Think of some things you’ve done and accomplished. What was the motivation behind them? What drove you to accomplish them? I’ve been motivated by money in order to get something done. I’ve been motivated to be the best so much that it pushed me to my limits. I’ve been motivated by wanting to prove people wrong. I’ve also been motivated by my pride so that I was seen and praised. However, to be motivated by love is completely different. That causes us to go above and beyond. When asked what the greatest commandment is, Jesus told them that it was to love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. Then He said that the second one was to love others as we love ourselves. Love for God and others should motivate our actions.
In 2 Samuel 9 King David asked if there was anyone left alive in the House of Saul whom he could show kindness to because of his love for Jonathan. They told him that one of Jonathan’s sons had survived, but he had become crippled while being carried from his home once word came out that the king and Jonathan had been killed. This son, Mephibosheth, had been living in fear since he was young that the new king would find him and kill him to end the line of Saul. When he was summoned to the king, I’m sure he was terrified as he arrived. However, love casts out fear, and what he discovered was a man motivated by love and not fear of losing his kingdom. He was invited to stay there and sit at the kings table all the days of his life. This act of love from David pulled Mephibosheth from a life of hiding and obscurity into the life he was born into. He lived a life of abundance from then on and David was blessed because of his act of love.
1 Corinthians 16:14 says, “Let everything you do be done in love [motivated and inspired by God’s love for us]” (AMP). We love because God loved us first. We are to be motivated by that love in everything we do. Going back to my initial question, what’s the motivation behind what you’re planning to do? If it’s anything other than love, it’s time to reconsider how being motivated by love would change your actions. It’s not easy to do everything with a love that unselfishly seeks the betterment of others. We have to fight our selfish nature that wants to do things that are motivated by making you feel better, that benefit you and or bring attention to you. That is the opposite of what the Bible is asking us to do. Our motivating factors should be a love that honors God and benefits Him or honors and benefits others. It’s not easy, but it’s right.
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
Devotions by Chris Hendrix 