“Inconsistencies!” Devotional #36

            For most of my adulthood I have had issues with consistency.  I’m great at starting things but terrible at finishing them.  I have started jobs, projects and church volunteer work with great gusto, passion and enthusiasm.  When people would get excited, enthused or would start to depend on my performance, behavior or my work that’s when I’d start becoming a procrastinator and would find reasons to quit.  Quitting became a bad habit of mine.  It got so bad that after a while quitting became way too easy to do.

            The consequences of becoming a quitter have been really difficult to endure.  Here’s a snapshot into my past inconsistencies.  When I was in college I was enthusiastic and dreamt of receiving my diploma.  In my third year of college, when I was in the program for the degree I found myself disappointed.  I didn’t like the program.  I was bored and unhappy.  Shortly after this I quit school.  Since I was no longer in school I decided to go to work full time.  Jumping from one job to the next became my pattern.  I worked because I needed the money not because I enjoyed what I was doing.  It was because of this lack of enthusiasm that the longest I worked at one place was two years.

            Am I proud of this behavior?  No!  Of course I’m not.  I have lost a lot because of it.  I have lost respect from my peers (who likes a quitter?).  I have lost out on opportunities to grow with a company (I’d quit once the pressure was on to really pursue a promotion).  I have lost out on opportunities for leadership growth as a volunteer at various times in the church (the procrastination problem left too many bad impressions).

            Why am I sharing this with you my dear friend?  It is because the inconsistencies in my life have cost me a lot.  It may be costing you a lot too.  Why is it so easy to fall into patterns of failure?  Psalm 125:1, “All who have faith in the Eternal stand as Mount Zion: unmoved, enduring, eternal.” (VOICE)  “Unmoved” means “not affected emotionally: having or showing no emotional reaction to something when it would usually be expected.”  “Enduring” means “1. persisting or surviving: persisting or surviving in the face of difficulties 2. long-suffering: patient or tolerant despite many difficulties.”  “Eternal” means “unchanging: unaffected by the passage of time.”  (All definitions are from: Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2005 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.)

            My inconsistency was that I’d do the opposite of what Psalm 125:1 says.  I was not someone who was “unmoved” because it seemed as though I couldn’t wait to move on to something else.  I was not someone who was “enduring” because once the task of a job, schooling or volunteering became difficult I’d quit.  I was definitely not “eternal” either.  Do you know why I became a quitter?  Do you know why I was unwilling to accept responsibility?  My fear of disappointing anyone was greater than my fear of failing, though I feared failing too.  So, in order to not disappoint anyone with my failure I’d quit before I could fail.

            I now know, through many convictions from the Almighty, that due to the inconsistencies of my life I became a bonafide quitter and that because I was bonafide quitter the Lord was not going to bless me with great responsibilities that would bring great “rewards” (blessings).  Because, if, for example, I was unwilling to make the best of the situation with an entry level position and therefore “endure” through it then how in the world would I be able to handle a management position which comes with even greater responsibilities and trials. Like the Parable of the Loaned Money found in Mathew 25:14-26, in this parable the Lord explains how a man gave his servants different amounts of “talents.”  At the end of the parable he says about the one that only received one, Mathew 25:26, “The master was furious. Master: You are a pathetic excuse for a servant! You have disproved my trust in you and squandered my generosity. You know I always make a profit!  You could have at least put this talent in the bank; then I could have earned a little interest on it!  Take that one talent away, and give it to the servant who doubled my money from five to ten.” (VOICE)

            My dear friend, I am pleased to share with you that this area of my life has changed.  Thankfully the Lord has helped me overcome and I am now a consistent person.  There have been temptations to quit but I know that I can “endure” because the Lord can and will help me through.  Psalm 125:2, “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people both now and forevermore.” (NIV)  Philipians 4:13, “I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” (NIV)  Ephesians 5:15, “So be careful how you live. Live as men who are wise and not foolish.” (NLV)

 

My dear friend, thank you for reading this devotional.  Know that I appreciate you and am praying for you.  Thanks for passing on this blog to others!  Please continue to pass it on.  Also, I have a Facebook page for the ministry!  It’s a great way to get updates on the ministry and when the latest devotionals have been posted on this blog.  I also started posting “Thought of the day.” They’re short reads and have gotten great reviews.  Come and join by pressing “like!” on the page:  www.facebook.com/ReflectingTruthMinistries  God bless you! 

*If you would like to read this same devotional in Spanish or know of someone that would please visit my Spanish blog at www.ministerioreflejandolaverdad.blogspot.com