Are We Working Our Heads Off For Nothing?

Life can be lived one of two ways.

It is a daily struggle not live life for myself, pursuing only what is in my best interest and what will boost my rapport among those I admire. I have been influenced from a tender age that I am to put myself first and do whatever is necessary to establish wealth, position and power; essentially who we are, what we do, and how much we make, will establish our social status, credibility and worth.

Though I tried to follow these guidelines to success, I realized that no satisfaction is attained through this way of living. Getting my own way makes me happy for a moment but leaves me only desiring more. This reading below summed it up really well for me:

It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic show religion; paranoid loneliness; cut throat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

But what happens when we live God's way?

He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard----things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.

(The Message)

Backbone Vs. Wishbone

"I wish I was thin"
"I wish I had a better job"
"I wish my relationships were better"
"I wish I was out of debt"

I wish, I wish, I wish....

How often do we hear these types of statements? And how often do we find ourselves muttering these very same ideas? Wishing only creates delusions in our reality. It's time to press through the pain of discipline and direct our ambitions in to action.

"At the time-being no discipline brings joy, it seems grievous and painful, but afterward it yields a peaceable fruit of righteousness to those that have been trained by it"

As Joyce Meyer put it, "You pay now, or you pay later, but sooner or later everybody's going to pay".

We must begin to make right choices even while we don't feel like it. The majority of our battle is pressing through the pain of feelings, so that we might move forward in success. Though in the present no discipline seems joyous, nevertheless later on...
Let us get motivated by the "later on"! The price we pay now is small in comparison to the rewards we will reap later! Discipline will provide for us a sturdy backbone so that we might function properly and with efficiency enabling us to live with vitality.

Imagine the limitations placed on an individual who is De-conditioned or has developed a spinal injury. As a result of their immobility, inflammation and degeneration occur unless disciplined action is taken. Though the beginning training phases will likely cause discomfort and soreness, it is essential if the individual desires to retain strength and functionability in the long term. The pain will only increase if the individual takes no action. Who, with the knowledge of the alternate outcome, would decline a rehabilitation training? We all want the freedom to move about independently and live life to the fullest, so why is it that we slack when it comes to our mental and emotional state?

Let us implement a focused discipline toward our wishful wants, and let us not settle for less then the best God has for us! We die where we settle. We might not die physically, but our dreams die, our visions die, our zeal dies, our passion dies, our enthusiasm for life dies...

Why? Because we aren't pressing in to the best God has for us; we simply didn't want the pain.
Unfortunately, we end up with the pain anyway. We are going to hurt one way or the other, it's just the type of pain we choose. There is no worse pain then an unfulfilled, dissatisfied life because we know in our heart we didn't have the courage to press in.

Pay now, or pay later...but sooner or later we're all going to pay.