Our motivations are what drives our lives.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV
I’ve had some interesting experiences in my life with many different types of people. The one thing I can put my finger on in every single person I’ve met is what drives them. Some people are driven by addiction; that next high from drugs, alcohol, food, shopping, or sex. Others I’ve met are driven by adrenaline; the next big event or outing. Some are driven by greed and money; the next business deal that will bring the next paycheck. Some are driven by hate, anger, and bitterness. They want everyone around them to pay for the pain they are in or that they think someone else caused them. Regardless of what we are driven by we must get to the place in which we are driven by something more pure.
By far, the people that intrigue me the most are the ones that are driven by the most powerful force on earth. Love. The list goes on of people who intrigue me and make me want to be more like Jesus.
The importance of being motivated by love is paramount to our lives. When we serve our children or our spouse out of love it purifies our motives. It gets us above the life of “tit-for-tat” and a “point system” that regards acts of service or amounts of money as equals to love. Those may be how we show love but that aren’t love. Love is the force of God. It is the life of God.
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. -1 John 4:16 NIV
Love is what kept Jesus on the cross. It was the great motivator for our Savior and it should be for us. If you are into making someone pay or taking from everyone around you, then you aren’t living in love and your motivation is sinful. Jesus brought us into a New Testament theology, regarding our hearts and motivations as what keeps us in right standing before God, not our behavior. Our hearts, thoughts, motivations, and inward life is what God wants to change and purify. These are what drives our behavior. Our inward condition is what determines our exterior exhibition.
The greatest motivation in our lives should be love. So how’s your heart?
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Please leave your thoughts if you feel led and let’s continue the conversation! May God bless you!
