moses to do at the burning bush.  His point was that any place where God had been was holy ground, and, if you think it through, then the Sabbath is the holy ground of time.  I liked that image so much that I wrote this “Psalm for the Sabbath”:

In the day of God’s Love, there is peacefulness.  Unlike all others is the day of the Lord.  In it He sings of His love for me.  I will not miss the Glory of the Sabbath; I will celebrate the majesty of God.Speak of the Sabbath with reverence; it is the Holy Ground of time… the most sacred room in the house of the King.  In that room you may whisper your praise to the Father and His ear will hear.And in that room, the voice of God will answer and say, “Welcome to my sacred place…my holiest of times.  Here we will speak together of love.  And, because you have elected to come, you are blessed above all others.“Then, when My holiest of rooms has passed, you will have, within yourself, a sacred room of your own that I have filled with strength and hope enough to last until my castle of solitude returns.”“Be at peace, My love will always stay in that room.And, my heart will answer, “Most blessed and joyous of days, hasten.  To be praised is the solitude of the King.”

I know it seems so obvious, and we look at Solomon and think that he’s such a dummy for loosing sight of what’s important – the only important thing – but don’t we forget almost everyday?  And we don’t have nearly the excuses that Solomon could claim!

I really believe that loving the Sabbath as a gift from a God who loves each of us and wants the very best for us, is the keystone of so many other things that we search for and long for.  And we can definitely break the bonds of oppression, greed, loneliness, and succession that Solomon is talking about in Ecclesiastes 4.  Sabbath is a day that brings everything back into perspective after Satan has done his best to skew them during the week.

I’m sure that it’s possible to go through the motions of keeping the Sabbath and not let yourself become engaged in the blessings and fellowship, but I would think that that would be really torturous.  I remember when I was a kid and only came to church because my mom made me and I could hardly stand to sit through church.  Sometimes I thought I would go crazy!  But as I grew older, I started to find reasons to enjoy Sabbath…one of them was, I didn’t have to do any homework on that day!  That was enough for me for quite a while!  In college (in Keene), I knew kids who were so driven that they would study right through Sabbath.  Well, firstly, I was never that driven to get a good grade, just ask my mom, and secondly, I think they were missing the point of going to an Adventist institution!  Also, they came out of the Sabbath more exhausted than when they started.  They may have gotten better grades that I did, but I learned to love the Sabbath and the blessings that come with it.  I learned to treasure that special time with God that I don’t always have time for during the week (I know; I’m working on it)

I think keeping Sabbath as though it is “the holy ground of time” is a big part of fixing what’s broken in me.  Sometimes, I get frustrated thinking that the stuff I need to get done this week can’t wait till sundown, but I’ve got to remind myself that Sabbath is a lot like tithe.  Earthly mathematics would tell us that it’s impossible to have more after you give something away.  But with God’s mathematics, when we give back our tithe, we don’t have 10% less; we have all we need.  When we spend our Sabbath’s learning to love God more, we don’t have 1/7^th less time to get all the other stuff done…  “The things of earth will grow strangely dim, by the light of his glory and grace.”

We won’t be oppressed because the Truth has set us free.  We won’t be greedy because God has filled our hearts with His contentment.  We won’t be lonely because He promised to be with us and in us always.  And we don’t have to worry about who will succeed us because we are God’s children, and He will make that decision.  Isn’t God good?

The Tragedy of Almost

Commentary on the Sabbath School Lesson dated 12.18.10

“A fascinating study done by Professor Vicki Medvec reveals the relative importance of subjective attitudes over and above objective circumstances. Medvec studied Olympic medalists and discovered that bronze medalists were quantifiably happier than silver medalists. Here's why: Silver medalists tended to focus on how close they came to winning gold, so they weren't satisfied with silver; bronze medalists tended to focus on how close they came to not winning a medal at all, so they were just as happy to be on the medal stand.”[1]

How do you feel about coming in second – being almost best?  Maybe once or twice isn’t too bad, but what about time after time?  What if you had to spend all your time with the person who always comes in first or actually worked for that person?  A man named Gehazi experienced just that.

Do you remember him?  Gehazi was the faithful side-kick of Elisha, and he really was faithful for a long time.  But somewhere along the way, something changed.  By the time Naaman came to see Elisha, Gehazi must really have been feeling the sting of being second.

“Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, ‘Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.’

“The prophet answered, ‘As surely as the LORD lives, whom I serve, I will not accept a thing.’ And even though Naaman urged him, he refused.

“‘Go in peace,’ Elisha said. …

“After Naaman had traveled some distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, ‘My master was too easy on Naaman, this Aramean, by not accepting from him what he brought. As surely as the LORD lives, I will run after him and get something from him.’

“So Gehazi hurried after Naaman. When Naaman saw him running toward him, he got down from the chariot to meet him. ‘Is everything all right?’ he asked.

“‘Everything is all right,’ Gehazi answered. ‘My master sent me to say, “Two young men from the company of the prophets have just come to me from the hill country of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two sets of clothing.”’  2 Kings 5:15-22

Why?  Why do you think Gehazi did that?  I can’t imagine it was the first time Elisha had refused gifts of gratitude from people who he had helped.  What made this time different?

Maybe it was because Naaman wasn’t a Jew.  Maybe it was the amount of the reward.  Maybe it was just the cumulative effect of all the rewards that Elisha had turned down before?  Think about it.  Elisha and Gehazi had been traveling and working together for years.  Prophets don’t seem to have lived lavish, or even comfortable lives and there goes Elisha turning down another gift that, to Gehazi’s mind, would have taken some of the discomfort out of their daily activities.  And he snapped.  He wasn’t going to watch that wealth ride away with Naaman.

It was a similar issue that caused Judas to “turn to the dark side” too, wasn’t it?  In fact, there are several similarities between Judas and Gehazi.  I don’t know how long Gehazi and Elisha had been working together, but it seems to have been several years.  Judas traveled with Jesus for over 3 years.  Both Elisha and Jesus performed all kinds of miracles.  Both Jesus and Elisha lived simply, focused on serving others.  Both Judas and Gehazi seemed to be getting the message.  They went through the motions anyway.  And then, one day, greed got them in trouble.

I believe it was more than just simple greed though.  I think it was a lack of respect for the person in the number 1 spot.  It seems like both Gehazi and Judas somehow were getting the wrong message:  instead of seeing the selfless service and caring of Jesus and Elisha, they began to reinterpret their position as “handler” rather than companion. 

Companion and handler may look the same in many ways, but different in one crucial area.  A handler is someone who monitors and maybe even corrects the behavior of the person he (or she) handles.  A very subtle sense of superiority creeps into the relationship and the handler begins to see himself as actually the most important person involved, making it easier for him to begin to lose his sense of awe at the greatness of the other person.  From there it’s a short hop to believing that he should really be the one making the decisions and wielding the power. 

“The heart not given entirely to the control of Jesus Christ has a door open for Satan to enter, and the archdeceiver weaves about the soul ingenious apologies in performing its hidden purposes of evil. All these excuses and pretensions are seen of God, and are as spiderwebs in the eyes of Him who never slumbers or sleeps. Oh, how readily will the human soul find poor and wretched excuses to deceive and cover up its own course of evil, which it pursues. There is an exact judge who weigheth actions. He cannot be deceived, neither can He be mocked. He will one day strike off the covering, unveil the conscience, and sweep away these excuses as smoke.”[2]

Do we sometimes think we know better than God – that we should take control of our own lives?  That’s exactly where the enemy wants us.  Beware…

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[1] Mark Batterson, In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day(Multnomah, 2006), p. 68

[2] E.G. White, Christ Triumphant, page 171